Characteristic development of hyperbolic two-dimensional two-fluid model for gas–liquid flows with surface tension

Abstract A new hyperbolic, two-dimensional two-fluid model is developed to properly solve two-phase gas–liquid flows. Adopting the interfacial pressure jump terms in the momentum equations, the numerical stability is confirmed owing to the improvement in the mathematical property of the equation system. The derivation of the interfacial pressure jump terms is based on the infinitesimal surface-tension effect incorporated in the pressure difference at the gas–liquid interface. Through the characteristic analysis on the equation system, the eight eigenvalues are obtained analytically and they are proved real values representing phasic convective velocities and phasic sound speeds. Furthermore, the characteristic sound speeds are comparable with the earlier experimental data in excellent agreements. In addition, the eigenvectors are obtained analytically and they are shown to be linearly independent. Consequently, the governing equation system is mathematically hyperbolic with reasonable characteristic speeds by which the upwind numerical method avails. Advantage and possibility of the present model are discussed in some detail.