High-fidelity numerical simulations in Eulerian/Lagrangian framework for liquid fuel jets in crossflow with atomization and evaporation: Effect of aerodynamic Weber number

The effect of the aerodynamic Weber number Weg on the atomization-evaporation process of liquid fuel jets in crossflow is investigated by detailed numerical simulations accounting for evaporation from both the gas–liquid interface and dispersed particles in the Eulerian/Lagrangian framework. The accuracy of the evaporation model on the gas–liquid interface treated in the Eulerian manner is verified by applying two-dimensional (2D) numerical simulations to the evaporation of a single droplet and comparing the computational results with the theoretical solution and psychrometric data. The results show that the present detailed numerical simulations reasonably reproduce the primary and secondary atomization characteristics of the liquid jets in crossflow under different breakup modes. Additionally, considering both evaporations from the Eulerian gas–liquid interface and Lagrangian dispersed particles is essential for precisely predicting the fuel mixing with the oxidizer and the ignition. As Weg increases, the Sauter mean diameter (SMD) of generated fuel droplets decreases in the whole region. Furthermore, as Weg increases, the tendency that the fuel vapor mass fraction is high in the upstream region and decreases downstream becomes more evident. However, the temperature behind the liquid column do not decrease despite the increasing heat loss due to evaporation. These behaviors can be well explained in terms of the differences in the atomization, evaporation, and heat transfer between the liquid jet and hot air crossflow against Weg.