Magnetohydrodynamic pressure drop in a straight duct and a curved bend in the presence of a transverse magnetic field and a gravity field

Liquid-metal flow in the presence of a transverse magnetic field and gravity field was analyzed in a square-cross-section straight duct and a curved bend The duct had conducting vanadium walls, and lithium coolant was used, Magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) equations with gravity field in three dimensions were developed in the modified toroidal coordinate system. The coupled set of equations was solved using finite difference techniques and an! extended SIMPLER algorithm approach. Calculation of MHD pressure drop was made in the presence of a transverse magnetic field and a gravity field for a straight duct and a magnetic field varying as B-0(R +x)(-1) in the transverse direction and a gravity field for a curved bend The results for a straight duct indicate that the MHD pressure drop increases with the increase of magnetic field strength. The MHD pressure drop when fluid flows against the gravity field is greater by an amount that equals the product of the density of the fluid and acceleration due to gravity. The results for a curved bend indicate an axial MHD pressure drop. The axial MHD pressure drop in a curved bend increases with an increase in the magnetic field strength. It is also found that the MHD pressure drop in the presence of a gravity field is slightly higher than the MHD pressure drop without a gravity field.