Three-dimensional radiative transfer modeling using the control volume finite element method

In the present study, a three-dimensional algorithm for the treatment of radiative heat transfer in emitting, absorbing and scattering media is developed. The approach is based on the utilization of control volume finite element method (CVFEM) which, to the knowledge of the authors, is applied at the first time to 3D radiative heat transfer in participating media. The accuracy of the present algorithm is tested by comparing its predictions to other published works. Comparisons show that CVFEM produces good results. Moreover, this approach permits compatibility with other numerical methods used for computational fluids mechanics problems.     

Prediction of radiative heat transfer in 3D complex geometries using the unstructured control volume finite element method

In this paper, a 3D algorithm for the treatment of radiative heat transfer in emitting, absorbing, and scattering media is developed. The numerical approach is based on the utilization of the unstructured control volume finite element method (CVFEM) which, to the knowledge of the authors, is applied for the first time to simulate radiative heat transfer in participated media confined in 3D complex geometries. This simulation makes simultaneously the use of the merits of both the finite element method and the control volume method. Unstructured 3D triangular element grids are employed in the spatial discretization and azimuthal discretization strategy is employed in the angular discretization. The general discretization equation is presented and solved by the conditioned conjugate gradient squared method (CCGS). In order to test the efficiency of the developed method, several 3D complex geometries including a hexahedral enclosure, a 3D equilateral triangular enclosure, a 3D L-shaped enclosure and 3D elliptical enclosure are examined. The results are compared with the exact solutions or published references and the accuracy obtained in each case is shown to be highly satisfactory. Moreover, this approach required a less CPU time and iterations compared with those of even parity formulation of the discrete ordinates method.     

Least-squares finite element method for radiation heat transfer in graded index medium

To avoid the complicated and time-consuming computation of curved ray trajectories, a least-squares finite element method based on discrete ordinate equation is extended to solve the radiative transfer problem in a multi-dimensional semitransparent graded index medium. Four cases of radiative heat transfer are examined to verify this least-squares finite element method. Linear and nonlinear graded index are considered. The predicted dimensionless net radiative heat fluxes are determined by the least-squares finite element method and compared with the results obtained by other methods. The results show that the least-squares finite element method is stable and has a good accuracy in solving the multi-dimensional radiative transfer problem in a semitransparent graded index medium, while the Galerkin finite element method sometimes suffers from nonphysical oscillations.     

Finite element method for radiation heat transfer in multi-dimensional graded index medium

In graded index medium, ray goes along a curved path determined by Fermat principle, and curved ray-tracing is very difficult and complex. To avoid the complicated and time-consuming computation of curved ray trajectories, a finite element method based on discrete ordinate equation is developed to solve the radiative transfer problem in a multi-dimensional semitransparent graded index medium. Two particular test problems of radiative transfer are taken as examples to verify this finite element method. The predicted dimensionless net radiative heat fluxes are determined by the proposed method and compared with the results obtained by finite volume method. The results show that the finite element method presented in this paper has a good accuracy in solving the multi-dimensional radiative transfer problem in semitransparent graded index medium.     

Discontinuous finite element method for radiative heat transfer in semitransparent graded index medium

To avoid the complicated and time-consuming computation of curved ray trajectories, a discontinuous finite element method based on discrete ordinate equation is extended to solve the radiative transfer problem in a multi-dimensional semitransparent graded index medium. Two cases of radiative heat transfer in two-dimensional rectangular gray semitransparent graded index medium enclosed by opaque boundary are examined to verify this discontinuous finite element method. Special layered and radial graded index distributions are considered. The predicted dimensionless net radiative heat fluxes and dimensionless temperature distributions are determined by the discontinuous finite element method and compared with the results obtained by the curved Monte Carlo method in references. The results show that the discontinuous finite element method has a good accuracy in solving the multi-dimensional radiative transfer problem in a semitransparent graded index medium.     

Formulation and testing of the FTn finite volume method for radiation in 3-D complex inhomogeneous participating media

In the present study, an original three-dimensional formulation of the FTn finite volume method based on the bounded high-resolution CLAM schema and using the blocked-off-region technique has been developed. Firstly, this model is applied for 3D inhomogeneous L-shaped absorbing/emitting and isotropically scattering media. Both isothermal medium and medium with internal uniform and non-uniform volumetric heat generation are considered. Secondly, the present FTn FVM results for 3D combustion chamber with five baffles are illustrated and discussed. All tests bring to the fore the advantages, in 3D problems, of the FTn FVM comparatively with the standard FVM especially for inhomogeneous media with discontinuous volumetric heat sources. However these benefits still quantitative and no qualitative discrepancy between the FTn FVM and the popular FVM results are registered.     

Least-squares finite element formulations for one-dimensional radiative transfer

We present least-squares-based finite element formulations for the numerical solution of the radiative transfer equation in its first-order primitive variable form. The use of least-squares principles leads to a variational unconstrained minimization problem in a setting of residual minimization. In addition, the resulting linear algebraic problem will always have a symmetric positive definite coefficient matrix, allowing the use of robust and fast iterative methods for its solution. We consider space-angle coupled and decoupled formulations. In the coupled formulation, the space-angle dependency is represented by two-dimensional finite element expansions and the least-squares functional minimized in the continuous space-angle domain. In the decoupled formulation the angular domain is represented by discrete ordinates, the spatial dependence represented by one-dimensional finite element expansions, and the least-squares functional minimized continuously in space domain and at discrete locations in the angle domain. Numerical examples are presented to demonstrate the merits of the formulations in slab geometry, for absorbing, emitting, anisotropically scattering mediums, allowing for spatially varying absorption and scattering coefficients. For smooth solutions in space-angle domain, exponentially fast decay of error measures is demonstrated as the p-level of the finite element expansions is increased. The formulations represent attractive alternatives to weak form Galerkin finite element formulations, typically applied to the more complicated second-order even- and odd-parity forms of the radiative transfer equation.     

Discontinuous spectral element method for solving radiative heat transfer in multidimensional semitransparent media

A discontinuous spectral element method (DSEM) is presented to solve radiative heat transfer in multidimensional semitransparent media. This method is based on the general discontinuous Galerkin formulation. Chebyshev polynomial is used to build basis function on each element and both structured and unstructured elements are considered. The DSEM has properties such as hp-convergence, local conservation and its solutions are allowed to be discontinuous across interelement boundaries. The influences of different schemes for treatment of the interelement numerical flux on the performance of the DSEM are compared. The p-convergence characteristics of the DSEM are studied. Four various test problems are taken as examples to verify the performance of the DSEM, especially the performance to solve the problems with discontinuity in the angular distribution of radiative intensity. The predicted results by the DSEM agree well with the benchmark solutions. Numerical results show that the p-convergence rate of the DSEM follows exponential law, and the DSEM is stable, accurate and effective to solve multidimensional radiative transfer in semitransparent media.     

Nonaxisymmetric radiative transfer in inhomogeneous cylindrical media with anisotropic scattering

In this paper, the control volume finite element method (CVFEM) is applied for the first time to solve nonaxisymmetric radiative transfer in inhomogeneous, emitting, absorbing and anisotropic scattering cylindrical media. Mathematical formulations as well as numerical implementation are given and the final discretized equations are based on similar meshes used for convective and conductive heat transfer in computational fluid dynamic analysis. In order to test the efficiency of the developed method, four nonaxisymmetric problems have been examined. Also, the grid dependence and the false scattering of the CVFEM are investigated and compared with the finite volume method and the discrete ordinates interpolation method.     

On the finite volume method and the discrete ordinates method regarding radiative heat transfer in acute forward anisotropic scattering media

The ability of the finite volume method (FVM) and the discrete ordinates method (DOM) to model radiative heat transfer in acute forward anisotropic scattering media has been investigated. The test case involves a purely scattering medium in a cubic enclosure, irradiated by one boundary with diffuse emission. Four phase functions have been considered: three of the Henyey-Greenstein type with respective asymmetry factors of 0.2, 0.8 and 0.93, and a Mie phase function with a strong forward scattering peak (computed for a size parameter of 245 and corresponding to an asymmetry factor of 0.93). Results obtained with the FVM are in good agreement with Monte Carlo reference solutions, whatever the level of acute anisotropic scattering (for asymmetry factors up to 0.93). The DOM combined with the renormalization procedures of the phase function proposed by Kim and Lee (Effect of anisotropic scattering on radiative heat transfer in two-dimensional rectangular enclosures. Int J Heat Mass Transfer 1988;31:1711-21. [1]) and Wiscombe (On initialization error and flux conservation in the doubling method. JQSRT 1976;18:637-58. [2]) provides accurate results only for the smallest asymmetry factor. As the asymmetry factor increases, the renormalization procedures induce strong modifications in the values of the discretized phase function resulting in an underestimation of the effective attenuation by scattering. This error has been found to increase with optical thickness. In fact, when using the DOM, results would be more accurate combining this method with a Delta-Eddington approximation of the phase function, instead of using the actual phase function which is altered too much by renormalization.     

Verification of numerical simulation method for entropy generation of radiation heat transfer in semitransparent medium

The numerical simulation method of radiative entropy generation in participating media presented by Caldas and Semiao [Entropy generation through radiative transfer in participating media: analysis and numerical computation. JQSRT 2005;96:423-37] is extended to analyze the radiative entropy generation in the enclosures filled with semitransparent media. A discrete ordinates method is used to solve radiative transfer equation and radiative entropy generation. Two different examples are employed to verify the numerical simulation method of radiative entropy generation in the enclosure. Numerical results of dimensionless radiative entropy generation of enclosure are identical to that of entire thermodynamics analysis for the enclosure system. This numerical simulation method can be used in the entropy generation analysis of high-temperature systems such as boilers and furnaces, in which radiation is the dominant mode of heat transfer.     

An analytical discrete-ordinates solution for dual-mode heat transfer in a cylinder

A modern analytical version of the discrete-ordinates method is used along with Hermite cubic splines and Newton's method to solve a class of coupled nonlinear radiation-conduction heat-transfer problems in a solid cylinder. Computational details of the solution are discussed, and the algorithm is implemented to establish high-quality results for various data sets which include some difficult cases.     

Modified finite volume method applied to radiative transfer in 2D complex geometries and graded index media

A modified finite volume method with unstructured triangular meshes is proposed to solve the RTE in 2D complex geometries and for graded index media. In such media, the RTE has an additional term corresponding to “angular redistribution”. This term is due to the change in the orientation of the direction of propagation for the radiation along curved optical paths. Some benchmark cases applied to a slab (1D) and a square cavity (2D) with linear and nonlinear refractive graded index are used to validate the new method. New results are presented for a disk with radial graded index.     

Radiation symmetry test and uncertainty analysis of Monte Carlo method based on radiative exchange factor

Using Monte Carlo method, the paper investigates the radiative heat transfer in participating media. Based on the radiative exchange factor, an uncertainty analysis of Monte Carlo method is undertaken and the corresponding mathematical expressions are deduced to predict its accuracy. Furthermore, randomness properties of pseudorandom number generators are investigated, and a model to test radiation symmetry is adopted to validate the performance of some generators. The paper studies the effects of energy bundle numbers, discretization schemes, emission location, optical thicknesses, wall emissivity and CPU time on the numerical accuracy. In addition, the simulation results are proved to give a reference for using Monte Carlo method, which is applicable for calculation of the radiative exchange factor.     

Application of the lattice Boltzmann method to transient conduction and radiation heat transfer in cylindrical media

In this paper, the lattice Boltzmann method (LBM) is applied to solve the energy equation of a transient conduction-radiation heat transfer problem in a two-dimensional cylindrical enclosure filled with an emitting, absorbing and scattering media. The control volume finite element method (CVFEM) is used to obtain the radiative information. To demonstrate the workability of the LBM in conjunction with the CVFEM to conduction-radiation problems in cylindrical media, the energy equation of the same problem is also solved using the finite difference method (FDM). The effects of different parameters, such as the grid size, the scattering albedo, the extinction coefficient and the conduction-radiation parameter on temperature distribution within the medium are studied. Results of the present work are compared with those available in the literature. LBM-CVFEM results are also compared with those given by the FDM-CVFEM. In all cases, good agreement has been obtained.     

A least square finite element formulation of the collimated irradiation in frequency domain for optical tomography applications

This paper presents an extension of the least square finite element formulation associated to the discrete ordinates method to solve collimated irradiation problems in frequency domain. The features of the method are shown with a separation of the intensity into its collimated and scattered parts for a better handling of discontinuities due to the boundary conditions of Dirichlet type used in optical tomography applications. Numerical tests are used to gauge the accuracy of the model in both isotropic and anisotropic scattering media, with and without frequency modulation. The results show that the method is accurate compared to some reference solutions.     

Finite element formulation of the first- and second-order discrete ordinates equations for radiative heat transfer calculation in three-dimensional participating media

Two finite element methods (FEMs), FEDOM1 and FEDOM2 (standing for the first and the second finite element discrete ordinates methods, respectively), are formulated and numerically tested. The reference second-order discrete equation is modified in its scattering terms and is applied to the problems of absorbing/emitting and anisotropically scattering media by using the FEM. Numerical features of the developed FEMs are compared with one of the discrete ordinates interpolation method (DOIM), which uses a finite difference scheme. Prediction results of radiative heat transfer by these two FEMs are compared with reference solutions and verified in three-dimensional enclosures containing participating media. The results of FEDOM1 and FEDOM2 agree well with exact solutions for the problem of absorbing/emitting medium with various range of optical thickness. Generally, the two FEMs show more accurate results than DOIM. And FEDOM1 shows more accurate results than FEDOM2 in most of the test problems. Both of the developed FEMs show reasonable results compared with published Monte Carlo solutions for the tested absorbing/emitting and anisotropically scattering media. Although the FEDOM2 is not as accurate as the FEDOM1, it shows its own advantages that it reduces CPU time and memory space of dependent variable to half.     

Hybrid finite volume/ finite element method for radiative heat transfer in graded index media

The rays propagate along curved path determined by the Fermat principle in the graded index medium. The radiative transfer equation in graded index medium (GRTE) contains two specific redistribution terms (with partial derivatives to the angular coordinates) accounting for the effect of the curved ray path. In this paper, the hybrid finite volume with finite element method (hybrid FVM/FEM) (P.J. Coelho, J. Quant. Spectrosc. Radiat. Transf., vol. 93, pp. 89–101, 2005) is extended to solve the radiative heat transfer in two-dimensional absorbing-emitting-scattering graded index media, in which the spatial discretization is carried out using a FVM, while the angular discretization is by a FEM. The FEM angular discretization is demonstrated to be preferable in dealing with the redistribution terms in the GRTE. Two stiff matrix assembly schemes of the angular FEM discretization, namely, the traditional assembly approach and a new spherical assembly approach (assembly on the unit sphere of the solid angular space), are discussed. The spherical assembly scheme is demonstrated to give better results than the traditional assembly approach. The predicted heat flux distributions and temperature distributions in radiative equilibrium are determined by the proposed method and compared with the results available in other references. The proposed hybrid FVM/FEM method can predict the radiative heat transfer in absorbing-emitting-scattering graded index medium with good accuracy.     

The method of lines solution of discrete ordinates method for radiative heat transfer in cylindrical enclosures

A radiation code based on method of lines solution of discrete ordinates method for radiative heat transfer in axisymmetric cylindrical enclosures containing absorbing-emitting medium was developed and tested for predictive accuracy by applying it to (i) test problems with black and grey walls (ii) a gas turbine combustor simulator enclosing a non-homogeneous absorbing-emitting medium and benchmarking its steady-state predictions against exact solutions and measurements. Comparisons show that it provides accurate solutions for radiative heat fluxes and can be used with confidence in conjunction with CFD codes based on the same approach.     

Switching of heating and cooling modes using thermal radiation films

We study emissivity (ε)-dependent radiative heat transfer phenomena in remote and contact configurations. To demonstrate the emissivity-dependent radiative heating mode in a remote configuration, we fabricated miniature greenhouses covered with low (0.34)- and high-ε (0.86) polyethylene films and monitored temperatures on the floors, insides, and covers of the greenhouses during 24 h. The high-ε greenhouse yielded a 9-°C increase in floor temperature relative to the low-ε greenhouse at a one-sun solar irradiance because the high-ε film effectively trapped floor radiation. In contrast, the cover temperature remained lower in the high-ε greenhouse due to intensified radiation released from the high-ε film. This self-cooling effect was more evident when an emissive film was in physical contact with an object. While bare copper heated up to 55 °C, a high-ε film coated copper substrate was kept cooler by 4 and 2 °C compared with the bare and low-ε film coated copper samples, respectively.