This article reports on a numerical and experimental investigation to understand and improve computer methods in application of the Goldak model for predicting thermal distribution in submerged arc welding (SAW) of APIX65 pipeline steel. Accurate prediction of the thermal cycle and residual stresses will enable control of the fusion zone geometry, microstructure, and mechanical properties of the SAW joint. In this study, a new Goldak heat source distribution model for SAW is presented first. Both 2D and 3D finite element models are developed using the solution of heat transfer equations in ABAQUS Standard implicit. The obtained results proved that the 2D axi-symmetric model can be effectively employed to simulate the thermal cycles and the welding residual stresses for the test steel. As compared to the 3D analysis, the 2D model significantly reduced the time and cost of the FE computation. The numerical accuracy of the predicted fusion zone geometry is compared to the experimentally obtained values for bead-on-plate welds. The predictions given by the present model were found to be in good agreement with experimental measurements.

Since the lattice Boltzmann method originally carries out the simulations on the regular Cartesian lattices, curved boundaries are often approximated as a series of stair steps. The most commonly employed technique for resolving curved-boundary problems is extrapolating or interpolating macroscopic properties of boundary nodes. Previous investigations have indicated that using more than one equation for extrapolation or interpolation in boundary conditions potentially causes abrupt changes in particle distributions. Therefore, a curved-boundary treatment is introduced to improve computational accuracy of the conventional stair-shaped approximation used in lattice Boltzmann simulations by using a unified equation for extrapolation of macroscopic variables. This boundary condition is not limited to fluid flow and can be extended to potential fields. The proposed treatment is tested against several well-established problems and the solutions order of accuracy is evaluated. Numerical results show that the present treatment is of second-order accuracy and has reliable stability characteristics.

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In this paper, a two-dimensional model has been developed to simulate the liquid water transport in a cathode gas diffusion layer with different porosity gradients in polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs). Due to the complexity of porous media, the simulation was carried out by lattice Boltzmann method. According to dimensionless numbers that characterize liquid water transport in porous media, simulation conditions were similar to the liquid water transfer into the gas diffusion layer of PEMFC. Different gas diffusion layers were created randomly by solid circular particles with an average diameter of [Formula: see text] and the numerical code was validated by conducting several tests. The results indicated that capillary force is the main factor in liquid water transport in the gas diffusion layer, while viscous and gravitational forces do not have a significant effect. In addition to improve the water management, the gas diffusion layer should have a positive porosity gradient, i.e. the porosity increases along the thickness. Also, under the same boundary conditions and at the average porosity (0.659), the saturation distribution curves in three porous media were compared including the gas diffusion layer with porosity gradient, the gas diffusion layer with the micro-porous layer, and the gas diffusion layer with uniform porosity. The average liquid water saturation in the gas diffusion layer with the 10% porosity gradient was 20.2% lower than in the gas diffusion layer with uniform porosity and 10.5% lower than the gas diffusion layer + micro-porous layer. Furthermore, upon elevation of the porosity gradient in the gas diffusion layer, the average liquid water saturation in the gas diffusion layer decreased. Specifically, as the porosity gradient rose from 10% to 14% and 18.5%, the average liquid water saturation values decreased to 29.8% and 38.8%, respectively compared with the gas diffusion layer with uniform porosity.

Nu merical calcu lations are carried out for natural convection induced by a temperature difference between a cold outer square enclosure and a hot inner cy linder with two different geo metries (i.e. circular and square). A two-dimensional solution for natural convection is obtained, using the finite volu me method for different Rayleigh nu mbers varying over the range of (10 3 -10 5 ). The study goes further to investigate the effect of vertical position of the inner cylinder on the heat transfer and flow field. The location of the inner cylinder is vertically changed along the center-line of the square enclosure. The number, size and form of the vortices strongly depend on the Rayleigh nu mber and the position of the inner cylinder. The results show that for both cylinders, at low Rayleigh numbers of 10 3 and 10 4 , the bifurcation fro m the bicellular vortices to an uni-cellular vortex occurs when an inner cylinder is placed at a certain distance from the center of the enclosure. When Ra = 10 5 , only a uni-cellu lar vortex is formed in the enclosure irrespective of the position of the inner cylinder. A lso as the obtained total surfaces-averaged Nusselt numbers of the enclosure show, in all cases, at the same Rayleigh number, the rate of heat transfer fro m the enclosure which the circular cylinder is located inside is better.