A Comparative Study of Different Grid Models for an Oil Spill Under Water

Due to the serious results of an oil leakage of a subsea pipeline, the prediction of the numerical simulation must be modeled accurately and quickly. To select a proper numerical model to simulate the complex flow, a comparative study with different grid models is carried out. A two dimensional oil diffusion model under the ocean current is established using the finite volume method. Based on the structured grid, the volume of fluid method is employed to track the interface of the multiphase flow. Two kinds of grid models, the sparse and the dense grid, are simulated under the same conditions. Three cases are selected from the typical experiments in Fan (1967). The available experimental data in the oil spill test of Fan (1967) are employed as a criterion for the comparison between different grid models. According to the calculation results, a comparative analysis of the oil diffusing form, the arriving time to the surface, and the lateral drifting distance is studied between the two grid models, respectively. The surface diffusion range and the simulated time are also introduced to do the comparison for the grid density.