Numerical simulation of solid particle erosion in pipe bends for liquid-solid flow

Erosion caused by solid particles in pipe bends is one of the major concerns in the oil and gas industry which may result in equipment malfunction and even failure. In this work, a two-way coupled Eulerian-Lagrangian approach is employed to solve the liquid-solid flow in the pipe bend. Five different erosion models and two particle-wall rebound models are combined to predict the erosion rate. The most accurate model is chosen to calculate the effects of a range of parameters on erosion after comparing the predicted results with the experimental data. Further, the relationship between the Stokes number and the maximum erosion location is also assessed. It is found that although all these erosion models generate qualitatively similar erosion patterns, the Erosion/Corrosion Research Center (E/CRC) erosion model with the Grant and Tabakoff particle-wall rebound model produces results that are closest to the experimental data. Sequence of the influence of different parameters on erosion from the highest to the lowest is obtained: pipe diameter, inlet velocity, bending angle, particle mass flow, particle diameter, and Mean Curvature Radius/Pipe Diameter (R/D) ratio and bend orientation. Additionally, the relationship between Stokes number and the dynamic movement of the maximum erosion location is presented which can be used to predict the maximum erosion location for different operating conditions. Three collision mechanisms are proposed to explain how the changes of Stokes numbers influence the erosion location. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.