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In this article, the previously developed single block fully coupled algorithm [1,2] for solving three-dimensional incompressible turbulent flows is extended to resolve transient flows in multiple rotating reference frames using the arbitrary Lagrange–Euler (ALE) formulation. Details on the discretization of ALE terms along with a recently developed extension to the conservative and fully implicit treatment of multi-block interfaces into three-dimensional space are presented. To account for turbulence, the kω − SST turbulence model in ALE formulation is solved using Navier–Stokes equations. This multi-block transient coupled algorithm is embedded within the OpenFOAM® Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) library, and its performance evaluated in a real case involving a turbulent flow field in a swirl generator by comparing numerical predictions with experimental measurements.

In this article, the fully coupled block algorithm for the solution of three-dimensional incompressible turbulent flows presented in a companion article [1] is extended for use with multiple reference frames and multiple mesh blocks. The implicit block coupling is applied to the extra rotational terms, and to the multiblock interfaces. Furthermore, implementation details on the linearization of cyclic and other boundary conditions are detailed. These modifications allow the coupled solver to retain its improved performance and robustness in addition to mesh size scalability while solving turbomachinery-type applications. The performance and mesh size scalability of the coupled solver is compared to that of a segregated pressure based solver [2] using three industrial-size test cases.

In this work a block coupled algorithm for the solution of three-dimensional incompressible turbulent flows is presented. A cell-centered finite-volume method for unstructured grids is employed. The interequation coupling of the incompressible Navier-Stokes equations is obtained using a SIMPLE-type algorithm with a Rhie-Chow interpolation technique. Due to the simultaneous solution of momentum and continuity equations, implicit block coupling of pressure and velocity variables leads to faster convergence compared to classical, loosely coupled, segregated algorithms of the SIMPLE family of algorithms. This gain in convergence speed is accompanied by an improvement in numerical robustness. Additionally, a two-equation eddy viscosity turbulence model is solved in a segregated fashion. The substnatially improved performance of the block coupled approach compared to the segregated approach is demonstrated in a set of test cases. It is shown that the scalability of the coupled solution algorithm with increasing...