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for CFD and FEA

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For the dedicated modelling of

• Filter applications,
• VoF to Lagrange for disintegration and spray modelling

DHCAE Tools has, based on the renowned CFD toolbox OpenFOAM®, made extensions for a comfortable and professional usage of open source solver technology in an industrial environment.

Modelling of filter applications

Already in the development, the inflow on the filter can be optimised without building a prototype. This leads to a

• higher filter efficiency,
• better utilisation of the filter material and
• an energetic process optimisation due to a lower pressure loss.

Your benefits from filter modelling

Modelling approach

The utilised modelling is based on the so-called Euler-Lagrange approach, that takes account of the coninuous flow and the dispersed solid particles. In the simulation tool, especially the reaction of the particles on the filter is considered, e.g. the continuous shift of the flow into zones with lower resistance.

Two approaches are available:

• The macro-modelling for an efficient simulation of multiple filter arrangements, e.g. dust separation plants with a variety of filter elements
• The new meso scale modelling with a resolution of detail effects in the cake and filter media including a wide range of implemented models for porosity, permeability and separation

For the work with the filter solver, the user can choose between two options:

• The textfile based work, as usual under OpenFOAM®. This working method is suited for advanced OpenFOAM® users, or if you have already integrated a CFD workflow for OpenFOAM® in your company.
• Alternatively, you can define your filter simulation case in CastNet. By specific adaptations and extensions of OpenFOAM® for filter applications, DHCAE Tools created a cost-efficient, reliable and stable simulation tool for the filter industry.

Modelling for filter applications

Modelling for filter applications is made especially easy for the user:

• The filter regions can directly be selected in the CAD model.
• The definition of the filter parameters and the solver features in the coupling of the particles with the continuous phase is directly carried out in the GUI.
• By prefabricated or self-produced templates, the simulation case is defined with just a few clicks.
• The whole process with all result files is integrated into the automatic workflow.

Support and adaptations included

A support and adaptation package is always included in the package for the filter solver. By this, we adapt the solving possibilities of the tools to your specific requirements. If you need, for example, a special form of loading characteristic for your filters, it will be provided by us immediately. We also support you with the usage of the solver.

Macro-Scale modelling: Particle distribution on the filter surface of a water filter

Macro-Scale modelling: Filter plant for air purification

A test environment is available for you

For a test of the filter simulation, a comfortable test environment with examples is available for you via the Internet. Here, you can directly test your filter application and evaluate, which hardware resources will be required by you later.

Click on the icon for more information

New meso-scale modell with cake generation

PDF-Description                              Video                                     

Macro-Scale modelling: Filter plant with more than 1000 individual elements considering the continuous flow shift caused by clogged filters

Meso-Scale modelling: Pleated filter with particle penetration in media and cake build-up

Our filtration publications:

Ulrich Heck, Martin Becker

Customized solvers optimize filtration device design, Filtration and Separation Oct 2016, pdf-Dokument

Ulrich Heck, Martin Becker

Macroscopic filter modelling based on computational fluid dynamics (CFD)

FILTECH-Conference 2018, Powerpoint

Ulrich Heck, Martin Becker

Multi-scale filtration process modelling based on Euler-Lagrange approaches including fluid-structure interactions

Nafems Konferenz Bamberg, 2018, pdf

Ulrich Heck, Martin Becker

A flexible approach for meso-scale filtration modelling based on Open-Source CFD, FILTECH-Conference 2019, pdf-Paper

Ulrich Heck, Martin Becker

CFD modelling of a bag filter plant for flue gas cleaning under consideration of flow shift and particle deposition relocations FILTECH-Conference 2022, pdf-Paper

Initial disintegration -VoF with adaptive grids

In liquid decay processes, surface waves are first formed starting from an injector. From here larger, mainly separated liquid areas (ligaments) are formed, which then decay into smaller particles. During the initial wave break-up and the formation of ligaments in the liquid, this structure must be precisely resolved in the numerical grid. This is the only way to reproduce the decisive interaction of viscous forces, as well as surface and inertial forces. This is done particularly efficiently with the Volume of Fluid method (VoF) using an adaptive grid refinement around the fluid regions.

Spray propagation Lagrangian analysis

Once many small spherical droplets have formed, it is usually computationally impossible to resolve each individual droplet through several grid cells in order to model the spray dispersion. For this purpose, a transition model from VoF to Lagrangian particles was created in order to model the entire process from the disintegration of the liquid to the spray propagation.

Solver for disintegration and spray propagation

Transition modelling VoF to Lagrange

DHCAE has extensively extended the computational methods of OpenFOAM to realise a conversion of disintegrating fluid regions (VoF method) into a discrete particle description. This enables a closed modelling of

• Atomisation processes
• Spraying processes
• Injection applications
• General disintegration processes of liquid jets into small droplets.

The implementation is characterised by

• a high degree of accuracy, e.g. with regard to the transmitted forces or conservation quantities,
• a particularly computationally efficient realisation for grid refinement and particle transport through special partitioning procedures and a high degree of parallelisation, as well as
• stable and reliable simulation processes with extensive monitoring (e.g. particle sizes, spray angles, etc.).

Transition from VoF areas (red) to Lagrangian particles (green) during atomisation from a swirl nozzle

Interaction of ligaments and high velocity gas jets during atomisation

Adaptive grids and particle cloud in the fuel injection benchmark - please click on image

Comparison Simulation-Experiment Fuel-Injection Benchmark

Please click on image

Realistic prediction of droplet distributions

A very good agreement between simulation and experiment was achieved e.g. in the Fuel Injection Benchmark. Click on the image below to compare particle sizes in planes at different distances from the injection area.

Current publication:

Transition model from VOF method to Lagrangian consideration for jet decay modelling, Ulrich Heck, Martin Becker, Nafems Conference-Bamberg 2022 and 2023 Nafems Online Magazin 65

pdf-Document (Translation from Nafems Online Magazin 65)

Flyer

Please click on image

Ulrich Heck, Martin Becker

CFD modelling tool for multiple filter systems on the macro level, FILTECH-Conference 2023, pdf-Paper