A level set method to study foam processing: a validation study (Q2884038)

A production-level foam processing computational model suitable for predicting the self-expansion of foam in complex geometries is developed. Note that the considered model is based on a finite element representation of the equations of motion, in which the movement of the free surface is represented using the level set method. The authors used an empirically based time-dependent and temperature-dependent density model to encapsulate the complex physics of foam nucleation and growth in a numerically tractable manner. The material model varies with the location of the level set interface, having properties of a displaced air phase in the negative level set region and foam in the positive region. The level set zero describes the location of the interface, where surface forces are applied using a continuous surface force treatment. Also, the variation from foam to gas properties with a diffuse interface method using a smooth Heaviside function and equation averaging is investigated.