Pressure Drop Characteristics of Tesla Valve in Fully Turbulent Flow

Abstract This study investigated the pressure drop characteristics and determined the fully turbulent flow regime of the Tesla valve in the Reynolds number (Re) range of 10,000 to 150,000. A combined approach involving hydraulic resistance experiments and computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations was employed, with numerical models validated against experimental data. Three geometric parameters—diverging angle (θdiv), converging angle (θconv), and relative radius (R/Dh)—were analyzed for their effects on flow loss. Velocity distributions, turbulent kinetic energy, and pressure fields were assessed near diverging and merging points. Two turbulent flow regimes were identified, with the realizable k–ε model providing the best alignment with experimental results at high Re. A dimensionless correlation for the loss coefficient (KL) was derived using nonlinear regression across 375 CFD cases. Among the design parameters, θconv had the strongest influence on KL, while R/Dh exhibited minimal impact. The proposed model achieved a high coefficient of determination (R2 = 0.9785). These findings offer valuable insight into pressure drop prediction in Tesla valves under high-speed, high-pressure conditions, serving as design guidelines for future applications.