Three-dimensional Large Eddy Simulation Research Articles

Numerical investigation of flow structures and aerodynamic interference around stationary parallel box girders

Many parallel bridges have been recently designed and built around the world to accommodate the ever-increasing volumes of vehicle and rail traffic. Accordingly, the aerodynamic interference around the parallel girders becomes important to investigate for a more accurate estimation of wind-induced effects on bridges. In this study, a wide range of gap-width ratios (0–15) for parallel box girders are selected to investigate the aerodynamic interference using three-dimensional large eddy simulation at zero wind attack angle. Specific aerodynamic characteristics, including the flow structures, pressure distributions, mean values and standard deviations of the force coefficients, Strouhal number as well as spanwise correlations of the aerodynamic coefficients are examined with various gap-width ratios. The detailed comparison work demonstrates a good agreement with the experimental work. The simulation results reveal that all the aerodynamic characteristics are significantly influenced by the gap-width ratio. The three regions are bounded by critical gap-width ratios of G/B = 0.25 and G/B = 5. There are large changes in behavior at G/B = 0.25, whereas, for G/B > 5, interference effects are not evident. The interference effects on both mean and fluctuating aerodynamic coefficients of parallel box girders are also quantified and summarized.

Vortex Dynamics and Instability Mechanisms in a Radially Lobed Nozzle

AbstractThe application of radially lobed nozzles has seen renewed challenges in the recent past with their roles in combustion chambers and passive flow control. The free jet flow from such nozzles has been studied for different flow conditions and compared to jets from round nozzles, verifying their improved mixing abilities. The precise mixing mechanisms of these nozzles are, however, not entirely understood and yet to be analyzed for typical jet parameters and excitation modes. This study carries out three-dimensional large eddy simulations (LESs) of the flow from a tubular radially lobed nozzle to identify instability mechanisms and vortex dynamics that lead to enhanced mixing. The flow is studied at two Reynolds numbers of around 6000 and 75,000, based on the effective jet diameter. The low Reynolds number jet is compared to that from a round nozzle and experimental data to demonstrate changes in mixing mechanisms. The present simulations confirmed the presence of Kelvin–Helmholtz (K–H)-like modes and their evolution. The analysis also confirms the evolution of three distinct types of structures—the large-scale streamwise modes at the lobe crests, corresponding K–H structures at the troughs, and an additional set of structures generated from the lobe walls. The higher Reynolds number simulations indicate changes in the mechanics with a subdued role of the lobe walls.

On the use of a two-layer model for large-eddy simulations of supersonic boundary layers with separation

The two-layer modeling approach has become one of the most promising and successful methodology for simulating turbulent boundary layers in the past ten years. In the present study, a mixed wall model for large-eddy simulations (LES) of high-speed flows is proposed which combine two approaches; the thin-Boundary Layer Equations (TBLE) model of Kawai and Larsson (1994) and the analytical wall-layer model of Duprat et al. (2011) for streamwise pressure gradients. The new hybrid model has been efficiently implemented into a three-dimensional compressible LES solver and validated against DNS of a spatially-evolving supersonic boundary layer (BL) under moderate and strong pressure gradients, before being employed for the prediction of nozzle flow separations at different flow conditions, ranging from weakly to highly over-expanded regimes. A good agreement is obtained in terms of mean and fluctuating quantities compared to the DNS results. Particularly, the current wall-modeled LES results are found to perfectly match the DNS data of supersonic BL with/out pressure gradient. It is also shown that the model can account for the effect of the large-scale turbulent motions of the outer layer, indicating a good interaction between the inner and the outer part of the wall layer. In terms of simulations costs and improvements of computing power, the obtained results highlight the capability of the current wall-modeling LES strategy in saving a considerable amount of computational time compared to the wall-resolved LES counterpart, allowing to push further the simulations limits. Furthermore, the application of these computationally low-costly LES simulations to nozzle flow separation allows to clearly identify the origin of the shock unsteadiness, and the existence of broadband and energetically-significant low-frequency oscillations (LFO) in the vicinity of the separation region.

LES study on the effect of cavity configuration on combustion characteristics of a scramjet combustor with air-throttling

Three-dimensional Large Eddy Simulation (LES) is performed to numerically investigate the implication of air throttling on the combustion performance of ethylene fueled dual-cavity scramjet combustor. The augmentation of combustion performance with the conjunction of throttling and dual cavity being established, the effects of L/D ratio and interspacing distance between the cavities is discussed. Our results indicate that combustion efficiency is enhanced owing to the pre-combustion shock train generated because of the introduction of air throttling for different configurations of cavity. Further, the combination of air-throttling with dual cavity improves combustion performance in comparison with dual cavity without air throttling. Also, dual cavity with L/D = 7 and spacing S = 12 mm displays intense and larger recirculation zones in comparison with other configurations being considered. It is found that for dual cavity with L/D = 7 and S = 12 mm, shorter mixing length and higher penetration height is attained.

Towards multiscale modeling of ocean surface turbulent mixing using coupled MPAS-Ocean v6.3 and PALM v5.0

Abstract. A multiscale modeling approach for studying the ocean surface turbulent mixing is explored by coupling an ocean general circulation model (GCM) MPAS-Ocean with the Parallelized Large Eddy Simulation Model (PALM). The coupling approach is similar to the superparameterization approach that has been used to represent the effects of deep convection in atmospheric GCMs. However, the focus of this multiscale modeling approach is on the small-scale turbulent mixing and their interactions with the larger-scale processes in the ocean, so that a more flexible coupling strategy is used. To reduce the computational cost, a customized version of PALM is ported on the general-purpose graphics processing unit (GPU) with OpenACC, achieving 10–16 times overall speedup as compared to running on a single CPU. Even with the GPU-acceleration technique, a superparameterization-like approach to represent the ocean surface turbulent mixing in GCMs using embedded high fidelity and three-dimensional large eddy simulations (LESs) over the global ocean is still computationally intensive and infeasible for long simulations. However, running PALM regionally on selected MPAS-Ocean grid cells is shown to be a promising approach moving forward. The flexible coupling between MPAS-Ocean and PALM allows further exploration of the interactions between the ocean surface turbulent mixing and larger-scale processes, as well as future development and improvement of ocean surface turbulent mixing parameterizations for GCMs.

Large-Eddy Simulation of a Lifted High-Pressure Jet-Flame with Direct Chemistry

ABSTRACT A large-eddy simulation is presented of a challenging high-pressure jet flame case that is representative of state of the art, dry low-NO x and low-CO real gas turbine combustion. A reaction scheme is developed for lifted lean premixed high pressure methane jet flames, and tested by three-dimensional large-eddy simulation of an experiment, for which very detailed data are available. Auto-ignition-delay times of different mixtures of fresh gas and products have been introduced as a novel optimization criterion for the mechanism development. The new mechanism has been developed by a genetic algorithm-based reduction and optimization, and consists of 15 species and 18 reactions. The large-eddy simulations are performed using a finite rate chemistry (FRC) approach and the dynamic thickened flame (DTF) model to investigate a lifted jet flame at high pressure in a gas turbine model combustor. In the simulations, the novel mechanism is compared to a similar mechanism that was generated without this criterion, and the well-established Lu19 mechanism. With the new mechanism, the LES predicts the flame as accurately as with Lu19, at a significantly lower cost. Further post processing with Lagrangian tracer particles confirmed that ignition events occur in the region corresponding to the liftoff height estimated in the experiment, which is corroborated by a chemical explosive mode analysis (CEMA). Overall, the newly developed mechanism with the novel optimization criterion was found to provide a better agreement with the experiments than previous mechanisms of similar cost, or a comparable agreement to a mechanism of significantly higher cost.

Effects of the angle of attack on the aerodynamic characteristics of a streamlined box girder

This paper presents experimental and numerical approaches to systematically investigate the aerodynamic characteristics of streamlined box girder at angles of attack (AoA) of up to 12°. The effects of AoA on the pressure characteristics and total forces are first studied through wind tunnel experiments. Based on three-dimensional large-eddy simulations (3D LES), the flow topology is investigated to study the influence mechanism of AoAs. The results show that the flow topology around the section can be divided into three types: (i) completely attached flow pattern as |α| ≤ 4°; (ii) separated-reattached flow pattern as 6°≤|α|≤8°; (iii) fully separated flow pattern as |α| ≥ 10°. The combination of experimental and numerical results presents a deep understanding of the aerodynamic characteristics of a streamlined box girder and reveals the relationships between the pressure features and flow topology. The pressure characteristics and total forces are very sensitive to the flow separation and reattachment. At small AoAs, the flow attaches to the bridge section, the mean and RMS pressure, total force, as well as streamwise correlations change slightly with AoAs. Besides, the shear layer is a laminar pattern and has less impact on the span-wise correlations. Moreover, the vortices in the wake remain successive in the span-wise direction, and the Strouhal numbers are larger. On the other hand, with the increase of AoAs, large separation bubbles can be observed around the bridge section. Especially for fully separated flow pattern as |α| ≥ 10°, the shear layer no longer attaches to the bridge section and the separation bubble is longer than the section width. Accordingly, the mean and RMS pressure, total force, as well as streamwise correlations increase significantly. Besides, the shear layer is a turbulent pattern, and the turbulent fluctuations in wake become complex and less organized in the span-wise direction, then the St is lower than others.

LARGE EDDY SIMULATION OF FLOW OVER ELLIPTIC CYLINDER ARRAY IN SQUARE CONFIGURATION AT SUBCRITICAL REYNOLDS NUMBERS

Flow over arrays of cylinders of different cross-sections has been an essential area of research interest for a long time. For the estimation of flow characteristics around arrays of cylinders, numerical simulation of the flow past four elliptic cylinders in a square arrangement for a range of spacing ratios is analysed in this paper. Three spacing ratios considered in the present study are 3.45, 4.14 and 5.17. The results from the numerical simulation are compared with the experimental findings obtained previously using square cylinder arrays. The fluid flow modelling is performed by applying three-dimensional LES (Large-eddy simulation) with commercial software ANSYS Fluent 19R1. The results from the simulation for elliptic cylinder arrays involve both quantitative and qualitative analyses in the form of various patterns of flow, drag and lift coefficients, St (Strouhal number) and PSD (Power Spectral Density) plots. The Strouhal number values found for cylinder 1 and cylinder 2 in case of elliptic cylinder arrays are 0.642 and 0.703. It is observed that the force coefficients encountered by the cylinders are moderately varying for different spacing ratios.

Computational analysis of the indirect combustion noise generation mechanism in a nozzle guided vane in transonic operating conditions

The combustion noise in modern engines is mainly originating from two types of mechanisms. First, chemical reactions in the combustion chamber leads to an unsteady heat release which is responsible of the direct combustion noise. Second, hot and cold blobs of air coming from the combustion chamber are advected and accelerated through turbine stages, giving rise to entropy noise (or indirect combustion noise). In the present work, numerical characterization of indirect combustion noise of a Nozzle Guide Vane passage was assessed using three-dimensional Large Eddy Simulations. The present work offers an overview to the analytical, computational and experimental studies of the topic. Numerical simulations are conducted to reproduce the effects of incoming planar entropy waves from the combustion chamber and to characterize the generated acoustic power. The dynamic features of the flow are addressed by the means of frequency domain and modal analyses techniques such as Fourier Decomposition and Proper Orthogonal Decomposition. Finally, the predicted entropy noise from numerical calculations is compared with the analytical results of an actuator disk model for a stator stage. The present paper proves that the generated indirect combustion noise can be significant for transonic operating conditions. The blade acoustic response is characterized by the excitation of a latent dynamics at the forcing frequency of the planar entropy waves, and it increases as the amplitude of the incoming disturbances increases.

Investigation on the wake of a single-box girder in sinusoidal oscillating flow

The wake of a single-box girder in sinusoidal oscillating flow is studied by three-dimensional large-eddy simulations (3D LES). The validation of numerical simulation is verified by active-controlled wind tunnel experiments. The mean and fluctuating velocity, as well as the vortex shedding distance in the sinusoidal oscillating flow are discussed. The fluctuating velocity near the wake increases with the increasing oscillation amplitude, however it is distribution period independent of oscillation amplitude. The vortex shedding distance decreases as the oscillation frequency increases, meanwhile, the oscillation amplitude has no effect on it.

Numerical study on reducing aerodynamic drag and noise of circular cylinders with non-uniform porous coatings

This paper presents a numerical study on the flow and noise control of circular cylinders with non-uniform porous coating over the circumference in the subcritical flow regime (Re=4.7×104). A numerical method is employed that combines three-dimensional large eddy simulation (LES) with Ffowcs Williams-Hawkings (FW-H) acoustic analogy, and is validated by comparing with available experimental and numerical data of flow over circular cylinders. The numerical results show that applying high-porosity material in the separation zone is most effective on reducing aerodynamic drag and noise. This partial high-porosity coating enhances the slip velocity at the porous-fluid interface, stabilizes shear layers detached from the cylinder, and hence suppresses vortex shedding, as well as raising the base pressure on the leeward side and reducing drag. A high-porosity coating with a 60∘ circumferential coverage of the separation zone is found to be a cost-effective configuration in controlling both drag and noise. Varying the porosity on the leeward side of a cylinder, however, shows slight differences on flow and acoustic characteristics. This study is expected to provide some useful information for porous coated cylinders aimed at flow and noise control towards practical applications with constrains on coating area.

Large eddy simulations of solitons colliding with intrusions

The dynamics of lock-release Intrusive Gravity Currents (IGCs) generating Internal Solitary Waves (ISWs) are investigated by three-dimensional large eddy simulations. We set the numerical, laboratory-scale domain in order to release a uniform fluid in multi-layer, stratified ambient, exciting pycnocline displacements. By adopting different initial settings, we analyzed the influence of the ambient stratification on both IGCs and ISWs features. We present the main flow dynamics and the time evolution of IGC and ISW front and trough positions, respectively. During the simulations, the ISW is allowed to reach the vertical wall at the end of the domain, and it undergoes reflection. We then analyzed the interaction between the IGC and the reflected ISW: the wave is observed to accelerate as it is pushed upwards by the intrusion, which, in turns, flows below the ISW, decelerating. By analyzing instantaneous velocity fields and flow rates, we found that during this interaction, the ISW increases its celerity in response of the reduced area available for its propagation, partially occupied by the intrusion, and because the velocity field in the IGC interface surroundings acts to facilitate the ISW passage.

Combustion modeling using Principal Component Analysis: A posteriori validation on Sandia flames D, E and F

The present work shows the first application of the PC-transport approach in the context of Large Eddy Simulation (LES) of turbulent combustion. Detailed kinetic mechanisms, together with advanced computational tools, are needed to advance our knowledge of turbulent reacting systems. However, the cost related to high-fidelity simulations of turbulent reacting flows is still prohibitive for realistic configurations. Therefore, there is a need to reduce the complexity of the problem by identifying low-dimensional manifolds. To this end, the potential offered by Principal Component Analysis (PCA) in parameterizing the thermo-chemical state-space is very appealing. The present paper extends the PC-transport framework to three-dimensional Large Eddy Simulation (LES), coupling PCA with Gaussian Process Regression (GPR). To demonstrate the potential of the method, LES simulations of Sandia flames D, E and F are shown. Results show the great potential of the PC-GPR model, as indicated by the accuracy of the simulation results when compared with experimental data, using only 2 principal components. The sensitivity to the kinetic mechanism and subgrid closure model is also investigated.

Mechanism of low frequency high amplitude pressure fluctuation in a pump-turbine during the load rejection process

ABSTRACT Owing to the complexity of the load rejection process, the accompanied complex low frequency pressure fluctuations and their sources have not been determined. Herein, the load rejection transient process of a pump-turbine was simulated with a three-dimensional (3-D) large eddy simulation method and a dynamic mesh technology. The simulation results were validated against the experimental data. Through the joint time-frequency analysis of simulated pressure, the complex low frequency pressure fluctuation components were captured, which are generally lower than the rated rotational frequency of the runner. A comprehensive formation mechanism of these complex low frequency pressure fluctuation components was attributed to three transient hydraulic phenomena and their interactions: the water hammer in the pump-turbine, local reverse flow near the runner inlet, and 3-D blocking water ring in the vaneless space. These findings facilitate the elucidation and elimination of complex low frequency high amplitude pressure fluctuations during the load rejection transient process.

Effect of the Backward Facing Step on a Transverse Jet in Supersonic Crossflow

A transverse jet in the supersonic crossflow is one of the most promising injection schemes in scramjet, where the control or enhancement of jet mixing is a critical issue. In this paper, the effect of the backward facing step on the characteristics of jet mixing was investigated by three-dimensional large eddy simulation (LES). The simulation in the flat plate configuration (step height of 0) was performed as the baseline case to verify the computation framework. The distribution of the velocity and pressure obtained by the LES agreed well with the experiment, which shows the reliability of the LES code. Then, two steps with a height of 1.0D and 1.58D (D is the injector diameter) were numerically compared to the non-step baseline case. The comparison of the three cases illustrates the effect of the large-scale recirculation region on the variable distribution, and shock and vortex structures in the flow field. In the windward region, the shear layers become thicker, and the convection velocity of the shear vortexes reduces. In the leeward region, the wake vortices almost disappear while the counterrotating vortex pairs (CVPs) expand in the spanwise direction. In the area upstream of the jet, the separation bubble works with the upstream large-scale recirculation zone to entrain the jet into the upstream near-wall zone. At last, a comparison of the overall mixing performance of the three cases revealed that the penetration depth and mixing efficiency increased with the step height increasing.

Large eddy simulation of diesel spray–assisted dual-fuel ignition: A comparative study on two n-dodecane mechanisms at different ambient temperatures

In dual-fuel compression ignition engines, a high-reactivity fuel, such as diesel, is directly injected to the engine cylinder to ignite a mixture of low-reactivity fuel and air. This study targets improving the general understanding on the dual-fuel ignition phenomenon using zero-dimensional homogeneous reactor studies and three-dimensional large eddy simulation together with finite-rate chemistry. Using the large eddy simulation framework, n-dodecane liquid spray is injected into the lean ambient methane–air mixture at [Formula: see text]. The injection conditions have a close relevance to the Engine Combustion Network Spray A setup. Here, we assess the effect of two different chemical mechanisms on ignition characteristics: a skeletal mechanism with 54 species and 269 reaction steps (Yao mechanism) and a reduced mechanism with 96 species and 993 reaction steps (Polimi mechanism). Altogether three ambient temperatures are considered: 900, 950, and 1000 K. Longer ignition delay time is observed in three-dimensional large eddy simulation spray cases compared to zero-dimensional homogeneous reactors, due to the time needed for fuel mixing in three-dimensional large eddy simulation sprays. Although ignition is advanced with the higher ambient temperature using both chemical mechanisms, the ignition process is faster with the Polimi mechanism compared to the Yao mechanism. The reasons for differences in ignition timing with the two mechanisms are discussed using the zero-dimensional and three-dimensional large eddy simulation data. Finally, heat release modes are compared in three-dimensional large eddy simulation according to low- and high-temperature chemistry in dual-fuel combustion at different ambient temperatures. It is found that Yao mechanism overpredicts the first-stage ignition compared to Polimi mechanism, which leads to the delayed second-stage ignition in Yao cases compared to Polimi cases. However, the differences in dual-fuel ignition for Polimi and Yao mechanisms are relatively smaller at higher ambient temperatures.

Study of the vortex structure of a subsonic jet in an axisymmetric transonic nozzle

The jet interaction flow field generated by a subsonic circular jet exhausting into a transonic cross-flow over a convergent–divergent nozzle is investigated using numerical simulations. The simulations use the three-dimensional large eddy simulation and Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes equations coupled with the standard k-ε turbulence model. The numerical method is verified via cold-flow and schlieren experiments. The vortex structures are identified via the Liutex–Omega method, and the flow details of various pressure ratios and injection angles are studied. The numerical results capture the main vortex structures of a jet in cross-flow, such as the trailing upper vortex and trailing major vortex. The trailing top vortex, which is difficult to capture, and a new vortex structure, named the longitudinal shear vortex, are both observed when the momentum flux is sufficiently large. This study identifies the longitudinal shear vortex for restricted flow, which to some extent facilitates the mixing of the cross-flow and the jet. The results presented in this paper indicate that the vortex structure distribution of a subsonic jet and transonic cross-flow in the restricted region can be optimized. The main vortex structures are analyzed in detail.

Understanding partial fuel stratification for low temperature gasoline combustion using large eddy simulations

The development of gasoline compression ignition engines operating in a low temperature combustion mode depends heavily on robust control of the heat release profile. Partial fuel stratification is an effective method for controlling the heat release by creating a stratified mixture prior to autoignition, which can be beneficial for operation across a wide load range. In this study, three-dimensional large eddy simulations were used to model a double direct injection strategy for which 80% of the fuel was injected during the intake stroke, and 20% of the fuel was injected at varying timing during the compression stroke. The simulations replicated a set of experiments performed at Sandia National Laboratories on a 1-L single-cylinder research engine using E10 gasoline (gasoline fuel containing 10% vol. ethanol). The objective of this study is to analyze the effects of the double direct injection strategy on the compositional and thermal stratification of the mixture, and understand the best use of this operating strategy. The modeling results indicated that by retarding the start of the second injection, the mixture stratification increases, which can be used to control the autoignition timing and the combustion phasing. Ignition and CA50 (crank angle of 50% mass fraction burned) are dictated by the mass concentration of the richest zones in the combustion chamber, as well as their location. The richer zones have the lowest temperatures before ignition primarily due to evaporative cooling from direct fuel injection. Overall, this study enhances the understanding of partial fuel stratification that can be used for controlling the heat release in gasoline compression ignition engines.

Numerical modelling of hydraulic control, solitary waves and primary instabilities in the Strait of Gibraltar

A two-dimensional, vertical section of the Strait of Gibraltar is simulated numerically with the nonhydrostatic/non-Boussinesq three-dimensional CROCO model to investigate details of small-scale dynamics. The proposed configuration is simple, computationally efficient and incorporates the configuration of sills characteristic of this region. Despite the shortcomings of a 2D representation, this configuration provides a realistic depiction of small-scale mechanisms in the strait during a typical tidal cycle: internal solitary waves generation and propagation, occurrence of hydraulic controls and hydraulic jumps at the sills and presence of active turbulent patches. In particular, the well-known eastward propagation of large amplitude internal waves is assessed using the Korteweg de Vries (KdV) propagation model for solitary waves.As a step towards establishing a realistic three-dimensional Large Eddy Simulation (LES), the sensitivity of the configuration to various choices (e.g., resolution, amplitude of tidal forcing or numerical schemes) is investigated. Our analyses indicate that the representation of small-scale dynamics in the Strait of Gibraltar can be much improved by increasing resolution and relaxing the hydrostatic assumption. Further studies are necessary to grasp the mechanisms of mixing and/or stirring induced by this fine scale process.

Internal Nozzle Flow Simulations of the ECN Spray C Injector under Realistic Operating Conditions

<div class="section abstract"><div class="htmlview paragraph">In this study, three-dimensional large eddy simulations were performed to study the internal nozzle flow of the ECN Spray C diesel injector. Realistic nozzle geometry, full needle motion, and internal flow imaging data obtained from X-ray measurements were employed to initialize and validate the CFD model. The influence of injection pressure and fuel properties were investigated, and the effect of mesh size was discussed. The results agreed well with the experimental data of mass flow rate and correctly captured the flow structures inside the orifice. Simulations showed that the pressure drop near the sharp orifice inlet triggered flow separation, resulting in the ingestion of ambient gas into the orifice via a phenomenon known as hydraulic flip. At higher injection pressure, the pressure drop was more significant as the liquid momentum increased and the stream inertia was less prone to change its direction. Two fuels were tested in both experiments and simulations, namely iso-octane and n-dodecane. With the former, the gas species in the low-pressure region consisted of both fuel vapor and non-condensable gas. With n-dodecane, due to its low saturation pressure, fuel vapor was practically absent. Furthermore, it was found that fuel cavitation might not be the only phenomenon able to trigger flow separation, as “pseudo-cavitation” caused by non-condensable gas expansion played a similar role in promoting the conditions that led the flow to detach from the wall. Finally, it was found that a minimum mesh size of 10 μm within the orifice was sufficient to ensure the main flow features were captured. However, it was shown that finer meshes allowed for better resolution of the near-wall gas layer, resulting in more flow features to be resolved.</div></div>