My objective is the development of modeling methods for multiphase reactive flows in the presence of interfaces. Such complex flows are present in many applications. In cryogenic rocket engines, for instance, liquid oxygen is injected straight into the combustion chamber. The liquid jet is then strongly destabilized and atomized, before evaporating and burning with the surrounding hydrogen. Today liquid jet destabilization and combustion are tackled separately, without an appropriate coupling: until now no flow model has been able to reproduce the combination of multiphase and reactive aspects in the presence of complex interfaces. Yet, it is admitted that injection, evaporation, and combustion of the oxygen are strongly coupled: the heat released from the flame modifies the dynamics of the jet (especially by accelerating the phase-change), and, reciprocally, the liquid jet dynamics will dictate the flame position, and therefore the overall combustion characteristics.
Applications extend beyond spatial propulsion: multiple domains show simultaneous presence of multiple interfaces and combustion: propulsion (diesel engines), energy and environment (industrial burners), safety (4th- generation sodium-cooled nuclear reactors), etc. All these applications have in common the simultaneous presence of an interface and a reaction zone, a fundamental configuration left unresolved by Computational Fluid Dynamics today.
In line with this objective, I currently have 4 research axes, listed below. The first two concern general frameworks for the simulation of multiphase reactive flows, whereas the other two are transverse topics, with applications beyond the first two axes.