Study on the flow features of lead-lithium MHD splitting flows under an external magnetic field with arbitrary orientation

The understanding of magnetohydrodynamic phenomena associated with the flow of electrically-conducting fluid in complex ducts is important and necessary in the study of liquid-metal blankets for fusion reactor. This study numerically investigates the lead-lithium (Pb-17Li) magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) splitting flows. The effects of the splitting angle of the duct geometry, the magnetic field orientation and the partly different electrical conductivity of the structural walls on the flow characteristics are analyzed in detail. Furthermore, the combined effects of the splitting angle, the magnetic field orientation and duct electrical conductivity on the mass flow rate and pressure drop are considered with many sub-cases. The results show that the mass imbalance and the pressure drop depend on the splitting angle of the duct geometry, on the discrepancy of the electrical conductivity of the sub-channels and also on the magnetic field orientation. In a word, this study can support several approaches to improve the flow imbalance and to reduce the pressure drop in the sub-channels of the liquid-metal (LM) MHD splitting flow system