Voidage correction algorithm for unresolved Euler–Lagrange simulations

The effect of grid coarsening on the predicted total drag force and heat exchange rate in dense gas–particle flows is investigated using Euler–Lagrange (EL) approach. We demonstrate that grid coarsening may reduce the predicted total drag force and exchange rate. Surprisingly, exchange coefficients predicted by the EL approach deviate more significantly from the exact value compared to results of Euler–Euler (EE)-based calculations. The voidage gradient is identified as the root cause of this peculiar behavior. Consequently, we propose a correction algorithm based on a sigmoidal function to predict the voidage experienced by individual particles. Our correction algorithm can significantly improve the prediction of exchange coefficients in EL models, which is tested for simulations involving Euler grid cell sizes between $$2d_p$$ and $$12d_p$$ . It is most relevant in simulations of dense polydisperse particle suspensions featuring steep voidage profiles. For these suspensions, classical approaches may result in an error of the total exchange rate of up to $$30\%$$ .