Experimental and Theoretical Studies of Liquid Sloshing at Simulated Low Gravity

Abstract

Analyses and experimental comparisons are given for liquid sloshing in a rigid cylindrical tank under conditions of moderately small axial accelerations; in particular, the theory is valid for Bond numbers larger than 10. The analytical results are put in the form of an equivalent mechanical model, and it is shown that the sloshing mass and the natural frequency of the first mode, for a liquid having a 0 deg contact angle at the tank walls, are smaller than for high-g conditions. The experimental data, obtained by using several small-diameter tanks and three different liquids, are compared to the predictions of the mechanical model; good correlation is found in most cases for the sloshing forces and natural frequency as a function of Bond number.