Reproducing Hydrodynamics and Elastic Objects: A Hybrid Mesh-Free Model Framework for Dynamic Multi-Phase Flows

E. T. Palermo, K. T. Wolf, J. T. Clemmer, and T. C. O’Connor, in review (2024).

Reproducing Hydrodynamics and Elastic Objects (RHEO) is a new meshfree modeling framework for simulat- ing complex multi-phase flows of fluids and solids. RHEO is implemented within the open-source Large-Scale Atomic/Molecular Massively Parallel Simulator (LAMMPS) particle dynamics code and couples a reproducing kernel smoothed particle hydrodynamics (RKSPH) scheme for modeling fluid flow and heat transfer with a bonded particle model (BPM) for modeling breakable elastic bodies. The resulting scheme provides a robust framework for simulating multi-phase material systems with complex and evolving boundaries and interfaces. RHEO collects many advanced mesh-free modeling features into a centralized, modular, and easily extensible package, including heat transport, re- versible melting and solidification, particle distribution regularization, and user adjustable kernel-accuracy. We report comprehensive tests of RHEO’s accuracy and convergence for common benchmark flows of bulk fluids, boundary driven flows, and complex fluid/solid systems. A series of multi-phase systems are highlighted, including a bouncing water balloon, the fracture and flow of a brittle egg, melting of a free standing solid beam, and conductive cooling and solidification of an extruded polymer during 3D printing.

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