A predictive multiscale numerical framework for emulsion flow

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The pharmaceutical, cosmetics, and food industries have undertaken substantial efforts to create stable liquid-liquid emulsions that satisfy customers with the unique properties of their products (e.g., bioavailability, texture, and taste). At the same time, the oil sands industry has worked to develop efficient methods to separate leftover bitumen and water as a way of reducing the accumulation of tailings ponds, which have a negative impact on everyone in the Athabasca River watershed. The common challenge for each industry is insufficient understanding of the complex nature of the interaction of two immiscible liquids, which leads to the formation and annihilation of drops. The distribution of drop sizes, as a function of liquid properties and flow conditions, defines the emulsion characteristics, including its stability, viscosity, and rheology. To control the properties of the emulsion product, a reliable prediction of the drop size distribution is essential.***In this program, the aim is to develop a multiscale numerical framework for in-depth study of the liquid-liquid systems on a fundamental level. This will foster the resolution of practical problems. Direct numerical simulations will be performed to elucidate the liquid-liquid interactions on a micro scale, thereby accounting for the formation of submicron drops. Generation of these drops is necessary to achieve stable emulsions, and it is highly undesirable if the two liquids are eventually separated (e.g., bitumen and water). The gained data will be used to establish new, well-grounded sub-models that describe breakup and coalescence events. The new sub-models will overcome the limitations of the existing ones by accounting for more physical phenomena that affect liquid-liquid interactions. The improved sub-models will be embedded as the source terms of the population balance equation (PBE). The latter will be coupled with a computational fluid dynamics (CFD) solver. With the improved kernels, the created numerical instrument can be considered an original and innovative virtual laboratory to study dispersed systems. The interaction between micro events occurring on a drop scale will be correlated with the macroscale evolution of the entire system.***The intended level of resolution of emulsion flows will result in state-of-the-art numerical simulations that will be performed using advanced computing facilities deployed by Compute Canada. The proposed program is motivated by the frontier industrial challenges that require deep understanding of the problems on a fundamental level. Integration of world class computing platforms and an academic program that involves exploration of complex physical phenomena will result in cutting-edge discoveries and innovations that will attract excellent researchers and promote training of highly qualified personnel.**