Assessment of large-eddy simulation in capturing preferential concentration of heavy particles in isotropic turbulent flows

Abstract

Particle-laden turbulent flow is a typical non-equilibrium process characterized by particle relaxation time τp and the characteristic timescale of the flows τf, in which the turbulent mixing of heavy particles is related to different scales of fluid motions. The preferential concentration (PC) of heavy particles could be strongly affected by fluid motion at dissipation-range scales, which presents a major challenge to the large-eddy simulation (LES) approach. The errors in simulated PC by LES are due to both filtering and the subgrid scale (SGS) eddy viscosity model. The former leads to the removal of the SGS motion and the latter usually results in a more spatiotemporally correlated vorticity field. The dependence of these two factors on the flow Reynolds number is assessed using a priori and a posteriori tests, respectively. The results suggest that filtering is the dominant factor for the under-prediction of the PC for Stokes numbers less than 1, while the SGS eddy viscosity model is the dominant factor for the over-prediction of the PC for Stokes numbers between 1 and 10. The effects of the SGS eddy viscosity model on the PC decrease as the Reynolds number and Stokes number increase. LES can well predict the PC for particle Stokes numbers larger than 10. An SGS model for particles with small and intermediate Stokes numbers is needed to account for the effects of the removed SGS turbulent motion on the PC.