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A numerical study on the flow control characteristic of a cavitating venturi with one- and two-stage diffusers

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Abstract

A cavitating venturi in the auxiliary feed water system of a nuclear power plant is a flow control device that limits the maximum flow rate in critical conditions. In this research, a numerical study was conducted to predict the characteristics of the cavitating flow in a venturi with various geometrical configurations. Assuming axisymmetric geometry and a steady state, equations of the flow field were solved numerically. The mixture model for the multi-phase flow and the standard k-ε turbulence model were adopted. The primary diffuser angle was varied to perform detailed parametric study. The flow and pressure variations, shape of the cavitation bubble, and corresponding flow control characteristics were summarized. Finally, the calculation results were analyzed to provide a physical basis for the design limits proposed in a previous patent. It is expected that the results of this study will be useful information for the future design of an optimized venturi.

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Abbreviations

A :

Cross section area

C d :

Discharge coefficient

\({C_{{d_c}}}\) :

Discharge coefficient with cavitation

\({C_{{d_{nc}}}}\) :

Discharge coefficient without cavitation

K :

Pressure loss coefficient

ṁ :

Mass flow rate

ṁ c :

Mass flow rate with cavitation

ṁ nc :

Mass flow rate without cavitation

P :

Pressure

P r :

Pressure ratio

P u :

Critical pressure of the working fluid

Q :

Volume flow rate

Q r :

Volume flow rate ratio

R :

Mass transfer rate

Re :

Reynolds number

t :

Time

U, u :

Velocity

\(\overrightarrow {{V_v}} \) :

Velocity of vapor

x :

Throat length

α :

Angle of the first diffuser

β :

Angle of the second diffuser

ε :

Turbulence dissipation rate

Φ :

Vapor volume fraction

κ :

Turbulence kinetic energy

μ :

Viscosity

ρ :

Density

σ :

Cavitation number

l :

Liquid

m :

Mixture

v :

Vapor

in :

Inlet of cavitating venturi

out :

Outlet of cavitating venturi

th :

Throat of cavitating venturi nozzle

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) grant funded by the Korea government (MSIT) (No. 2018R1D1A1B07046034). This research was also supported by the Technology Innovation Program (20000201) funded by the Ministry of Trade, Industry & Energy (MOTIE, Korea).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Nuclear Engineering, Graduate School, Pusan National University, Busan, 46241, Korea

    Hee Jin Hwang

  2. School of Mechanical Engineering, Pusan National University, Busan, 46241, Korea

    Jaehyun Park & June Kee Min

Authors
  1. Hee Jin Hwang
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  2. Jaehyun Park
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  3. June Kee Min
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to June Kee Min.

Additional information

Recommended by Editor Yang Na

Hee Jin Hwang received her M.S. in Nuclear Engineering from the Pusan National University, Korea. She is also working for Korean Hydro & Nuclear Power. Her research interest includes design and management of secondary water system in the nuclear power plant.

June Kee Min received his Ph.D. degree from Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Korea, in 1999. Currently, he is a Professor at the School of Mechanical Engineering at Pusan National University in Busan, Korea. His research interest focuses on the development of advanced CFD models for various complicated flow and heat transfer problems.

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Hwang, H.J., Park, J. & Min, J.K. A numerical study on the flow control characteristic of a cavitating venturi with one- and two-stage diffusers. J Mech Sci Technol 35, 1463–1472 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12206-021-0312-y

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