Simulation of liquid sloshing in flexible tanks using the smoothed particle hydrodynamics and finite element methods

• Κύριος συγγραφέας: Νταβαρίνος, Αριστείδης
• Άλλοι συγγραφείς: Ntavarinos, Aristeidis
• Γλώσσα: English
• Έκδοση: 2023
• Θέματα: Smoothed particle hydrodynamics; Finite element method; Fluid-structure interaction; Numerical methods; Sloshing; Μέθοδος υδροδυναμικής εξομαλυθέντων σωματιδίων; Μέθοδος πεπερασμένων στοιχείων; Αλληλεπίδραση ρευστού-στερεού; Αριθμητικές μέθοδοι; Φαινόμενο Sloshing

This thesis focuses on the simulation of liquid sloshing problems in flexible tanks using the ABAQUS/EXPLICIT software, utilizing the smoothed particle hydrodynamics (SPH) and finite element methods (FEM) to model the fluid and solid parts respectively. The simulations involve complex and violent free surface flows with both rigid and deformable structures. The paper begins by presenting theoretical chapters on the importance of sloshing studies and modeling, as well as separate chapters for presenting the SPH and FEM methods for simulating fluids and solids, respectively. SPH-FEM coupling formulation methods are also presented before the various simulation results to test different phenomena. Rigid tank simulations are performed initially to validate the SPH model's ability to simulate free surface flows accurately and its ability to demonstrate the free surface return to its original position due to viscosity damping inside the liquid. The simulations are then extended to investigate the sloshing of the tank in sinusoidal excitation at different frequencies to detect the occurrence of resonance and changes in contact forces and pressures in the tank walls due to different frequencies. Impact simulations are also presented to evaluate the effect of the impact velocity of the fluid on the contact pressure on the tank’s walls. Finally, complete fluid-structure interaction (FSI) problem simulations are performed using deformable shell elements for the tank walls, and the effect of the shell’s thickness on the tank stress and deformation outputs will be studied to investigate the occurrence of resonance phenomena due to the change of the system's natural frequency. Overall, this paper aims to provide insights into sloshing behavior in flexible tanks and improve the accuracy of sloshing simulations by coupling SPH and FEM methods.