Numerical and Experimental Investigation of Flow Induced Vibration of an Ejector Considering Cavitation

Abstract

As one of the essential components of the conventional island in a nuclear power plant, the ejector supplies cooling water to the reactor core in an accident state. It needs serious maintenance for its structural stability. The flow-induced vibration of an ejector in service was numerically examined in this research while taking the cavitation phenomenon into account. To achieve this goal, a bidirectional fluid–structure interaction simulation based on the ANSYS platform was run. In our lab, an experimental loop was also set up to validate the fluid model. Then, under specific circumstances, it was possible to monitor the cavitation revolution process, pressure variation, and ejector vibration. According to the numerical results, the distribution of the vapor phase is largely found in the mixing and diverging portions, and it changes over time. In the ejector, a significant wideband excitation was observed. Additionally, the von Mises stress and flow-induced vibrational features of the ejector structure were investigated.

Keywords

• numerical simulation
• flow induced vibration
• fluid-structure interaction
• ejector system
• cavitation