Self-Siphon Simulation Using Molecular Dynamics Method

TL;DR

This paper uses molecular dynamics simulations to analyze the behavior of self-priming siphons, focusing on the critical height and flow dynamics, and compares simulated passage time with observed data.

Contribution

It introduces a molecular dynamics approach to simulate self-siphon behavior and analyzes the dependency of flow time on siphon segment lengths.

Findings

Simulated flow passage time inversely correlates with observed data.

Trajectory of fluid interface fits geometric parametric equations.

Flow time depends on vertical segment lengths.

Abstract

A self activated siphon, which is also known as self-siphon or self-priming siphon, is simulated using molecular dynamics (MD) method in order to study its behavior, especially why it has a critical height that prevents fluid from flowing through it. The trajectory of the fluid interface with air in front of the flow or the head is also fitted the trajectory modeled by parametric equations, which is derived from geometry construction of the self-siphon. Numerical equations solved using MD method is derived from equations of motion of the head which is obtained by introducing all considered forces influencing the movement of it. Time duration needed for fluid to pass the entire tube of the self-siphon, {\tau}, obtained from the simulation is compared quantitatively to the observation data from the previous work and it shows inverse behavior. Length of the three vertical segments are varied independently using a parameter for each segment, which are N_5, N_3, and N_1. Room parameters of N_5, N_3, and N_1 are constructed and the dependency of {\tau} to these parameters are discussed.