XDEM multi-physics and multi-scale simulation technology: Review of DEM–CFD coupling, methodology and engineering applications

Abstract

The XDEM multi-physics and multi-scale simulation platform roots in the Extended Discrete Element Method (XDEM) and is being developed at the Institute of Computational Engineering at the University of Luxembourg. The platform is an advanced multi-physics simulation technology that combines flexibility and versatility to establish the next generation of multi-physics and multi-scale simulation tools. For this purpose the simulation framework relies on coupling various predictive tools based on both an Eulerian and Lagrangian approach. Eulerian approaches represent the wide field of continuum models while the Lagrange approach is perfectly suited to characterise discrete phases.Thus, continuum models include classical simulation tools such as Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) or Finite Element Analysis (FEA) while an extended configuration of the classical Discrete Element Method (DEM) addresses the discrete e.g. particulate phase. Apart from predicting the trajectories of individual particles, XDEM extends the application to estimating the thermodynamic state of each particle by advanced and optimised algorithms. The thermodynamic state may include temperature and species distributions due to chemical reaction and external heat sources. Hence, coupling these extended features with either CFD or FEA opens up a wide range of applications as di-verse as pharmaceutical industry e.g. drug production, agriculture food and processing industry, mining, construction and agricultural machinery, metals manufacturing, energy production and systems biology.

Multiscale Computational Fluid Dynamics

“…There are a wide range of modelling methodologies, depending partly on the physical regime being investigated and partly on necessary or desired modelling complexity. At low phase fraction (low particle number), kinetic approaches can be used where the forces on the individual particles (primarily from the continuous phase) can be evaluated and Newton's second law evaluated; this is often achieved by connecting CFD and Discrete Element Method (DEM) codes [44]. At higher phase fraction, the dispersed phase(s) can be treated as interpenetrating continua and phase averaging used to establish separate sets of Navier-Stokes equations for each phase [45], with the most complex models incorporating the effects of particle/particle kinetics at the sub-grid scale [46][47][48].…”

A numerical study on the softening process of iron ore particles in the cohesive zone of an experimental blast furnace using a coupled CFD-DEM method

“…The XDEM method based on a Eulerian-Lagrangian framework is suitable for many engineering applications. A comprehensive description of the XDEM platform and its applications can be found in Peters et al [23], however, the equations used in this contribution are explained here. In the XDEM platform, the solid particles are considered as discrete entities and the gas phase as a continuous phase that exchange momentum, heat, and mass between each other.…”

Study on Particle-Size Process on Internal Erosion of Grap-Graded Soil--Rock Mixtures of Different Fine Contents

“…Owing to advancements in computer technology, numerical simulation methods have been employed to address this limitation and investigate the particle migration process with high precision (Guo and Yu, 2017;Peters et al, 2019;Wang et al, 2020). For the study of gap-graded soils, particle-size numerical test using the CFD-DEM method has become a research trend (Zou et al, 2020;Xiong et al, 2021), as it can enable a deeper understanding of the fine particle migration process and the coupling mechanism between particles and seepage flow.…”