Finite element stream function-vorticity solutions of the incompressible Navier-Stokes equations

The incompressible, two-dimensional Navier-Stokes equations are solved by the finite element method (FEM) using a novel stream function/vorticity formulation. The no-slip solid walls boundary condition is applied by taking advantage of the simple implementation of natural boundary conditions in the FEM, eliminating the need for an iterative evaluation of wall vorticity formulae. In addition, with the proper choice of elements, a stable scheme is constructed allowing convergence to be achieved for all Reynolds numbers, from creeping to inviscid flow, without the traditional need for upwinding and its associated false diffusion. Solutions are presented for a variety of geometries.     

A simple method to generate high-order accurate convection operators for explicit schemes based on linear finite elements

A simple method is proposed to generate high-order accurate convection operators for lumped-explicit schemes based on linear or multilinear finite elements. The basic idea is to reduce the truncation error on the first-order spatial derivatives by exploiting the consistent mass matrix of the finite element method in a purely explicit multistep procedure. The effectiveness of the method is demonstrated on pure convection problems in one and two dimensions.     

Finite element,stream function–vorticity solution of steady laminar natural convection

Stream function–vorticity finite element solution of two-dimensional incompressible viscous flow and natural convection is considered. Steady state solutions of the natural convection problem have been obtained for a wide range of the two independent parameters. Use of boundary vorticity formulae or iterative satisfaction of the no-slip boundary condition is avoided by application of the finite element discretization and a displacement of the appropriate discrete equations. Solution is obtained by Newton–Raphson iteration of all equations simultaneously. The method then appears to give a steady solution whenever the flow is physically steady, but it does not give a steady solution when the flow is physically unsteady. In particular, no form of asymmetric differencing is required. The method offers a degree of economy over primitive variable formulations. Physical results are given for the square cavity convection problem. The paper also reports on earlier work in which the most commonly used boundary vorticity formula was found not to satisfy the no-slip condition, and in which segregated solution procedures were attempted with very minimal success.     

A numerical study of the applicability of the Boussinesq approximation for a fluid-saturated porous medium

The regions of applicability of the Boussinesq approximation are investigated for natural convection in a fluid-saturated porous medium. A perturbation method is used to assess the relative importance of individual terms in the differential equations which describe the natural convection process. Specific limits to the validity of the Boussinesq approximation are identified for water and air. For water, it is shown that the restrictions imposed by the classical Boussinesq approximation can be relaxed by allowing for the variation of thermophysical properties with temperature while still retaining the incompressible form of the continuity relation. Results of the analysis are verified through numerical calculations performed for steady natural convection in a planar, water-saturated porous region.     

Time-dependent natural convection in a square cavity: Application of a new finite volume method

A new finite volume (FV) approach with adaptive upwind convection is used to predict the two-dimensional unsteady flow in a square cavity. The fluid is air and natural convection is induced by differentially heated vertical walls. The formulation is made in terms of the vorticity and the integral velocity (induction) law. Biquadratic interpolation formulae are used to approximate the temperature and vorticity fields over the finite volumes, to which the conservation laws are applied in integral form. Image vorticity is used to enforce the zero-penetration condition at the cavity walls. Unsteady predictions are carried sufficiently forward in time to reach a steady state. Results are presented for a Prandtl number (Pr) of 0-71 and Rayleigh numbers equal to 10³, 10⁴ and 10⁵. Both 11 × 11 and 21 × 21 meshes are used. The steady state predictions are compared with published results obtained using a finite difference (FD) scheme for the same values of Pr and Ra and the same meshes, as well as a numerical bench-mark solution. For the most part the FV predictions are closer to the bench-mark solution than are the FD predictions.     

Solution to transient Navier–Stokes equations by the coupling of differential quadrature time integration scheme with dual reciprocity boundary element method

The two‐dimensional time‐dependent Navier–Stokes equations in terms of the vorticity and the stream function are solved numerically by using the coupling of the dual reciprocity boundary element method (DRBEM) in space with the differential quadrature method (DQM) in time. In DRBEM application, the convective and the time derivative terms in the vorticity transport equation are considered as the nonhomogeneity in the equation and are approximated by radial basis functions. The solution to the Poisson equation, which links stream function and vorticity with an initial vorticity guess, produces velocity components in turn for the solution to vorticity transport equation. The DRBEM formulation of the vorticity transport equation results in an initial value problem represented by a system of first‐order ordinary differential equations in time. When the DQM discretizes this system in time direction, we obtain a system of linear algebraic equations, which gives the solution vector for vorticity at any required time level. The procedure outlined here is also applied to solve the problem of two‐dimensional natural convection in a cavity by utilizing an iteration among the stream function, the vorticity transport and the energy equations as well. The test problems include two‐dimensional flow in a cavity when a force is present, the lid‐driven cavity and the natural convection in a square cavity. The numerical results are visualized in terms of stream function, vorticity and temperature contours for several values of Reynolds (Re) and Rayleigh (Ra) numbers. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Finite difference and finite element methods for mhd channel flows

A Galerkin finite element method and two finite difference techniques of the control volume variety have been used to study magnetohydrodynamic channel flows as a function of the Reynolds number, interaction parameter, electrode length and wall conductivity. The finite element and finite difference formulations use unequally spaced grids to accurately resolve the flow field near the channel wall and electrode edges where steep flow gradients are expected. It is shown that the axial velocity profiles are distorted into M-shapes by the applied electromagnetic field and that the distortion increases as the Reynolds number, interaction parameter and electrode length are increased. It is also shown that the finite element method predicts larger electromagnetic pinch effects at the electrode entrance and exit and larger pressure rises along the electrodes than the primitive-variable and streamfunction–vorticity finite difference formulations. However, the primitive-variable formulation predicts steeper axial velocity gradients at the channel walls and lower axial velocities at the channel centreline than the streamfunction–vorticity finite difference and the finite element methods. The differences between the results of the finite difference and finite element methods are attributed to the different grids used in the calculations and to the methods used to evaluate the pressure field. In particular, the computation of the velocity field from the streamfunction–vorticity formulation introduces computational noise, which is somewhat smoothed out when the pressure field is calculated by integrating the Navier–Stokes equations. It is also shown that the wall electric potential increases as the wall conductivity increases and that, at sufficiently high interaction parameters, recirculation zones may be created at the channel centreline, whereas the flow near the wall may show jet-like characteristics.     

Use of pseudo-concentrations to follow creeping viscous flows during transient analysis

Creeping viscous flows are followed through finite element meshes by use of pseudo-concentrations which define material position. The concentrations, assumed to be transported only by convection, serve as material markers. Illustrations are presented related to industrial forming processes and the slow deformation of geological structures.     

非定常流函数涡量方程的一种数值解法的研究

对非定常流函数涡量方程的数值求解方法进行了改进,其中流函数一阶导数即速度项采用四阶精度的Hermitian公式,对流项由一般二阶精度的中心差分提高到四阶精度离散差分,包含温度方程在内的离散方程组采用ADI迭代方法求得定常解．以无内热体及有一内热体的封闭方腔内自然对流为例,进行了不同瑞利数（Ra）条件下的数值研究．结果表明,该方法推导简单,求解精度高且计算稳定,适用于封闭腔内高瑞利数复杂混合对流的数值模拟．     

Streamline upwind finite element method for conjugate heat transfer problems

This paper presents a combined finite element method for solving conjugate heat transfer problems where heat conduction in a solid is coupled with heat convection in viscous fluid flow. The streamline upwind finite element method is used for the analysis of thermal viscous flow in the fluid region, whereas the analysis of heat conduction in solid region is performed by the Galerkin method. The method uses the three-node triangular element with equal-order interpolation functions for all the variables of the velocity components, the pressure and the temperature. The main advantage of the proposed method is to consistently couple heat transfer along the fluid-solid interface. Three test cases, i.e. conjugate Couette flow problem in parallel plate channel, counter-flow in heat exchanger, and conjugate natural convection in a square cavity with a conducting wall, are selected to evaluate the efficiency of the present method. The English text was polished byYunming Chen.     

A method for solving the factorized vorticity-stream function equations by finite elements

A new finite element method for solving the time-dependent incompressible Navier-Stokes equations with general boundary conditions is presented. The two second-order partial differential equations for the vorticity and the stream function are factorized, apart from the non-linear advection term, by eliminating the coupling due to the double specification on the stream function at (a part of) the boundary. This is achieved by reducing the no-slip boundary conditions to projection integral conditions for the vorticity field and by evaluating the relevant quantities involved according to an extension of the method of Glowinski and Pironneau for the biharmonic problem. Time integration schemes and iterative algorithms are introduced which require the solution only of banded linear systems of symmetric type. The proposed finite element formulation is compared with its finite difference equivalent by means of a few numerical examples. The results obtained using 4-noded bilinear elements provide an illustration of the superiority of the finite element based spatial discretization.     

Natural convection with evaporation in a vertical cylindrical cavity under the effect of temperature-dependent surface tension

The effect of surface tension on laminar natural convection in a vertical cylindrical cavity filled with a weak evaporating liquid has been analyzed numerically. The cylindrical enclosure is insulated at the bottom, heated by a constant heat flux from the side, and cooled by a non-uniform evaporative heat flux from the top free surface having temperature-dependent surface tension. Governing equations with corresponding boundary conditions formulated in dimensionless stream function, vorticity, and temperature have been solved by finite difference method of the second-order accuracy. The influence of Rayleigh number, Marangoni number, and aspect ratio on the liquid flow and heat transfer has been studied. Obtained results have revealed that the heat transfer rate at free surface decreases with Marangoni number and increases with Rayleigh number, while the average temperature inside the cavity has an opposite behavior; namely, it growths with Marangoni number and reduces with Rayleigh number.     

Fourth‐order finite difference scheme for the incompressible Navier–Stokes equations in a disk

We develop an efficient fourth‐order finite difference method for solving the incompressible Navier–Stokes equations in the vorticity‐stream function formulation on a disk. We use the fourth‐order Runge–Kutta method for the time integration and treat both the convection and diffusion terms explicitly. Using a uniform grid with shifting a half mesh away from the origin, we avoid placing the grid point directly at the origin; thus, no pole approximation is needed. Besides, on such grid, a fourth‐order fast direct method is used to solve the Poisson equation of the stream function. By Fourier filtering the vorticity in the azimuthal direction at each time stage, we are able to increase the time step to a reasonable size. The numerical results of the accuracy test and the simulation of a vortex dipole colliding with circular wall are presented. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Finite difference solution of a Newtonian jet swell problem

A finite difference technique has been developed to study the Newtonian jet swell problem. The streamfunction and vorticity were used as dependent variables to describe the jet flow. The boundary-fitted co-ordinate transformation method was adopted to map the flow geometry into a rectangular domain. The standard finite difference method was then applied for solving the flow equations. The location of the jet free surface was updated by the kinematic boundary condition, and an adjustable parameter was included in the free-surface iteration. We could obtain numerical solutions for the Reynolds number as high as 100, and the differences between the present study and previous finite element simulations on the jet swell ratio are less than 5%.     

Difference scheme and numerical simulation based on mixed finite element method for natural convection problem

ntroductionLetΩ R2 beaboundeddomain .Weconsiderthefollowingnon_stationarynaturalconvectionproblem :Problem (Ⅰ )　Findu =(u1,u2 ) ,p ,andTsuchthat,foranyt1>0 ,ut- μΔu +(u· )u + p=λjT　　 ((x ,y ,t) ∈Ω× (0 ,t1) ) ,divu =0　　　　　　　　　 ((x ,y,t) ∈Ω× (0 ,t1) ) ,Tt-ΔT +λu· T =0　　 ((x,y,t) ∈Ω× (0 ,t1) ) ,u =0 ,T =0　　　　　　 ((x,y,t)∈ Ω× (0 ,t1) ) ,u(x ,y ,0 ) =0 ,　T(x,y,0 ) =f(x,y)　　 ((x,y) ∈Ω) ,whereuisthefluidvelocityvectorfield ,pthepressurefield ,Tthet…     

Simulation of vortex shedding behind a bluff body flame stabilizer using a hybrid U-RANS/PDF method

The present study aims at the investigation of the effects of turbulence-chemistry interaction on combustion instabilities using a probability density function(PDF) method.The instantaneous quantities in the flow field were decomposed into the Favre-averaged variables and the stochastic fluctuations,which were calculated by unsteady Reynolds averaged Navier-Stokes(U-RANS) equations and the PDF model,respectively.A joint fluctuating velocityfrequency-composition PDF was used.The governing equations are solved by a consistent hybrid finite volume/MonteCarlo algorithm on triangular unstructured meshes.A nonreacting flow behind a triangular-shaped bluff body flame stabilizer in a rectilinear combustor was simulated by the present method.The results demonstrate the capability of the present method to capture the large-scale coherent structures.The triple decomposition was performed,by dividing the coherent Favre-averaged velocity into time-averaged value and periodical coherent part,to analyze the coherent and incoherent contributions to Reynolds stresses.A simple modification to the coefficients in the turbulent frequency model will help to improve the simulation results.Unsteady flow fields were depicted by streamlines and vorticity contours.Moreover,the association between turbulence production and vorticity saddle points is illustrated.     

Newton's method for solving heat transfer,fluid flow and interface shapes in a floating molten zone

Newton's method is applied to the finite volume approximation for the steady state heat transfer, fluid flow and unknown interfaces in a floating molten zone. The streamfunction/vorticity and temperature formulation of the Navier–Stokes and energy equations and their associated boundary conditions are written in generalized curvilinear co-ordinates and conservative law form with the Boussinesq approximation. During Newton iteration the ILU(0) preconditioned GMRES matrix solver is applied for solving the linear system, where the sparse Jacobian matrix is estimated by finite differences. Nearly quadratic convergence of the method is observed. Sample calculations are reported for sodium nitrate, a high-Prandtl-number material (Pr = 9.12). Both natural convection and thermocapillary flow as well as an overall mass balance constraint in the molten zone are considered. The effects of convection and heat input on the flow patterns, zone position and interface shapes are illustrated. After the lens effect due to the molten zone is considered, the calculated flow patterns and interface shapes are compared with the observed ones and are found to be in good agreement.     

ISPH modeling of natural convection heat transfer with an analytical kernel renormalization factor

The objective of this study is to extend the attention of the incompressible smoothed particle hydrodynamics method (ISPH) in the heat transfer field. The ISPH method for the natural convection heat transfer under the Boussinesq approximation in various environments: pure-fluid, nanofluid, and non-Darcy porous medium is introduced. We adopted the improved analytical method for calculating the kernel renormalization factor and its gradient based on a quintic kernel function for the wall boundary treatment in the ISPH method. The proposed method requires no dummy particle layer to meet the impermeability condition and makes the heat flux over the wall boundary easy to implement. We performed four different numerical simulations of natural convection in cavities with increasing complexity in modeling and implementation: the natural convection in a square cavity with constant differentially heated wall temperature, natural convection with the heat flux from the bottom wall for a wide range of Rayleigh numbers, natural convection in a non-Darcy porous cavity fully filled with nanofluid in different flow regimes, and natural convection in a partially layered porous cavity. The results showed excellent agreement with results from literatures and the in-house P1–P1 finite element method code.     

NUMERICAL STUDY OF HIGH-REYNOLDS-NUMBER FLOW PAST A BLUFF OBJECT

A semi-explicit finite difference scheme is proposed to study unsteady two-dimensional, incompressible flow past a bluff object at high Reynolds number. The bluff object comes from a class of elliptical cylinders in which the aspect ratio and the angle of attack are two controlled parameters. Associated with the streamfunction–vorticity formulation, the interior vorticity, streamfunction and wall vorticity are updated in turn for each time step. The streamfunction and wall vorticity are solved by means of a multigrid method and a projection method respectively. In regard to the vorticity transport equation, implicitness is merely associated with the diffusion operator, which can be made semi-explicit via approximate factorization. Low-diffusive upwinding is devised to handle the convection part. Numerical results are reported for Reynolds numbers up to 40,000. Comparisons with other numerical or physical experiments are included.     

Development and application of an adaptive finite element method to reaction-diffusion equations

An adaptive finite element method is developed and applied to study the ozone decomposition laminar flame. The method uses a semidiscrete, linear Galerkin approximation in which the size of the elements is controlled by an integral which minimizes the changes in mesh spacing. The sizes and locations of the elements are controlled by the location and magnitude of the largest temperature gradient. The numerical results obtained with this adaptive finite element method are compared with those obtained using fixed-node finite-difference schemes and an adaptive finite-difference method. It is shown that the adaptive finite element method developed here using 36 elements can yield as accurate flame speeds as fourth-order accurate, fixed-node, finite-difference methods when 272 collocation points are employed in the calculations.