Simulation of Multiple-Component Charged Aerosol Evolution

Abstract

The study of the nuclear source term requires the computation of aerosol dynamics. Solutions to the aerosol general dynamic equation (GDE) are difficult to obtain by analytical or numerical methods when more realistic problems are considered. The direct simulation Monte Carlo (DSMC) technique is capable of simulating aerosol evolution reducing simplifications in the implementation of the aerosol GDE. In this work we present a DSMC program for the simulation of multicomponent polydisperse aerosol evolution, with the successful integration of the following processes: deposition, electrostatic dispersion, coagulation (considering charge effects), and condensation, assuming a spatially homogeneous medium and spherical particles. Two problems with different particle compositions were simulated to obtain information about the interactions through the different processes and the interacting particles as well as particle number and mass distributions with discrimination of charge levels. This information allowed us to explore the synergistic nature of these processes. It was found that the problem with denser particles had an overall stronger activity in coagulation and initially a stronger activity in deposition compared to the problem with less dense particles.

Keywords:

• Aerosol evolution
• DSMC
• charged particles
• multiple components
• coagulation

Acknowledgments

This work has been supported by federal grant DE-NE0008448, entitled “Am-241 Nuclear Safety and Environmental Interactions,” sponsored via the Nuclear Energy University Program of the U.S. Department of Energy. F. De La Torre Aguilar was supported by this grant.