Numerical Simulation of Two-Phase Sloshing Flow in LNG Tank Using Finite-Analytic Level-Set Method

Impact pressure due to sloshing is of great concern for the ship owners, designers and builders of the LNG carriers regarding the safety of LNG containment system and hull structure. Sloshing of LNG in a partially filled tank has been an active area of research with numerous experimental and numerical investigations over the past decade. In order to accurately predict the sloshing impact load, it is necessary to develop advanced numerical simulation tools which can provide accurate resolution of local flow phenomena including wave breaking, jet formation, gas entrapping and liquid-gas interactions. In the present study, a new numerical method is developed for the simulation of violent sloshing flow inside a three-dimensional LNG tank considering wave breaking and liquid-gas interaction. The sloshing flow inside a membrane-type LNG tank is simulated numerically using the Finite-Analytic Navier-Stokes (FANS) method. The governing equations for two-phase air and water flows are formulated in curvilinear coordinate system and discretized using the finite-analytic method on a non-staggered grid. Simulations were performed for LNG tank in transverse and longitudinal motions including horizontal, vertical, and rotational motions. The predicted impact pressures were compared with the corresponding experimental data. The validation results clearly illustrate the capability of the present two-phase FANS method for accurate prediction of impact pressure in sloshing LNG tank including violent free surface motion, three-dimensional instability and air trapping effects.