Structure and pressure drop of real and virtual metal wire meshes

An efficient mathematical model to virtually generate woven metal wire meshes is presented. The accuracy of this model is verified by the comparison of virtual structures with three-dimensional images of real meshes, which are produced via computer tomography. Virtual structures are generated for three types of metal wire meshes using only easy to measure parameters. For these geometries the velocity dependent pressure drop is simulated and compared with measurements performed by GKD - Gebr. Kufferath AG. The simulation results lie within the tolerances of the measurements. Generation of the structures and the numerical simulations were done at GKD using the Fraunhofer GeoDict software.