Document Type
Paper
Abstract
Cryogenic propellant tanks absorb solar radiation during long duration space missions, which heats the liquid propellant. The tank self-pressurizes due to the evaporation of the liquid propellant. The design of these cryogenic storage systems relies on the prediction of selfpressurization within the container. The overall objective of this research is to simulate evaporation and condensation within a self-pressurizing tank by implementing the Energy of Fluid (EOF) method in commercial computational fluid dynamics software. The EOF method is used to model conjugate heat transfer and phase change. Results of the simulations are compared to the pressure, temperature, and phase histories obtained from the experiment.
Simulation of Bulk Evaporation and Condensation using the Energy of Fluid Method
Cryogenic propellant tanks absorb solar radiation during long duration space missions, which heats the liquid propellant. The tank self-pressurizes due to the evaporation of the liquid propellant. The design of these cryogenic storage systems relies on the prediction of selfpressurization within the container. The overall objective of this research is to simulate evaporation and condensation within a self-pressurizing tank by implementing the Energy of Fluid (EOF) method in commercial computational fluid dynamics software. The EOF method is used to model conjugate heat transfer and phase change. Results of the simulations are compared to the pressure, temperature, and phase histories obtained from the experiment.
