Lattice Boltzmann Method: A New Alternative for Loss Estimation

Abstract

In order to estimate primary containment losses in the industry, two methods have been traditionally used: Source Models (SM) and conventional Computational Fluid Dynamics models (CFD). However, these methods have some disadvantages in terms of accuracy for the former and calculation time for the latter, making the analysis of losses inefficient. In an attempt to overcome these disadvantages, this work proposes the use of the Lattice Boltzmann method (LBM) to perform free surface simulations over loss of primary containment (LOC) scenarios. The LBM was written in C++ and the scenarios were modelled and validated through the comparison with experimental and specialized software data (FLUENT-ANSYS). It was possible to verify that the difference in simulation time between FLUENT-ANSYS and LBM increases as the grid resolution increases. Moreover, this work proves that both computational methods predict correctly the studied phenomenon. Hence, the LBM is suggested as an alternative to estimate primary containment losses, being especially attractive in complex geometry simulations that require high grid resolution.