Computational analysis of turbulent gas-particle flow in tube banks using a two-way coupling model

It is important to investigate the influence of the presence of solid parti cles on gas flow, known as two-way coupling in gas-particle two-phase flow, because this influence may result in a considerable modification of the he at transfer performance in facilities such as tube bank heat exchangers. Th ere is not yet available data with detailed information on two-way coupling interaction in tube bank systems for model validation. This paper presents a computational study of two-way coupling gas-particle flow in the tube ba nk system using a two-way coupling model previously developed by the presen t authors. Comparison of one-way coupling prediction for both gas and parti culate phase in an in-line tube bank system is made with experimental data. Then, the effect of the presence of particles on the gas flow properties i n this tube bank system is studied in terms of particle sizes and loadings. It is found that both the mean and turbulent flow of the gas phase in the tube bank are modified significantly due to the presence of solid particles ; and the modification depends to a great extent on the particle sizes and loadings.