Rotary Equipment CFD Simulation Training Course ANSYS Fluent

This project involves the numerical simulation of a lobe pump using ANSYS Fluent software. Pumps transfer liquids by increasing pressure to move fluids to different heights. Mechanical energy from an engine powers the pump, increasing fluid energy.

Pumps operate via dynamic or displacement methods. Lobe pumps, a common positive displacement rotary pump type, use two lobes rotating oppositely. The lobes trap fluid as they come close, then push it to the outlet when they separate.

In this simulation, water flow inside the pump is modeled, capturing the transient rotation of the lobes which dynamically affects fluid behavior. The geometry is built in Design Modeler and meshed in ANSYS Meshing with about 128,000 cells.

A dynamic mesh method tracks lobe rotation and mesh deformation, controlled via a user-defined function (UDF). The transient solver captures time-dependent behavior.

Results include pressure and velocity contours and animations showing the pump effectively increasing fluid pressure and moving fluid trapped between lobes toward the outlet.

This project simulates a diaphragm pump using ANSYS Fluent. Pumps move liquids by converting mechanical energy, often from a motor, to increase fluid energy and pressure. Pumps are categorized as positive displacement (including rotary and reciprocating types) or dynamic. The diaphragm pump is a reciprocating positive displacement pump, where a flexible membrane moves up and down to draw fluid in via the intake valve and push it out through the outlet valve.

In this simulation, the water flow and the reciprocating motion of the membrane are modeled. The geometry is designed in Design Modeler, representing the internal pump space with the moving membrane. The mesh, created with ANSYS Meshing, contains about 222,986 unstructured cells.

The dynamic mesh model handles the mesh deformation caused by the wall's wave-like motion, defined by a user-defined function (UDF) for grid motion. This transient simulation captures time-dependent fluid behavior.

Results include animated contours of pressure and velocity showing how the membrane's reciprocating motion produces alternating suction and compression phases at the valves, effectively pumping fluid.

This project focuses on simulating an Internal Gear Pump using ANSYS Fluent software. Pumps transfer liquids by increasing pressure, moving fluids to different elevations. Mechanical energy from an external source powers the pump, raising the fluid’s energy.

Pumps are categorized into dynamic and positive displacement types, with positive displacement pumps further split into rotary (gear, lobe, vane) and reciprocating pumps. Internal gear pumps comprise two gears rotating in the same direction, one inside the other. As the gears’ teeth mesh and separate, fluid is trapped and pushed through the crescent-shaped flow path to the outlet.

The model’s 3D geometry, created in Design Modeler, includes two non-concentric gears and a crescent. The mesh, developed by ANSYS Meshing, contains about 50,000 unstructured cells.

Using ANSYS Fluent’s Dynamic Mesh Model, the simulation captures the transient rotation of the gears, deforming the mesh dynamically with a user-defined function (UDF) controlling rigid body motion. The transient solver handles time-dependent fluid flow.

Results display pressure and velocity contours and animations of velocity vectors. The simulation confirms the pump’s proper operation by effectively transferring fluid and increasing pressure as fluid is trapped between gears and pushed toward the outlet.

This project focuses on simulating cavitation in a gerotor pump using ANSYS Fluent CFD. Gerotor pumps are widely used in hydraulic systems for fluid transfer but can suffer performance loss due to cavitation. Understanding cavitation is critical for improving pump efficiency and durability.

A detailed 2D model of the inner and outer rotors was created in ANSYS Design Modeler, meshed with about 50,000 elements in ANSYS Meshing. The simulation used a pressure-based transient solver with SIMPLE algorithm and first-order upwind schemes for momentum and turbulence.

A multiphase mixture model simulated water and its vapor phase to capture cavitation. The RNG k−ϵ model handled turbulence. Dynamic mesh with user-defined functions controlled inner and outer rotor rotation at specified speeds.

Results showed pressure and velocity contours pinpointing cavitation-prone low-pressure zones. Volume fraction and animations illustrated vapor formation and flow patterns during rotor cycles. These insights can guide design changes to reduce cavitation impacts and enhance pump life.

This project models and simulates heat conduction in a brake disk system using ANSYS Fluent. The brake disk spins at 20 rad/s while a braking pad contacts it, generating heat from friction. This heat dissipates through conduction in the disk and pad.

The simulation adopts energy and laminar flow models, activating the Multiple Reference Frame (MRF) approach to represent the disk's rotational motion. A user-defined function (UDF) calculates radial heat flux in the system.

The geometry includes a brake disk, pad, and airflow domain, designed and meshed with Gambit software using a hybrid mesh of about 198,594 elements. The solver is pressure-based and steady-state, ignoring gravity effects.

Boundary conditions include a velocity inlet airflow at 10 m/s and temperature at 300 K. Walls apply stationary conditions. Pressure-velocity coupling uses the SIMPLE algorithm with first-order upwind schemes.

Results provide temperature contours, surface heat flux, Nusselt number distribution, surface enthalpy, and airflow streamlines demonstrating cooling effects on the brake disk.

This project uses ANSYS Fluent to investigate thermal management of an electronic engine with and without water spray cooling. The study compares cooling effectiveness using the Discrete Phase Model (DPM) to simulate water sprays.

Geometry creation employed SpaceClaim, and meshing with about seven million elements was done in ANSYS Meshing. The simulation was performed with a pressure-based solver and standard k-ε turbulence model, incorporating species transport and two-way coupled DPM for droplet dynamics.

Rotating zones were modeled with frame motion at 1500 RPM, and the SIMPLE algorithm was used for pressure-velocity coupling. Two cases were analyzed: base cooling without spray and enhanced cooling with water spray injection.

Results demonstrate improved cooling with water spray, evident in temperature contours and flow patterns. Particle residence time analysis revealed water droplets' behavior and cooling impact, validating spray cooling as an effective thermal control method.

This project simulates well drilling and the separation of sludge using ANSYS Fluent. Inside a cylindrical well, a rotating cylindrical body spins at 100 rpm, stirring a non-Newtonian drilling fluid mixed with mud particles. The Eulerian multiphase model simulates two phases: the primary phase is a non-Newtonian fluid (CMC) and the secondary phase is mud particles.

Non-Newtonian fluids differ from Newtonian ones as their viscosity changes with applied force, modeled here by the Herschel-Bulkley law. The CMC fluid has a density of 1271.477 kg/m³ and mud particles have a density of 2000 kg/m³.

The geometry, built in Design Modeler, comprises two eccentric cylinders, 10 m long. The mesh, unstructured with 179,820 elements, was created in ANSYS Meshing.

A pressure-based transient solver using the standard k−ωk−ω turbulence model and Eulerian multiphase formulation was used. Boundary conditions feature velocity inlets with defined volume fractions and a pressure outlet. Inner and outer walls have rotational and stationary motions respectively.

Results include 2D and 3D contours showing pressure, velocities, volume fractions, and turbulent kinetic energy, offering insights into particle separation mechanisms during drilling.