Sparging, a mass transfer process between a gas and a liquid, is commonly encountered in industrial applications such as beverage carbonation and photobioreactors, or even at home for aeration in aquariums. In this blog post, we detail how to model a type of sparging, carbonation, using the COMSOL Multiphysics® software.

The Oldroyd-B numerical model defines flow in fluids that exhibit complex viscoelastic behavior under strain, such as clay, toothpaste, oil, and polymer solutions. In a benchmark model of an Oldroyd-B fluid, the COMSOL Multiphysics® software and add-on CFD Module are used to solve the numerical model, the results of which have been validated by published research.

Following up on a previous blog post about glacier flow modeling, we are going to delve a bit further into a crucial component of geophysics modeling in general: parameterizing numerical models using observations. Let’s see how we can quantify sensitivity and infer unknown parameters through indirect observations using the COMSOL Multiphysics® software and add-on Optimization Module.

In the 1998 song “This Kiss”, country singer Faith Hill describes the way she feels for the person she loves as “centrifugal motion”. Either Hill wants to get away from the song’s subject ASAP or she mixed up the term centrifugal with centripetal. We’ll forgive the 20-year-old song’s inaccuracies — besides, understanding the effect of centrifugal force is more important when designing components in a wide range of industries, such as centrifugal pumps for automotive applications, than in songwriting.

The quality of a computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model is often determined by the quality of the mesh used to solve the problem. A good mesh facilitates convergence, reduces memory requirements, and results in accurate solutions. It is therefore worthwhile to invest time and thought into creating the mesh when solving a CFD problem. In this blog post, we describe the factors of a quality mesh and how to prepare a fluid flow model geometry for meshing.

When setting up fluid flow simulations, we typically focus on a single (possibly a few) components in a larger system, such as a pump or sedimentation tank in a water treatment plant. Naturally, this raises a question: At what distance can we apply boundary conditions without interfering with the process? In this blog post, we look at the effects of the proximity of inlet and outlet boundaries for interior and exterior flows of a homogeneous fluid with negligible compressibility.

From home HVAC systems to spacecraft ejectors, diffusers find use in all kinds of applications. For example, diffusers are often used in supersonic aircraft like ramjets to slow down fluid flow and increase static pressure. To design transonic diffusers for supersonic applications, engineers must account for factors like high-speed turbulent flow and shock waves. As this benchmark model illustrates, these complex phenomena can be accurately analyzed using the COMSOL® software.

Multijet tubular reactors are used to manufacture polymers such as polyester. The turbulent flow that occurs in this type of reactor can affect the manufacturing process, including the reaction kinetics, fiber quality, conversion, and yield. By developing a reactor model that fully takes into account both the fluid dynamics and chemical reactions, you can optimize a reactor design for efficient and reliable polymer production.

We have already discussed the factors that make a high-quality mesh and how to prepare a CFD model geometry for meshing. In this follow-up blog post, learn about physics-controlled meshing, adaptive mesh refinement, and how to use a variety of meshing tools in the COMSOL Multiphysics® software for your fluid flow simulations.

The Adidas® Telstar® soccer ball is the official ball of the 2018 FIFA World Cup™, and the Nike® Ordem V soccer ball is used in the seven largest national leagues in Europe, including the top three: the Spanish La Liga, the English Premier League, and the Italian Serie A. Previously, we discussed an experimental setup for measuring the terminal velocity of these two soccer balls to see if there’s a difference that could affect player performance. Here’s what we found…