EDICT for 3D computation of two-fluid interfaces

We present the 3D implementation and applications of the enhanced-discretization interface-capturing technique (EDICT) in computation of unsteady flows with two-fluid interfaces. In such computations, EDICT can be used as a very effective method, which combines the flexibility and efficiency of interface-capturing techniques with the accuracy provided by enhanced discretization at the interfaces. A stabilized finite element interface-capturing technique is used as the base formulation to solve, over a typically non-moving mesh, the Navier-Stokes equations and an advection equation governing the interface function. To increase the accuracy in modeling the interfaces, we use finite element functions with multiple components at and near the interfaces, with each component coming from a different level of mesh refinement. With its parallel implementation on advanced high-performance computing platforms such as the CRAY T3E, EDICT is a powerful tool for the simulation of a complex, 3D unsteady flow problems with two fluid-interfaces, including free surfaces.