Large eddy simulation of sheet to cloud cavitation

Large eddy simulation is used to study sheet to cloud cavitation. A homogeneous mixture model is employed to represent the multiphase mixture of water and water vapor. A novel predictor-corrector method (Gnanaskandan and Mahesh, Int. Journal of Multiphase Flow, 2015, 70:22–34) is used to numerically solve the compressible Navier–Stokes equations for the liquid/vapor mixture along with a transport equation for the vapor mass fraction. The algorithm is implemented on an unstructured grid and a parallel platform, with a fully coupled implicit time advancement of both viscous and advection terms. Simulation of sheet to cloud cavitation over a wedge at a Reynolds number, Re = 200, 000 and cavitation number, $\sigma$ = 2.1 is performed. A propagating condensation shock similar to the one observed in the experiments of Harish et.al. (Harish Ganesh, PhD thesis- University of Michigan, 2015) is observed in the computed flow field. Results will be presented and the flow physics will be discussed.