An Elementary Study of SPH-Based Simulations for Free Surface Flows With Gravity and Compressibility Effects in Cylindrical Confinement

The design of nuclear pressure vessel requires the description of various dynamic effects, among which fluid-structure interaction. In some configurations, gravity effects (in the low frequency range) and compressibility effects (in the high frequency range) are of paramount importance and have therefore to be accounted for. The present paper is concerned with the description of free surface flows with gravity and compressibility effects, using a SPH (Smoothed Particle Hydrodynamics) method in circular confinement, with expected applications to the dynamic analysis of auxiliary nuclear component for naval propulsion. For the system under concern, the range of dynamic solicitation extends from low frequency (for seismic analysis of grounded prototype) to high frequency (for shock analysis of embarked reactors); it is therefore of particle interest to employ a numerical techniques which allows the description of linear and non-linear free surface effects, which can be expected in both cases. SPH method gives promising perspective for simulation of sloshing flows in various configurations; the present paper investigates the use of such a technique in the context of three-dimensional problems with cylindrical confinement.