A Gas-Kinetic Scheme for Six-Equation Two-Phase Flow Model

A kinetic flux-vector splitting (KFVS) scheme is applied for solving a reduced six-equation two-phase flow model of Saurel et al. [1]. The model incorporates single velocity, two pressures and relaxation terms. An additional seventh equation, describing the total mixture energy, is added to the model to guarantee the correct treatment of shocks in the single phase limit. Some salient features of the model are that it is hyperbolic with only three wave propagation speeds and the volume fraction remains positive. The proposed numerical scheme is based on the direct splitting of macroscopic flux functions of the system of equations. The second order accuracy of the scheme is achieved by using MUSCL-type initial reconstruction and Runge-Kutta time stepping method. Moreover, a pressure relaxation procedure is used to fulfill the interface conditions. For validation, the results of suggested scheme are compared with those from the high resolution central upwind and HLLC schemes. The central upwind scheme is also applied for the first time to this model. The accuracy, efficiency and simplicity of the KFVS scheme demonstrate its potential for modeling two-phase flows.