Abstract
This work investigates the effects of bend curvature, pipe orientation, and bend angle on two-phase flow dynamics in U-bend tubes using a numerical approach. Two-phase flow in U-bend tubes introduces secondary flows, significantly impacting pressure drops and phase distributions. This study employs numerical simulations using ANSYS Fluent 2020 R1® to analyze the effects of bend curvature and pipe orientation (horizontal and vertical) on flow behavior, with water and air as the working fluids at an inlet velocity of 3 m/s. The volume of fluid model was employed to capture phase interactions and this is the novelty of this present work as in the previous works, the use of this model was absent. Results reveal a wavy stratified flow with secondary vortices caused by centrifugal forces in the bend. Pressure losses of 1186 Pa and 1415 Pa were observed for 50% and 70% water volume fractions in the vertical orientation, while horizontal orientation exhibited negligible losses for 50% and 80 Pa for 70%. Consequently, the pressure losses were found higher in vertical orientations, with 50% and 70% water volume fractions, respectively. The pressure drop is observed more with a higher bend angle along the bend. This Increased liquid hold-up and water accumulation at the bend were observed with higher water fractions, contributing to greater pressure drops. These findings are critical for applications in oil and gas, chemical processing, and refrigeration, highlighting the need for further studies on flow patterns and alternative geometries. The flow pattern as well as can significantly affect the overall flow behavior.

