Particles coagulation and fragmentation are ubiquitous (raindrop formation, air pollution, combustion, polymerization, astrophysics) and mathematically described by the Smoluchowski coagulation and the fragmentation equations. Several processes such as gas/particles dynamics, chemical reaction and radiative transfer depends on the evolution of the particle size distribution governed by coagulation/fragmentation. Tracking the size evolution of particles in 3D simulation is key for understanding, for instance, cloud formation and planet formation. Therefore, these equations must be accurately solved while preserving computational costs, which is a tremendous numerical challenge. However, current algorithms for solving coagulation/fragmentation suffer from an over-diffusion in the conditions of 3D simulations. To tackle this challenge, we developed a discontinuous Galerkin scheme to efficiently solve the conservative form of the coagulation/fragmentation equation. In particular, we aim to perform the first 3D simulations of dusty protoplanetary discs and protostellar collapse that include realistic coagulation/fragmentation.
Local contact: Thierry FOGLIZZO
Organization: Frédéric GALLIANO
