PETER THE GREAT ST.

PETERSBURG POLYTECHNIC UNIVERSITY

Power Plant Engineering

CFD Task 1: Flow in a Circular Pipe

Student: …..

1. Problem Definition

The aim of this task is to simulate steady laminar and turbulent pipe flow. The
axial velocity profiles are analyzed in different sections. Moreover,
distribution of centerline velocity, pressure and friction factor is studied.
Finally, velocity profile is compared with experimental and analytical data,
and the relevant results are presented.

Physical Description

In order to study the laminar and turbulent flow in a pipe, the simulated pipe
consists of a diameter and length equal to 0.04 m and 6 m correspondingly. In
order to simulate the flow, three different grid distributions have been
produced. These grid distributions can be found below:
UNIFORM COARSE MESH

UNIFORM FINE MESH

 Non-UNIFORM MESH

The first and second grid distributions were used for laminar flow and the
third one has been applied to turbulent flow. The required iterations for each
one are shown below.

LAMINAR COARSE MESH

 LAMINAR FINE MESH

TURBULENT Non-UNIFORM MESH

2.Results and Discussion

The simulation has been performed with three different grid distributions and
different flow regimes. The comparison with experimental data for each one is
shown below:
LAMINAR COARSE MESH

LAMINAR FINE MESH

 TURBULENT Non-UNIFORM MESH

The pressure drop can be found in each simulation as below:

LAMINAR COARSE MESH

LAMINAR FINE MESH

 TURBULENT Non-UNIFORM MESH

For laminar flow we have:

∆ P=0.72

From analytical data:

ρvd 1.17 ×0.3 ×0.04
ℜ= = =750 f = 64 =0.085
μ 1.872 ×10 −5
ℜ
 l ρv2 6 1.17 ×0.09
∆ P=f =0.085 × × =0.67
d 2 0.04 2

Here, the difference between calculated pressure drop and analytical solution
is related to the fully developed region. The above formula is proposed for
pressure drop in fully developed flow, while the calculated pressure drop
consists of entrance region, where the boundary layer is not fully developed.
Therefore, the calculated pressure drop is higher than the analytical solution.

The centerline velocity can be found in each simulation as below:

LAMINAR COARSE MESH

LAMINAR FINE MESH

 TURBULENT Non-UNIFORM MESH

For laminar flow the calculated entrance length is:

x entrance =1.83 m

From empirical formulation:

x entrance =0.06 ℜ. d=0.06× 750 ×0.04=1.8

For turbulent flow the calculated entrance length is:

x entrance =1.6 m

From empirical formulation:

x entrance =4.4 ℜ1 /6 . d=4.4 ×(10¿ ¿5)1 /6 ×0.04=1.19 ¿

It is observed that entrance region in turbulence flow is smaller than laminar

flow. On the other words, the boundary layer in turbulent flow develops faster
than laminar flow.

The velocity vectors and contours can be found in each simulation as below:

Laminar flow-Entrance Region

Laminar flow- Fully developed Region

Turbulent flow-Entrance Region

Turbulent flow- Fully Developed Region

Laminar flow-Entrance Region

Laminar flow- Fully developed Region

Turbulent flow-Entrance Region

 Turbulent flow- Fully Developed Region

The comparison between velocity vectors in laminar and turbulent flows

show that the velocity profiles in turbulent flow are smoother than laminar
flow. Moreover, the ratio maximum velocity to entrance velocity in laminar
flow is higher than turbulent flow.