Fractal dimension of a liquid flows predicted coupling an Eulerian-Lagrangian approach with a Level-Set method

TL;DR

This study combines an Eulerian-Lagrangian approach with a Level-Set method to numerically analyze the fractal dimension of a liquid interface, aiding in modeling primary breakup in liquid-gas flows.

Contribution

It introduces a novel coupling of Eulerian-Lagrangian and Level-Set methods to estimate the fractal dimension of liquid interfaces during breakup.

Findings

Fractal dimension varies locally along the interface.

The method effectively captures interface deformation.

Fractal dimension serves as a criterion for breakup modeling.

Abstract

The fractal dimension of a liquid column is a crucial parameter in several models describing the main features of the primary break-up occurring at the interface of a liquid phase surrounded by the gas-flow. In this work, the deformation of the liquid phase has been numerically studied. The gas-phase is computed as a continuum in an Eulerian frame while the liquid phase is discretized in droplets Lagrangian tracked and coupled via the momentum equation with the surrounding gas flow. The interface is transported by the flow field generated because of the particle forcing and it is numerically computed using the Level-Set method. Finally, the fractal dimension of the interface is locally estimated and used as criterion for the model of the primary breakup.