Modeling the disintegration of cavitating turbulent liquid jets using a novel VOF–CIMD approach

In this article, a novel modeling approach capable of simultaneously tracking the events of cavitation, occurring within an injector nozzle, and the liquid jet breakup process, inclusive of spray formation, in the nozzle exterior is presented. A single fluid model, embedded with a Volume-of-Fluid (VOF)-based interface capturing methodology for monitoring the liquid–gas interface dynamics, is supplemented with a vapor transport model for predicting cavitation events triggered within the liquid. While the surface forces due to liquid–gas interfacial instabilities are modeled using a Continuum Surface Force model, a Cavitation-Induced-Momentum-Defect (CIMD) correction approach is employed to account for the effects of cavitation dynamics within the liquid flow. Liquid turbulence is modeled using the well-known RNG k–ε model inclusive of new source terms due to cavitation-induced turbulent kinetic energy production and dissipation. The combined VOF–CIMD methodology is validated by examining the effects of cavitation on the disintegration of turbulent planar liquid jets exiting a two-dimensional nozzle. Different flow Reynolds and Cavitation number configurations are tested. The results predicted by the model including those of the transport vapor dynamics and the liquid jet disintegration processes match, both qualitatively and quantitatively, very well with the available experimental data. In comparison with experimental observation, our model predicts different regimes of liquid jet behavior such as wavy jet, spray formation simultaneously with events of developing or super-cavitation. The numerical approach elaborated in this article can be extensively applied in the design and development of efficient spray applicators and other industrial fluidic devices.