An approach for multiscale two-phase flow simulation in the direct simulation Monte Carlo framework

Abstract

To simulate multiscale gas flow with solid particles, Burt's model, based on the Direct Simulation Monte Carlo (DSMC) framework, is widely used to predict gas–solid interactions under the assumption of a negligibly small solid particle diameter compared to the local gas mean free path. However, Burt's model could become inaccurate when the solid particle is large relative to the local gas mean free path. This study introduces the Gas–Solid Synchronous (GSS) model, which predicts gas–solid interactions in continuum gas regions without assuming the local gas flow regime around a solid particle. Similar to Burt's model, the GSS model includes gas-to-solid and solid-to-gas interaction models to consider bidirectional interaction between two phases. The GSS gas-to-solid model is established by selecting accurate semi-empirical force and heat transfer models in comparison with DSMC simulation results. The GSS solid-to-gas model is developed based on the principles of momentum and energy conservation and validated against Burt's solid-to-gas model. The results show that Burt's model could overestimate the interphase force and heat transfer rates when its assumption on solid particle diameter does not hold, but it can reproduce non-equilibrium characteristics of two-phase flows where gas velocity distribution functions do not follow the Maxwell–Boltzmann distribution. By contrast, the GSS model can accurately predict gas–solid interaction in continuum gas flows, while it cannot capture the non-equilibrium nature of two-phase flows. The characteristics and limitations of the two models indicate that using a valid model for each gas–solid interaction could be crucial for accurate simulation of multiscale two-phase flows.