CFD simulation of straight and slightly swirling turbulent free jets using different RANS-turbulence models

Turbulent free jets are of significant importance for numerous chemical engineering processes. The development and optimisation of such processes are frequently supported by the use of Computational Fluid Dynamics simulations which allow for a deeper insight into flow phenomena. The application of a proper turbulence model is mandatory for this simulations to retrieve meaningful results. The current work gives a detailed analysis of the flow field of a straight and a slightly rotating turbulent free jet both experimentally and by means of CFD simulation with various turbulence models. Experimental analysis is performed by Laser-Doppler-Anemometry to measure three-dimensional flow and turbulence fields. CFD simulations are done with a commercial solver applying commonly used models for turbulence description. It can be shown that numerical simulation is a capable tool for the accurate description of the analysed flow type. Nevertheless, significant errors can be introduced if the wrong turbulence model is applied by the CFD engineer. Finally, the most applicable turbulence models for the given free jet flow are suggested. (C) 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.