All issues

The article deals with the nonlinear boundary-value problem of hydrogen permeability corresponding to the following experiment. A membrane made of the target structural material heated to a sufficiently high temperature serves as the partition in the vacuum chamber. Degassing is performed in advance. A constant pressure of gaseous (molecular) hydrogen is built up at the inlet side. The penetrating flux is determined by mass-spectrometry in the vacuum maintained at the outlet side.

A linear model of dependence on concentration is adopted for the coefficient of dissolved atomic hydrogen diffusion in the bulk. The temperature dependence conforms to the Arrhenius law. The surface processes of dissolution and sorptiondesorption are taken into account in the form of nonlinear dynamic boundary conditions (differential equations for the dynamics of surface concentrations of atomic hydrogen). The characteristic mathematical feature of the boundary-value problem is that concentration time derivatives are included both in the diffusion equation and in the boundary conditions with quadratic nonlinearity. In terms of the general theory of functional differential equations, this leads to the so-called neutral type equations and requires a more complex mathematical apparatus. An iterative computational algorithm of second-(higher- )order accuracy is suggested for solving the corresponding nonlinear boundary-value problem based on explicit-implicit difference schemes. To avoid solving the nonlinear system of equations at every time step, we apply the explicit component of difference scheme to slower sub-processes.

The results of numerical modeling are presented to confirm the fitness of the model to experimental data. The degrees of impact of variations in hydrogen permeability parameters (“derivatives”) on the penetrating flux and the concentration distribution of H atoms through the sample thickness are determined. This knowledge is important, in particular, when designing protective structures against hydrogen embrittlement or membrane technologies for producing high-purity hydrogen. The computational algorithm enables using the model in the analysis of extreme regimes for structural materials (pressure drops, high temperatures, unsteady heating), identifying the limiting factors under specific operating conditions, and saving on costly experiments (especially in deuterium-tritium investigations).

In the paper we construct the model of phase change. Process of hydriding / dehydriding is taken as an example. A single powder particle is considered under the assumption about its symmetry. A ball, a cylinder, and a flat plate are examples of such symmetrical shapes. The model desribes both the "shrinking core"(when the skin of the new phase appears on the surface of the particle) and the "nucleation and growth"(when the skin does not appear till complete vanishing of the old phase) scenarios. The model is the non-classical boundary-value problem with the free boundary and nonlinear Neumann boundary condition. The symmetry assumptions allow to reduce the problem to the single spatial variable. The model was tested on the series of experimental data. We show that the particle shape’s influence on the kinetics is insignificant. We also show that a set of particles of different shapes with size distribution can be approxomated by the single particle of the "average" size and of a simple shape; this justifies using single particle approximation and simple shapes in mathematical models.

Approbation of calculation of borders of water quality classes for the purpose of ecological diagnosis and standardization by data of the Rybinsk reservoir is carried out. For bioindication indicators of phytoplankton fluorescence and the contents of pigments of phytoplankton are used. Chesnokov's importance coefficient proved to be the most preferred measure of connection for analyzing the effects of environmental factors on indicators. The factors important for environmental condition are identified. Comparison of borders between quality classes “valid” and “invalid” of factors values and boundaries of the classifications of water quality.

High-purity hydrogen is required for clean energy and a variety of chemical technology processes. A considerable part of hydrogen is to be obtained by methane conversion. Different alloys, which may be wellsuited for use in gas-separation plants, were investigated by measuring specific hydrogen permeability. One had to estimate the parameters of diffusion and sorption to numerically model the different scenarios and experimental conditions of the material usage (including extreme ones), and identify the limiting factors. This paper presents a nonlinear model of hydrogen permeability in accordance with the specifics of the experiment, the numerical method for solving the boundary-value problem, and the results of parametric identification for the alloy V₈₅Ni₁₅.

The paper proposes a new mathematical model to study the interaction dynamics of the longitudinal wall of a narrow channel with its end seal. The end seal was considered as the edge wall on a spring, i.e. spring-mass system. These walls interaction occurs via a viscous liquid filling the narrow channel; thus required the formulation and solution of the hydroelasticity problem. However, this problem has not been previously studied. The problem consists of the Navier–Stokes equations, the continuity equation, the edge wall dynamics equation, and the corresponding boundary conditions. Two cases of fluid motion in a narrow channel with parallel walls were studied. In the first case, we assumed the liquid motion as the creeping one, and in the second case as the laminar, taking into account the motion inertia. The hydroelasticty problem solution made it possible to determine the distribution laws of velocities and pressure in the liquid layer, as well as the motion law of the edge wall. It is shown that during creeping flow, the liquid physical properties and the channel geometric dimensions completely determine the damping in the considered oscillatory system. Both the end wall velocity and the longitudinal wall velocity affect the damping properties of the liquid layer. If the fluid motion inertia forces were taken into account, their influence on the edge wall vibrations was revealed, which manifested itself in the form of two added masses in the equation of its motion. The added masses and damping coefficients of the liquid layer due to the joint consideration of the liquid layer inertia and its viscosity were determined. The frequency and phase responses of the edge wall were constructed for the regime of steady-state harmonic oscillations. The simulation showed that taking into account the fluid layer inertia and its damping properties leads to a shift in the resonant frequencies to the low-frequency region and an increase in the oscillation amplitudes of the edge wall.

The viscoelastic fluid flow model across a porous medium has captivated the interest of many contemporary researchers due to its industrial and technical uses, such as food processing, paper and textile coating, packed bed reactors, the cooling effect of transpiration and the dispersion of pollutants through aquifers. This article focuses on the influence of variable viscosity and viscoelasticity on the magnetohydrodynamic oscillatory flow of second-order fluid through thermally radiating wavy walls. A mathematical model for this fluid flow, including governing equations and boundary conditions, is developed using the usual Boussinesq approximation. The governing equations are transformed into a system of nonlinear ordinary differential equations using non-similarity transformations. The numerical results obtained by applying finite-difference code based on the Lobatto IIIa formula generated by bvp4c solver are compared to the semi-analytical solutions for the velocity, temperature and concentration profiles obtained using the homotopy perturbation method (HPM). The effect of flow parameters on velocity, temperature, concentration profiles, skin friction coefficient, heat and mass transfer rate, and skin friction coefficient is examined and illustrated graphically. The physical parameters governing the fluid flow profoundly affected the resultant flow profiles except in a few cases. By using the slope linear regression method, the importance of considering the viscosity variation parameter and its interaction with the Lorentz force in determining the velocity behavior of the viscoelastic fluid model is highlighted. The percentage increase in the velocity profile of the viscoelastic model has been calculated for different ranges of viscosity variation parameters. Finally, the results are validated numerically for the skin friction coefficient and Nusselt number profiles.

Comparative analysis of two models of porous medium (Dacry and Brinkman) on an example of mathematical simulation of transient natural convection in a porous vertical cylindrical cavity with heat-conducting shell of finite thickness in conditions of convective cooling from an environment has been carried out. The boundary-value problem of mathematical physics formulated in dimensionless variables such as stream function, vorticity and temperature has been solved by implicit finite difference method. The presented verification results validate used numerical approach and also confirm that the solution is not dependent on the mesh size. Features of the conjugate heat transfer problems with considered models of porous medium have been determined.

This paper studies minimum volume elastoplastic bodies. One part of the boundary of every reviewed body is fixed to the same space points while stresses are set for the remaining part of the boundary surface (loaded surface). The shape of the loaded surface can change in space but the limit load factor calculated based on the assumption that the bodies are filled with elastoplastic medium must not be less than a fixed value. Besides, all varying bodies are supposed to have some type of a limited volume sample manifold inside of them.

The following problem has been set: what is the maximum number of cavities (or holes in a two-dimensional case) that a minimum volume body (plate) can have under the above limitations? It is established that in order to define a mathematically correct problem, two extra conditions have to be met: the areas of the holes must be bigger than the small constant while the total length of the internal hole contour lines within the optimum figure must be minimum among the varying bodies. Thus, unlike most articles on optimum design of elastoplastic structures where parametric analysis of acceptable solutions is done with the set topology, this paper looks for the topological parameter of the design connectivity.

The paper covers the case when the load limit factor for the sample manifold is quite large while the areas of acceptable holes in the varying plates are bigger than the small constant. The arguments are brought forward that prove the Maxwell and Michell beam system to be the optimum figure under these conditions. As an example, microphotographs of the standard biological bone tissues are presented. It is demonstrated that internal holes with large areas cannot be a part of the Michell system. At the same the Maxwell beam system can include holes with significant areas. The sufficient conditions are given for the hole formation within the solid plate of optimum volume. The results permit generalization for three-dimensional elastoplastic structures.

The paper concludes with the setting of mathematical problems arising from the new problem optimally designed elastoplastic systems.

Metal hydrides are an interesting class of chemical compounds that can reversibly bind a large amount of hydrogen and are, therefore, of interest for energy applications. Understanding the factors affecting the kinetics of hydride formation and decomposition is especially important. Features of the material, experimental setup and conditions affect the mathematical description of the processes, which can undergo significant changes during the processing of experimental data. The article proposes a general approach to numerical modeling of the formation and decomposition of metal hydrides and solving inverse problems of estimating material parameters from measurement data. The models are divided into two classes: diffusive ones, that take into account the gradient of hydrogen concentration in the metal lattice, and models with fast diffusion. The former are more complex and take the form of non-classical boundary value problems of parabolic type. A rather general approach to the grid solution of such problems is described. The second ones are solved relatively simply, but can change greatly when model assumptions change. Our experience in processing experimental data shows that a flexible software tool is needed; a tool that allows, on the one hand, building models from standard blocks, freely changing them if necessary, and, on the other hand, avoiding the implementation of routine algorithms. It also should be adapted for high-performance systems of different paradigms. These conditions are satisfied by the HIMICOS library presented in the paper, which has been tested on a large number of experimental data. It allows simulating the kinetics of formation and decomposition of metal hydrides, as well as related tasks, at three levels of abstraction. At the low level, the user defines the interface procedures, such as calculating the time layer based on the previous layer or the entire history, calculating the observed value and the independent variable from the task variables, comparing the curve with the reference. Special algorithms can be used for solving quite general parabolic-type boundary value problems with free boundaries and with various quasilinear (i.e., linear with respect to the derivative only) boundary conditions, as well as calculating the distance between the curves in different metric spaces and with different normalization. This is the middle level of abstraction. At the high level, it is enough to choose a ready tested model for a particular material and modify it in relation to the experimental conditions.

Our purpose is to study the spatio-temporal population wave behavior observed in the predator-prey system. It is assumed that predators move both directionally and randomly, and prey spread only diffusely. The model does not take into account demographic processes in the predator population; it’s total number is constant and is a parameter. The variables of the model are the prey and predator densities and the predator speed, which are connected by a system of three reaction – diffusion – advection equations. The system is considered on an annular range, that is the periodic conditions are set at the boundaries of the interval. We have studied the bifurcations of wave modes arising in the system when two parameters are changed — the total number of predators and their taxis acceleration coefficient.

The main research method is a numerical analysis. The spatial approximation of the problem in partial derivatives is performed by the finite difference method. Integration of the obtained system of ordinary differential equations in time is carried out by the Runge –Kutta method. The construction of the Poincare map, calculation of Lyapunov exponents, and Fourier analysis are used for a qualitative analysis of dynamic regimes.

It is shown that, population waves can arise as a result of existence of directional movement of predators. The population dynamics in the system changes qualitatively as the total predator number increases. А stationary homogeneous regime is stable at low value of parameter, then it is replaced by self-oscillations in the form of traveling waves. The waveform becomes more complicated as the bifurcation parameter increases; its complexity occurs due to an increase in the number of temporal vibrational modes. A large taxis acceleration coefficient leads to the possibility of a transition from multi-frequency to chaotic and hyperchaotic population waves. A stationary regime without preys becomes stable with a large number of predators.