Quantitative Assessment of Open-Source Methods for Generating Random Porous Media

In the research presented, a quantitative assessment is conducted on multiple publicly available methods for generating random porous media. The creation and examination of such media are fundamental to various models that offer a more advanced level of physical analysis concerning the transfer of energy and matter. These foundational models of porous media facilitate the quantification of crucial parameters like radiative thermal conductivity and volumetric absorption of external radiation. These parameters, in turn, play a critical role in simulating heat transfer within porous surface layers, like those found on comets or asteroids, influencing the effective brightness temperature of these layers. Therefore, the modelling of random porous media directly influences the analysis of remote microwave observations and the derivation of constraints on the characteristics of the objects under investigation.

The comparison among various open-source codes intended for generating porous layers is carried out. These methods can be categorised based on different criteria. For instance, they can be distinguished by methods that regulate contacts between elementary units (like YADE) and those that lack such control. The methods can also be classified by the particle types forming the structure, which can include spheres of different sizes, porous clusters composed of such spheres, or solid non-spherical particles. In the analysis of polydisperse media, a consistent application of particle size distribution laws and size value constraints is ensured for comparison purposes. Furthermore, packings consisting of cubes, tetrahedrons, octahedrons, and irregularly shaped particles are considered for non-spherical particles. In the case of hierarchical layers, aggregates of various sizes and degrees of nonsphericity are evaluated. The generated layers are compared based on parameters such as porosity, average pore size, permeability, and the depth distribution of the first and last particle collisions with the dust skeleton. The last parameter is vital to estimate gas heating upon passing through the layer and the resultant gas yield. Additionally, the computational performance associated with implementing the selected methodologies is thoroughly examined.