Numerical study on flow rate limitation of open capillary channel flow through a wedge

Abstract

The flow characteristics of slender-column flow in wedge-shaped channel under microgravity condition are investigated in this work. The one-dimensional theoretical model is applied to predict the critical flow rate and surface contour of stable flow. However, the one-dimensional model overestimates the critical flow rate for not considering the extra pressure loss. Then, we develop a three-dimensional simulation method with OpenFOAM, a computational fluid dynamics tool, to simulate various phenomena in wedge channels with different lengths. The numerical results are verified with the capillary channel flow experimental data on the International Space Station. We find that the three-dimensional simulation perfectly predicts the critical flow rates and surface contours under various flow conditions. Meanwhile, the general behaviors in subcritical, critical, and supercritical flow are studied in three-dimensional simulation considering variations of flow rate and open channel length. The numerical techniques for three-dimensional simulation is validated for a wide range of configurations and is hopeful to provide valuable guidance for capillary channel flow experiment and efficient liquid management in space.