Highlights

The authors are grateful for the editorial suggestions of David Boutt. This research was funded in part by the US Department of Energy through the Natural Gas and Oil Technology Partnership, managed by John Rogers and Paul West. Sandia National Laboratories is a multiprogram laboratory operated by the Sandia Corporation, a Lockheed Martin Company, for the US Department of Energy under Contract No. DE-AC04-94-AL85000.

Keywords Fluid physics, Simulation

Abstract A coupled numerical method for the direct simulation of particle-fluid systems is formulated and implemented. The Navier-Stokes equations governing fluid flow are solved using the lattice Boltzmann method, while the equations of motion governing particles are solved with the discrete element method. Particle-fluid coupling is realized through an immersed moving boundary condition. Particle forcing mechanisms represented in the model to at least the first-order include static and dynamic fluid-induced forces, and intergranular forces including particle collisions, static contacts, and cementation. The coupling scheme is validated through a comparison of simulation results with the analytical solution of cylindrical Couette flow. Simulation results for the fluid-induced erosive failure of a cemented particulate constriction are presented to demonstrate the capability of the method.

Introduction

Particle-fluid physics are of great importance in a number...