Global existence in L1 for the Enskog equation and convergence of the solutions to solutions of the Boltzmann equation

For the Enskog equation in a box an existence theorem is proved for initial data with finite mass, energy, and entropy. Then, by letting the diameter of the molecules go to zero, the weak convergence of solutions of the Enskog equation to solutions of the Boltzmann equation is proved.     

Inhomogeneous similarity solutions of the Boltzmann equation with confining external forces

The Nikolskii transform makes it possible to construct inhomogeneous solutions of the Boltzmann equation from homogeneous ones. These solutions correspond to a gas in expansion, but if we introduce external forces, they can relax toward absolute Maxwellians. This property holds independently of the assumed intermolecular inverse power force. Consequently, for Maxwell molecules and from energy-dependent homogeneous distributions, we construct effectively a class of inhomogeneous similarity distributions with Maxwellian equilibrium relaxation. We review and investigate again the homogeneous distributions which can be written in closed form, for instance, we show that an elliptic exact solution proposed some years ago violates positivity. For Maxwell interaction with singular cross sections, we numerically construct inhomogeneous distributions having Maxwellian equilibrium states and study the Tjon overshoot effect. We show that both the sign and the time decrease of the external force as well as the microscopic model of the cross section contribute to the asymptotic behavior of the distribution. These inhomogeneous similarity solutions include a class of distributions that asymptotically oscillate between different Maxwellians. Two classes of external forces are considered: linear spatial-dependent forces or linear velocity-dependent forces plus source term.     

Trend to equilibrium of weak solutions of the Boltzmann equation in a slab with diffusive boundary conditions

Recently R. Illner and the author proved that, under a physically realistic truncation on the collision kernel, the Boltzmann equation in the one-dimensional slab [0, 1] with general diffusive boundary conditions at 0 and 1 has a global weak solution in the traditional sense. Here it is proved that when the Maxwellians associated with the boundary conditions atx=0 andx=1 are the same MaxwellianM _w , then the solution is uniformly bounded and tends toM _w fort.     

The stochastic Boltzmann equation and hydrodynamic fluctuations

Based on the assumption of a kinetic equation in space, a stochastic differential equation of the one-particle distribution is derived without the use of the linear approximation. It is just the Boltzmann equation with a Langevin-fluctuating force term. The result is the general form of the linearized Boltzmann equation with fluctuations found by Bixon and Zwanzig and by Fox and Uhlenbeck. It reduces to the general Landau-Lifshitz equations of fluid dynamics in the presence of fluctuations in a similar hydrodynamic approximation to that used by Chapman and Enskog with respect to the Boltzmann equation.This work received financial support from the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation.     

On the Rate of Entropy Production for the Boltzmann Equation

We show that there exists a wide class of distribution functions (with moments of any order as close to their equilibrium values as we like) which can provide an abnormally low rate of entropy production. The result is valid for the Boltzmann equation with any cross section (|V|, ) satisfying a mild restriction. The functions are constructed in an explicit form and we discuss some applications of our results.     

New Discrete Model Boltzmann Equations for Arbitrary Partitions of the Velocity Space

Modified discrete Boltzmann equations for arbitrary partitions of the velocity space are established. The new equations can be derived from the continuous Boltzmann equation and are a generalization of previous discrete-velocity models. They preserve mass, momentum, and energy, and an H-theorem holds. The new model equations are tested by comparing their solutions with the analytical ones of the continuous Boltzmann equation for the Krook–Wu and the very hard particle models.     

Global existence of solutions for a model Boltzmann equation

A model recently introduced by Ianiro and Lebowitz is shown to have a global solution for initial data having a finiteH-functional and belonging toL ¹ (L _x ). Methods previously introduced by Tartar to deal with discrete velocity models are used.     

Classical solution of the nonlinear Boltzmann equation in allR 3: Asymptotic behavior of solutions

Proof is given of the existence of a classical solution to the nonlinear Boltzmann equation in allR ³. The solution, which is global in time, exists if the initial data go to zero fast enough at infinity and the mean free path is sufficiently large. The solution is smooth in the space variable if the initial value is smooth. The asymptotic behavior of solutions is also given. It is shown that ast the solution to the Boltzmann equation can be approximated by the solution to the free motion problem.     

The homogeneous Boltzmann hierarchy and statistical solutions to the homogeneous Boltzmann equation

An existence and uniqueness result for the homogeneous Boltzmann hierarchy is proven, by exploiting the statistical solutions to the homogeneous Boltzmann equation.     

Iterative solution of the Boltzmann equation

We define an iterative scheme to solve the nonlinear Boltzmann equation. Conservation rules are maintained at each iterative step. We apply this method to a spatially uniform and isotropic velocity distribution function on the Maxwell and very-hard-particle models. A particular example is evaluated and results are compared with the exact solution. It shows to be a very fast convergent approach.     

Small data existence for the Enskog equation inL 1

An existence theorem for the Enskog equation with small initial data is proved in anL ¹ setting. This type of result is not available for the Boltzmann equation.     

On the linearized relativistic Boltzmann equation. II. Existence of hydrodynamics

Solutions are analyzed of the linearized relativistic Boltzmann equation for initial data fromL ²(r, p) in long-time and/or small-mean-free-path limits. In both limits solutions of this equation converge to approximate ones constructed with solutions of the set of differential equations called the equations of relativistic hydrodynamics.     

Coarsely grained stochastic Boltzmann equation and its moment equations

The stochastic Boltzmann equation is coarsely grained. The coarsely grained stochastic (CGS) Boltzmann equation has fluctuating terms in its collision term. On the basis of the CGS Boltzmann equation, reduced Grad’s 26 moment equations are derived. Coarsely grained moment equations obtained from the CGS Boltzmann equation show that fluctuating terms remain as nonvanishing terms owing to the nonlinearity in the collision term of the CGS Boltzmann equation. The Navier-Stokes-Fourier law obtained using the CGS Boltzmann equation indicates that the pressure deviator and heat flux include fluctuations of their one-order higher moments.     

Linear Boltzmann Equation as the Long Time Dynamics of an Electron Weakly Coupled to a Phonon Field

We consider the long time evolution of a quantum particle weakly interacting with a phonon field. We show that in the weak coupling limit the Wigner distribution of the electron density matrix converges to the solution of the linear Boltzmann equation globally in time. The collision kernel is identified as the sum of an emission and an absorption term that depend on the equilibrium distribution of the free phonon modes.     

Quantum corrections for Boltzmann equation

We present the lowest order quantum correction to the semiclassical Boltzmann distribution function, and the equation satisfied by this correction is given. Our equation for the quantum correction is obtained from the conventional quantum Boltzmann equation by explicitly expressing the Planck constant in the gradient approximation, and the quantum Wigner distribution function is expanded in powers of Planck constant, too. The negative quantum correlation in the Wigner distribution function which is just the quantum correction terms is naturally singled out, thus obviating the need for the Husimi’s coarse grain averaging that is usually done to remove the negative quantum part of the Wigner distribution function. We also discuss the classical limit of quantum thermodynamic entropy in the above framework. Supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 10404037) and the Scientific Research Fund of GUCAS (Grant No. 055101BM03)     

A lattice Boltzmann equation for diffusion

The formulation of lattice gas automata (LGA) for given partial differential equations is not straightforward and still requires some sort of magic. Lattice Boltzmann equation (LBE) models are much more flexible than LGA because of the freedom in choosing equilibrium distributions with free parameters which can be set after a multiscale expansion according to certain requirements. Here a LBE is presented for diffusion in an arbitrary number of dimensions. The model is probably the simplest LBE which can be formulated. It is shown that the resulting algorithm with relaxation parameter =1 is identical to an explicit finite-difference (EFD) formulation at its stability limit. Underrelaxation (0<<1) allows stable integration beyond the stability limit of EFD. The time step of the explicit LBE integration is limited by accuracy and not by stability requirements.     

A lattice Boltzmann model for the generalized Burgers-Huxley equation

In this paper we develop a lattice Boltzmann model for the generalized Burgers-Huxley equation (GBHE). By choosing the proper time and space scales and applying the Chapman-Enskog expansion, the governing equation is recovered correctly from the lattice Boltzmann equation, and the local equilibrium distribution functions are obtained. Excellent agreement with the exact solution is observed, and better numerical accuracy is obtained than the available numerical result. The results indicate the present model is satisfactory and efficient. The method can also be applied to the generalized Burgers-Fisher equation and be extended to multidimensional cases.     

Wild's solution of the nonlinear Boltzmann equation

The relaxation to equilibrium of a spatially uniform pseudo-Maxwellian gas is considered. A modified Wild expansion is defined for solving the nonlinear Boltzmann equation. The positivity and asymptotic conditions, as well as the conservation rules, are maintained at each truncation order. Some particular examples are evaluated. The comparison with exact solutions illustrates the very fast convergence of this method.     

Global existence proof for relativistic Boltzmann equation

The existence and causality of solutions to the relativistic Boltzmann equation inL ¹ and inL _loc ¹ are proved. The solutions are shown to satisfy physically naturala priori bounds, time-independent inL ¹. The results rely upon new techniques developed for the nonrelativistic Boltzmann equation by DiPerna and Lions.     

Exact solution of the Boltzmann equation in the homogeneous color conductivity problem

An exact solution of the Boltzmann equation for a binary mixture of colored Maxwell molecules is found. The solution corresponds to a nonequilibrium homogeneous steady state created by a nonconservative external force. Explicit expressions for the moments of the distribution function are obtained. By using information theory, an approximate velocity distribution function is constructed, which is exact in the limits of small and large field strengths. Comparison is made between the exact energy flux and the one obtained from the information theory distribution.