The influence of the stellar mass-loss on the dynamics of star clusters

This work aims at studying the influence of the stellar mass-loss, resulting from the stellar evolution, on the dynamics of massive star clusters. The emphasis has been put on the mass-loss by low-mass and intermediate-mass stars (m < 8 Mo) that form, at the end of their life, a planetary nebula. The expansion speed of gas released by these stars is lower than the escape speed from sufficiently massive star clusters, and the gas can be retained by the cluster. For modelling of the gas hydrodynamics, a simple sticky-particles method was used. To carry out simulations in which gaseous and stellar particles mutually interact through their gravity, substantial modifications had to be realized in the N-body codes Nbody6 and Hermit. For the sake of comparing the influence of stellar mass-loss and relaxation processes, which are happening in the simplified model, two types of simulations were performed: one with the formation of gaseous particles and the other consisting of purely stellar component. The simulations in which the gas component was present showed out a significantly different evolution in the central part of the cluster than those in which the presence of gas was not considered