Effect of the inlet duct angle on the performance of cyclone separators

This study analyzed the effect of the angle of the inlet duct bend on the separation efficiency and pressure drop in cyclone separators. The design of the inlet to the cyclone chamber is a significant parameter that has been analyzed to date only in a few research studies. Following the literature review of this subject, 20 bend angles (10 in the vertical plane and 10 in the horizontal plane) were proposed and analyzed by means of the computational fluid dynamics code Fluent V18.2. As a closure model to the Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes equation, the Reynolds stress model was used, as it solves the transport equations for Reynold's stresses and the dissipation rate - this model is capable of accounting highly curved streamlines prevailing inside the cyclone separators. The discrete phase model with one-way coupling was used, in which the trajectory of solid particles was calculated based on Lagrangian formulation. Conclusive results indicate that the bend angle (in both planes) marginally affects the collection efficiency (the maximum difference being 3.1%), whereas its effect on Eu is highly significant (the difference being 5700%) - all the comparisons were made with respect to the base variant at 0 degrees angle.