Derivation and Efficient Entropy-Production-Rate-Preserving Algorithms for a Thermodynamically Consistent Nonisothermal Model of Incompressible Binary Fluids

TL;DR

This paper introduces a thermodynamically consistent non-isothermal model for incompressible binary fluids and develops second-order, entropy-preserving numerical algorithms to simulate complex convection and interfacial phenomena accurately.

Contribution

The paper proposes a new thermodynamically consistent model and efficient structure-preserving algorithms for simulating non-isothermal binary fluid dynamics.

Findings

Accurate simulation of Rayleigh-Bénard convection patterns.

Demonstration of thermally induced mixing and interfacial dynamics.

Robustness of the numerical schemes over long-time simulations.

Abstract

We present a new hydrodynamic model for incompressible binary fluids that is thermodynamically consistent and non-isothermal. This model follows the generalized Onsager principle and Boussinesq approximation and preserves the volume of each fluid phase and the positive entropy production rate under consistent boundary conditions. To solve the governing partial differential equations in the model numerically, we design a set of second-order, volume and entropy-production-rate preserving numerical algorithms. Using an efficient adaptive time-stepping strategy, we conduct several numerical simulations. These simulations accurately simulate the Rayleigh-B\'{e}nard convection in binary fluids and the interfacial dynamics between two immiscible fluids under the effects of the temperature gradient, gravity, and interfacial forces. Our numerical results show roll cell patterns and thermally induced mixing of binary fluids in a rectangular computational domain with a set of specific boundary conditions: a zero-velocity boundary condition all around, the insulation boundary condition at the lateral boundaries, and an imposed temperature difference vertically. We also perform long-time simulations of interfacial dynamics, demonstrating the robustness of our new structure-preserving schemes and reveal interesting fluid mixing phenomena.