The critical nozzle is defined as a device to measure the mass flow with only the nozzle supply conditions, making use of flow choking phenomenon at the nozzle throat. The discharge coefficient and critical pressure ratio of the gas flow through the critical nozzle are strongly dependent on Reynolds number, based on the diameter of nozzle throat and nozzle supply conditions. Recently a critical nozzle with small diameter is being extensively used to measure mass flow in a variety of industrial fields. For low Reynolds numbers, prediction of the discharge coefficient and critical pressure is very important since the viscous effects near walls significantly affect the mass flow through critical nozzle, which is associated with working gas consumption and operation conditions of the critical nozzle. In the present study, computational work using the axisymmetric, compressible, Navier-Stokes equations is carried out to predict the discharge coefficient and critical pressure ratio of gas flow through critical nozzle. In order to investigate the effect of the working gas and turbulence model on the discharge coefficient, several kinds of gases and several turbulence models are employed. The Reynolds number effects are investigated with several nozzles with different throat diameter. Diffuser angle is varied to investigate the effects on the discharge coefficient and critical pressure ratio. The computational results are compared with the previous experimental ones. It is known that the standard k-ε turbulence model with the standard wall function gives a best prediction of the discharge coefficient. The discharge coefficient and critical pressure ratio are given by functions of the Reynolds number and boundary layer integral properties. It is also found that diffuser angle affects the critical pressure ratio.
Discharge coefficient of small sonic nozzles