A MODIFIED KUBOTA CAVITATION MODEL FOR COMPUTATIONS OF CRYOGENIC CAVITATING FLOWS

In order to predict the cavitating flow characteristics in cryogenic fluids more exactly, a revised cavitation model considering the thermal effect with modified the evaporation and condensation source terms is established, which is based on Kubota cavitation model. The computations for cavitating flows in liquid nitrogen are conducted around an axisymmetric ogive by employing Kubota cavitation model and the revised cavitation model, respectively. The computational results are compared with the experimental data to evaluate the revised cavitation model. It is found that for the results of the revised cavitation model due to considering the thermal effects, the evaporation becomes smaller and the condensation becomes larger, the cavity length is shorter and the cavity interface becomes more porous compared with the results of original Kubota model. The results of the revised cavitation model are more accordant with the experimental data, and it dictates that the revised cavitation model can describe the process of mass transport more accurately in the cavitation process in cryogenic fluids and it is applicable for computations of cavitating flows in cryogenic fluids flow.