Application of a preconditioned high‐order accurate artificial compressibility‐based incompressible flow solver in wide range of Reynolds numbers

In the present study, the preconditioned incompressible Navier‐Stokes equations with the artificial compressibility method formulated in the generalized curvilinear coordinates are numerically solved by using a high‐order compact finite‐difference scheme for accurately and efficiently computing the incompressible flows in a wide range of Reynolds numbers. A fourth‐order compact finite‐difference scheme is utilized to accurately discretize the spatial derivative terms of the governing equations, and the time integration is carried out based on the dual time‐stepping method. The capability of the proposed solution methodology for the computations of the steady and unsteady incompressible viscous flows from very low to high Reynolds numbers is investigated through the simulation of different 2‐dimensional benchmark problems, and the results obtained are compared with the existing analytical, numerical, and experimental data. A sensitivity analysis is also performed to evaluate the effects of the size of the computational domain and other numerical parameters on the accuracy and performance of the solution algorithm. The present solution procedure is also extended to 3 dimensions and applied for computing the incompressible flow over a sphere. Indications are that the application of the preconditioning in the solution algorithm together with the high‐order discretization method in the generalized curvilinear coordinates provides an accurate and robust solution method for simulating the incompressible flows over practical geometries in a wide range of Reynolds numbers including the creeping flows.     

A high‐order compact finite‐difference lattice Boltzmann method for simulation of steady and unsteady incompressible flows

A high‐order compact finite‐difference lattice Boltzmann method (CFDLBM) is proposed and applied to accurately compute steady and unsteady incompressible flows. Herein, the spatial derivatives in the lattice Boltzmann equation are discretized by using the fourth‐order compact FD scheme, and the temporal term is discretized with the fourth‐order Runge–Kutta scheme to provide an accurate and efficient incompressible flow solver. A high‐order spectral‐type low‐pass compact filter is used to stabilize the numerical solution. An iterative initialization procedure is presented and applied to generate consistent initial conditions for the simulation of unsteady flows. A sensitivity study is also conducted to evaluate the effects of grid size, filtering, and procedure of boundary conditions implementation on accuracy and convergence rate of the solution. The accuracy and efficiency of the proposed solution procedure based on the CFDLBM method are also examined by comparison with the classical LBM for different flow conditions. Two test cases considered herein for validating the results of the incompressible steady flows are a two‐dimensional (2‐D) backward‐facing step and a 2‐D cavity at different Reynolds numbers. Results of these steady solutions computed by the CFDLBM are thoroughly compared with those of a compact FD Navier–Stokes flow solver. Three other test cases, namely, a 2‐D Couette flow, the Taylor's vortex problem, and the doubly periodic shear layers, are simulated to investigate the accuracy of the proposed scheme in solving unsteady incompressible flows. Results obtained for these test cases are in good agreement with the analytical solutions and also with the available numerical and experimental results. The study shows that the present solution methodology is robust, efficient, and accurate for solving steady and unsteady incompressible flow problems even at high Reynolds numbers. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Study of a staggered fourth‐order compact scheme for unsteady incompressible viscous flows

The objective of this paper is the development and assessment of a fourth‐order compact scheme for unsteady incompressible viscous flows. A brief review of the main developments of compact and high‐order schemes for incompressible flows is given. A numerical method is then presented for the simulation of unsteady incompressible flows based on fourth‐order compact discretization with physical boundary conditions implemented directly into the scheme. The equations are discretized on a staggered Cartesian non‐uniform grid and preserve a form of kinetic energy in the inviscid limit when a skew‐symmetric form of the convective terms is used. The accuracy and efficiency of the method are demonstrated in several inviscid and viscous flow problems. Results obtained with different combinations of second‐ and fourth‐order spatial discretizations and together with either the skew‐symmetric or divergence form of the convective term are compared. The performance of these schemes is further demonstrated by two challenging flow problems, linear instability in plane channel flow and a two‐dimensional dipole–wall interaction. Results show that the compact scheme is efficient and that the divergence and skew‐symmetric forms of the convective terms produce very similar results. In some but not all cases, a gain in accuracy and computational time is obtained with a high‐order discretization of only the convective and diffusive terms. Finally, the benefits of compact schemes with respect to second‐order schemes is discussed in the case of the fully developed turbulent channel flow. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Implicit preconditioned high‐order compact scheme for the simulation of the three‐dimensional incompressible Navier–Stokes equations with pseudo‐compressibility method

This paper combines the pseudo‐compressibility procedure, the preconditioning technique for accelerating the time marching for stiff hyperbolic equations, and high‐order accurate central compact scheme to establish the code for efficiently and accurately solving incompressible flows numerically based on the finite difference discretization. The spatial scheme consists of the sixth‐order compact scheme and 10th‐order numerical filter operator for guaranteeing computational stability. The preconditioned pseudo‐compressible Navier–Stokes equations are marched temporally using the implicit lower–upper symmetric Gauss–Seidel time integration method, and the time accuracy is improved by the dual‐time step method for the unsteady problems. The efficiency and reliability of the present procedure are demonstrated by applications to Taylor decaying vortices phenomena, double periodic shear layer rolling‐up problem, laminar flow over a flat plate, low Reynolds number unsteady flow around a circular cylinder at Re = 200, high Reynolds number turbulence flow past the S809 airfoil, and the three‐dimensional flows through two 90°curved ducts of square and circular cross sections, respectively. It is found that the numerical results of the present algorithm are in good agreement with theoretical solutions or experimental data. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

High‐order compact scheme for Boussinesq equations: implementation and numerical boundary condition issue

Application of the three‐point fourth‐order compact scheme to spatial differencing of the vorticity‐stream function‐density formulation of the two‐dimensional incompressible Boussinesq equations is presented. The details for the derivation of difference relations at boundaries to generate accurate and stable solutions are also given. To assess the numerical accuracy, two linear prototype test problems with known exact solution are used. The two‐dimensional planar and cylindrical lock‐exchange flow configurations are used to conduct the numerical experiments for the Boussinesq equations. Quantitative measures for the two linear prototype test problems and comparison of the results of this work with the published results for the planar lock‐exchange flow indicates the validity and accuracy of the three‐point fourth‐order compact scheme for numerical solution of two‐dimensional incompressible Boussinesq equations. In addition, the study of using different high‐order numerical boundary conditions for the implementation of the no‐penetration boundary condition for the density at no‐slip walls is considered. It is shown that the numerical solution is sensitive to the choice of difference relation for the density at boundaries and using an inappropriate difference relation leads to spurious numerical solution. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The advantages of using high‐order finite differences schemes in laminar–turbulent transition studies

This paper presents various finite difference schemes and compare their ability to simulate instability waves in a given flow field. The governing equations for two‐dimensional, incompressible flows were solved in vorticity–velocity formulation. Four different space discretization schemes were tested, namely, a second‐order central differences, a fourth‐order central differences, a fourth‐order compact scheme and a sixth‐order compact scheme. A classic fourth‐order Runge–Kutta scheme was used in time. The influence of grid refinement in the streamwise and wall normal directions were evaluated. The results were compared with linear stability theory for the evolution of small‐amplitude Tollmien–Schlichting waves in a plane Poiseuille flow. Both the amplification rate and the wavenumber were considered as verification parameters, showing the degree of dissipation and dispersion introduced by the different numerical schemes. The results confirmed that high‐order schemes are necessary for studying hydrodynamic instability problems by direct numerical simulation. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A transformation‐free HOC scheme for incompressible viscous flows on nonuniform polar grids

We recently proposed a transformation‐free higher‐order compact (HOC) scheme for two‐dimensional (2‐D) steady convection–diffusion equations on nonuniform Cartesian grids (Int. J. Numer. Meth. Fluids 2004; 44 :33–53). As the scheme was equipped to handle only constant coefficients for the second‐order derivatives, it could not be extended directly to curvilinear coordinates, where they invariably occur as variables. In this paper, we extend the scheme to cylindrical polar coordinates for the 2‐D convection–diffusion equations and more specifically to the 2‐D incompressible viscous flows governed by the Navier–Stokes (N–S) equations. We first apply the formulation to a problem having analytical solution and demonstrate its fourth‐order spatial accuracy. We then apply it to the flow past an impulsively started circular cylinder problem and finally to the driven polar cavity problem. We present our numerical results and compare them with established numerical and analytical and experimental results whenever available. This new approach is seen to produce excellent comparison in all the cases. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Fourth‐order compact formulation of Navier–Stokes equations and driven cavity flow at high Reynolds numbers

A new fourth‐order compact formulation for the steady 2‐D incompressible Navier–Stokes equations is presented. The formulation is in the same form of the Navier–Stokes equations such that any numerical method that solve the Navier–Stokes equations can easily be applied to this fourth‐order compact formulation. In particular, in this work the formulation is solved with an efficient numerical method that requires the solution of tridiagonal systems using a fine grid mesh of 601 × 601. Using this formulation, the steady 2‐D incompressible flow in a driven cavity is solved up to Reynolds number with Re = 20 000 fourth‐order spatial accuracy. Detailed solutions are presented. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

High‐order compact numerical schemes for non‐hydrostatic free surface flows

The development of a numerical scheme for non‐hydrostatic free surface flows is described with the objective of improving the resolution characteristics of existing solution methods. The model uses a high‐order compact finite difference method for spatial discretization on a collocated grid and the standard, explicit, single step, four‐stage, fourth‐order Runge–Kutta method for temporal discretization. The Cartesian coordinate system was used. The model requires the solution of two Poisson equations at each time‐step and tridiagonal matrices for each derivative at each of the four stages in a time‐step. Third‐ and fourth‐order accurate boundaries for the flow variables have been developed including the top non‐hydrostatic pressure boundary. The results demonstrate that numerical dissipation which has been a problem with many similar models that are second‐order accurate is practically eliminated. A high accuracy is obtained for the flow variables including the non‐hydrostatic pressure. The accuracy of the model has been tested in numerical experiments. In all cases where analytical solutions are available, both phase errors and amplitude errors are very small. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

High‐order accurate numerical solutions of incompressible flows with the artificial compressibility method

A high‐order accurate, finite‐difference method for the numerical solution of incompressible flows is presented. This method is based on the artificial compressibility formulation of the incompressible Navier–Stokes equations. Fourth‐ or sixth‐order accurate discretizations of the metric terms and the convective fluxes are obtained using compact, centred schemes. The viscous terms are also discretized using fourth‐order accurate, centred finite differences. Implicit time marching is performed for both steady‐state and time‐accurate numerical solutions. High‐order, spectral‐type, low‐pass, compact filters are used to regularize the numerical solution and remove spurious modes arising from unresolved scales, non‐linearities, and inaccuracies in the application of boundary conditions. The accuracy and efficiency of the proposed method is demonstrated for test problems. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Implementation of high‐order compact finite‐difference method to parabolized Navier–Stokes schemes

The numerical solution to the parabolized Navier–Stokes (PNS) and globally iterated PNS (IPNS) equations for accurate computation of hypersonic axisymmetric flowfields is obtained by using the fourth‐order compact finite‐difference method. The PNS and IPNS equations in the general curvilinear coordinates are solved by using the implicit finite‐difference algorithm of Beam and Warming type with a high‐order compact accuracy. A shock‐fitting procedure is utilized in both compact PNS and IPNS schemes to obtain accurate solutions in the vicinity of the shock. The main advantage of the present formulation is that the basic flow variables and their first and second derivatives are simultaneously computed with the fourth‐order accuracy. The computations are carried out for a benchmark case: hypersonic axisymmetric flow over a blunt cone at Mach 8. A sensitivity study is performed for the basic flowfield, including profiles and their derivatives obtained from the fourth‐order compact PNS and IPNS solutions, and the effects of grid size and numerical dissipation term used are discussed. The present results for the flowfield variables and also their derivatives are compared with those of other basic flow models to demonstrate the accuracy and efficiency of the proposed method. The present work represents the first known application of a high‐order compact finite‐difference method to the PNS schemes, which are computationally more efficient than Navier–Stokes solutions. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A deconvolution‐based fourth‐order finite volume method for incompressible flows on non‐uniform grids

This paper is concerned with the development of a new high‐order finite volume method for the numerical simulation of highly convective unsteady incompressible flows on non‐uniform grids. Specifically, both a high‐order fluxes integration and the implicit deconvolution of the volume‐averaged field are considered. This way, the numerical solution effectively stands for a fourth‐order approximation of the point‐wise one. Moreover, the procedure is developed in the framework of a projection method for the pressure–velocity decoupling, while originally deriving proper high‐order intermediate boundary conditions. The entire numerical procedure is discussed in detail, giving particular attention to the consistent discretization of the deconvolution operation. The present method is also cast in the framework of approximate deconvolution modelling for large‐eddy simulation. The overall high accuracy of the method, both in time and space, is demonstrated. Finally, as a model of real flow computation, a two‐dimensional time‐evolving mixing layer is simulated, with and without sub‐grid scales modelling. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

An improved KGF‐SPH with a novel discrete scheme of Laplacian operator for viscous incompressible fluid flows

The kernel gradient free (KGF) smoothed particle hydrodynamics (SPH) method is a modified finite particle method (FPM) which has higher order accuracy than the conventional SPH method. In KGF‐SPH, no kernel gradient is required in the whole computation, and this leads to good flexibility in the selection of smoothing functions and it is also associated with a symmetric corrective matrix. When modeling viscous incompressible flows with SPH, FPM or KGF‐SPH, it is usual to approximate the Laplacian term with nested approximation on velocity, and this may introduce numerical errors from the nested approximation, and also cause difficulties in dealing with boundary conditions. In this paper, an improved KGF‐SPH method is presented for modeling viscous, incompressible fluid flows with a novel discrete scheme of Laplacian operator. The improved KGF‐SPH method avoids nested approximation of first order derivatives, and keeps the good feature of ‘kernel gradient free’. The two‐dimensional incompressible fluid flow of shear cavity, both in Euler frame and Lagrangian frame, are simulated by SPH, FPM, the original KGF‐SPH and improved KGF‐SPH. The numerical results show that the improved KGF‐SPH with the novel discrete scheme of Laplacian operator are more accurate than SPH, and more stable than FPM and the original KGF‐SPH. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Third‐order‐accurate semi‐implicit Runge–Kutta scheme for incompressible Navier–Stokes equations

A semi‐implicit three‐step Runge–Kutta scheme for the unsteady incompressible Navier–Stokes equations with third‐order accuracy in time is presented. The higher order of accuracy as compared to the existing semi‐implicit Runge–Kutta schemes is achieved due to one additional inversion of the implicit operator I‐τγL, which requires inversion of tridiagonal matrices when using approximate factorization method. No additional solution of the pressure‐Poisson equation or evaluation of Navier–Stokes operator is needed. The scheme is supplied with a local error estimation and time‐step control algorithm. The temporal third‐order accuracy of the scheme is proved analytically and ascertained by analysing both local and global errors in a numerical example. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A high‐order accurate method for two‐dimensional incompressible viscous flows

A high‐order accurate solution method for complex geometries is developed for two‐dimensional flows using the stream function–vorticity formulation. High‐order accurate spectrally optimized compact schemes along with appropriate boundary schemes are used for spatial discretization while a two‐level backward Euler implicit scheme is used for the time integration. The linear system of equations for stream function and vorticity are solved by an inner iteration while contravariant velocities constitute outer iterations. The effect of curvilinear grids on the solution accuracy is studied. The method is used to compute Cartesian and inclined driven cavity, flow in a triangular cavity and viscous flow in constricted channel. Benchmark‐like accuracy is obtained in all the problems with fewer grid points compared to reported studies. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Combined compact difference method for solving the incompressible Navier–Stokes equations

This paper presents a numerical method for solving the two‐dimensional unsteady incompressible Navier–Stokes equations in a vorticity–velocity formulation. The method is applicable for simulating the nonlinear wave interaction in a two‐dimensional boundary layer flow. It is based on combined compact difference schemes of up to 12th order for discretization of the spatial derivatives on equidistant grids and a fourth‐order five‐ to six‐alternating‐stage Runge–Kutta method for temporal integration. The spatial and temporal schemes are optimized together for the first derivative in a downstream direction to achieve a better spectral resolution. In this method, the dispersion and dissipation errors have been minimized to simulate physical waves accurately. At the same time, the schemes can efficiently suppress numerical grid‐mesh oscillations. The results of test calculations on coarse grids are in good agreement with the linear stability theory and comparable with other works. The accuracy and the efficiency of the current code indicate its potential to be extended to three‐dimensional cases in which full boundary layer transition happens. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A high‐order alternating direction implicit method for the unsteady convection‐dominated diffusion problem

A high‐order alternating direction implicit (ADI) method for solving the unsteady convection‐dominated diffusion equation is developed. The fourth‐order Padé scheme is used for the discretization of the convection terms, while the second‐order Padé scheme is used for the diffusion terms. The Crank–Nicolson scheme and ADI factorization are applied for time integration. After ADI factorization, the two‐dimensional problem becomes a sequence of one‐dimensional problems. The solution procedure consists of multiple use of a one‐dimensional tridiagonal matrix algorithm that produces a computationally cost‐effective solver. Von Neumann stability analysis is performed to show that the method is unconditionally stable. An unsteady two‐dimensional problem concerning convection‐dominated propagation of a Gaussian pulse is studied to test its numerical accuracy and compare it to other high‐order ADI methods. The results show that the overall numerical accuracy can reach third or fourth order for the convection‐dominated diffusion equation depending on the magnitude of diffusivity, while the computational cost is much lower than other high‐order numerical methods. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Fourth‐order accurate compact‐difference discretization method for Helmholtz and incompressible Navier–Stokes equations

A fourth‐order accurate solution method for the three‐dimensional Helmholtz equations is described that is based on a compact finite‐difference stencil for the Laplace operator. Similar discretization methods for the Poisson equation have been presented by various researchers for Dirichlet boundary conditions. Here, the complicated issue of imposing Neumann boundary conditions is described in detail. The method is then applied to model Helmholtz problems to verify the accuracy of the discretization method. The implementation of the solution method is also described. The Helmholtz solver is used as the basis for a fourth‐order accurate solver for the incompressible Navier–Stokes equations. Numerical results obtained with this Navier–Stokes solver for the temporal evolution of a three‐dimensional instability in a counter‐rotating vortex pair are discussed. The time‐accurate Navier–Stokes simulations show the resolving properties of the developed discretization method and the correct prediction of the initial growth rate of the three‐dimensional instability in the vortex pair. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Parallel three‐dimensional simulation of the injection molding process

This paper describes the development of a parallel three‐dimensional unstructured non‐isothermal flow solver for the simulation of the injection molding process. The numerical model accounts for multiphase flow in which the melt and air regions are considered to be a continuous incompressible fluid with distinct physical properties. This aspect avoids the complex reconstruction of the interface. A collocated finite volume method is employed, which can switch between first‐ and second‐order accuracy in both space and time. The pressure implicit with splitting of operators algorithm is used to compute the transient flow variables and couple velocity and pressure. The temperature equation is solved using a transport equation with convection and diffusion terms. An upwind differencing scheme is used for the discretization of the convection term to enforce a bounded solution. In order to capture the sharp interface, a bounded compressive high‐resolution scheme is employed. Parallelization of the code is achieved using the PETSc framework and a single program multiple data message passing model. Predicted numerical solutions for several example problems are considered. The first case validates the solution algorithm for moderate Reynolds number flows using a structured mesh. The second case employs an unstructured hybrid mesh showing the capability of the solver to describe highly viscous flows closer to realistic injection molding conditions. The final case presents the non‐isothermal filling of a thick cavity using three mesh sizes and up to 80 processors to assess parallel performance. The proposed algorithm is shown to have good accuracy and scalability. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A high‐order backward forward sweep interpolating algorithm for semi‐Lagrangian method

Conventional semi‐Lagrangian methods often suffer from poor accuracy and imbalance problems of advected properties because of low‐order interpolation schemes used and/or inability to reduce both dissipation and dispersion errors even with high‐order schemes. In the current work, we propose a fourth‐order semi‐Lagrangian method to solve the advection terms at a computing cost of third‐order interpolation scheme by applying backward and forward interpolations in an alternating sweep manner. The method was demonstrated for solving 1‐D and 2‐D advection problems, and 2‐D and 3‐D lid‐driven cavity flows with a multi‐level V‐cycle multigrid solver. It shows that the proposed method can reduce both dissipation and dispersion errors in all regions, especially near sharp gradients, at a same accuracy as but less computing cost than the typical fourth‐order interpolation because of fewer grids used. The proposed method is also shown able to achieve more accurate results on coarser grids than conventional linear and other high‐order interpolation schemes in the literature. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.