A comprehensive understanding of high-speed liquid jets is required for their introduction into engine and combustion applications. Their transient nature, short lifetime, unique characteristics and the inability to take many experimental readings, has inhibited this need. This study investigates the outflow of a high-speed liquid jet into quiescent atmospheric air. The key characteristics present are, a bow shock wave preceding the jet head, an enhanced mixing layer and the transient deformation of the liquid jet core. The outflow regime is studied in an experimental and numerical manner. In the experimental investigation, a high-speed liquid water jet is generated using the momentum exchange by impact method. The jet velocity is supersonic with respect to the impinged gaseous medium. The resulting jet speed is Mach 1.8. The jet is visualised with the use of shadowgraph apparatus. Visualisation takes place over a variety of time steps in the liquid jet???s life span and illustrates the four major development stages. The stages progress from initial rapid core jet expansion to jet stabilisation and characteristic uniform gradient formation. The visualisation shows that at all stages of the jet???s life it is axi-symmetric. One dimensional nozzle analysis and a clean bow shock wave indicate that the pulsing jet phenomenon can be ignored. In the numerical investigation, a time marching finite volume scheme is employed. The bow shock wave characteristics are studied with the use of a blunt body analogy. The jet at a specific time frame is considered a solid body. The jet shape is found to have an important influence on the shock position and shape. Analysis of the results indicates a shock stand-off similar to that seen in experimental observations and the prediction of shock data. The jet life span is modelled using a species dependent density model. The transient calculations reproduce the key jet shape characteristics shown in experimental visualisation. The mushrooming effect and large mixing layer are shown to develop. These effects are strongest when the shock wave transience has yet to stabilise. Quantitative analysis of the mixing layer at varying time steps is presented.

The current work has developed a CFD model to characterise a pseudo-annular photocatalytic bubble column reactor. The model development was divided into three stages. Firstly, hydrodynamic assessment of the multiphase fluid flow in the vessel, which incorporated residence time distribution analysis both numerically and experimentally for validation purposes. Secondly, the radiation distribution of the UV source was completed. The final stage incorporated the kinetics for the degradation the model pollutant, sodium oxalate. The hydrodynamics were modelled using an Eulerian-Eulerian approach to the multiphase system with the standard k- turbulence model. This research established that there was significant deviation in the fluid behaviour in the pseudo-annular reactor when compared with traditional cylindrical columns due to the nature of the internal structure. The residence time distribution study showed almost completely mixed flow in the liquid phase, whereas the gas phase more closely represented plug flow behaviour. Whilst there was significant dependence on the superficial gas flow rate the mixing behaviour demonstrated negligible dependence on the liquid superficial velocity or the liquid flow direction, either co- or counter- current with respect to the gas phase. The light distribution was modelled using a conservative variant of the Discrete Ordinate method. The model examined the contribution to the incident radiation within the reactor of both the gas bubbles and titanium dioxide particles. This work has established the importance of the gas phase in evaluating the light distribution and showed that it should be included when examining the light distribution in a gas-liquid-solid three-phase system. An optimal catalyst loading for the vessel was established to be 1g/L. Integration of the kinetics of sodium oxalate degradation was the final step is developing the complete CFD model. Species transport equations were employed to describe the distribution of pollutant concentration within the vessel. Using a response surface methodology it was shown that the reaction rate exhibited a greater dependency on the lamp power that the lamp length, however, the converse was true with the quantum efficiency. This work highlights the complexity of completely modelling a photocatalytic system and has demonstrated the applicability of CFD for this purpose.

The increasing use of Intelligent Transport System (ITS) can enable very close vehicle spacings which generally results in a net drag reduction for the resulting convoys. The majority of vehicle development has, to date, been for vehicles in isolation, thus the study of interaction effects is becoming increasingly important. The main objective of this research is to investigate the use of Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) for understanding convoy aerodynamics and to further the understanding of airflow interaction between vehicles via CFD. In this study, time-averaged characteristics of a simplified, generic passenger vehicle, called the Ahmed car model, after Ahmed et.al (1984) is investigated computationally using the available commercial CFD code, Fluent version 6.1.22. Three different platoon combinations were analysed for the current study which includes a two, three and six model platoons for various rear end configurations of the Ahmed model geometry. Experiments were conducted in RMIT University Industrial Wind Tunnel for analysing the effects of drafting on drag coefficients using two different scales of Ahmed car models. This is an extension to the previous study performed on two 100% scales of Ahmed models (Vino and Watkins, 2004) and the results for both the current and previous experiments were compared using CFD. The CFD proved to be a useful technique since its results compared reasonably well for both the current and the previous experiments on drafting, using Ahmed models of identical (30°) rear slant configurations. However, near critical rear slant angles (~30°) for isolated vehicles some discrepancies were noted. The reasonable validation of experimental results enabled the study to be extended further computationally using CFD, to analyse the effects of inter-vehicle spacing on a platoon of 3 and 6 models for various rear end configurations (between 0° and 40°), in an attempt to provide useful information on vehicle-wake interaction for the Future Generation Intelligent Transport System (FGITS). Critical gaps were identified via CFD for the case of a two, three and six model platoons and the simulations clearly exposed the reasons for these critical gaps. At extremely close proximity, the models experienced more pressure recovery at their rear vertical base, which reduced the drag coefficient. Surprisingly, at some of the close vehicle spacings, the drag coefficients reached values that were higher than that of a vehicle in isolation. This was found due to the high momentum flow impingement to the fore body of the model and was similar to results found in physical experiments. Thus the current CFD analysis revealed that rear slant angle of the model and the inter-vehicle spacing greatly influences the wake structures and ultimately the vehicles aerodynamic drag coefficients in platoons. Even though the current CFD model (Realizable k-B turbulence model) predicted the basic flow structures such as the C-pillar vortices from the rear slant and 2D horse shoe vortices in the model's vertical rear base, the separation bubble on the rear slant that supplies energy to the strong C-pillar vortices was not replicated accurately, which is evidenced from the flow structure analysis. Hence it is recommended for further work, that the study should be extended using the Reynold's stress models or the Large Eddy Simulation (LES) turbulence models for flow structure observation and analysing vortex interactions between the models.

The macroscopic chemistry method for modelling non-equilibrium reacting gas flows with the direct simulation Monte Carlo (DSMC) method is developed and tested. In the macroscopic method, the calculation of chemical reactions is decoupled from the DSMC collision routine. The number of reaction events that must be performed in a cell is calculated with macroscopic rate expressions. These expressions use local macroscopic information such as kinetic temperatures and density. The macroscopic method is applied to a symmetrical diatomic gas. For each dissociation event, a single diatom is selected with a probability based on internal energy and is dissociated into two atoms. For each recombination event, two atoms are selected at random and replaced by a single diatom. To account for the dissociation energy, the thermal energies of all particles in the cell are adjusted. The macroscopic method differs from conventional collision-based DSMC chemistry procedures, where reactions are performed as an integral part of the collision routine. The most important advantage offered by the macroscopic method is that it can utilise reaction rates that are any function of the macroscopic flow conditions. It therefore allows DSMC chemistry calculations to be performed using rate expressions for which no conventional chemistry model may exist. Given the accuracy and flexibility of the macroscopic method, it has significant potential for modelling reacting non-equilibrium gas flows. The macroscopic method is tested by performing DSMC calculations and comparing the results to those obtained using conventional DSMC chemistry models and experimental data. The macroscopic method gives density profiles in good agreement with experimental data in the chemical relaxation region downstream of a strong shock. Within the shock where strongly non-equilibrium conditions prevail, the macroscopic method provides good agreement with a conventional chemistry model. For the flow over a blunt axisymmetric cylinder, which also exhibits strongly non-equilibrium conditions, the macroscopic method also gives reasonable agreement with conventional chemistry models. The ability of the macroscopic method to utilise any rate expression is demonstrated by using a two-temperature rate model that accounts for dissociation-vibration coupling effects that are important in non-equilibrium reacting flows. Relative to the case without dissociation-vibration coupling, the macroscopic method with the two-temperature model gives reduced dissociation rates in vibrationally cold flows, as expected. Also, for the blunt cylinder flow, the two-temperature model gives reduced surface heat fluxes, as expected. The macroscopic method is also tested with a number density dependent form of the equilibrium constant. For zero-dimensional chemical relaxation, the resulting relaxation histories are in good agreement with those provided by an exact Runge-Kutta solution of the relaxation behaviour. Reviews of basic DSMC procedures and conventional DSMC chemistry models are also given. A method for obtaining the variable hard sphere parameters for collisions between particles of different species is given. Borgnakke-Larsen schemes for modelling internal energy exchange are examined in detail. Both continuous rotational and quantised vibrational energy modes are considered. Detailed derivations of viscosity and collision rate expressions for the generalised hard sphere model of Hassan and Hash [Phys. Fluids 5, 738 (1993)] and the modified version of Macrossan and Lilley [J. Thermophys. Heat Transfer 17, 289 (2003)] are also given.

<p>Simulating fluid behavior has proven to be a demanding challenge which requires complex computational models and highly efficient data structures. Smoothed Particle Hydrodynamics (SPH) is a particle based computational model used to simulate fluid behavior that has been found capable of producing convincing results. However, the SPH algorithm is computational heavy which makes it cumbersome to work with.</p><p>This master thesis describes how the SPH algorithm can be accelerated by utilizing the GPU’s computational resources. It describes a model for how to distribute the work load on the GPU and presents a suitable data structure. In addition, it proposes a method to represent and handle moving objects in the fluids surroundings. Finally, the performance gain due to the GPU is evaluated by comparing processing times with an identical implementation running solely on the CPU.</p>

<p>The Particle Level set method is a successful extension to Level set methods to improve thevolume preservation in fluid simulations. This thesis will analyze how sparse volume data structures can be used to store both the signed distance function and the particles in order to improve access speed and memory efficiency. This Particle Level set implementation will be evaluated against Digital Domains current Particle Level set implementation. Different degrees of quantization will be used to implement particle representations with varying accuracy. These particles will be tested and both visual results and error measurments will be presented. The sparse volume data structures DB-Grid and Field3D will be evaluated in terms of speed and memory efficiency.</p>

<p>The topic of this thesis concerns the LHC, the next large particle accelerator at CERN which will start operating in 2007. Being based on superconductivity, the LHC needs to operate at very low temperatures, which makes great demands on the cryogenic system of the accelerator. To cope with the heat loads induced by the particle beam, a beam screen cooled with forced flow of supercritical helium is used.</p><p>There is an interest in upgrading the energy and luminosity of the LHC in the future and this would require a higher heat load to be extracted by the beam screen cooling system. The objective of this thesis is to quantify different ways to upgrade this system by mainly studying the effects of different pressure and temperatures levels as well as a different cooling medium, neon.</p><p>For this a numerical program which simulates one-dimensional pipe flow was constructed. The frictional forces were accounted for by the empirical concept of friction factor. For the fluid properties, software using empirically made correlations was used. To validate the numerical program, a comparison with previous experimental work was done. The agreement with experimental data was good for certain flow configurations, worse for others. From this it was concluded that further comparisons with experimental data must be made in order to tell the accuracy of the mathematical model and the correlations for fluid properties used.</p><p>When using supercritical helium, thermo-hydraulic instabilities may arise in the cooling loop. It was of special interest to see how well a numerical program could simulate and predict this phenomenon. It was found that the numerical program did not function for such unstable conditions; in fact it was much more sensitive than what reality is.</p><p>For the beam screen cooling system we conclude that to cope with the increased heat loads of future upgrades, an increase in pressure level is needed regardless if the coolant remains helium, or is changed to neon. Increasing the pressure level also makes that the problems with thermo-hydraulic instabilities can be avoided. Of the two coolants, helium gave the best heat extraction capacity. Unlike neon, it is also possible to keep the present temperature level when using helium.</p>

<p>In this thesis a set of boundary conditions for multiphase flow is suggested.</p><p>Characteristic-based boundary conditions are reviewed for single-phase flow. The problem of open-boundary conditions is investigated, and to avoid drifting values, the use of control functions is proposed.</p><p>The use of control functions is also verified with a new test which assesses the quality of the boundary conditions. Particularly, P- and PI-control functions are examined. PI-controllers have the ability to specify a given variable exactly at the outlet as well as at the inlet, without causing spurious reflections which are amplified.</p><p>Averaged multiphase flow equations are reviewed, and a simplified model is established. This model is used for the boundary analysis and the computations. Due to the averaging procedure, signal speeds are reduced to the order of the flow speed. This leads to numerical challenges. For a horizontal channel flow, a splitting of the interface pressure model is suggested. This bypasses the numerical problems associated with separation by gravity, and a physical realistic model is used. In this case, the inviscid model is shown to possess complex eigenvalues, and still the characteristic boundary conditions give reasonable results.</p><p>The governing equations are solved with a Runge-Kutta scheme for the time integration. For the spatial discretisation, a finite-volume and a finite-difference method are used. Both implementations give equivalent results. In single-phase flow, the results improve significantly when a numerical filter is applied. For two-dimensional two-phase flow, the computations are unstable without a numerical filter.</p>

A multiple-point Arnoldi method is derived for model reduction of computational fluid dynamic systems. By choosing the number of frequency interpolation points and the number of Arnoldi vectors at each frequency point, the user can select the accuracy and range of validity of the resulting reduced-order model while balancing computational expense. The multiple-point Arnoldi approach is combined with a singular value decomposition approach similar to that used in the proper orthogonal decomposition method. This additional processing of the basis allows a further reduction in the number of states to be obtained, while retaining a significant computational cost advantage over the proper orthogonal decomposition. Results are presented for a supersonic diffuser subject to mass flow bleed at the wall and perturbations in the incoming flow. The resulting reduced-order models capture the required dynamics accurately while providing a significant reduction in the number of states. The reduced-order models are used to generate transfer function data, which are then used to design a simple feedforward controller. The controller is shown to work effectively at maintaining the average diffuser throat Mach number. / Singapore-MIT Alliance (SMA)

Fully morphing wings allow the active change of the wing surface contours/wing configuration in flight enabling the optimum wing design for various flight regimes. These wing shape deformations are obtained by using smart actuators, which requires that the wing structure be flexible enough to morph under applied actuator loads and at the same time be fully capable of holding the aerodynamic loads. The study of such wing surface deformation requires an aeroelastic analysis since there is an active structural deformation under an applied aerodynamic field. Herein, a 2-D wing section, that is, an airfoil is considered. Modeling a variable geometry airfoil is performed using B-spline expansions. B-spline representation is also favorable towards optimization and provides a methodology to design curves based on discrete polygon points. The energy required for deforming the airfoil contour needs to be minimized. One of the methodologies adopted to minimize this actuation energy is to use the aerodynamic load itself for wing deformation. Another approach is to treat the airfoil deformation as a Multi Disciplinary Optimization (MDO) problem wherein the actuation energy needs to be minimized subject to certain constraints. The structural analysis is performed using commercial finite element software. The aerodynamic model is initiated from viscous-inviscid interaction codes and later developed from commercial Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) codes. Various modeling levels are investigated to determine the design requirements on morphing airfoils for enhanced aircraft maneuverability. / Singapore-MIT Alliance (SMA)