Problem Setup

To setup a new problem you must specify:

  1. initial conditions

  2. resolution

  3. problem geometry

  4. boundary conditions

  5. AMR tragging criteria (for multilevel runs only)

Many additional options are available, and are briefly described here and in following sections, Runtime Options and Algorithm Options.

Units

IAMR supports any self-consistent units, as long as the length, time, and mass are consistent with the viscosity and diffusivity.

Initial Conditions

To define the initial conditions, we modify the function prob_initData() within IAMR/Source/prob/prob_init.cpp. prob_initData() reads in initial conditions and problem parameters from the inputs file, and initializes the state data (velocity, density, etc.). The easiest way to get started is to create a new probtype by copying the code for an existing problem and modifying it to apply the desired initial state.

It is also possible to initialize the velocity using data from a previously generated plotfile. To do this you must set BL_USE_VELOCITY=TRUE in the makefile, and provide the plotfile in the inputs file via ns.velocity_plotfile = my_plotfile_name.

Resolution

The grid resolution is specified by defining the resolution at the coarsest level (level 0), the number of refinement levels, and factor of refinement between levels. The following inputs must be preceded by “amr.”

Description

Type

Default

n_cell

Number of cells at level 0 in each coordinate direction

Int Int Int

None

max_level

Maximum level of refinement allowed (0 when single-level)

Int

None

ref_ratio

Ratio of coarse to fine grid spacing between subsequent levels (2 or 4)

Int

None

Some examples:

amr.n_cell = 32 64 64

would define the domain to have 32 cells in the \(x\)-direction, 64 cells in the \(y\)-direction, and 64 cells in the \(z\)-direction at the coarsest level. (If this line appears in a 2D inputs file then the final number will be ignored.)

amr.max_level = 2

would allow a maximum of 2 refined levels in addition to the coarse level. Note that these additional levels will only be created only if the tagging criteria are such that cells are flagged as needing refinement. The number of refined levels in a calculation must be \(\leq\) amr.max_level, but can change in time and need not always be equal to amr.max_level.

amr.ref_ratio = 2 4

would set factor of 2 refinement between levels 0 and 1, and factor of 4 refinement between levels 1 and 2. Note that you must have at least amr.max_level values of amr.ref_ratio (Additional values may appear in that line and they will be ignored).

Problem Geometry

The following inputs must be preceded by “geometry.”

Description

Type

Default

coord_sys

0 for Cartesian

Int

0

is_periodic

1 for true, 0 for false (one value for each coordinate direction)

Ints

0 0 0

prob_lo

Low corner of physical domain (physical not index space)

Reals

None

prob_hi

High corner of physical domain (physical not index space)

Reals

None

As an example, the following:

geometry.prob_lo = 0 0 0
geometry.prob_hi = 10.0 10.0 10.0
geometry.coord_sys = 0
geometry.is_periodic = 0 1 0

defines the domain to run from \((0,0,0)\) at the lower left to \((10,10,10)\) at the upper right in physical space, specifies a Cartesian geometry, and makes the domain periodic in the \(y\)-direction only.

Domain Boundary Conditions

IAMR provides two ways to specify boundary condition types: integer keys or keywords. An inputs file must choose one style or the other, they cannot be mixed. Here we provide examples of both styles. We then discuss how to provide Dirichlet boundary conditions. For a more detailed discussion of boundaries, see Boundaries

Boundary conditions with integer keys

To specify boundary conditions with integer keys we use

  • ns.lo_bc: boundary type of each low face

  • ns.hi_bc: boundary type of each high face

The valid boundary types are:

0 – Interior / Periodic

3 – Symmetry

1 – Inflow

4 – Slip Wall

2 – Outflow

5 – No Slip Wall

Note: ns.lo_bc and ns.hi_bc must be consistent with geometry.is_periodic—if the domain is periodic in a particular direction then the low and high bc’s must be set to 0 for that direction.

As an example, the following:

ns.lo_bc = 1 4 0
ns.hi_bc = 2 4 0

geometry.is_periodic = 0 0 1

would define a problem with inflow (1) in the low- \(x\) direction, outflow (2) in the high- \(x\) direction, slip wall (4) on the low and high \(y\)-faces, and periodic in the \(z\)-direction.

Boundary conditions with keywords

To specify boundary conditions with keywords, we use the following options preceded by “xlo”, “xhi”, “ylo”, “yhi”, “zlo”, and “zhi”:

Description

Type

Default

type

Used to define boundary type. Available options include:

  • ‘po’ or ‘pressure_outflow’

  • ‘mi’ or ‘mass_inflow’

  • ‘sw’ or ‘slip_wall’

  • ‘nsw’ or ‘no_slip_wall’

String

None

To use the same example problem as above, the following:

xlo.type = mi
xhi.type = po
ylo.type = sw
yhi.type = sw

geometry.is_periodic = 0 0 1

would define a problem with inflow in the low-\(x\) direction, outflow in the high-\(x\) direction, slip wall on the low and high \(y\)-faces, and periodic in the \(z\)-direction. Note that no keyword is needed for a periodic boundary, here only the specification in geometry.is_periodic is needed.

Dirichlet Boundary Conditions

IAMR provides the ability to specify constant Dirichlet BCs in the inputs file. We use the following options preceded by “xlo”, “xhi”, “ylo”, “yhi”, “zlo”, and “zhi”:

Description

Type

Default

velocity

Sets boundary velocity for mass inflows

Real

None

density

Sets boundary density for mass inflows

Real

None

tracer

Sets boundary tracer concentration for mass inflows

Real

None

temp

Sets temperature for mass inflows

Real

None

pressure

Sets boundary pressure for pressure inflows, outflows and mass inflows

Real

None

As an example,

xlo.type                =   "mass_inflow"
xlo.velocity            =   1.  0.  0.
xlo.density             =   1.
xlo.tracer              =   0.
xlo.temp                =   1.

sets the boundary condition type at the low x face to be an inflow with xlo.type = “mass_inflow”. Then xlo.velocity = 1. 0. 0. sets the inflow velocity, xlo.density = 1. sets the inflow density, xlo.tracer = 0. sets the inflow tracer value, and xlo.temp = 1. sets the inflow temperature. Another example, from the lid driven cavity problem setup, is

ns.lo_bc                =  4 4 5
ns.hi_bc                =  5 5 5

# 0 = Interior/Periodic  3 = Symmetry
# 1 = Inflow             4 = SlipWall
# 2 = Outflow            5 = NoSlipWall

# Boundary condition
zhi.velocity            =   1.  0.  0.

Here, ns.hi_bc = 5 5 5 sets the boundary conditions on all high faces to no slip walls. zhi.velocity = 1. 0. 0. sets the wall at the high z face to be moving in the x-direction. Note that IAMR allows walls to move tangentially, but not in the normal direction.

Users can create more complex Dirichlet boundary conditions by writing their own fill function in NS_bcfill.H, then using that function to create an amrex::StateDescriptor::BndryFunc object and specifying which variables will use it in NS_setup.cpp. More information on boundary conditions is in section Physical Boundaries.

Tagging criteria for creating AMR Levels

If amr.max_level is greater than zero, then user specified tagging criteria are used to define regions for higher levels of refinement. For information on tagging see Tagging for Refinement

Constructing Embedded Boundaries

IAMR uses AMReX’s Embedded Boundary (cut cell) functionality to represent internal or external geometry in the flow. For details on AMReX’s approach to embedded boundaries, see the AMReX EB documentation (Embedded Boundaries).

Here we present a brief example of how to create an embedded boundary (EB) in IAMR. Additional examples and information are in AMReX’s documentation (Initializing the Geometric Database).

  1. Create a new geom_type in the function initialize_eb2 in the file Source/NS_init_eb2.cpp

  2. Construct an implicit function representing the geometry (using the language of constructive solid geometry). For example

    amrex::EB2::CylinderIF my_cyl(radius, height, direction, center, inside);
auto gshop_cyl = amrex::EB2::makeShop(my_cyl);

  3. Call amrex::EB2::Build. This function builds the EB levels and fills the implicit function MultiFab (the later being used to construct the level-set function).

Particles Initialization

Particles are initialized from an ASCII file, identified in the IAMR inputs file:

particles.particle_init_file = particle_file

Here particle_file is the user-specified name of the file. The first line in this file is assumed to contain the number of particles. Each line after that contains the position of the particle as x y z

Tracers

IAMR includes one tracer field by default. A second tracer can be added with ns.do_trac2 = 1. IAMR can include additional tracers with only minor code modification: adding them to the state variables in NS_setup.cpp and providing initial conditions.

Temperature

IAMR has the option to solve for temperature, along with a modified divergence constraint on the velocity field (for more information, see Fluid Equations). To include temperature, you must specify two flags, both preceded by “ns.”:

Description

Type

Default

do_temp

If equal to 0, do not include temperature in the equation set

int

0

temp_cond_coef

Thermal diffusivity divided by specific heat at constant pressure

Real

None

Physics Parameters

IAMR provides support for gravity, viscosity, and diffusivity. Default treatment is given in the table below. More sophiticated treatments are possible; if interested, please open an issue on github: https://github.com/AMReX-Fluids/IAMR/issues

The following inputs must be preceded by “ns.” For information on units, see Units.

Description

Type

Default

gravity

Gravity, taken to be in the -y direction for 2d and -z direction in 3d

Real

0

vel_visc_coef

Scalar viscosity

Real

None

scal_diff_coefs

Diffusivity of tracer(s). Must specify one value for each tracer.

Real

None