Numerical Methods for Fluid-Solid Coupled Simulations: Robin Interface Conditions and Shock-Dominated Applications

This dissertation investigates the development of numerical algorithms for coupling computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and computational solid dynamics (CSD) solvers, and the use of these solvers for simulating fluid-solid interaction (FSI) problems involving large deformation, shock waves, and multiphase flow. The dissertation consists of two parts. The first part investigates the use of Robin interface conditions to resolve the well-known numerical added-mass instability, which affects partitioned coupling procedures for solving problems with incompressible flow and strong added-mass effect. First, a one-parameter Robin interface condition is developed by linearly combining the conventional Dirichlet and Neumann interface conditions. Next, a numerical algorithm is developed to implement the Robin interface condition in an embedded boundary method for coupling a parallel, projection-based incompressible viscous flow solver with a nonlinear finite element solid solver. Both an analytical study and a numerical study reveal that the new algorithm can clearly outperform conventional Dirichlet-Neumann procedures in terms of both stability and accuracy, when the parameter value is carefully selected. Moreover, the studies also indicate that the optimal parameter value depends on the materials and geometry of the problem. Therefore, to efficiently solve FSI problems involving non-uniform structures, a generalized Robin interface condition is presented, in which the constant parameter is replaced by a spatially varying function that depends on the local material and geometric properties of the structure. Numerical experiments using two benchmark problems show that the spatially varying Robin interface condition can clearly improve numerical accuracy compared to the constant- parameter version with the same computational cost.

The second part of this dissertation focuses on simulating complex FSI problems featuring shock waves, multiphase flow (e.g., bubbles), and shock-induced material damage and fracture. A recently developed three-dimensional computational framework is employed, which couples a multiphase, compressible CFD solver and a nonlinear finite element CSD solver using an embedded boundary method and a partitioned procedure. In particular, the CFD solver applies a level-set method to capture the evolution of the bubble surface, and the CSD solver utilizes a continuum damage mechanics model and an element erosion method to simulate the dynamic fracture of the material. Two computational studies are presented. The first one investigates the dynamic response and failure of a brittle material exposed to a prescribed shock wave. The predictive capability of the computational framework is first demonstrated by simulating a series of laboratory experiments in the context of shock wave lithotripsy. Then, a parametric study is conducted to elucidate the significant effects of the shock wave's profile on material damage. In the second study, the computational framework is applied to simulate shock-induced bubble collapse near various solid and soft materials. The reciprocal effect of the material's properties (e.g., acoustic impedance, Young's modulus) on bubble dynamics is discussed in detail.