Scale-Adaptive Simulation of Transient Two-Phase Flow in Continuous-Casting Mold

Scale-adaptive simulation (SAS) of the transient gas–liquid two-phase flow in a laboratory-scale continuous-casting mold is presented. The main objective is to investigate the applicability of the scale-adaptive unsteady Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes turbulent model (URANS SAS) for predicting the transient multiscale turbulent structures in a two-phase flow. Good quantitative agreements with the experimental data and the large eddy simulation (LES) results are obtained both for the time-averaged velocity field and for the transient turbulent characteristics. The introduction of the von Karman length-scale into the turbulence-scale equation allows the SAS model to dynamically adjust to the resolved turbulent structures. The LES-like pulsating behavior of the air gas and the large-scale liquid eddy magnitudes in the unsteady regions of flow field are captured by the SAS model. The classical − 5/3 law of power spectrum density (PSD) of the axial velocity is kept properly for the single-phase turbulent flow. For two-phase flow, the decay of PSD is too steep at the high-frequency region; the predicted PSD obtained with SAS is damped stronger than that estimated by LES. The SAS model offers an attractive alternative to the existing LES approach or to the other hybrid RANS/LES models for strongly unsteady flows.