Normal force | EPFL Graph Search

In mechanics, the normal force F_n is the component of a contact force that is perpendicular to the surface that an object contacts, as in Figure 1. In this instance normal is used in the geometric sense and means perpendicular, as opposed to the common language use of normal meaning "ordinary" or "expected". A person standing still on a platform is acted upon by gravity, which would pull them down towards the Earth's core unless there were a countervailing force from the resistance of the platform's molecules, a force which is named the "normal force". The normal force is one type of ground reaction force. If the person stands on a slope and does not sink into the ground or slide downhill, the total ground reaction force can be divided into two components: a normal force perpendicular to the ground and a frictional force parallel to the ground. In another common situation, if an object hits a surface with some speed, and the surface can withstand the impact, the nor

Analysis and numerical simulation of free surface flows

Alexandre Caboussat

Mathematical and numerical aspects of free surface flows are investigated. On one hand, the mathematical analysis of some free surface flows is considered. A model problem in one space dimension is first investigated. The Burgers equation with diffusion has to be solved on a space interval with one free extremity. This extremity is unknown and moves in time. An ordinary differential equation for the position of the free extremity of the interval is added in order to close the mathematical problem. Local existence in time and uniqueness results are proved for the problem with given domain, then for the free surface problem. A priori and a posteriori error estimates are obtained for the semi-discretization in space. The stability and the convergence of an Eulerian time splitting scheme are investigated. The same methodology is then used to study free surface flows in two space dimensions. The incompressible unsteady Navier-Stokes equations with Neumann boundary conditions on the whole boundary are considered. The whole boundary is assumed to be the free surface. An additional equation is used to describe the moving domain. Local existence in time and uniqueness results are obtained. On the other hand, a model for free surface flows in two and three space dimensions is investigated. The liquid is assumed to be surrounded by a compressible gas. The incompressible unsteady Navier-Stokes equations are assumed to hold in the liquid region. A volume-of-fluid method is used to describe the motion of the liquid domain. The velocity in the gas is disregarded and the pressure is computed by the ideal gas law in each gas bubble trapped by the liquid. A numbering algorithm is presented to recognize the bubbles of gas. Gas pressure is applied as a normal force on the liquid-gas interface. Surface tension effects are also taken into account for the simulation of bubbles or droplets flows. A method for the computation of the curvature is presented. Convergence and accuracy of the approximation of the curvature are discussed. A time splitting scheme is used to decouple the various physical phenomena. Numerical simulations are made in the frame of mould filling to show that the influence of gas on the free surface cannot be neglected. Curvature-driven flows are also considered.

EPFL2004

Numerical simulation of free surface incompressible liquid flows surrounded by compressible gas

Alexandre Caboussat, Marco Picasso, Jacques Rappaz

A numerical model for the three-dimensional simulation of liquid-gas flows with free surfaces is presented. The incompressible Navier-Stokes equations are assumed to hold in the liquid domain. In the gas domain, the velocity is disregarded, the pressure is supposed to be constant in each connected component of the gas domain and follows the ideal gas law. The gas pressure is imposed as a normal force on the liquid-gas interface. An implicit splitting scheme is used to decouple the physical phenomena. Given the gas pressure on the interface, the method described in [J. Comput Phys. 155 (1999) 439; Int. J. Numer. Meth. Fluids 42(7) (2003) 697] is used to track the liquid domain and to compute the velocity and pressure fields in the liquid. Then the connected components of the gas domain are found using an original numbering algorithm. Finally, the gas pressure is updated from the ideal gas law in each connected component of gas. The implementation is validated in the frame of mould filling. Numerical results in two and three space dimensions show that the effect of pressure in the bubbles of gas trapped by the liquid cannot be neglected. (C) 2004 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

2005

Analysis and numerical simulation of free surface flows

Alexandre Caboussat

EPFL2004