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Diffuse-Interface Blended Method for Imposing Physical Boundaries in Two-Fluid Flows.
Tanyakarn Treeratanaphitak1, Nasser Mohieddin Abukhdeir2,3
1School of Integrated Science and Innovation, Sirindhorn International Institute of Technology, Thammasat University, Pathum Thani 12121, Thailand.
A novel diffuse-interface method simplifies multiphase flow simulations by using structured meshes, reducing computational time and improving accuracy for chemical engineering applications.
Area of Science:
- Multiphase flow dynamics
- Computational fluid dynamics
- Chemical engineering simulations
Background:
- Multiphase flows are crucial in chemical engineering, often simulated using complex conformal unstructured meshes.
- These meshes are computationally expensive, time-consuming to generate, and can introduce numerical instability.
- Existing methods struggle with accuracy and efficiency in complex physical systems.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop a novel diffuse-interface method for incompressible two-fluid multiphase flow.
- To enable the use of simple structured meshes for simulating physical boundaries.
- To improve the efficiency and accuracy of multiphase flow simulations in chemical engineering.
Main Methods:
- A diffuse-interface approach was developed for the incompressible two-fluid multiphase flow model.
- Boundary conditions were imposed by blending conservation equations of the two-fluid model with a nondeformable solid.
- The diffuse-interface method was compared against a conformal unstructured mesh for various interface functions and widths.
Main Results:
- For small interface widths, the diffuse-interface method showed high accuracy (within 3%) compared to conformal meshes.
- As interface width increased, deviations up to 30% were observed in gas fraction and hold-up.
- Simulations of flow past a cylinder showed the diffuse interface altering the effective boundary thickness over time.
Conclusions:
- The diffuse-interface method offers a viable alternative to conformal meshes for multiphase flow simulations.
- Mesh simplicity and reduced generation time are key advantages, especially for dispersed flows.
- Careful selection of interface width is necessary to maintain accuracy in complex flow scenarios.

