Numerical Simulation of Vortex Breakdown with Code Saturne

The paper presents numerical simulations of different types of vortex breakdown (VB). The VB may occur in industrial applications, e.g. flow inside hydraulic turbines, flow over aircraft wings, burning chambers, etc. It has a negative impact on the functionality of the machineries, hence preventing the apparition of the VB is an active research topic. In the current paper, the flow is studied in a geometry made of a bellmouth shape connected to a straight pipe. Three types of VB are obtained in the current paper: bubble breakdown, spiral breakdown and double helix breakdown. First, the numerical simulations are carried out at a fixed flow rate while the flow direction is changed to obtain different types of VB. Second, the numerical simulations are carried out at a fixed flow direction while the flow rate is changed.