Tabulation as a method to accelerate intraparticle models in DEM: Thermal conduction as an example

Intraparticle models of thermal processes are essential in the Discrete Element Method (DEM) when particles are thermally thick. Accurately solving the intraparticle conservation equations using the finite volume method requires sufficient spatial and temporal resolution, increasing simulation cost. This short communication proposes to replace the finite volume method (FVM) by a novel tabulated model that reduces the computational effort without compromising accuracy. The look-up database is generated from a set of single-particle simulations under different boundary conditions using the FVM. To assess the capability of the tabulated model to reproduce the results of the finite volume method, another single particle case with periodic functions for the fluid temperature is simulated. Results showed that tabulation provides accurate predictions while reducing computational cost by a factor of 3 to 10. • Tabulation approach is developed to simulate heat conduction inside thermally thick particles. • Two different databases are tested for two oscillating cases. • For a similar accuracy as finite volume method, tabulation speeds up simulation by a factor of 3 to 10.