Interfaces Modeling Analysis Numerics

These lecture notes are dedicated to the mathematical modelling, analysis and computation of interfaces and free boundary problems appearing in geometry and in various applications, ranging from crystal growth, tumour growth, biological membranes to porous media, two-phase flows, fluid-structure interactions, and shape optimization. We first give an introduction to classical methods from differential geometry and systematically derive the governing equations from physical principles. Then we will analyse parametric approaches to interface evolution problems and derive numerical methods which will be thoroughly analysed. In addition, implicit descriptions of interfaces such as phase field and level set methods will be analysed. Finally, we will discuss numerical methods for complex interface evolutions and will focus on two phase flow problems as an important example of such evolutions.

It is not easy for engineers to gain all the skills necessary to perform numerical analysis. This book is an authoritative guide that explains in detail the potential restrictions and pitfalls and so help engineers undertake advanced numerical analysis. It discusses the major approximations involved in nonlinear numerical analysis and describes some of the more popular constituitive models currently available and explores their strengths and weaknesses. It also discusses the determination of material parameters for defining soil behaviour, investigates the options for modelling structural components and their interface with the soil and the boundary conditions that are appropriate in geotechnical analysis and the assumptions implied when they are used. Guidelines for the use of Advanced Numerical Analysis also provides guidelines for best practice of specific types of soil-structure interaction that are common in urban development and discusses the role of benchmarking exercises. This authoritative book will be invaluable to practising engineers involved in urban development. It will also be useful tool for geotechnical and structural engineers.

There are several physico-chemical processes that determine the behavior of multiphase fluid systems – e.g., the fluid dynamics in the different phases and the dynamics of the interface(s), mass transport between the fluids, adsorption effects at the interface, and transport of surfactants on the interface – and result in heterogeneous interface properties. In general, these processes are strongly coupled and local properties of the interface play a crucial role. A thorough understanding of the behavior of such complex flow problems must be based on physically sound mathematical models, which especially account for the local processes at the interface. This book presents recent findings on the rigorous derivation and mathematical analysis of such models and on the development of numerical methods for direct numerical simulations. Validation results are based on specifically designed experiments using high-resolution experimental techniques. A special feature of this book is its focus on an interdisciplinary research approach combining Applied Analysis, Numerical Mathematics, Interface Physics and Chemistry, as well as relevant research areas in the Engineering Sciences. The contributions originated from the joint interdisciplinary research projects in the DFG Priority Programme SPP 1506 “Transport Processes at Fluidic Interfaces.”

This is a collection of topical survey articles by researchers in the fields of applied analysis and probability theory, working on the mathematical description of growth phenomena. Particular emphasis is given to the interplay of the usually separate fields of applied analysis and probability theory.

In order to describe soil–structure interaction in various situations (nonlinear, static, dynamic, hydro-mechanical couplings), this book gives an overview of the main modeling methods developed in geotechnical engineering. The chapters are centered around: the finite element method (FEM), the finite difference method (FDM), and the discrete element method (DEM). Deterministic Numerical Modeling of Soil–Structure Interaction allows the reader to explore the classical and well-known FEM and FDM, using interface and contact elements available for coupled hydro-mechanical problems. Furthermore, this book provides insight on the DEM, adapted for interaction laws at the grain level. Within a classical finite element framework, the concept of macro-element is introduced, which generalizes constitutive laws of SSI and is particularly straightforward in dynamic situations. Finally, this book presents the SSI, in the case of a group of structures, such as buildings in a town, using the notion of metamaterials and a geophysics approach.

This book provides an introduction to the immersed interface method (IIM), a powerful numerical method for solving interface problems and problems defined on irregular domains for which analytic solutions are rarely available. This book gives a complete description of the IIM, discusses recent progress in the area, and describes numerical methods for a number of classic interface problems. It also contains many numerical examples that can be used as benchmark problems for numerical methods designed for interface problems on irregular domains.

In geomechanics, existing design methods are very much dependent upon sophisticated on-site techniques to assess ground conditions. This book describes numerical analysis, computer simulation and modelling that can be used to answer some highly complex questions associated with geomechanics. The contributors, who are all international experts in the field, also give insights into the future directions of these methods. Numerical Analysis and Modelling in Geomechanics will appeal to professional engineers involved in designing and building both onshore and offshore structures, where geomechanical considerations may well be outside the usual codes of practice, and therefore specialist advice is required. Postgraduate researchers, degree students carrying out project work in this area will also find the book an invaluable resource.

The book is devoted to the application of phase-field (diffuse interface) models in materials science. Phase-field modeling emerged only recently as a theoretical approach to tackle questions concerning the evolution of materials microstructure, the relation between microstructure and materials properties and the transformation and evolution of different phases. This volume brings together the essential thermodynamic ideas as well as the essential mathematical tools to derive phase-field model equations. Starting from an elementary level such that any graduate student familiar with the basic concepts of partial differential equations can follow, it shows how advances in the field of phase-field modeling will come from a combination of thermodynamic, mathematical and computational tools. Also included are two extensive examples of the application of phase-field models in materials science.