On the modelling of bubble entrainment by impinging jets in CFD-simulations

This contribution presents different approaches for the modeling of air entrainment under water by plunging jets in CFD codes. In simulations which include the full length of the jet and its environment, the process of bubble generation can not be resolved due to computational limitations. This is why the air entrainment has to be modeled in meso-scale simulations. In the frame of an Euler-Euler simulation, the local morphology of the phases has to be considered in the drag model. In the impinging jet configuration, the air is a continuous phase above the water level but bubbly below the water level. Various drag models are implemented in the CFD solver CFX11 and their influence on the gas void fraction below the water level is discussed. The algebraic interface area density (AIAD) model applies a drag coefficient for bubbles and a different drag coefficient for the free surface. If the AIAD model is used for the simulation of impinging jets, the gas entrainment depends on the free parameters included in this model. The calculated gas entrainment can be adapted via these parameters. Therefore, an advanced AIAD approach could be used in future for the implementation of models (e.g. correlations) for the gas entrainment.