Numerical study of nonequilibrium gas flow in a microchannel with a ratchet surface

Novel Schemes of No-Slip Boundary Conditions for the Discrete Unified Gas Kinetic Scheme Based on the Moment Constraints

The boundary conditions are crucial for numerical methods. This study aims to contribute to this growing area of research by exploring boundary conditions for the discrete unified gas kinetic scheme (DUGKS). The importance and originality of this study are that it assesses and validates the novel schemes of the bounce back (BB), non-equilibrium bounce back (NEBB), and Moment-based boundary conditions for the DUGKS, which translate boundary conditions into constraints on the transformed distribution functions at a half time step based on the moment constraints. A theoretical assessment shows that both present NEBB and Moment-based schemes for the DUGKS can implement a no-slip condition at the wall boundary without slip error. The present schemes are validated by numerical simulations of Couette flow, Poiseuille flow, Lid-driven cavity flow, dipole-wall collision, and Rayleigh-Taylor instability. The present schemes of second-order accuracy are more accurate than the original schemes. Both present NEBB and Moment-based schemes are more accurate than the present BB scheme in most cases and have higher computational efficiency than the present BB scheme in the simulation of Couette flow at high Re. The present Moment-based scheme is more accurate than the present BB, NEBB schemes, and reference schemes in the simulation of Poiseuille flow and dipole-wall collision, compared to the analytical solution and reference data. Good agreement with reference data in the numerical simulation of Rayleigh-Taylor instability shows that they are also of use to the multiphase flow. The present Moment-based scheme is more competitive in boundary conditions for the DUGKS.

Unified preserving properties of kinetic schemes

The kinetic theory provides a physical basis for developing multiscale methods for gas flows covering a wide range of flow regimes. A particular challenge for kinetic schemes is whether they can capture the correct hydrodynamic behaviors of the system in the continuum regime (i.e., as the Knudsen number ε≪1) without enforcing kinetic scale resolution. At the current stage, the main approach to analyze such a property is the asymptotic preserving (AP) concept, which aims to show whether a kinetic scheme reduces to a solver for the hydrodynamic equations as ε→0, such as the shock capturing scheme for the Euler equations. However, the detailed asymptotic properties of the kinetic scheme are indistinguishable when ε is small but finite under the AP framework. To distinguish different characteristics of kinetic schemes, in this paper we introduce the concept of unified preserving (UP) aiming at assessing asymptotic orders of a kinetic scheme by employing the modified equation approach and Chapman-Enskon analysis. It is shown that the UP properties of a kinetic scheme generally depend on the spatial and temporal accuracy and closely on the interconnections among three scales (kinetic scale, numerical scale, and hydrodynamic scale) and their corresponding coupled dynamics. Specifically, the numerical resolution and specific discretization of particle transport and collision determine the flow physics of the scheme in different regimes, especially in the near continuum limit. As two examples, the UP methodology is applied to analyze the discrete unified gas-kinetic scheme and a second-order implicit-explicit Runge-Kutta scheme in their asymptotic behaviors in the continuum limit.

Free-Energy-Based Discrete Unified Gas Kinetic Scheme for van der Waals Fluid

The multiphase model based on free-energy theory has been experiencing long-term prosperity for its solid foundation and succinct implementation. To identify the main hindrance to developing a free-energy-based discrete unified gas-kinetic scheme (DUGKS), we introduced the classical lattice Boltzmann free-energy model into the DUGKS implemented with different flux reconstruction schemes. It is found that the force imbalance amplified by the reconstruction errors prevents the direct application of the free-energy model to the DUGKS. By coupling the well-balanced free-energy model with the DUGKS, the influences of the amplified force imbalance are entirely removed. Comparative results demonstrated a consistent performance of the well-balanced DUGKS despite the reconstruction schemes utilized. The capability of the DUGKS coupled with the well-balanced free-energy model was quantitatively validated by the coexisting density curves and Laplace's law. In the quiescent droplet test, the magnitude of spurious currents is reduced to a machine accuracy of 10-15. Aside from the excellent performance of the well-balanced DUGKS in predicting steady-state multiphase flows, the spinodal decomposition test and the droplet coalescence test revealed its stability problems in dealing with transient flows. Further improvements are required on this point.

Particle distribution function discontinuity-based kinetic immersed boundary method for Boltzmann equation and its applications to incompressible viscous flows

In this paper, a general immersed boundary force density is introduced for the Boltzmann equation and finally expressed as the desired particle distribution function discontinuity across the immersed boundary. Because of its independence of any specific boundary conditions and any specific solvers for the Boltzmann equation, it actually establishes a unified framework to incorporate various types of boundary conditions and several different kinds of solvers for the Boltzmann equation. Hence, a particle distribution function discontinuity-based kinetic immersed boundary method (KIBM) for the Boltzmann equation is proposed based on this general immersed boundary force density. Subsequently, this paper primarily focuses on the isothermal incompressible fluid-solid flows, and uses the discrete unified gas kinetic scheme to solve the Boltzmann Bhatnagar-Gross-Krook model equation. Meanwhile, the regularized delta function and the bounce-back rule combined with an iterative IBM correction procedure are employed in obtaining the general immersed boundary force density to enforce the no-penetration and no-slip boundary conditions on the solid wall. Finally, some numerical experiments for typical incompressible fluid-solid flows show that the present KIBM could provide good agreement with other numerical and experimental results.

Knudsen pumps: a review

The Knudsen pump (KP) is a kind of micro-pump that can form thermally induced flows induced by temperature fields in rarefied gas environments. It has the advantages of having no moving parts, simple structure, easy construction and extension, a wide range of energy sources, and low energy consumption. With the development of Micro/Nano Electro Mechanical Systems (MEMS/NEMS), extensive studies have been conducted on KPs, and the applications of KPs have widened. In order to obtain efficient flow fields in KPs, it is necessary to adopt modern computational methods for simulation and analysis. In many circumstances, the simulation and experimental results have good agreement. However, there seems to be no comprehensive review on KPs at present. In this paper, KPs are first defined and classified according to the flow mechanisms of the thermally induced flows. Then, the three aspects of configurations, performance, and applications of KPs in the current state of research are reviewed and analyzed. Finally, the current problems of KP are discussed, and some suggestions are provided for future research and applications.

Phase-field method based on discrete unified gas-kinetic scheme for large-density-ratio two-phase flows

In this paper, a phase-field method under the framework of discrete unified gas-kinetic scheme (DUGKS) for incompressible multiphase fluid flows is proposed. Two kinetic models are constructed to solve the conservative Allen-Cahn equation that accounts for the interface behavior and the incompressible hydrodynamic equations that govern the flow field, respectively. With a truncated equilibrium distribution function as well as a temporal derivative added to the source term, the macroscopic governing equations can be exactly recovered from the kinetic models through the Chapman-Enskog analysis. Calculation of source terms involving high-order derivatives existed in the quasi-incompressible model is simplified. A series of benchmark cases including four interface-capturing tests and four binary flow tests are carried out. Results compared to that of the lattice Boltzmann method (LBM) have been obtained. A convergence rate of second order can be guaranteed in the test of interface diagonal translation. The capability of the present method to track the interface that undergoes a severe deformation has been verified. Stationary bubble and spinodal decomposition problems, both with a density ratio as high as 1000, are conducted and reliable solutions have been provided. The layered Poiseuille flow with a large viscosity ratio is simulated and numerical results agree well with the analytical solutions. Variation of positions of the bubble front and spike tip during the evolution of Rayleigh-Taylor instability has been predicted precisely. However, the detailed depiction of complicated interface patterns appearing during the evolution process is failed, which is mainly caused by the relatively large numerical dissipation of DUGKS compared to that of LBM. A high-order DUGKS is needed to overcome this problem.

Study of Flow Characteristics of Gas Mixtures in a Rectangular Knudsen Pump

A Knudsen pump operates under the thermal transpiration effect or the thermal edge effect on the micro-scale. Due to the uneven temperature distribution of the walls in the channel axis direction or the constant temperature of the tips on the walls, directional thermally-induced flow is generated. In this paper the Direct Simulation Monte Carlo (DSMC) method is applied for N₂–O₂ gas mixtures in the ratios of 4:1, 1:1, and 1:4 with different Knudsen numbers in a classic rectangular Knudsen pump to study the flow characteristics of the gas mixtures in the pump. The results show that the changing in the gas physical properties does not affect the distribution of the velocity field, temperature fields, or other fields in the Knudsen pump. The thermal creep effect is related to the molecular mass of the gas. Even in N₂ and O₂ gas mixtures with similar molecular masses, N₂ can be also found to have a stronger thermal creep effect. Moreover, the lighter molecular weight gas (N₂) can effectively promote the motion of the heavier gas (O₂).

Multiscale solutions of radiative heat transfer by the discrete unified gas kinetic scheme

The radiative transfer equation (RTE) has two asymptotic regimes characterized by the optical thickness, namely, optically thin and optically thick regimes. In the optically thin regime, a ballistic or kinetic transport is dominant. In the optically thick regime, energy transport is totally dominated by multiple collisions between photons; that is, the photons propagate by means of diffusion. To obtain convergent solutions to the RTE, conventional numerical schemes have a strong dependence on the number of spatial grids, which leads to a serious computational inefficiency in the regime where the diffusion is predominant. In this work, a discrete unified gas kinetic scheme (DUGKS) is developed to predict radiative heat transfer in participating media. Numerical performances of the DUGKS are compared in detail with conventional methods through three cases including one-dimensional transient radiative heat transfer, two-dimensional steady radiative heat transfer, and three-dimensional multiscale radiative heat transfer. Due to the asymptotic preserving property, the present method with relatively coarse grids gives accurate and reliable numerical solutions for large, small, and in-between values of optical thickness, and, especially in the optically thick regime, the DUGKS demonstrates a pronounced computational efficiency advantage over the conventional numerical models. In addition, the DUGKS has a promising potential in the study of multiscale radiative heat transfer inside the participating medium with a transition from optically thin to optically thick regimes.

Discrete unified gas kinetic scheme for all Knudsen number flows. III. Binary gas mixtures of Maxwell molecules

Recently a discrete unified gas kinetic scheme (DUGKS) in a finite-volume formulation based on the Boltzmann model equation has been developed for gas flows in all flow regimes. The original DUGKS is designed for flows of single-species gases. In this work, we extend the DUGKS to flows of binary gas mixtures of Maxwell molecules based on the Andries-Aoki-Perthame kinetic model [P. Andries et al., J. Stat. Phys. 106, 993 (2002)JSTPBS0022-471510.1023/A:1014033703134. A particular feature of the method is that the flux at each cell interface is evaluated based on the characteristic solution of the kinetic equation itself; thus the numerical dissipation is low in comparison with that using direct reconstruction. Furthermore, the implicit treatment of the collision term enables the time step to be free from the restriction of the relaxation time. Unlike the DUGKS for single-species flows, a nonlinear system must be solved to determine the interaction parameters appearing in the equilibrium distribution function, which can be obtained analytically for Maxwell molecules. Several tests are performed to validate the scheme, including the shock structure problem under different Mach numbers and molar concentrations, the channel flow driven by a small gradient of pressure, temperature, or concentration, the plane Couette flow, and the shear driven cavity flow under different mass ratios and molar concentrations. The results are compared with those from other reliable numerical methods. The results show that the proposed scheme is an effective and reliable method for binary gas mixtures in all flow regimes.