Effects of curvature radius ratio of 90-degree pipe elbow on FIV signal

Investigation on Flow Induced Vibration (FIV) in pipes is relatively new. Previous publications focused on characterizing the influences of geometric and material properties of a straight pipe. The current study investigates the influence of the curvature radius ratio in a90-degreepipe elbow for ratios (Rc/D = 1.5, 2, 2.5, 3 and 3.5). Reynolds Stress Model (RSM) is coupled with a finite element structural model to simulate the fluid-structure interaction (FSI) using one-way coupling. The RSM turbulence model and FSI model are validated against published experimental and numerical results[1][2][3]. Preliminary results presented in the figure below indicate that vibration signal increases as the curvature ratio decreases in a quadratic manner. This functional relationship can be used as a design tool, and with further application in improving non-intrusive flow measurement techniques.