Two-equation and multi-fluid turbulence models for Richtmyer–Meshkov mixing
Ioannis W. Kokkinakis, Dimitris Drikakis, D. L. Youngs
Abstract
This paper concerns an investigation of two different approaches in modeling the turbulent mixing induced by the Richtmyer–Meshkov instability (RMI): A two-equation K-L multi-component Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes model and a two-fluid model. We have improved the accuracy of the K-L model by implementing new modifications, including a realizability condition for the Reynolds stress tensor and a threshold in the production of the turbulence kinetic energy. We examine the models in the one-dimensional (1D) form in the (re)-shocked mixing of a double-planar air and sulfur-hexafluoride (SF6) interface of the Atwood number |At| ≃ 0.6853. Furthermore, we investigated the models’ accuracy to RMI-induced mixing of a (re)-shocked planar-inverse chevron air–SF6 interface. Relevant integral quantities in time, as well as instantaneous profiles and contour plots, are used to assess the models’ accuracy against high-resolution implicit large eddy simulations. The proposed modifications improve the efficiency of the K-L model. The model is designed as a simple model capable of capturing the self-similar growth of Rayleigh–Taylor and Richtmyer–Meshkov flows. The two-fluid model remains more accurate but is also computationally more expensive.