Comparison of advanced turbulence models for the Taylor-Couette flow

Abstract

Swirling flows of fluids and gases are an integral part of many complex flows which are widely encountered in nature and technology. The working process of numerous technical devices (cyclones, vortex combustion chambers, air separators, gas and steam turbines, electric machines and generators, etc.) is generally determined by the laws of hydrodynamics and heat exchange of rotating flows. The problem of deriving general laws for a turbulent flow in the field of centrifugal forces provokes considerable scientific interest since it belongs to an underdeveloped field of hydromechanics. Therefore, mathematical modeling of swirling turbulent flows is still an urgent problem. In this paper, a comparative analysis of the advanced turbulence models for the Taylor -Couette flow is carried out. For this purpose, the linear turbulence models (SARC and SST-RC), the Reynolds stress method SSG/LRR-RSM-w2012, and a two-fluid model are used. The results obtained using these models are compared with each other and with known experimental data and direct numerical simulation results. The numerical results calculated with the use of turbulence models for the Taylor-Couette flow confirm that almost all the models adequately describe velocity profiles. However, they yield different turbulent viscosity values and, as a result, different friction coefficients. A comparison of the numerical results shows that the friction coefficient calculated using a two-fluid turbulence model is the closest to that obtained experimentally.