Incompressible turbulent flow simulation using the κ-ε model and upwind schemes

In the computation of turbulent flows via turbulence modeling, the treatment of the convective terms is a key issue. In the present work, we present a numerical technique for simulating two-dimensional incompressible turbulent flows. In particular, the performance of the high Reynolds k-epsilon model and a new high-order upwind scheme (adaptative QUICKEST by Kaibara et al. ( 2005)) is assessed for 2D confined and free-surface incompressible turbulent flows. The model equations are solved with the fractional-step projection method in primitive variables. Solutions are obtained by using an adaptation of the front tracking GENSMAC (Tome and McKee (1994)) methodology for calculating fluid flows at high Reynolds numbers. The calculations are performed by using the 2D version of the Freeflow simulation system (Castello et al. ( 2000)). A specific way of implementing wall functions is also tested and assessed. The numerical procedure is tested by solving three fluid flow problems, namely, turbulent flow over a backward-facing step, turbulent boundary layer over a flat plate under zero-pressure gradients, and a turbulent free jet impinging onto a flat surface. The numerical method is then applied to solve the flow of a horizontal jet penetrating a quiescent fluid from an entry port beneath the free surface.