Numerical investigation of particle lateral migration in straight channel flows using a direct-forcing immersed boundary method

Inertia-induced cross-stream migration has been recently exploited for precise position of particles in confined channel flows. In this work, a three-dimensional finite volume based immersed boundary method has been developed to study the lateral migration and hydrodynamic self-assembly of neutrally-buoyant particles in pressure-driven flows. Simulation results show that, in 2D channel flows, the equilibrium position for a circular particle is closer to the centreline for larger particle Reynolds number due to the increasing flow rate, while in 3D square duct flow, the equilibrium position for a spherical particle is near a face centre and is closer to the wall for larger particle Reynolds number. Self-assembly of a pair of particles is observed in 3D square duct flows but not in 2D channel flows. Mechanisms for the self-assembly are discussed.     

Large eddy simulation of fire plumes

FireFOAM, a new fire modeling code based on the OpenFOAM platform (www.openfoam.org), is developed and applied to model a series of purely buoyant fire plumes with heat release rates from 14 to 58 kW. The calculations are compared with McCaffrey’s (1979) experiments. The simulation results demonstrate good quantitative agreement with experimental measurements, and show the scaling relations of mean temperature and velocity in the continuous flame, intermittent and plume regions. The numerical simulations are shown to be strictly conservative in energy. Predicted flame heights and entrainment rates also compare well with experimental correlations. The good agreements in all aspects examined show that the current CFD model performs well for small-scale fire plumes. Turbulent fluctuation intensities and PDF of mixture fraction are presented to gain more insights into the structure of fire plumes.     

A hybrid DSMC/Navier–Stokes frame to solve mixed rarefied/nonrarefied hypersonic flows over nano‐plate and micro‐cylinder

We extend a hybrid DSMC/Navier–Stokes (NS) approach to unify the DSMC and the NS simulators in one framework capable of solving the mixed non‐equilibrium and near‐equilibrium flow regions efficiently. Furthermore, we use a one‐way state‐based coupling (Dirichlet–Dirichlet boundary‐condition coupling) to transfer the required information from the continuum region to the rarefied one. The current hybrid DSMC–NS frame is applied to the hypersonic flows over nanoflat plate and microcylinder cases. The achieved solutions are compared with the pure DSMC and NS solutions. The results show that the current hybrid approach predicts the surface heat transfer rate and shear stress magnitudes very accurately. Some important conclusions can be drawn from this study. For example, although the shock wave region would be a non‐equilibrium region, it is not necessary to use a pure DSMC simulator to solve it entirely. This is important when the researchers wish to predict the surface properties such as velocity slip, temperature jump, wall heat flux rate, and friction drag magnitudes accurately. Our investigation showed that our hybrid solution time would be at least 40% (for the flat plate) and 35% (for the cylinder) of the time that must be spent by a pure DSMC solver to attain the same accuracy.Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

RANS and LES computations of the tip-leakage vortex for different gap widths

In hydraulic turbines, the tip-leakage vortex is responsible for flow instabilities and for promoting erosion due to cavitation. To better understand the tip vortex flow, Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes (RANS) and large eddy simulation (LES) computations are carried out to simulate the flow around a NACA0009 blade including the gap between the tip and the wall. The main focus of the study is to understand the influence of the gap width on the development of the tip vortex, as for instance its trajectory. The RANS computations are performed using the open source solver OpenFOAM 2.1.0, two incidences and five gaps are considered. The LESs are achieved using the YALES2 solver for one incidence and two gaps.

The validation of the results is performed by comparisons with experimental data available downstream the trailing edge. The position of the vortex core, the mean velocity and the mean axial vorticity fields are compared at three different downstream locations. The results show that the mean behaviour of the tip vortex is well captured by the RANS and LES computations compared to the experiment. The LES results are also analysed to bring out the influence of the gap width on the development of the tip-leakage vortex. Finally, a law that matches the vortex trajectory from the leading edge to the mid-chord is proposed. Such a law can be helpful to determine, in case of cavitation, if the tip vortex will interact with the walls and cause erosion.     

磁流体管流的直接数值模拟研究

在开源的CFD 工具包OpenFOAM 环境下开发了基于低磁雷诺数的磁流体湍流数值模拟求解器,对 2π ×1×1的方管中无磁场湍流和磁流体湍流进行直接数值模拟研究,给出了截面瞬时速度、平均速度的分布,截面对称中心线上的脉动速度的均方根值、湍动能的分布。计算结果表明,外加磁场对磁流体湍流具有抑制作用和并且这种抑制作用具有各向异性。     

Liquid jet directionality and droplet behavior during emulsification of two liquids due to acoustic cavitation

The present study numerically investigates liquid-jet characteristics of acoustic cavitation during emulsification in water/gallium/air and water/silicone oil/air systems. It is found that a high-speed liquid jet is generated when acoustic cavitation occurs near a minute droplet of one liquid in another. The velocity of liquid jet significantly depends on the ultrasonic pressure monotonically increasing as the pressure amplitude increases. Also, the initial distance between cavitation bubble and liquid droplet affects the jet velocity significantly. The results revealed that the velocity takes maximum values when the initial distance between the droplet and cavitation bubble is moderate. Surprisingly, the liquid jet direction was found to depend on the droplet properties. Specifically, the direction of liquid jet is toward the droplet in the case of water/gallium/air system, and vice versa the jet is directed from the droplet in the case of water/silicone oil/air system. The jet directionality can be explained by location of the high-pressure spot generated during the bubble contraction.     

An extended mixture model for the simultaneous treatment of small‐scale and large‐scale interfaces

The aim of this work is to present a new model based on the volume of fluid method and the algebraic slip mixture model in order to solve multiphase gas–fluid flows with different interface scales and the transition among them. The interface scale is characterized by a measure of the grid, which acts as a geometrical filter and is related with the accuracy in the solution; in this sense, the presented coupled model allows to reduce the grid requirements for a given accuracy. With this objective in mind, a generalization of the algebraic slip mixture model is proposed to solve problems involving small‐scale and large‐scale interfaces in an unified framework taking special care in preserving the conservativeness of the fluxes. This model is implemented using the OpenFOAM^® libraries to generate a tool capable of solving large problems on high‐performance computing facilities. Several examples are solved as a validation for the presented model, including new quantitative measurements to assess the advantages of the method. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

On the thermodynamic behaviors and interactions between bubble pairs: A numerical approach

Thermodynamic behaviors and interactions between bubble pairs are important to better understand the cavitation phenomena. In this study, a compressible two-phase model, accounting for thermal effects to investigate the thermodynamic behaviors and interactions between bubble pairs, is developed in OpenFOAM. The volume of fluid (VOF) method is adopted to capture the interface. Validations are performed by comparing the simulation results of a single bubble and bubble pairs with corresponding experimental data. The dynamical behaviors of bubble pairs and their thermodynamic effect at different relative distances γ are investigated and discussed, which help reveal the bubble cloud dynamics. The quantitative analysis of γ effects on the maximum temperature during bubble collapse is performed with three distinct stages identified. For a single bubble collapsing near the rigid surface, the thermodynamic characteristics at different relative distances are similar to that of the bubble pairs, but the maximum temperature is higher since the single bubble can collapse to a smaller volume.     

后台阶气固两相流动的大涡模拟

本文基于开源计算流体力学软件OpenFOAM,开发了气固两相流动双向耦合求解器,并对Re=13800、颗粒直径为150μm的玻璃球的后台阶两相流动进行了计算。其中气相采用大涡模拟方法,用盒式过滤函数对流体相控制方程过滤求解。颗粒相采用拉格朗日方法对颗粒进行跟踪。将计算结果和实验数据进行对比,以此来检验颗粒受力计算模型和亚格子气固两相求解器的准确性。     

Modeling acoustic cavitation with inhomogeneous polydisperse bubble population on a large scale

A model for acoustic cavitation flows able to depict large geometries and time scales is proposed. It is based on the Euler–Lagrange approach incorporating a novel Helmholtz solver with a non-linear acoustic attenuation model. The method is able to depict a polydisperse bubble population, which may vary locally. The model is verified and analyzed in a setup with a large sonotrode. Influences of the initial void fraction and the population type are studied. The results show that the velocity is strongly influenced by these parameters. Furthermore, the largest bubbles determine the highest pressure amplitude reached in the domain, which corresponds to the Blake threshold of these bubbles. Additionally, a validation is performed with a small sonotrode. The model reproduces most of the experimentally observed phenomena. In the experiments, neighboring bubbles are found which move in different directions depending on their size. The numerical results show that the responsible mechanism here is the reversal of the primary Bjerknes force at a certain pressure amplitude.