CFD Analysis of Direct Contact Condensation (DCC) of Subsonic Steam Jets in a Cross-Flow of Water Using a Two-Fluid Model

Direct contact condensation occurs when a vapor comes in contact with the liquid of the same fluid and is accompanied by very high heat transfer coefficients compared to the conventional heat exchanging processes. Many researchers have investigated the direct contact condensation of steam jets in a pool of subcooled water. In the last decade, the potential of flowing liquid as an enhanced heat transfer medium in comparison with the stationary pool of liquid was explored by various researchers. Also, in some configurations of staged combustion cycle based rocket engine, the oxygen-rich gas is injected into flowing liquid oxygen to improve the heat transfer characteristics. Hence, there is a need to investigate the direct contact condensation of vapor jets in a cross flow of liquid. A two-fluid particle based multiphase formulation with thermal phase change model has been implemented in the present investigation to capture the direct contact condensation phenomena. The data obtained from numerical simulations are validated with the experimental results of Clerx et al., [1]. Further, studies on plume shapes, interfacial area and pressure amplitudes are reported.