PDF Simulations of a Bluff-Body Stabilized Flow

Three different PDF algorithms have been applied to investigate a constant-density bluff-body stabilized flow using the same turbulence models and the same boundary conditions. The objectives of this paper are to compare the three algorithms in terms of numerical accuracy and efficiency and to demonstrate the ability of PDF methods to calculate this type of flow accurately. While one of the three algorithms is a stand-alone particle-mesh method, the other two are consistent hybrid algorithms, i.e., both are particle methods coupled with finite-volume schemes. The motivation for hybrid algorithms is to reduce the statistical and bias errors. Since the coupling between the finite-volume scheme and the particle method is a major numerical issue, different approaches have been investigated. It is shown that the results obtained from the three numerical algorithms are in good agreement with each other and with the experimental data.