A two-fluid model of abrasive waterjet

Waterjet flow added with abrasive solid particles, the so called abrasive waterjet, can enhance its performance for cutting various materials from soft food products to very hard titanium alloys. In this study, a theoretical analysis is conducted in order to develop a flow model for the abrasive waterjet. The main concern is whether the abrasive particles can be treated as a pseudo-fluid phase. A two-fluid model is developed based on the fundamental laws of conservation. A control volume method is used to discretize the equations, and a phase-coupled SIMPLE algorithm is adopted to solve the pressure-velocity coupling equations. The quasi two-dimensional flow field outside a conventional nozzle used in abrasive waterjet is analyzed and computed to validate the model. Good agreement is observed comparing the numerical results with the experimental measurements. (C) 2009 Published by Elsevier B.V.