Numerical simulations of internal flow in an aircraft engine pressure swirl atomizer

he internal flow and the liquid structure at the nozzle exit are investigated in a typical pressure swirl atomizer for aeroengine applications under an isothermal nonreacting environment using a two-phase flow modeling according to the volume-of-fluid numerical methodology. A parametrical analysis is performed to investigate the effect of operating conditions on the injector performances and the characteristics of the liquid jet exiting the nozzle. The liquid film thickness at the nozzle exit and the injector discharge coefficient predicted by the simulations are compared against commonly used correlations available in the literature. The influence of the turbulence model on the injector performances is also analyzed using three different models: the renormalization group k-e model, the Reynolds stress model, and the large-eddy simulation model.