Prediction of gas-core vortices during draining of liquid propellants from tanks

Agarwal, D. D.; Basu, Prateep; Tharakan, T. John; Salih, A.

doi:10.1016/j.ast.2013.12.001

Cited by 22 publications

(13 citation statements)

References 8 publications

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“…To particularly note, at the highest value of 2 (equals 1 ), vortex air core formation is completely suppressed where maximum possible flow discharge is enabled through both the ports. In the case of liquid propellant storage tanks with single port draining which is the usual case of application, vortex formation prevents the outlet discharge of the propellant to the engine adversely affecting the launch capability (Agarwal et al, 2014). As already discussed, introducing two drain ports instead of one (equivalent port) at identical conditions would suppress vortex formation to a significant extent of about 44%.…”

Section: A Mathematical Treatment To the Observed Featuresmentioning

confidence: 96%

“…Quite interestingly, in the case of eccentric ports, port eccentricity itself act as a vortex suppressor (Sohn et al, 2008) and enables a bigger critical port size as revealed by AjithKumar et al (2017). However, it is thought that, when we employ a single eccentric drain port, eccentric location of the port is very likely to induce an overturning couple in space systems such as in liquid propellant tanks (Agarwal et al, 2014). This problem could be eliminated by adopting two eccentric ports for liquid draining from vessels/tanks.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Rankine Vortex Formation during Draining: A New Twin Port Suppression Strategy

Prabhu

Kumar

Gopikrishnan

et al. 2020

JAFM

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This paper reveals the results of a study of vortex air core formation (Rankine vortex) when a rotated liquid (water) column in a cylindrical vessel is drained through two ports located at equal eccentricity (e) at the vessel base (diameter, 1 and 2) simultaneously; 1 is fixed whereas 2 is varied. Just before draining, a rotation (n rpm) is provided to the liquid column in controlled conditions. As draining progresses, when the liquid level reaches certain height called critical height (ℎ), initially a surface dip forms which further develops in to a vortex extending down till the drain port. Results show that critical height increases as the fluid rotation rate increases at the lowest eccentricity. But, at higher eccentricities, ℎ , exhibits more or less an increasingdecreasing trend in most of the cases studied. Critical height is observed to be minimum for the largest value of 2 (equal to 1) irrespective of the values of the speed of fluid rotation, liquid initial height and port eccentricity. To particularly note, at the highest eccentricity, vortex formation is found to be completely suppressed for all values of port diameter (2) and initial fluid rotation (n) as indicated by the near-zero critical height values. The tangential velocity measurements using Particle Image Velocimetry are also reported. PIV results obtained for certain cases with induced fluid rotation (normal draining and faster draining) correlate well with the changes in the efflux (axial) velocity (deduced analytically) in these cases studied. The tangential velocity along radial direction obtained (PIV) also indicated the type of vortex formed in normal and faster draining cases. Video visualization of vortex formation carried out reveals that, vortex air core switching takes place between the drain ports maintaining an arched or curvilinear surface profile apart from demonstrating the nature of outlet flow discharge. All the vortex air core formation studies so far carried out were invariably with single drain port except the preliminary novel study by the same author group and the present study is a detailed extension of that novel study.

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Section: A Mathematical Treatment To the Observed Featuresmentioning

confidence: 96%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Rankine Vortex Formation during Draining: A New Twin Port Suppression Strategy

Prabhu

Kumar

Gopikrishnan

et al. 2020

JAFM

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“…Therefore, it is important to study and estimate the formation of gas vortex during draining of the liquid propellant. Various researchers have successfully proven the usability of VOF method to capture the formation of vortex during liquid draining [4][5][6].…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

Numerical Study of the Liquid Oxygen Draining in a Spinning Tank with Baffles for Hybrid-Propulsion Rocket

2023

5th ISSE National Conference (INAC-05) on Systems Approach for Self-Reliance in Advanced Technologies

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Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) study of liquid oxygen draining in a spinning tank with and without baffles is carried out for hybrid propulsion rocket. The effect of tank spinning and the presence of baffles on the vortex formation and unusable propellant mass is brought out in this work. The interface of the draining propellant is captured using the Volume of Fluid (VOF) framework while the motion of baffles is simulated through mesh motion technique. Initially, analysis of liquid oxygen draining is carried out in a stationary tank without baffles. It is found that that a vortex is formed in the tank and gas entry in the feed line happens at 21s resulting in unusable propellant of 1.9kg. Subsequent analysis of liquid draining in a spinning tank without baffles shows that gas enters into the feed line earlier as compared to the stationary tank. Finally, the analysis is carried out for propellant draining in spinning tank with baffles. It is found that the momentum imparted by the baffles to the draining fluid increases the unusable propellant mass further compared to tank without baffle.

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“…Draining of liquid from a storage tank under gravity has several applications ranging from spacecraft, and nuclear industries to bathtubs and kitchen sinks, etc. − Air entertainment is an undesirable phenomenon that happens inside the drainpipe during draining. Air entrainment is expanded inside the drainpipe through the development of an air vortex.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Computational Investigation of the Role of Eccentricity and Wall Wettability on Liquid Draining from a Storage Tank

Rathaur

Ghosh

2023

Ind. Eng. Chem. Res.

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The present work numerically examines the influence of tank wall wettability and drain port location on vortex formation and subsequent bubble dynamics inside the drainpipe. A square cross-sectional tank is used for this purpose. The dimension of the tank is typically smaller, and such tanks are often used in the pharmaceutical and cosmetic industries and patterning on solid surfaces. However, draining characteristics might be different as, unlike larger-dimension storage tanks, the surface force can play a significant role in this case. Three different port positions and four different contact angles are used in this study. Water is used as a draining liquid. The volume of fluid method is used for tracking the interface between the two phases. The 3D model is validated against experimental results. A hydrophobic wall suppresses the formation of an air core vortex for the central port location completely. Instead, a larger water drop is formed at the top of the drainpipe inlet. This drop takes time to break into smaller daughter drops and enter the drainpipe. Hence, the drain time increases for the hydrophobic contact angle for the central port. Drain time reduces significantly for eccentric locations with the hydrophobic wall. A combination of contact angle and extreme eccentricity was found to be effective for the quick draining of liquid from the smaller-dimension square tank.

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Prediction of gas-core vortices during draining of liquid propellants from tanks

Cited by 22 publications

References 8 publications

Rankine Vortex Formation during Draining: A New Twin Port Suppression Strategy

Rankine Vortex Formation during Draining: A New Twin Port Suppression Strategy

Numerical Study of the Liquid Oxygen Draining in a Spinning Tank with Baffles for Hybrid-Propulsion Rocket

Computational Investigation of the Role of Eccentricity and Wall Wettability on Liquid Draining from a Storage Tank

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