Moment and forces exerted on the inner cylinder in eccentric annular flow

This paper presents results of numerical modeling for analysis of the moment and forces exerted on an eccentrically positioned rotating inner cylinder due to the annular flow between two cylinders with parallel axes. Laminar stationary fully developed flows of Newtonian and power law fluid flows are considered. An impact of annulus geometry, flow regime, and fluid characteristics are studied. The study indicates that the moment exerted on the inner cylinder increases monotonically with the eccentricity. Forces acting on the inner cylinder include pressure and viscous friction. The pressure forces provide a predominant contribution. When eccentricity does not exceed a certain critical value, the radial force pushes the inner cylinder to the channel wall. When eccentricity is large enough, the radial force reverses its sign, and the inner cylinder is pushed away from the outer wall. Circumferential component of the force has always the same direction and induces precession of the inner cylinder.