Weighted Essentially Nonoscillatory Method for Two-Dimensional Population Balance Equations in Crystallization

Abstract

Population balance equations (PBEs) are the main governing equations to model the processes of crystallization. Two-dimensional PBEs refer to the crystals that grow anisotropically with the change of two internal coordinates. Since the PBEs are hyperbolic equations, it is necessary to build up high resolution schemes to avoid numerical diffusion and numerical dispersion in order to obtain the accurate crystal size distribution (CSD). In this work, a 5th order weighted essentially nonoscillatory (WENO) method is introduced to compute the two-dimensional PBEs. Several numerical benchmark examples from literatures are carried out; it is found that WENO method has higher resolution than HR method which is well established. Therefore, WENO method is recommended in crystallization simulation when the crystal size distributions are sharp and higher accuracy is needed.