Computation of Dendritic Growth with Level Set Model Using a Multi-Mesh Adaptive Finite Element Method

In this paper, we propose an efficient multi-mesh h-adaptive algorithm to solve the level set model of dendritic growth. Since the level set function is used to provide implicitly the location of the phase interface, it is resolved by an h-adaptive mesh with refinement only around the phase interface, while the thermal field is approximated on another h-adaptive mesh. The proposed method not only can enjoy the merits of the level set function to handle complex evolution of the free boundary, but also can achieve the similar accuracy as the front tracking method for the sharp interface model with about the same degrees of freedom. The algorithm is applied to the simulation of the dendritic crystallization in a pure undercooled melt. The accuracy is verified by comparing the computational dendrite tip velocity with solvability theory. Numerical simulations, both in 2D and 3D cases, are presented to demonstrate its capacity and efficiency.

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