Detailed Study of Fluid Flow and Heat Transfer in the Abrasive Grinding Contact Using Computational Fluid Dynamics Methods

This paper introduces a set of research oriented computational fluid dynamics (CFD) 3D models used to simulate the fluid flow and heat transfer in a grinding process. The most important features of these models are described and some representative simulation results are presented, along with comparisons to published experimental data. Distributions of temperatures, pressures, velocities, and liquid volume fractions in and around the grinding region are obtained in great detail. Such results are essential in studying the influence of the fluid on the grinding process, as well as in determining the best fluid composition and supply parameters for a given application. The simulation results agree well with experimental global flow rates, temperature, and pressure values, showing the feasibility of CFD simulations in grinding applications.