Effects of gas properties and geometrical parameters on performance of a vortex tube

In this paper, energy separation effects in a vortex tube have been investigated using acfd model. a numerical simulation has been undertaken, due to the complex structure of flow. thegoverning equations have been solved by the fluenttm code in a 2d compressible and turbulent model.three turbulent models, namely, rsm, standard k-epsilon and spalartallmaras, have been used. thespalartallmaras turbulent model, which is the first equation, was not so bad in predicting temperatureresults, although the standard k-epsilon model better predicts the results in most regions. the effects ofgeometrical parameters have been investigated. the results have shown that the hot outlet size and itsshape do not affect the energy distribution in the vortex tube, and a very small diameter will decreasethe temperature separation. different kinds of gas have been examined for the vortex tube, and it wasconcluded that using helium as a refrigerant produces the largest energy separation.