ABSTRACT

We propose a novel phase-field model for N-phase problems by using a dichotomic representation. Derived from Onsager's variational principle, the proposed model enjoys mechanic, energetic, algebraic and dynamic consistencies and is shown to asymptotically converge to its sharp interface limit. An operator-splitting based numerical method is developed to simulate the model with both second-order accuracy and energy stability. Various numerical results are presented to validate theoretical derivation and show interesting phenomena.