Real-fluid injection modeling and LES simulation of the ECN Spray A injector using a fully compressible two-phase flow approach

A fully compressible two-phase flow model consisting of four balance equations including two mass, one momentum, and one internal energy equation, formulated with the mechanical and thermal equilibrium assumptions is developed in this article. This model is closed with a real fluid equation of state (EoS) and has been applied to the simulation of different 1D academic cases, in addition to the 3D Large-Eddy Simulation (LES) of the Engine Combustion Network (ECN) Spray A injector including the needle to target part with and without the phase change (i.e. frozen) assumptions. The obtained numerical results from the model with phase change have proven to be able to accurately predict the liquid, vapor penetrations and rate of injection compared to experimental data. However, the frozen model has presented some uncertainties and deviations in predicting the penetration length as with different measure criterions, even though an excellent agreement can be achieved in the estimation of rate of injection, near-nozzle mass and velocity distribution. Several conclusions are drawn from the simulations: (1) the initial in-nozzle flow has a strong effect on the early jet development; (2) considering phase change is still essential in the high temperature, high pressure (HTHP) injection modeling since it strongly affects the temperature distribution, turbulence intensity and thereby the jet development; (3) significant variations of liquid compressibility factor and density, as well as the cooling effect through the nozzle are highlighted. Overall, the detailed analysis of the numerical results reported in this article may complement the Engine Combustion Network (ECN) experimental database. (C) 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.