The Development and Validation of a CFD Model of a Heave Plate for Industrial Applications Using a Lattice-Boltzmann, LES Method

This paper presents the development and validation of a 3D CFD model of a heave plate under forced oscillations using the Lattice-Boltzmann, LES software SIMULIA XFlow 2023, which has never been used for industrial applications in this context. The model must be versatile enough to maintain accuracy in extreme cases of amplitudes and frequencies. The validation is carried out with experimental results from previous research, with some results also compared with the ones obtained using a finite-volume software. A lattice and time step convergence is achieved along with a symmetry study. Once the most efficient model has been selected, it is tested under four extreme cases, analyzing the results yielded for the force, added mass and damping coefficients and also assessing its limitations. The results show a good correlation between the model and the experimentation, especially in cases of higher force values, and also the results from the finite-volume software. Furthermore, a vorticity field study is carried out to better understand the behavior of the heave plate in these extreme cases. Finally, an assessment of the dominance of pressure-induced forces over viscous forces under low KC numbers is carried out using radial and surface integration.