Challenges for Fall 2009

Subteam Leader: (Wenqi has graduated, but can help with training new members)

Number of team members needed: 2~3

Important team member skills:

• Fundamental fluid mechanics
• Basic idea of flocculation mechanisms, easier to learn with fundamentals of fluid mechanics
• Rough idea about computational fluid dynamics or numerical methods, but not a must
• Previous experience with FLUENT is great, but not a must
• Basic programming skills, C is great but not a must at all (sometimes we will use C to write some user-defined-function)

Challenges

The long-term goal of the CFD team is to help augment our understanding of hydraulic flocculator, and together with other research teams, to provide for a guideline for design and operation of hydraulic flocculators.

• More simulation for 2D performance parameter analysis: we had some encouraging results and possible future topics are:
  • Further analysis for the current data: change within one flocculator from baffle to baffle, etc.
  • Simulations with different Reynolds number
  • Other ways of varying the geometry: different numbers of baffles, baffle spacing, etc,that encoutered in design
  • Further develop the formulation of parameters
• Extend to 3D model:
  • Improve convergence, to which energy dissipation rate is very sensitive
  • Congifuration of parallel computing for 3D simulations
  • Modify the mesh: check the regional convergence of the mesh, coarsen the mesh in some region
• Validation
  • Sensitivity analysis of other parameters when necessary
  • Find some experimental data to compare (or some better idea?)