Fluid Flow and Inclusion Behavior Around Spherical-Cap Bubbles

The fluid flow and inclusion behavior around a spherical-cap bubble in molten steel is investigated by the computational model in a two-dimensional axisymmetric domain. Discrete phase model is employed to describe the trajectory of inclusion through the flow field around the bubble, and a stochastic tracking model is adopted to account for the dispersion of inclusions due to turbulence. Increasing the level of turbulence kinetic energy causes the effective attachment radius and the overall attachment probability to increase. Larger inclusions have a larger attachment probability. The wake region grows larger as the turbulence becomes weaker. The entrapment of inclusions by the bubble wake is also considered and the entrapment probability is calculated.