Highly scalable numerical simulation of coupled reaction-diffusion systems with moving interfaces

A combination of reaction-diffusion models with moving-boundary problems yields a system in which the diffusion (spreading and penetration) and reaction (transformation) evolve the system's state and geometry over time. These systems can be used in a wide range of engineering applications. In this study, as an example of such a system, the degradation of metallic materials is investigated. A mathematical model is constructed of the diffusion-reaction processes and the movement of corrosion front of a magnesium block floating in a chemical solution. The corresponding parallelized computational model is implemented using the finite element method, and the weak and strong scaling behaviors of the model are evaluated to analyze the performance and efficiency of the employed high-performance computing techniques.