This award facilitates scientific research using the large new computational resource named Blue Waters scheduled to be deployed at the University of Illinois in 2012. It provides travel funds to support technical coordination between the principal investigators, the Blue Waters project team and vendor technical team.
The objective of the proposed numerical study is to enhance the understanding of liquid droplet vaporization and mixing processes in a turbulent flow. The numerical study employs direct numerical simulations (DNS) to examine the two-way interactions between freely-moving vaporizing droplets and isotropic turbulence. The droplets will be fully resolved in 3D space and time, i.e. not treated as point particles, and all the scales of the turbulent motion are resolved down to the smallest relevant length- and time-scales (the Kolmogorov scales). The emphasis will be on the two-way exchange of mass, momentum and energy between the vaporizing droplets and the surrounding turbulent gas. The turbulence will be assumed isotropic as a first step before considering turbulent shear flows in future studies.
The results of the proposed study will potentially impact efficient utilization of energy. This impact stems from the fact that the vaporization rate is the main controlling mechanism of fuel droplet combustion and that liquid fuels are the most important source of energy for all modes of transportation and will remain as such for the foreseeable future. Understanding the physical details of the vaporization and mixing processes in a turbulent flow is an essential prerequisite to understanding the chemical reaction process and the eventual control/optimization of the energy conversion process. The PI has a record of accomplishment in the field of study and in combining research and teaching, including outreach to undergraduate students and underrepresented students in the sciences.
