Miscibility-immiscibility conundrum in air-liquid-vapor flow modeling: Bridging the gap by using the phase-field method

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Mixtures of air, liquid water, and water vapor are ubiquitous in nature and in engineering processes. These mixtures occur in energy generation, transport of marine vehicles, inhalation drug therapies, and in cloud formation in the atmosphere. Currently, there is no general theory to describe the fluid dynamics behavior of these mixtures, which limits a wide range of scientific and technological advances. This research will develop a first-principles-based computational model that will provide a theoretical framework for understanding the physics of air, liquid water, and water vapor mixtures. The investigators will use highly controlled experiments to provide physical insights and validate the computational method. This research will deliver interdisciplinary advancements at the interface of engineering, mathematics, and physics. The research broader impacts will be complemented by outreach and educational activities. These include an initiative to reshape the way fluid mechanics is introduced to undergraduate students and recruiting and retention activities for groups that are underrepresented in STEM fields.Multiphase flow dynamics has received significant attention from the scientific community due to the captivating physics produced by the interplay of miscibility, inertial forces, viscous forces, and surface tension. While there has been significant progress in understanding single-component, two-phase flows (e.g., vaporization and condensation of a single chemical species), and single-phase, two-component flows (for example, bubbly flows composed of air and water), the dynamics of flows involving simultaneously two phases and two components are not well understood. This project will develop a new first-principles-based computational model that captures all physical factors relevant to air, liquid water, and water vapor flows. The model will be validated through state-of-the-art experiments monitoring the interface dynamics, velocity and pressure fields in three dimensions. The model will be based on the phase-field theory that allows a natural transition between miscible (air and water vapor) and immiscible (air and liquid water) mixtures, providing an ideal enabling theoretical framework. The integrated computational and experimental research to be developed in this project promises to constitute a leap forward in our ability to investigate flows involving air, liquid water, and water vapor and will provide the enabling tools for transformative advances across numerous engineering and science applications.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.