Hydrodynamic performance in a sloshing liquid oxygen tank under different initial liquid filling levels

摘要

Fluid sloshing usually results in some unintended consequences, including additional sloshing force and thermodynamic imbalances, it is necessary to conduct in-depth investigations on fluid sloshing hydrodynamics to ensure the safe operation of spacecraft. To predict the sloshing hydrodynamic in a non-isothermal liquid oxygen tank, a numerical model is built with fluid sloshing and heat transfer coupled. Both the environmental heat leak and the interface phase change are considered in detail. The external sinusoidal excitation is realized by user defined functions. Coupled with the mesh motion treatment, the volume of fluid method is used to capture the movement of liquid-vapor interface during sloshing. Compared against the experiment results, the standard k-epsilon model has been proven to have great prediction accuracy. Based on the numerical model, effect of the initial liquid filling level on the sloshing hydrodynamic performance is studied. The vapor and liquid pressure, the sloshing force and the related sloshing moment, and the dynamic responses of the liquid-vapor interface are discussed and analyzed. With some valuable conclusions arrived, the present study is significant to better understanding of the non-isothermal sloshing dynamic process. (C) 2019 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.