Modeling and rendering viscous liquids

We present a particle-based algorithm for modeling highly viscous liquids. Using a numerical time-integration of particle acceleration and velocity, we apply external forces to particles and use a convenient organization, the adhesion matrix, to represent forces between different types of liquids and objects. Viscosity is handled by performing a momentum exchange between particle pairs such that momentum is conserved. Volume is maintained by iteratively adjusting particle positions after each time step. We use a two-tiered approach to time stepping that allows particle positions to be updated many times per frame while expensive operations, such as calculating viscosity and adhesion, are done only a few times per frame. The liquid is rendered using an implicit surface polygonization algorithm, and we present an implicit function that convolves the liquid surface with a Gaussian function, yielding a smooth liquid skin. Copyright (C) 2004 John Wiley Sons, Ltd.