A Numerical Study on the Impact of Filling Level on Liquid Sloshing Pressures

Abstract

Sloshing is a critical phenomenon in Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) containments in terms of impact loads on the walls of the tank. The peak impact pressures and its location in the tank during sloshing depend on tank fill levels, period and amplitude of oscillation of the tank. In the present study, numerical investigations were carried out on the sloshing motions in a two-dimensional tank at various fill levels due to sway excitation. The two-phase flow was modeled using finite volumes and the Volume-Of-Fluid (VOF) technique using the commercial software FLUENT®. The fill levels were varied from 10–95%, and the excitation time periods were varied from 0.8–2.8 s for constant sway amplitude of 0.25m (peak-peak) at 1:30 scale. The proposed numerical model gives the average peak pressures and peak pressure locations required for the future experiments to be conducted in a laboratory.