Chen, LiangAi, BangchengChen, SiyuanLiang, Guozhu2017-08-282017-08-282016http://hdl.handle.net/2263/61939Papers presented to the 12th International Conference on Heat Transfer, Fluid Mechanics and Thermodynamics, Costa de Sol, Spain on 11-13 July 2016.In order to predict the pressure and investigate the interrelation among the physical processes in cryogenic propellant tanks, a 2D axial symmetry Volume-of-Fluid (VOF) computational fluid dynamic (CFD) model including a liquid propellant phase and a mixture real gas phase is established. The propellant phase change model is based on the assumption of thermodynamic equilibrium. Two comparisons between the simulation results and the self-pressurization tests of two different liquid hydrogen tanks are made to validate the model. And the deviations of pressure in the tanks are 2.7%~6.1%. The results indicate that the evaporation induced by the initial overheat is the key factor of the pressure rising in the liquid hydrogen tank at the beginning of self-pressurization, but has less influence when the tank becomes saturated.6 pagesPDFenUniversity of PretoriaSelf-pressurizationCryogenic propellant tankPresentation