SPH Simulation of Lava Flow with Plastic Surface Skin
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This study successfully reproduced a characteristic phenomenon in lava flows, the formation of a thin plastic skin due to surface cooling, using the Smoothed Particle Hydrodynamics (SPH) method. In order to simulate skin formation, the model incorporated temperature-dependent viscosity. The skin was represented as a low-temperature and high-viscosity region. An apparent viscosity model was also implemented to simulate Bingham fluid behavior, where viscosity varies with strain rates. Using this model, lava flowing on an inclined plane with surface skin development was simulated. As a result, the model captured the non-Newtonian behavior of lava as a Bingham fluid and the flow suppression effect of surface skin. These results indicated that both factors significantly influence flow distance. These findings emphasize the necessity of consideration of both non-Newtonian behavior and surface skin formation for accurate predictions of lava flow behavior.