Numerical and Experimental Simulation:

Before that, we should know what simulation is. In a simple way,

we can just say simulation is the something, that we can call an
operation which is the imitation of a practical process. However, it
requires model, this model should have same geometry, functions
ability, and characteristics etc like a practical process has. We can
have more clear idea if we can explain with a simple example.
Suppose we want to simulate tsunami propagation in area. We
need the geometry of this area, height, width etc. At first we need
to develop a model completely like the area has, or we can also
make a scale model, which doesnt have completely same
geometry or scale, but it should have proper scale. In more
details, this model can be small sized, however, if you do scale
ratio, then it can also show the size in practical system. Suppose,
we would like to make a building model, which has 10 m height
and we want to simulate tsunami, which has 10 m initial height
inland area. We dont want to make a model which contains
exactly this same geometry. The reason could be huge computer
memory, time etc. So, we do like to have a model that we can
make in our current computer system and that wont take so long
time. We can make a simple building model with 10 cm height
and 10 cm tsunami height. Please be in mind this is just for
example, the geometry can be changed. So, here in our model
the scale ratio can be 1:100. However, if we can have huge
computer or laboratory system, then we can just like in practical
system. Simulation can be done in computer or in your
experimental laboratory. The simulation which can be done in
computer, we can just simply call it numerical simulation. We can
check any practical process both by numerically and
experimentally. We can make model in our experimental lab, like
for the above example, we can make a building with wood or
glass, and we can propagate tsunami by using a tank. We can just
imagine, as simulation is the imitation of practical function, that
an open channel in our experimental lab is the inland area in a

practical process, coastal area. Tsunami travels this area, goes

toward the city area, and makes huge destruction. So, we would
like to observe this whole process in our small experimental lab,
small in the sense of practical process. We make an open channel
where water can travel, a reservoir where water can be reserved,
a gate to reserve and to propagate specific amount, height of
tsunami, another reservoir at the end of channel to collect the
water or to pass the water. In between these two reservoirs we
can make and put many different models to check the practical
world tsunami function, we can put building model and observe
the tsunami functionality on this model. We can think the position
of the building is the position of the coastal city area. So, we do
simulation, and in this case we can say experimental simulation,
as we are just doing experiment. We can check this experimental
simulation in qualitative and quantitative way. We can use camera
to take video, photo in our targeted area, the area on which we
are mostly interested, suppose for the above example the
targeted area could be around building model, we can check
tsunami phenomena on the building, how tsunami hits, how it
passes, how it makes splash etc. And with the quantitative way,
we can measure tsunami height, pressure, velocity etc. We can
check these qualitative and quantitative information for different
tsunami heights. And then we can understand, or at least get
some idea, what could be happened in real world. So, this is the
simulation task. It is difficult to check this information in real
world, so we can do simulation, get information about real world.
We can also call this physical simulation.
Computer simulation can be like physical simulation, the
difference is we have to do this simulation in computer, and this
simulation is more changeable than the physical one. If we have a
computer and other simulating programs, we can do simulation
and check in many aspects. Sometimes, computer simulation
requires high speed computer with the high memory capacity. If
we go again with the building model example, we can do it in

computer. We have to make a building model (the model can be

small sized but with the scale ratio), open channel model with the
reservoirs and water. We have to select a simulation method,
which can run and show with our model. For this example, we
need water to flow just like tsunami runs, water can go and hit the
building and pass around the building, make splash, make
pressure on building. The simulation method should have the
capability to show these characteristics. So, before going through
the simulation, we have to select a proper simulation program. All
simulation cannot show all characteristics. Actually, simulation
method or program is the system which contains many
parameters and their functions. As for the tsunami, there are lots
of simulation programs such as Smoothed-Particle Hydrodynamics
(SPH), Moving Particle Semi-implicit (MPS), and Volume of Fluid
(VOF) etc. We should have the ability to check the tsunami
phenomena by both qualitatively and quantitatively, just like we
can do for experiment. Numerical simulation is more convenient
to do than that of the experimental one, as we just easily change
the model, conditions of the simulation, which can be difficult for
experiment, economically and it can be time consuming. For
example, we want to make another building model which is
different from previous one. In the numerical simulation, we can
do it just make a model in computer. However, if we want to make
a physical model, it will take time, money, labor etc. So, in the
present days, many scientists use just computer simulation and
they can make many hypotheses and check these hypotheses by
the computer simulation. We can change the condition the
simulation any time, more conveniently than the physical system.
And in the computer system we can also do simulation completely
like real world, we dont need to use scale ratio. We can make
model as in the real world and do simulation, which is really
difficult, sometimes impossible in physical system. Many
scientists dont want to change, or dont want to make their
model small or different from practical one. They want to check

the function as in the practical one. So, they want to make a

model with the geometry just like in the real world. For building
model, they want to make the model with the exact size, and they
also want to propagate tsunami with the exact height. It can be
possible in many computer simulation methods. However, it will
require high speed computer, like super computer, even though
with this high speed computer, it may take long time.
Before application of a numerical simulation method, we first
have to check the method with the experiment; which is the
verification of the numerical simulation method. The applicability
of numerical simulation method depends on the agreement of this
methods results with the experimental results. If we again go
with the building model example, then we can check this
agreement. At first we can get experimental results, these results
contain both qualitative and quantitative information. We can
have photo of tsunami attacking phenomena on the building for
different time steps, we have pressure from tsunami on the
building, we have tsunami height around the building and at the
different locations on the channel, and we have velocity around
the building and at the different locations on the channel. We
should have different measuring tools to have these information.
We may need a good camera, wave gauges, velocity meter etc.
We can do numerical simulation after that, some scientist do
numerical simulation before the experiment or during the
experiment, to check if there is any good output. Then we can
also collect both qualitative and quantitative information in
computer, just like we did in our experimental laboratory. We
have to know how to collect these results properly in computer
simulation. Then we can check these two results (experiment and
numerical simulation) agreement, how much the similarity. Do the
numerical simulation results show good agreement with the
results which were collected from experiment, if not then how
much the discrepancy. If it doesnt show reasonably good
agreement, then the numerical simulation needs to improve

before application. Even though, it shows good agreement, it

always needs to have improvement, development with new
parameters. The applicability of the numerical simulation depends
on the accuracy with the experimental results. However,
sometimes experimental result in the laboratory may not have
good accuracy with the practical world, it may have errors. Some
scientists consider the results collected from the survey of the
practical world area. They visit the area, suppose they visit
tsunami affected area, collect data, and do simulation and verify
with these data in different ways. Actually, it is difficult to have
proper information from the practical world for some phenomena,
like tsunami. So, scientists apply many ways to get the
information. They predict future phenomena from the simulation
with the explanation.
If the numerical simulation shows good agreement, or we can say
reasonable agreement with the collected data or results. Then we
can say this numerical simulation can be applicable. We can do
further simulation with different conditions, like we can make
many building models and put on the channel, then make just like
a coastal city, propagate tsunami with varied heights, check the
phenomena by both qualitatively and quantitatively.

Modeling:
As we have already discussed, we need model before go for a
simulation. This modeling can be done in many different ways. We
can do both experiment and numerical modeling. Just like
previous building model, we have to make building model. We
also have to ensure the environmental model for this simulation.
So, what is environmental model? The environment where we can
do this simulation, so, we need to make channel where tsunami
can run, we need pump by which water will be pumped to the
reservoir, we need gate, the gate can be moving, which can be

moving and propagate tsunami, or gate can be controlled. We can

make dam break model, where gate is used just to store the water
for certain time, then it can be removed in the way that water can
propagate toward downstream, just like tsunami propagates from
the sea to the coastal city. The measuring tools, their positions,
the camera and the camera position, the lighting, computer to
store data, program to collect data from physical to computer
language, etc. All these can be called environmental model which
directly or indirectly help in the simulation. Some of these have
been called boundary condition. We can also do computer
modeling, and there are lots of programs for this purpose. We can
make two dimensional (2D), or three dimensional (3D) model. The
difference between 2D and 3D can be done in simple way, if we
consider x, y and z axis for length, width, and height respectively,
then for 2D we can only know the x and z axis information;
however for 3D model we can observe all these three axis
information. Moreover, simulation for the 3D model can take time
and memory of the computer, and it can have less accuracy than
that for the 2D model.
As we already know, computer simulation modeling can be done
by many programs. Some scientists use direct computer language
to make a model, especially for the 2D model, they use c++,
Fortran etc. computer languages. For 3D model preparation, many
scientists use computer-aided design (CAD) software such as
blender, sketch up etc.

To be continued.