Summary
Embedded Boundary Methods (EBMs) are often preferred for the solution of Fluid‐Structure Interaction (FSI) problems because they are reliable for large structural motions/deformations and topological changes. For viscous flow problems, however, they do not track the boundary layers that form around embedded obstacles and therefore do not maintain them resolved. Hence, an Adaptive Mesh Refinement (AMR) framework for EBMs is proposed in this paper. It is based on computing the distance from an edge of the embedding computational fluid dynamics mesh to the nearest embedded discrete surface and on satisfying the y+ requirements. It is also equipped with a Hessian‐based criterion for resolving flow features such as shocks, vortices, and wakes and with load balancing for achieving parallel efficiency. It performs mesh refinement using a parallel version of the newest vertex bisection method to maintain mesh conformity. Hence, while it is sufficiently comprehensive to support many discretization methods, it is particularly attractive for vertex‐centered finite volume schemes where dual cells tend to complicate the mesh adaptation process. Using the EBM known as FIVER, this AMR framework is verified for several academic FSI problems. Its potential for realistic FSI applications is also demonstrated with the simulation of a challenging supersonic parachute inflation dynamics problem.
Embedded Boundary Methods (EBMs) [1] for the solution of Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) and Fluid-Structure Interaction (FSI) problems are typically formulated in the Eulerian setting, which makes them more attractive than Chimera and Arbitrary Lagrangian-Eulerian methods when the structure undergoes large structural motions and/or deformations. In the presence of viscous flows however, they necessitate Adaptive Mesh Refinement (AMR) because unlike Chimera and ALE methods, they do not track boundary layers [2]. In general, AMR gives rise to non-conforming mesh configurations that can complicate the semi-discretization process. This is the case when this process is carried out using the popular vertex-based finite volume method and dual cells. Perhaps for this reason, most of the literature on AMR in the context of EBMs and the FV method has focused so far on cell-centered schemes, where the treatment of non-conforming mesh configurations is straightforward [1]. Specifically, most if not all local refinement strategies developed in this context generate "hanging" nodes in the refined mesh that can be easily dealt with using cell-centered but not vertex-based methods. In the latter case, flux assembly after a mesh refinement step becomes a problematic issue, due to presence of dual cells. This talk proposes a simple approach for resolving this issue by appropriately managing the construction of dual cells past each refinement step. The talk will recall the motivations for EBMs and vertex-based FV methods, explain the aforementioned AMR issue that arises in their context, present a method for resolving it, and illustrate this method with the application of the EBM known as FIVER (Finite Volume method with Exact two-phase Riemann solvers) [3, 4] to various examples including the prediction of the aerodynamic performance of a Formula 1 car.
Over the last ten years, virtual Fractional Flow Reserve (vFFR) has improved the utility of Fractional Flow Reserve (FFR), a globally recommended assessment to guide coronary interventions. Although the speed of vFFR computation has accelerated, techniques utilising full 3D computational fluid dynamics (CFD) solutions rather than simplified analytical solutions still require significant time to compute. This study investigated the speed, accuracy and cost of a novel 3D-CFD software method based upon a graphic processing unit (GPU) computation, compared with the existing fastest central processing unit (CPU)-based 3D-CFD technique, on 40 angiographic cases. The novel GPU simulation was significantly faster than the CPU method (median 31.7 s (IQR 24.0-44.4 s) vs 607.5 s (490-964 s), P < 0.0001). The novel GPU technique was 99.6% (IQR 99.3-99.9) accurate relative to the CPU method. The initial cost of the GPU hardware was greater than the CPU (£4080 vs £2876), but the median energy consumption per case was significantly less using the GPU method (8.44 (6.80-13.39) Wh vs 2.60 (2.16-3.12) Wh, P < 0.0001). This study demonstrates that vFFR can be computed using 3D CFD with up to 28-fold acceleration than previous techniques with no clinically significant sacrifice in accuracy.
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