Validation of EMMS-based drag model using lattice Boltzmann simulations on GPUs

Interphase momentum transport in heterogeneous gas–solid systems with multi-scale structure is of great importance in process engineering. In this article, lattice Boltzmann simulations are performed on graphics processing units (GPUs), the computational power of which exceeds that of CPUs by more than one order of magnitude, to investigate incompressible Newtonian flow in idealized multi-scale particle–fluid systems. The structure consists of a periodic array of clusters, each constructed by a bundle of cylinders. Fixed pressure boundary condition is implemented by applying a constant body force to the flow through the medium. The bounce-back scheme is adopted on the fluid–solid interfaces, which ensures the no-slip boundary condition. The structure is studied under a wide range of particle diameters and packing fractions, and the drag coefficient of the structure is found to be a function of voidages and fractions of the clusters, besides the traditional Reynolds number and the solid volume fractions. Parameters reflecting multi-scale characters are, therefore, demonstrated to be necessary in quantifying the drag force of heterogeneous gas–solid system. The numerical results in the range 0.1 ≤ Re ≤ 10 and 0 < ? < 0.25 are compared with Wen and Yu's correlation, Gibilaro equation, EMMS-based drag model, the Beetstra correlation and the Benyahia correlation, and good agreement is found between the simulations and the EMMS-based drag model for heterogeneous systems.