24.3.9.

Setting Time-Dependent Parameters for the Explicit Volume Fraction Formulation

If you are using the Explicit volume fraction formulation in ANSYS Fluent, an explicit solution for the volume fraction is obtained either once
each time step or once each iteration, depending upon your inputs to the model. You also have control over the time step used for the
volume fraction calculation.

You can access the controls for the volume fraction from the Multiphase Model Dialog Box by clicking Expert Options...

There are two inputs for the time-dependent calculation for the VOF model:

Sub-Time Step Calculation Method

When ANSYS Fluent uses the Explicit formulation, the time step used for the volume fraction calculation will not be the same as the
time step used for the rest of the transport equations. ANSYS Fluent will refine the time step for VOF automatically, based on your
input for the maximum Courant Number allowed near the free surface. The Courant number is a dimensionless number that
compares the time step in a calculation to the characteristic time of transit of a fluid element across a control volume.

The characteristic transit time for a fluid element across the control volume represents the time taken by the fluid to empty out of the
cell. This transit time is taken as the smallest of such time in the region near the fluid interface. A sub time step, for use in the VOF
calculations, is computed based on this characteristic time, and the maximum allowed Courant Number set in the Multiphase Model
Dialog Box. For example, if the maximum allowable Courant Number is 0.25 (default), the computed sub time step will have a
maximum value equal to a quarter of the minimum transit time for any cell near the interface.

In Fluent, the sub time step size for VOF calculations can be computed using the following options:

Velocity Based: The sub time step is estimated by the cell size and the fluid velocity normal to the interface:

(24–7)

where, is the Courant Number, is the fluid velocity, and is the cell size.

Flux Based: For this option, the sub time step is estimated based on the cell volume and the summation of outgoing fluxes in
the cell:

(24–8)

where, is the Courant Number, is the volume, and are the outgoing fluxes.

Flux Averaged: The sub time step size is estimated by volumetric averaging the calculations of the Flux Based method for
the neighboring cells.

Hybrid: This is the default method for calculating sub time step size. The sub time step size is estimated by blending the
Velocity Based and Flux Averaged calculation methods.

Note: The Flux Based calculation method is the most conservative sub-time step size estimation, while the
Velocity Based calculation is the most aggressive. Flux Averaged and Hybrid methods fall in between for most
cases.

Aggressive sub time step calculation methods generally save time during interface reconstruction. However, the
aggressive method can lead to increased number of iterations due to larger transient errors being introduced while
integrating over the sub time steps for the interface reconstruction.

Solve VOF Every Iteration

By default, ANSYS Fluent will solve the volume fraction equation(s) once for each time step. This means that the convective flux
coefficients appearing in the other transport equations will not be completely updated each iteration, since the volume fraction fields
will not change from iteration to iteration.

When ANSYS Fluent solves these equations every iteration, the convective flux coefficients in the other transport equations will be
updated based on the updated volume fractions at each iteration. This choice is the less stable of the two, and requires more
computational effort per time step than the default choice.

Important: If you are using sliding meshes, or dynamic meshes with layering and/or remeshing, using the Solve
VOF Every Iteration option will yield more accurate results, although at a greater computational cost.

Release 18.1 - © ANSYS, Inc. All rights reserved.