Nozzle geometry variations on the discharge coefficient

Numerical works have been conducted to investigate the effect of nozzle geometries on the discharge coefficient. Several contoured converging nozzles with finite radius of curvatures, conically converging nozzles and conical divergent orifices have been employed in this investigation. Each nozzle and orifice has a nominal exit diameter of 12.7×10−3 m. A 3rd order MUSCL finite volume method of ANSYS Fluent 13.0 was used to solve the Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes equations in simulating turbulent flows through various nozzle inlet geometries. The numerical model was validated through comparison between the numerical results and experimental data. The results obtained show that the nozzle geometry has pronounced effect on the sonic lines and discharge coefficients. The coefficient of discharge was found differ from unity due to the non-uniformity of flow parameters at the nozzle exit and the presence of boundary layer as well.