Turbulence transport in particle-laden compressible flows

Turbulence transport in compressible dispersed two-phase flows is complicated by strong coupling between velocity fluctuations, shock waves, and particles. In this talk, highly-resolved numerical simulations are employed to quantify turbulence transport mechanisms and guide the development of a reduced-order model. Two canonical flows are considered: (i) compressible flow through homogeneous suspension of particles and (ii) a planar shock interacting with a cloud of particles. Turbulent kinetic energy (TKE) is found to contribute to a significant portion of the resolved kinetic energy, as much as 100% at the highest volume fractions considered. The TKE budget reveals turbulence is primarily produced via drag and is hindered by gas-phase compressibility. A two-equation model is proposed and implemented within a hyperbolic Eulerian-based two-fluid model. The model is found to be accurate across a wide range of volume fractions and Mach numbers in both homogeneous and inhomogeneous flows.