Numerical simulation of wall bounded and electrically excited Rayleigh-Taylor instability using incompressible smoothed particle hydrodynamics

Official URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.colsurfa.2014.02.044

Numerical simulations using incompressible smoothed particle hydrodynamics (ISPH) method have been conducted on Rayleigh-Taylor instability (RTI) in a confined domain having an Atwood number of 1/3, influenced by the presence of an external electric field. Leaky dielectric model is used for each of the flow phases having different electric permittivities and conductivities. Results obtained show noticeable differences in evolution characteristics when subjected to the external electric field. It is observed that exposing the two-phase system to the electric field when heavy fluid to light fluid ratio of electric permittivities is smaller than that of electric conductivities, the resulting force configuration on the interface promotes spike descent whereas a reverse configuration of the ratios will result in a faster ascent of the bubble, bearing dramatically different interfacial profiles. These effects have been found to intensify at larger electric permittivity and electric field magnitudes.