Taylor Grubbs (North Carolina State University)
Magnus Bentham (University of Sheffield)
Nick Mecham (North Carolina State University)

Abstract

Parallel, Hierarchic, Adaptive, Stabilized, Transient Analysis (PHASTA) is a massively parallel computational fluid dynamics code capable of solving single and two phase flows using the level set interface capturing method. This enables researchers to extract fine scale details of reactor-relevant flows using the code. In this seminar, we present an overview of PHASTA’s capabilities in addition to some recent works involving PHASTA. First we present an overview of PHASTA’s capabilities with a focus on fine scale boiling phenomena. Following that we present specific examples of using PHASTA to inform engineering scale physics. First, industrial modelling of bubbly flows often relies on the assumption that the system can be treated as a collection of isolated bubbles. In the presence of complex bubble cluster dynamics, this assumption is inadequate. Here we’ll discuss how developing analysis tools to study the bubble-bubble interaction PHASTA can be used to inform industrial scale modelling of bubbly flow systems. Second, By combining PHASTA with HPC systems it is possible to simulate the flows within full-scale reactor components. We present work towards the simulation of a BWR steam separator and the challenges that it presents.

Biographies

Taylor Grubbs is a PhD student at NCSU working on high resolution simulations of two-phase flows in reactor systems. Taylor also has an MS in Physics from NCSU and has worked on a wide variety of projects ranging from Radiation Transport to Turbulence Modeling.

Magnus Bentham is a Mechanical Engineering PhD student at the University of Sheffield, UK. Prior to his PhD research, Magnus obtained a master’s degree in Aerospace engineering at the University of Sheffield. Magnus’ research focuses on the fluid dynamics of gas-liquid bubbly flows, in particular, the development of computational models to study turbulent bubble clusters at high gas volume fractions.

Nick Mecham is a PhD candidate in the Multiphase Research Group led by Dr. Igor Bolotnov in the Department of Nuclear Engineering at North Carolina State University. Nick received his BS in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Utah. His research expertise is in the use of computational fluid dynamics applied to nuclear thermal-hydraulic systems.

January 13. 2024
4:10 pm seminar

zoom link upon request