Sediment flow in inclined vessels calculated using a multiphase particle-in-cell model for dense particle flows

Sedimentation of particles in an inclined vessel is predicted using a two-dimensional, incompressible, multiphase particle-in-cell (MP-PIC) method. The numerical technique solves the governing equations of the fluid phase using a continuum model and those of the particle phase using a Lagrangian model. Mapping particle properties to an Eulerian grid and then mapping back computed stress tensors to particle positions allows a complete solution of sedimentation from a dilute mixture to close-pack. The solution scheme allows for distributions of types, sizes and density of particles, with no numerical diffusion from the Lagrangian particle calculations. The MP-PIC solution method captures the physics of inclined sedimentation which includes the clarified fluid layer under the upper wall, a dense mixture layer above the bottom wall, and instabilities which produce waves at the clarified fluid and suspension interface. Measured and calculated sedimentation rates are in good agreement.     

多相流局部混合型质点网格法

提出模拟多相流的局部混合型质点网格法,该方法能稳定地模拟高浓度流体颗粒两相 流. 在每一个颗粒团尺度的欧拉网格下(本文称之为欧拉微元),基于Lagrangian 追踪原理,可直接估计体积内颗粒的总量,从而准确求出欧拉微元和控制容积内颗粒的 浓度(即颗粒在容积内的体积含量). 同时,假设在新的时间步下,颗粒在欧拉微元里充分 混合,形成新颗粒团. 作者对竖直和倾斜容器中单粒径颗粒沉降和竖直容器中双粒径颗粒双 峰悬浮液沉降过程进行了计算,结果与实测数据相符.     

Transmission fluctuation method for particle analysis in multiphase flow

The transmission fluctuations can be used for measurements on particle size and particle concentration in multiphase flows. In Gregory’s method, the beam diameter is required to be much larger than the particle diameter, which limits the application seriously. In this work, we introduce a new method of the transmission fluctuation measurement, in which the beam diameter can be less, equal to and larger than the particle diameter. The theoretical analysis proves that, when the beam-to-particle diameter ratio is within the range of 0.05 and 10, the new method is able to achieve satisfying measurement results. However, Gregory’s method is only suitable in the range of 5 and 10. Therefore, this new method enhances the transmission fluctuation measurements greatly.     

A multiphase shock tube for shock wave interactions with dense particle fields

Currently there is a substantial lack of data for interactions of shock waves with particle fields having volume fractions residing between the dilute and granular regimes. To close this gap, a novel multiphase shock tube has been constructed to drive a planar shock wave into a dense gas–solid field of particles. A nearly spatially isotropic field of particles is generated in the test section by a gravity-fed method that results in a spanwise curtain of spherical 100-micron particles having a volume fraction of about 20%. Interactions with incident shock Mach numbers of 1.66, 1.92, and 2.02 are reported. High-speed schlieren imaging simultaneous with high-frequency wall pressure measurements are used to reveal the complex wave structure associated with the interaction. Following incident shock impingement, transmitted and reflected shocks are observed, which lead to differences in particle drag across the streamwise dimension of the curtain. Shortly thereafter, the particle field begins to propagate downstream and spread. For all three Mach numbers tested, the energy and momentum fluxes in the induced flow far downstream are reduced about 30–40% by the presence of the particle field.     

A turbulence model for inclined, bubbly flows

A new turbulence model for the flow of a two phase (liquid-liquid) flow in an inclined pipe is presented. An eddy viscosity is used to model the effects of shear induced turbulence and bubble induced turbulence. The cross-pipe momentum transport arising from the buoyant rise of bubbles across the axial flow is also modelled. Numerical simulations have been carried out in both one and two dimensions. One and two dimensional numerical simulations are presented.On leave from the University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, U.K.     

Two-way coupling of Eulerian–Lagrangian model for dispersed multiphase flows using filtering functions

Eulerian–Lagrangian approaches for dispersed multiphase flows can simulate detailed flow structures with a much higher spatial resolution than the Eulerian–Eulerian approaches. However, there are still unsolved problems regarding the calculation method for accurate two-way interaction, especially on the numerical instability due to the dispersion migration through discrete computational grids. Inadequate solvers sometimes produce false velocity fluctuation which makes the simulation unstable. In this paper, a new calculation method for dispersion-to-continuous phase interaction, which is accompanied by spherical dispersion migration, is proposed. The basic principle of the method is the introduction of Lagrangian filtering functions which convert discrete dispersion volume fractions to a spatially differentiable distribution. The performance of linear, Gaussian and sinewave filtering functions is examined by simple benchmark tests and applied to the simulation of dispersion-generated fluctuation. Using the present method, three-dimensional continuous phase flow structures induced by rising spherical bubbles and/or settling solid particles are demonstrated.     

Grid-averaged Lagrangian LES model for multiphase turbulent flow

A grid-averaged Lagrangian (GAL) model for dispersed particle motion in multiphase turbulent flow is presented to provide a large eddy simulation (LES) model for multiphase turbulent flow in which a quite large number of particles are involved. The GAL model is based on an averaging operation for a Lagrangian-type equation of motion of a particle over a computational grid volume and a procedure of reallocation of a dispersed particle cloud with its centroid movement to each grid. The model is therefore a mixed Eulerian–Lagrangian model which can effectively reduce computational time compared with existing Lagrangian-type models, without losing the advantage of Lagrangian-type models that they can properly describe the dynamical evolution of particles. Since the GAL model adopts the grid-volume averaging operation it can easily provide an effective SGS model for LES modeling of multiphase turbulent flow. The validity of the multiphase LES model developed, which is named the GAL-LES model, is confirmed through its application to a particle plume, in which the present model is found to simulate large-eddy motion usually observed in a jet and plume, and to give good agreements with experimental data.     

Studies on gas turbulence and particle fluctuation in dense gas-particle flows

Particle fluctuation and gas turbulence in dense gas-particle flows are less studied due to complexity of the phenomena. In the present study, simulations of gas turbulent flows passing over a single particle are carried out first by using RANS modeling with a Reynolds stress equation turbulence model and sufficiently fine grids, and then by using LES. The turbulence enhancement by the particle wake effect is studied under various particle sizes and relative gas velocities, and the turbulence enhancement is found proportional to the particle diameter and the square of velocity. Based on the above results, a turbulence enhancement model for the particle-wake effect is proposed and is incorporated as a sub-model into a comprehensive two-phase flow model, which is then used to simulate dilute gas-particle flows in a horizontal channel. The simulation results show that the predicted gas turbulence by using the present model accounting for the particle wake effect is obviously in better agreement with the experimental results than the prediction given by the model not accounting for the wake effect. Finally, the proposed model is incorporated into another two-phase flow model to simulate dense gasparticle flows in a downer. The results show that the particle wake effect not only enhances the gas turbulence, but also amplifies the particle fluctuation.     

Nonlinear elasto-plastic model for dense granular flow

This work proposes a model for granular deformation that predicts the stress and velocity profiles in well-developed dense granular flows. Recent models for granular elasticity [Jiang, Y., Liu, M., 2003. Granular elasticity without the Coulomb condition. Phys. Rev. Lett. 91, 144301] and rate-sensitive fluid-like flow [Jop, P., Forterre, Y., Pouliquen, O., 2006. A constitutive law for dense granular flows. Nature 441, 727] are reformulated and combined into one universal elasto-plastic law, capable of predicting flowing regions and stagnant zones simultaneously in any arbitrary 3D flow geometry. The unification is performed by justifying and implementing a Kröner–Lee decomposition, with care taken to ensure certain continuum physical principles are necessarily upheld. The model is then numerically implemented in multiple geometries and results are compared to experiments and discrete simulations.     

A pseudopotential-based multiple-relaxation-time lattice Boltzmann model for multicomponent/multiphase flows

In this paper,a pseudopotential-based multiplerelaxation-time lattice Boltzmann model is proposed for multicomponent/multiphase flow systems.Unlike previous models in the literature,the present model not only enables the study of multicomponent flows with different molecular weights,different viscosities and different Schmidt numbers,but also ensures that the distribution function of each component evolves on the same square lattice without invoking additional interpolations.Furthermore,the Chapman-Enskog analysis shows that the present model results in the correct hydrodynamic equations,and satisfies the indifferentiability principle.The numerical validation exercises further demonstrate that the favorable performance of the present model.     

An improved SPH model for multiphase flows with large density ratios

This paper presents a new smoothed particle hydrodynamics (SPH) model for simulating multiphase fluid flows with large density ratios. The new SPH model consists of an improved discretization scheme, an enhanced multiphase interface treatment algorithm, and a coupled dynamic boundary treatment technique. The presented SPH discretization scheme is developed from Taylor series analysis with kernel normalization and kernel gradient correction and is then used to discretize the Navier‐Stokes equation to obtain improved SPH equations of motion for multiphase fluid flows. The multiphase interface treatment algorithm involves treating neighboring particles from different phases as virtual particles with specially updated density to maintain pressure consistency and a repulsive interface force between neighboring interface particles into the pressure gradient to keep sharp interface. The coupled dynamic boundary treatment technique includes a soft repulsive force between approaching fluid and solid particles while the information of virtual particles are approximated using the improved SPH discretization scheme. The presented SPH model is applied to 3 typical multiphase flow problems including dam breaking, Rayleigh‐Taylor instability, and air bubble rising in water. It is demonstrated that inherent multiphase flow physics can be well captured while the dynamic evolution of the complex multiphase interfaces is sharp with consistent pressure across the interfaces.     

Comparative study of two corrective gradient models in the simulation of multiphase flows using moving particle semi-implicit method

In this study, two corrective gradient models (CGMs) are compared in the simulation of multiphase flows. Linear consistency of the gradient model of moving particle semi-implicit (MPS) method has been recovered by introducing corrective matrix. However, it is found that particles tend to disperse along the streamline while using the CGM proposed in a previous study. Particle shifting (PS) schemes are necessary to reduce the irregularity of particle distribution to stabilize the calculation. To enhance the accuracy and stability, another CGM with dummy particle (CGMD) was proposed in our previous study. This enhanced CGM is featured by linear consistency and purely repulsive pressure gradient force. In this study, this enhanced CGM is modified and applied to multiphase flow simulation. Comparative study suggests that the modified CGM with PS scheme is capable of calculating various multiphase flows and predicting the interface evolution both clearly and accurately.     

Code verification for multiphase flows using the method of manufactured solutions

Code verification is the process of ensuring, to the extent possible, that there are no algorithm deficiencies and coding mistakes (bugs) in a scientific computing simulation. Order of accuracy testing using the Method of Manufactured Solutions (MMS) is a rigorous technique that is employed here for code verification of the main components of an open-source, multiphase flow code – MFIX. Code verification is performed here on 2D and 3D, uniform and stretched meshes for incompressible, steady and unsteady, single-phase and two-phase flows using the two-fluid model of MFIX. Currently, the algebraic gas-solid exchange terms are neglected as these can be verified via techniques such as unit-testing. The no-slip wall, free-slip wall, and pressure outflow boundary conditions are verified. Temporal orders of accuracy for first-order and second-order time-marching schemes during unsteady simulations are also assessed. The presence of a modified SIMPLE-based algorithm in the code requires the velocity field to be divergence free in case of the single-phase incompressible model. Similarly, the volume fraction weighted velocity field must be divergence-free for the two-phase incompressible model. A newly-developed curl-based manufactured solution is used to generate manufactured solutions that satisfy the divergence-free constraint during the verification of the single-phase and two-phase incompressible governing equations. Manufactured solutions with constraints due to boundary conditions as well as due to divergence-free flow are derived in order to verify the boundary conditions.     

An incompressible smoothed particle hydrodynamics scheme for Newtonian/non-Newtonian multiphase flows including semi-analytical solutions for two-phase inelastic Poiseuille flows

An incompressible smoothed particle hydrodynamics (ISPH) method is developed for the modeling of multiphase Newtonian and inelastic non-Newtonian flows at low density ratios. This new method is the multiphase extension of Xenakis et al, J. Non-Newtonian Fluid Mech., 218, 1-15, which has been shown to be stable and accurate, with a virtually noise-free pressure field for single-phase non-Newtonian flows. For the validation of the method a semi-analytical solution of a two-phase Newtonian/non-Newtonian (inelastic) Poiseuille flow is derived. The developed method is also compared with the benchmark multiphase case of the Rayleigh Taylor instability and a submarine landslide, thereby demonstrating capability in both Newtonian/Newtonian and Newtonian/non-Newtonian two-phase applications. Comparisons with analytical solutions, experimental and previously published results are conducted and show that the proposed methodology can accurately predict the free-surface and interface profiles of complex incompressible multi-phase flows at low-density ratios relevant, for example, to geophysical environmental applications.     

Improved subgrid scale model for dense turbulent solid-liquid two-phase flows

The dense solid-phase governing equations for two-phase flows are obtained by using the kinetic theory of gas molecules. Assuming that the solid-phase velocity distributions obey the Maxwell equations, the collision term for particles under dense two-phase flow conditions is also derived. In comparison with the governing equations of a dilute two-phase flow, the solid-particle‘s governing equations are developed for a dense turbulent solid-liquid flow by adopting some relevant terms from the dilute two-phase governing equations. Based on Cauchy-Helmholtz theorem and Smagorinsky model, a second-order dynamic sub-grid-scale (SGS) model, in which the sub-grid-scale stress is a function of both the strain-rate tensor and the rotation-rate tensor, is proposed to model the two-phase governing equations by applying dimension analyses. Applying the SIMPLEC algorithm and staggering grid system to the two-phase discretized governing equations and employing the slip boundary conditions on the walls, the velocity and pressure fields, and the volumetric concentration are calculated. The simulation results are in a fairly good agreement with experimental data in two operating cases in a conduit with a rectangular cross-section and these comparisons imply that these models are practical.     

Uncertainty analysis of flow rate measurement for multiphase flow using CFD

The venturi meter has an advantage in its use,because it can measure flow without being much affected by the type of the measured fluid or flow conditions.Hence,it has excellent versatility and is being widely applied in many industries.The flow of a liquid containing air is a representative example of a multiphase flow and exhibits complex flow characteristics.In particular,the greater the gas volume fraction(GVF),the more inhomogeneous the flow becomes.As a result,using a venturi meter to measure the rate of a flow that has a high GVF generates an error.In this study,the cause of the error occurred in measuring the flow rate for the multiphase flow when using the venturi meter for analysis by CFD.To ensure the reliability of this study,the accuracy of the multiphase flow models for numerical analysis was verified through comparison between the calculated results of numerical analysis and the experimental data.As a result,the Grace model,which is a multiphase flow model established by an experiment with water and air,was confirmed to have the highest reliability.Finally,the characteristics of the internal flow Held about the multiphase flow analysis result generated by applying the Grace model were analyzed to find the cause of the uncertainty occurring when measuring the flow rate of the multiphase flow using the venturi meter.A phase separation phenomenon occurred due to a density difference of water and air inside the venturi,and flow inhomogeneity happened according to the flow velocity difference of each phase.It was confirmed that this flow inhomogeneity increased as the GVF increased due to the uncertainty of the flow measurement.     

Stratified flow model for convective condensation in an inclined tube

Experimental data are reported for condensation of R134a in an 8.38 mm inner diameter smooth tube in inclined orientations with a mass flux of 200 kg/m² s. Under these conditions, the flow is stratified and there is an optimum inclination angle, which leads to the highest heat transfer coefficient. There is a need for a model to better understand and predict the flow behaviour. In this paper, the state of the art of existing models of stratified two-phase flows in inclined tubes is presented, whereafter a new mechanistic model is proposed. The liquid–vapour distribution in the tube is determined by taking into account the gravitational and the capillary forces. The comparison between the experimental data and the model prediction showed a good agreement in terms of heat transfer coefficients and pressure drops. The effect of the interface curvature on the heat transfer coefficient has been quantified and has been found to be significant. The optimum inclination angle is due to a balance between an increase of the void fraction and an increase in the falling liquid film thickness when the tube is inclined downwards. The effect of the mass flux and the vapour quality on the optimum inclination angle has also been studied.     

A USM-Θ two-phase turbulence model for simulating dense gas-particle flows

A second-order moment two-phase turbulence model for simulating dense gas-particle flows (USM- model), combining the unified second-order moment two-phase turbulence model for dilute gas-particle flows with the kinetic theory of particle collision, is proposed. The interaction between gas and particle turbulence is simulated using the transport equation of two-phase velocity correlation with a two-time-scale dissipation closure. The proposed model is applied to simulate dense gas-particle flows in a horizontal channel and a downer. Simulation results and their comparison with experimental results show that the model accounting for both anisotropic particle turbulence and particle-particle collision is obviously better than models accounting for only particle turbulence or only particle-particle collision. The USM- model is also better than the k--kp- model and the k--kp-p- model in that the first model can simulate the redistribution of anisotropic particle Reynolds stress components due to inter-particle collision, whereas the second and third models cannot.The project supported by the Special Funds for Major State Basic Research of China (G-1999-0222-08), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (50376004), and Ph.D. Program Foundation, Ministry of Education of China (20030007028)