Direct numerical simulations of gas/liquid multiphase flows

Direct numerical simulations of bubbly flows are reviewed and recent progress is discussed. Simulations, of homogeneous bubble distribution in fully periodic domains at relatively low Reynolds numbers have already yielded considerable insight into the dynamics of such flows. Many aspects of the evolution converge rapidly with the size of the systems and results for the rise velocity, the velocity fluctuations, as well as the average relative orientation of bubble pairs have been obtained. The challenge now is to examine bubbles at higher Reynolds numbers, bubbles in channels and confined geometry, and bubble interactions with turbulent flows. We briefly review numerical methods used for direct numerical…

• UD
  U.S. Department of Energy