Non-Condensation Turbulence Models with Different Near-Wall Treatments and Solvers Comparative Research for Three-Dimensional Steam Ejectors

Yiqiao Li (), Hao Huang, Dingli Duan, Shengqiang Shen, Dan Zhou and Siyuan Liu
Additional contact information
Yiqiao Li: Zhan Tianyou College, Dalian Jiaotong University, Dalian 116028, China
Hao Huang: Zhan Tianyou College, Dalian Jiaotong University, Dalian 116028, China
Dingli Duan: Department of Thermal Energy and Power Engineering, Yantai University, Yantai 264005, China
Shengqiang Shen: School of Energy and Power Engineering, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian 116024, China
Dan Zhou: Bingshan Refrigeration & Heat Transfer Technologies Co., Ltd., Dalian 116630, China
Siyuan Liu: Zhan Tianyou College, Dalian Jiaotong University, Dalian 116028, China

Energies, 2024, vol. 17, issue 22, 1-21

Abstract: Steam ejectors are important energy-saving equipment for solar thermal energy storage; however, a numerical simulation research method has not been agreed upon. This study contributes to a comprehensive selection of turbulence models, near-wall treatments, geometrical modeling (2-D and 3-D), solvers, and models (condensation and ideal-gas) in the RANS equations approach for steam ejectors through validation with experiments globally and locally. The turbulence models studied are k-ε Standard, k-ε RNG , k-ε Realizable, k-ω Standard, k-ω SST, Transition SST, and linear Reynolds Stress. The near-wall treatments assessed are Standard Wall Functions, Non-equilibrium Wall Functions, and Enhanced Wall Treatment. The solvers compared are pressure-based and density-based solvers. The root causes of their distinctions in terms of simulation results, applicable conditions, convergence, and computational cost are explained and compared. The complex phenomena involving shock waves, choking, and vapor condensation captured by different models are discussed. The internal connections of their performance and flow phenomena are analyzed from the mechanism perspective. The originality of this study is that both condensation and 3-D asymmetric effects on the simulation results are considered. The results indicate that the k-ω SST non-equilibrium condensation model coupling the low-Re boundary conditions has the most accurate prediction results, best convergence, and fit for the widest range of working conditions. A 3-D asymmetric condensation model with a density-based solver is recommended for simulating steam ejectors accurately.

Keywords: non-equilibrium condensation; near-wall treatments; RANS; steam ejectors; three-dimensional effect; turbulence model; solvers (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/17/22/5586/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/17/22/5586/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jeners:v:17:y:2024:i:22:p:5586-:d:1516978

Access Statistics for this article

Energies is currently edited by Ms. Agatha Cao

More articles in Energies from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().