Local time-stepping procedures for the space-time conservation element and solution element method

A local time-stepping procedure for the space-time conservation element and solution element (CESE) method has been developed. This new procedure allows for variation of time-step size in both space and time, and can also be extended to become multi-dimensional solvers with structured/unstructured spatial grids. Moreover, it differs substantially in concept and methodology from the existing approaches. By taking full advantage of key concepts of the CESE method, in a simple and efficient manner it can enforce flux conservation across an interface separating grid zones of different time-step sizes. In particular, no correction pass is needed. Numerical experiments show that, for a variety of flow problems involving moving shock and flame discontinuities, accurate and robust numerical simulations can be achieved even with a reduction in time-step size on the order of 10 or higher for grids across a single interface.     

Development of poly(vinyl chloride)/montmorillonite nanocomposites using chelating agents

Different chelating agents such as poly(ethylene glycol), propylene glycol monooctadecanoate and palm oil were used for modification of the surface-treated montmorillonite (MMT). The work also included the development of a technique for mixing chelating agents with MMTs using different methods and different proportions of MMT/chelating agent/ethanol. Evaluation of the result of mixing was performed by thermogravimetric analysis, X-ray diffraction and high-resolution scanning electron microscopy (HR-SEM). The results showed that the chelating agents used were intercalated in MMT, increasing the interlayer spacing. The OMMT was used in the manufacture of composites with rigid PVC using a microcompounder. The master batch concept turned out to be promising in terms of dispersion and delamination of clay, as observed in HR-SEM photographs. However, despite good dispersion and exfoliation of MMT, poor compatibility between clay platelets and PVC matrix remains to be solved to enable full exploitation of its engineering potential. Despite this drawback, good thermal stability and mechanical properties have already been achieved.     

Thermo-cleavable polymers: Materials with enhanced photochemical stability

Photochemical stability of three thermo-cleavable polymers was investigated as thin films under atmospheric conditions. A significant increase in lifetime was observed once the side-chain was cleaved emphasizing the detrimental effect of solubilizing groups on the photochemical stability of conjugated polymers. In addition to their ease of processing, thermo-cleavable polymers thus also offer a greater intrinsic stability under illumination.     

芴2,7位取代的9,9’-二芳基螺芴类化合物的合成及性能

设计并合成了一系列以三苯胺为核,芴衍生物为外围基团的有机蓝光小分子,该合成通过Suzuki反应在9-芳基芴的2位和(或)7位引入相同或不同取代基作为模块,并利用Friedel-Crafts反应将4-甲基三苯胺与这一系列模块结合.用NMR,MS和元素分析进行结构表征.荧光测试结果表明该类化合物溶液的荧光发射波长范围在442～466 nm之间,属蓝光发射.电化学测试显示该类材料的HOMO能级位于-5.15～-5.19 eV之间.差示扫描量热仪与热重分析得出化合物的玻璃化转变温度在166℃以上,热分解温度高于398℃,表明该类材料具有良好的热稳定性.     

A simple proof of the linear instability of rotating liquid drops

We give a simplified proof of the linear instability of equilibrium figures of rotating liquid based on energy estimates.      

Stability of solitary waves for the Ostrovsky equation

Considered herein is the Ostrovsky equation which is widely used to describe the effect of rotation on the surface and internal solitary waves in shallow water or the capillary waves in a plasma. It is shown that the solitary-wave solutions are orbitally stable for certain wave speeds.

     

A new volume of fluid method in three dimensions—Part I: Multidimensional advection method with face‐matched flux polyhedra

A multidimensional advection scheme in 3D based on the use of face‐matched flux polyhedra to integrate the volume fraction evolution equation is proposed. The algorithm tends to reduce the formation of ‘over/undershoots’ by alleviating the over/underlapping of flux polyhedra, thus diminishing the need to use local redistribution algorithms. The accuracy and efficiency of the proposed advection algorithm, which are analyzed using different tests with prescribed velocity field, compare well with other multidimensional advection methods proposed recently. The algorithm is also applied, in combination with a Navier–Stokes solver, to reproduce the impact of a water droplet falling through air on a pool of deep water. The interfacial curvature is calculated using a height‐function technique with adaptive stencil adjustment, which provides improved accuracy in regions of low grid resolution. The comparison of the numerical results with experimental results shows a good degree of agreement. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

On two models in the three-dimensional theory of stability of composites

A comparative analysis is made of the infinite-fiber and finite-fiber models in the three-dimensional theory of stability of composites. The results analyzed have been obtained using the three-dimensional linearized theory of stability of deformable bodies. A historical sketch is given of the theory of stability for and approaches used in the mechanics of laminated and fibrous composite materials Translated from Prikladnaya Mekhanika, Vol. 44, No. 8, pp. 3–31, August 2008.     

Assessment of regularized delta functions and feedback forcing schemes for an immersed boundary method

We present an improved immersed boundary method for simulating incompressible viscous flow around an arbitrarily moving body on a fixed computational grid. To achieve a large Courant–Friedrichs–Lewy number and to transfer quantities between Eulerian and Lagrangian domains effectively, we combined the feedback forcing scheme of the virtual boundary method with Peskin's regularized delta function approach. Stability analysis of the proposed method was carried out for various types of regularized delta functions. The stability regime of the 4‐point regularized delta function was much wider than that of the 2‐point delta function. An optimum regime of the feedback forcing is suggested on the basis of the analysis of stability limits and feedback forcing gains. The proposed method was implemented in a finite‐difference and fractional‐step context. The proposed method was tested on several flow problems, including the flow past a stationary cylinder, inline oscillation of a cylinder in a quiescent fluid, and transverse oscillation of a circular cylinder in a free‐stream. The findings were in excellent agreement with previous numerical and experimental results. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.