Computational Fluid Dynamics Simulation of Flow Mixing in Tunnel Kilns by Air Side Injection

Abstract

The mixing of the two axial flows through the ware and through the gap between ware and walls using side nozzles in the preheating zone of tunnel kiln is investigated. The three-dimensional temperature field in the cross section between the two cars is calculated using the computational fluid dynamics (CFD) tool fluent. The mixing quality is evaluated using contours, the frequency of temperature distribution, and the maximum temperature difference. The influence on the mixing behavior of injection flow rate, injection velocity, nozzles position, and nozzle number has been analyzed. The results show that using two nozzles is more effective than one nozzle if the nozzles are installed at the opposite side walls with high vertical distance. The mixing quality increases strongly until an impulse flow rate (IFR) of about 4 N. For higher values, the influence becomes relatively low. The results for the mixing temperature obtained through CFD simulation compared with analytical results show a good agreement with maximum error of 0.5%.