A Study of the Effect of Flow Pulsations on the Flow Distribution within Ceramic Contoured Catalyst Substrates

This study examines the effect of pulsating flow on the flow distribution through contoured substrates. Three ceramic contoured substrates of equal volume were assessed. Two of the substrates were cone shaped with different cone angles and one had a dome shaped front face. The flow distribution was measured for a range of flow rates and pulsation frequencies. Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulations were also performed. It is shown how a contoured substrate can provide improvements in flow uniformity and that they are less sensitive to changes in flow rate and pulsation frequency when compared to the case of a standard substrate. Improvements in the prediction of flow distribution are reported when substrate “entrance effects” are accounted for.