Computational evaluation of effective transport properties of differential microcellular structures

Abstract

This study presents a combined implementation of three-dimensional (3D) advanced imaging and computational fluid dynamics (CFD) modeling and simulation techniques to interpret the effective transport properties of single and stacked samples of differential microcellular structures. 3D morphological analysis software (ScanIP) was used to create representative elemental volumes via high-resolution tomography data for samples of tetrakaidekahedron-shaped Inconel and bottleneck-type aluminum foams. Pore-structure-related information for single and stacked differential samples were obtained with the aid of image analysis software, while their effective transport properties were attained by computationally resolving the pressure drop developed across these materials for superficial fluid velocities in the range from 0 to 6 m s−1. Model validation was demonstrated by tolerable agreement between resulting CFD predicted results and experimentally measured values of flow properties. With these techniques, contributory effects were identified for pore-structure-related properties, pore density, and flow entrance on the flow dynamics of microcellular structures. This approach could prove useful in the design of highly efficient porous metallic components for applications specific to fluid transport.