A diffuse interface model with immiscibility preservation

Arpit Tiwari, Jonathan B. Freund, Carlos Pantano

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

A new, simple, and computationally efficient interface capturing scheme based on a diffuse interface approach is presented for simulation of compressible multiphase flows. Multi-fluid interfaces are represented using field variables (interface functions) with associated transport equations that are augmented, with respect to an established formulation, to enforce a selected interface thickness. The resulting interface region can be set just thick enough to be resolved by the underlying mesh and numerical method, yet thin enough to provide an efficient model for dynamics of well-resolved scales. A key advance in the present method is that the interface regularization is asymptotically compatible with the thermodynamic mixture laws of the mixture model upon which it is constructed. It incorporates first-order pressure and velocity non-equilibrium effects while preserving interface conditions for equilibrium flows, even within the thin diffused mixture region. We first quantify the improved convergence of this formulation in some widely used one-dimensional configurations, then show that it enables fundamentally better simulations of bubble dynamics. Demonstrations include both a spherical-bubble collapse, which is shown to maintain excellent symmetry despite the Cartesian mesh, and a jetting bubble collapse adjacent a wall. Comparisons show that without the new formulation the jet is suppressed by numerical diffusion leading to qualitatively incorrect results.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)290-309
Number of pages20
JournalJournal of Computational Physics
Volume252
DOIs
StatePublished - Nov 1 2013

Keywords

  • Bubble collapse
  • Diffuse interface model
  • Interface capturing
  • Multiphase flows
  • Numerical diffusion

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Numerical Analysis
  • Modeling and Simulation
  • Physics and Astronomy (miscellaneous)
  • General Physics and Astronomy
  • Computer Science Applications
  • Computational Mathematics
  • Applied Mathematics

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'A diffuse interface model with immiscibility preservation'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this