Predicting Fly Ash Accumulation in a Fossil Power Plant Flue Gas Duct Using Computational Fluid Dynamics

Author(s):  
S. Pal ◽  
Leonard Peltier ◽  
Mitchell Krasnopoler ◽  
Kelly J. Knight ◽  
Jonathan Berkoe

During the startup of a new fossil power plant, a high level of fly ash accumulation (higher than predicted) was encountered in the flue gas ducting upstream of a fluidized bed scrubber. The level of fly ash accumulation made it necessary to manually withdraw fly ash using a vacuum truck after short periods of operation, at less than 80% maximum continuous rating (MCR). This paper presents a simple method for rapid assessment of fly ash accumulation in flue gas ducts using steady state single phase Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulation of flue gas flow. The propensity for fly ash accumulation in a duct is predicted using calculated wall shear stresses from CFD coupled with estimates for the critical shear stresses required for mobilization of settled solids. Critical values for the mobilization stresses are determined from the Shields relations for incipient motion of particles in a packed bed with given fly ash particle size and density as inputs. Solids accumulation is possible where the wall shear stress magnitude is less than the critical shear stress for mobilization calculated from the Shields relations. Predictions of incipient fly ash accumulation based on the coupled CFD/Shields relations model correlate well with plant startup field observations. Fly ash accumulation was not observed in a related physical scale model test. A separate CFD/Shields relation analysis of the scale model physical tests show that the wall shear stresses in the scale model are several times larger than the critical value required for the mobilization of the fly ash simulant. This study demonstrates that a simple steady state, single phase CFD analysis of flue gas flow can be used to rapidly identify and address fly ash accumulation concerns in flue gas duct designs. This approach is much simpler and computationally inexpensive compared to a transient Eulerian multiphase simulation of particle laden flow involving handling the dense phase in regions of ash accumulation. Further, this study shows that physical model tests will be accurate for predicting fly ash accumulation, only if, the scaling maintains the proper ratio of wall shear stress to critical remobilization stress.

Author(s):  
Phillip P. Lemire ◽  
Steven W. Day ◽  
James C. McDaniel ◽  
Houston G. Wood

Experimental investigation of the fluid dynamics inside any blood pumping device is necessary for several reasons. First, improved understanding about the flow near the walls of a blood pump is important since thrombus formation (blood clotting) may occur when the shear stress is nearly zero. If the shear stress is in the opposite direction to the main body of the flow, a region of stagnation or recirculation is indicated, which may also lead to thrombosis. A second problem of importance to blood flows is hemolysis, the destruction of red blood cells. Hemolysis can be caused by high shear stresses imposed on the blood cells by the flow. Since hemolysis is a function of at least shear stress and residence time, an understanding of how these two variables are coupled is desirable. Third, an accurate measurement of wall shear stress and flow patterns is also necessary to validate computational fluid dynamics (CFD) predictions in the design of blood pumps. It is widely known that improper meshing of the numerical pump model, the use of an incorrect turbulence model, or errors in choosing boundary conditions can lead to a model that is in contradiction to experimental results. Quantitative oil streaking has been implemented in order to measure the wall shear stresses in the pump and supply the necessary information needed to ensure a good pump design.


2000 ◽  
Vol 123 (1) ◽  
pp. 80-87 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Lei ◽  
D. P. Giddens ◽  
S. A. Jones ◽  
F. Loth ◽  
H. Bassiouny

Various hemodynamic factors have been implicated in vascular graft intimal hyperplasia, the major mechanism contributing to chronic failure of small-diameter grafts. However, a thorough knowledge of the graft flow field is needed in order to determine the role of hemodynamics and how these factors affect the underlying biological processes. Computational fluid dynamics offers much more versatility and resolution than in vitro or in vivo methods, yet computations must be validated by careful comparison with experimental data. Whereas numerous numerical and in vitro simulations of arterial geometries have been reported, direct point-by-point comparisons of the two techniques are rare in the literature. We have conducted finite element computational analyses for a model of an end-to-side vascular graft and compared the results with experimental data obtained using laser-Doppler velocimetry. Agreement for velocity profiles is found to be good, with some clear differences near the recirculation zones during the deceleration and reverse-flow segments of the flow waveform. Wall shear stresses are determined from velocity gradients, whether by computational or experimental methods, and hence the agreement for this quantity, while still good, is less consistent than for velocity itself. From the wall shear stress numerical results, we computed four variables that have been cited in the development of intimal hyperplasia—the time-averaged wall shear stress, an oscillating shear index, and spatial and temporal wall shear stress gradients—in order to illustrate the versatility of numerical methods. We conclude that the computational approach is a valid alternative to the experimental approach for quantitative hemodynamic studies. Where differences in velocity were found by the two methods, it was generally attributed to the inability of the numerical method to model the fluid dynamics when flow conditions are destabilizing. Differences in wall shear, in the absence of destabilizing phenomena, were more likely to be caused by difficulties in calculating wall shear from relatively low resolution in vitro data.


1994 ◽  
Vol 116 (3) ◽  
pp. 645-649 ◽  
Author(s):  
Josef Daniel Ackerman ◽  
Louis Wong ◽  
C. Ross Ethier ◽  
D. Grant Allen ◽  
Jan K. Spelt

We present a Preston tube device that combines both total and static pressure readings for the measurement of wall shear stress. As such, the device facilitates the measurement of wall shear stress under conditions where there is streamline curvature and/or over surfaces on which it is difficult to either manufacture an array of static-pressure taps or to position a single tap. Our “Preston-static” device is easily and conveniently constructed from commercially available regular and side-bored syringe needles. The pressure difference between the total pressure measured in the regular syringe needle and the static pressure measured in the side-bored one is used to determine the wall shear stress. Wall shear stresses measured in pipe flow were consistent with independently determined values and values obtained using a conventional Preston tube. These results indicate that Preston-static tubes provide a reliable and convenient method of measuring wall shear stress.


2000 ◽  
Vol 123 (2) ◽  
pp. 134-144 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sujata Prakash ◽  
C. Ross Ethier

Computational techniques are widely used for studying large artery hemodynamics. Current trends favor analyzing flow in more anatomically realistic arteries. A significant obstacle to such analyses is generation of computational meshes that accurately resolve both the complex geometry and the physiologically relevant flow features. Here we examine, for a single arterial geometry, how velocity and wall shear stress patterns depend on mesh characteristics. A well-validated Navier-Stokes solver was used to simulate flow in an anatomically realistic human right coronary artery (RCA) using unstructured high-order tetrahedral finite element meshes. Velocities, wall shear stresses (WSS), and wall shear stress gradients were computed on a conventional “high-resolution” mesh series (60,000 to 160,000 velocity nodes) generated with a commercial meshing package. Similar calculations were then performed in a series of meshes generated through an adaptive mesh refinement (AMR) methodology. Mesh-independent velocity fields were not very difficult to obtain for both the conventional and adaptive mesh series. However, wall shear stress fields, and, in particular, wall shear stress gradient fields, were much more difficult to accurately resolve. The conventional (nonadaptive) mesh series did not show a consistent trend towards mesh-independence of WSS results. For the adaptive series, it required approximately 190,000 velocity nodes to reach an r.m.s. error in normalized WSS of less than 10 percent. Achieving mesh-independence in computed WSS fields requires a surprisingly large number of nodes, and is best approached through a systematic solution-adaptive mesh refinement technique. Calculations of WSS, and particularly WSS gradients, show appreciable errors even on meshes that appear to produce mesh-independent velocity fields.


2018 ◽  
Vol 152 ◽  
pp. 02004 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jacky Ling ◽  
Felicia Wong Yen Myan

Biofouling is the accumulation of unwanted material on surfaces submerged or semi submerged over an extended period. This study investigates the antifouling performance of a new bioinspired topography design. A shark riblets inspired topography was designed with Solidworks and CFD simulations were antifouling performance. The study focuses on the fluid flow velocity, the wall shear stress and the appearance of vortices are to be noted to determine the possible locations biofouling would most probably occur. The inlet mass flow rate is 0.01 kgs-1 and a no-slip boundary condition was applied to the walls of the fluid domain. Simulations indicate that Velocity around the topography averaged at 7.213 x 10-3 ms-1. However, vortices were observed between the gaps. High wall shear stress is observed at the peak of each topography. In contrast, wall shear stress is significantly low at the bed of the topography. This suggests the potential location for the accumulation of biofouling. Results show that bioinspired antifouling topography can be improved by reducing the frequency of gaps between features. Linear surfaces on the topography should also be minimized. This increases the avenues of flow for the fluid, thus potentially increasing shear stresses with surrounding fluid leading to better antifouling performance.


Volume 1 ◽  
2004 ◽  
Author(s):  
John G. Mbabazi ◽  
Thomas J. Sheer

Fly ash particles entrained in the flue gas from boiler furnaces in coal-fired power stations can cause serious erosive wear on steel surfaces along the downstream flow path. This paper describes research into fly ash impingement erosion on such surfaces, with particular reference to the heat transfer plates in rotary regenerative air heaters. The effect of the ash particle impact velocity and impact angle on the erosive wear of mild steel surfaces was determined through experimental investigations, using three different power station ash types. The experimental data were used to calibrate a fundamentally-derived model for the prediction of erosion rates. This erosion model was incorporated into a particle-tracking CFD flow simulation of the ash-laden flue gas flow through the complex channels between corrugated air heater plates. The predicted erosion rates were compared with measured erosion rates obtained using a large accelerated-erosion test facility located at a power station. Good agreement was obtained, the predictions generally being within 20 percent of the measured values.


2018 ◽  
Vol 2018 ◽  
pp. 1-16 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mongkol Kaewbumrung ◽  
Somsak Orankitjaroen ◽  
Pichit Boonkrong ◽  
Buraskorn Nuntadilok ◽  
Benchawan Wiwatanapataphee

A mathematical model of dispersed bioparticle-blood flow through the stenosed coronary artery under the pulsatile boundary conditions is proposed. Blood is assumed to be an incompressible non-Newtonian fluid and its flow is considered as turbulence described by the Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes equations. Bioparticles are assumed to be spherical shape with the same density as blood, and their translation and rotational motions are governed by Newtonian equations. Impact of particle movement on the blood velocity, the pressure distribution, and the wall shear stress distribution in three different severity degrees of stenosis including 25%, 50%, and 75% are investigated through the numerical simulation using ANSYS 18.2. Increasing degree of stenosis severity results in higher values of the pressure drop and wall shear stresses. The higher level of bioparticle motion directly varies with the pressure drop and wall shear stress. The area of coronary artery with higher density of bioparticles also presents the higher wall shear stress.


2019 ◽  
Vol 141 (11) ◽  
Author(s):  
Patrick Weidman

The problem of stagnation-point flow impinging radially on a linearly twisting cylinder is considered. This advances previous work on the motion outside a cylinder undergoing linear torsional motion. The problem is governed by a Reynolds number R and a dimensionless torsion rate σ. Numerical calculations are carried out using the ODEINT program, and convergence of the shooting method is obtained using the MNEWT program. The radial and azimuthal wall shear stresses are found over a range of R and σ, and radial and azimuthal velocity profiles at σ={0,1,2} are presented for various values of R. The interesting feature is that the axial wall shear stress parameter f″(1) is a very weak function of σ while the azimuthal wall shear stress parameter g′(1) is a strong function of σ although both stress parameters are a strong function of R.


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