A stochastic force model for a finite-size spherical particle in turbulence

Abstract

Predicting particle-laden flows requires accurate fluid force models. However, a reliable particle force model for finite-size particles in turbulent flows remains lacking. In the present work, a fluid force model for a finite-size spherical particle in turbulence is developed by simulating turbulent flow past a fixed spherical particle using particle-resolved direct numerical simulation (PRDNS). Our simulation demonstrates that turbulence increases the mean drag force of the particle, which is consistent with previous studies. By correlating the DNS data as functions of the Reynolds number of particles, the ratio of the particle-to-turbulence scale, and the intensity ratio of the turbulence, an empirical correlation for the mean drag force is obtained. Furthermore, we find that the fluctuations of both the drag and lateral forces follow the Gaussian distribution. Consequently, the temporal variations of the fluctuating drag and lateral forces are modeled using a stochastic Langevin equation. Empirical correlations of the fluctuation intensities and time scales involved in the stochastic model are also determined from the DNS data. Finally, we simulate the movement of a finite-size particle in turbulence and the dispersion of particles in a turbulent channel flow to validate the proposed model. The proposed fluid force model requires the mean flow velocity, the kinetic energy of the turbulence, and the dissipation rate of the turbulence as inputs, which makes it well suited for combination with the Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) approach.