Lifting aerofoil calculation using the boundary element method

The bbundary integral formulation and boundary element method are extended to include lifting flow problems. This involves inclusion of a branch cut in the flow field and imposition of a Kutta condition to determine the circulation, Γ Additional boundary integral contributions arise from the cut surface. Techniques for calculating Γ are developed and we treat, in particular, a superposition procedure which permits very efficient computation. Numerical results are presented for an NACA0012 aerofoil at several angles of attack.     

Application of the Dorodnitsyn finite element method to swirling boundary layer flow

The Dorodnitsyn finite element method for turbulent boundary layer flow with surface mass transfer is extended to include axisymmetric swirling internal boundary layer flow. Turbulence effects are represented by the two-layer eddy viscosity model of Cebeci and Smith¹ with extensions to allow for the effect of swirl. The method is applied to duct entry flow and a 10 degree included-angle conical diffuser, and produces results in close agreement with experimental measurements with only 11 grid points across the boundary layer. The introduction of swirl (w_e/u_e = 0.4) is found to have little effect on the axial skin friction in either a slightly favourable or adverse pressure gradient, but does cause an increase in the displacement area for an adverse pressure gradient. Surface mass transfer (blowing or suction) causes a substantial reduction (blowing) in axial skin friction and an increase in the displacement area. Both suction and the adverse pressure gradient have little influence on the circumferential velocity and shear stress components. Consequently in an adverse pressure gradient the flow direction adjacent to the wall is expected to approach the circumferential direction at some downstream location.     

A finite element method for the three-dimensional non-steady Navier-Stokes equations

The algorithm for solving the three-dimensional non-steady Navier-Stokes equations by the explicit forward Euler method is shown and the Galerkin finite element formulation is presented. As a numerical example, an entrace flow in a square duct is illustrated.     

A comparison of mixed methods for solving the flow of a Maxwell fluid

The proficiency of available mixed methods for solving the flow of a Maxwell fluid is evaluated through their application to the same problem. The reasons for the usual degeneracy of the numerical results beyond some level of elasticity are investigated. The best-performing technique is applied to the flow through an abrupt 4/1 contraction.     

A finite element immersed boundary method for fluid flow around rigid objects

This paper proposes a new immersed boundary (IB) method for solving fluid flow problems in the presence of rigid objects which are not represented by the mesh. Solving the flow around objects with complex shapes may involve extensive meshing work that has to be repeated each time a change in the geometry is needed. Important benefit would be reached if we are able to solve the flow without the need of generating a mesh that fits the shape of the immersed objects. This work presents a finite element IB method using a discretization covering the entire domain of interest, including the volume occupied by immersed objects, and which produces solutions of the flow satisfying accurately the boundary conditions at the surface of immersed bodies. In other words the finite element solution represents accurately the presence of immersed bodies while the mesh does not. This is done by including additional degrees of freedom on interface cut elements which are then eliminated at element level. The boundary of immersed objects is defined using a level set function. Solutions are shown for various flow problems and the accuracy of the present approach is measured with respect to solutions obtained on body‐fitted meshes. Copyright © 2010 Crown in the right of Canada.     

A boundary element formulation using the simple method

A new boundary element method is described for calculation of the steady incompressible laminar flows. The method is based on the well-known SIMPLE algorithm. The new boundary element method allows one to find the fields of the pressure and velocity corrections without inner iterations, thus reducing the computational time drastically. This makes it different from the method developed by Patankar and Spalding.³² However, the new method demands a much larger computer strorage. The boundary integral equations are discretized with the help of constant boundary elements and constant cells. The values of the integrals along the boundary elements and the cells for the two-dimensional domain are found analytically. To preserve the stability in the iteration process, under-relaxation for the convection terms is used. This paper gives the results of calculations of the flows between two plane parallel plates at Re = 20 and Re = 200, the flows in a square cavity with a moving upper lid at Re = 1 and Re = 100 and the flow in a plane channel with sudden symmetric expansion at Re =46·6.     

A boundary element method for anisotropic coupled thermoelasticity

Summary A boundary element formulation is presented for the solution of the equations of fully coupled thermoelasticity for materials of arbitrary degree of anisotropy. By employing the fundamental solutions of anisotropic elastostatics and stationary heat conduction, a system of equations with time-independent matrices is obtained. Since the fundamental solutions are uncoupled and time-independent, a domain integral remains in the representation formula which contains the time-dependence as well as the thermoelastic coupling. This domain integral is transformed to the boundary by means of the dual reciprocity method. By taking this approach, the use of dynamic fundamental solutions is avoided, which enables an efficient calculation of system matrices. In addition, the solution of transient processes as well as, free and forced vibration analysis becomes straightforward and can be carried out with standard time-stepping schemes and eigensystem solvers. Another important advantage of the present formulation is its versatility, since it includes a number of simplified thermoelastic theories, viz. the theory of thermal stresses, coupled and uncoupled quasi-static thermoelasticity, and stationary thermoelasticity. The accuracy of the new thermoelastic boundary element method is demonstrated by a number of example problems. Support by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) of the Graduate Collegium Modelling and discretization methods for continua and fluids (GKKS) at the University of Stuttgart is gratefully acknowledged.     

Efficient quadrature for a boundary element method to compute three-dimensional Stokes flow

A collocation-type boundary element method based on bilinear B-splines is used for the numerical solution of the Stokes Dirichlet problem in bounded domains D ? R³. The computation of the influence matrix requires the numerical evaluation of weakly singular integrals on the domain boundary if the usual double-layer potential ansatz is chosen. Here mostly standard methods with disjoint grids for collocation and integration are used. We develop a special integration scheme based on triangular co-ordinates near the singularity and show its efficiency compared with the method mentioned above.     

A consistent boundary element method for free surface hydrodynamic calculations

Free surface phenomena are described by equations that exhibit two types of non-linearities. The first is inherent to the equations themselves and the second is caused by the application of boundary conditions at a free surface at an unknown location. Numerical calculations usually do not specifically recognize the second non-linearity, nor treat it in a fashion consistent with the more obvious non-linearities in the boundary conditions. A consistent formulation is introduced in the present paper. The field equation is integrated and the free surface boundary conditions are applied on the unknown geometry by means of appropriate series expansions. The consistent formulation introduces improvements in accuracy and computing speed. The method is demonstrated on several hydrodynamic free surface problems and an error analysis is included.     

Comparison between the traction and pressure-imposed boundary conditions in finite element flow analysis

A formulation is developed to impose pressure-prescribed boundary conditions in the penalty finite element method. Some numerical experiments for the Poiseuille flow problem are performed to compare it with the conventional traction-prescribed boundary condition. Also the incorrectness of the traction-free outlet boundary condition for contained-flows is studied with explanatory numerical examples. Discussion is focused on the inlet and outlet boundary conditions to simulate fully developed flows. Finally, the three-dimensional flow in a bifurcated pipe is analysed with the proposed formulation.     

A boundary element method for steady viscous fluid flow using penalty function formulation

A new boundary element method is presented for steady incompressible flow at moderate and high Reynolds numbers. The whole domain is discretized into a number of eight-noded cells, for each of which the governing boundary integral equation is formulated exclusively in terms of velocities and tractions. The kernels used in this paper are the fundamental solutions of the linearized Navier–Stokes equations with artificial compressibility. Significant attention is given to the numerical evaluation of the integrals over quadratic boundary elements as well as over quadratic quadrilateral volume cells in order to ensure a high accuracy level at high Reynolds numbers. As an illustration, square driven cavity flows are considered for Reynolds numbers up to 1000. Numerical results demonstrate both the high convergence rate, even when using simple (direct) iterations, and the appropriate level of accuracy of the proposed method. Although the method yields a high level of accuracy in the primary vortex region, the secondary vortices are not properly resolved. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A Dorodnitsyn finite element formulation for laminar boundary layer flow

The Dorodnitsyn boundary later formulation is given a finite element interpretation and found to generate very accurate and economical solutions when combined with an implicit, non-iterative marching scheme in the downstream direction. The algorithm is of order (Δ²u, Δx) whether linear or quadratic elements are used across the boundary layer. Solutions are compared with a Dorodnitsyn spectral formulation and a conventional finite difference formulation for three Falkner-Skan pressure gradient cases and the flow over a circular cylinder. With quadratic elements the Dorodnitsyn finite element formulation is approximately five times more efficient than the conventional finite difference formulation.     

A visual study on complex flow structures and flow breakdown in a boundary layer transition

A visualization study is conducted on the excited laminar-turbulent transition within a flat plate boundary layer flow in a water tunnel. The hydrogen bubble technique is employed to investigate the complex characteristics of the flow structure and its breakdown in the later stages of the transition. A new flow structure is observed, which involves two secondary hairpin vortices outboard of both legs of a primary hairpin vortex. This complex structure is argued to be a precursor of a turbulent spot in this K-type transition. Also reported in the paper is the evolution of the flow structure and its subsequent breakdown, manifested by the emergence of dark spots, low-speed fluid bumps, and near-wall hairpin vortex groups. The results indicate that the near-wall flow breakdown is the result of instability of a local three-dimensional high-shear layer between the low-speed fluid bump and the outer higher-speed region.     

A quadratic-element formulation of the complex variable boundary element method

The complex variable boundary element method (CVBEM) for simply connected domains is extended to include the use of quadratic elements and interpolating functions. The derivation follows the format for linear elements given in the literature, with second-degree Lagrange polynomials taken as the interpolating functions. The quadratic-element CVBEM nodal- and interior-point equations are given in detail, and the resulting formulation is successfully tested by solving example problems with available analytical solutions. Comparisons of computational efficiency and accuracy are made between the solutions obtained using linear and quadratic elements. Additional comparisons are made using published results from other boundary element methods.     

A numerical technique for three-dimensional compressible boundary layers

The non-linear two-point boundary value problem for three-dimensional compressible boundary layers is solved through the application of a boundary value technique for a range of parameters characterizing the nature of stagnation point flows. The analytical boundary conditions, at infinity, are applied at the edge of the computational mesh with iterations on the size of the domain. The solutions obtained show excellent agreement with the established similarity solutions for three-dimensional flows. The present method has the potential advantage of yielding the wall values of f″_w, g″_w and θ′_w as a part of the solution, contrary to the previously used ‘shooting’ methods. The algorithm is computationally simple and numerically stable and extremely suitable for engineering design applications.     

Dirichlet and Neumann boundary conditions for the pressure poisson equation of incompressible flow

In a recent paper Gresho and Sani showed that Dirichlet and Neumann boundary conditions for the pressure Poisson equation give the same solution. The purpose of this paper is to confirm this (for one case at least) by numerically solving the pressure equation with Dirichlet and Neumann boundary conditions for the inviscid stagnation point flow problem. The Dirichlet boundary condition is obtained by integrating the tangential component of the momentum equation along the boundary. The Neumann boundary condition is obtained by applying the normal component of the momentum equation at the boundary. In this work solutions for the Neumann problem exist only if a compatibility condition is satisfied. A consistent finite difference procedure which satisfies this condition on non-staggered grids is used for the solution of the pressure equation with Neumann conditions. Two test cases are computed. In the first case the velocity field is given from the analytical solution and the pressure is recovered from the solution of the associated Poisson equation. The computed results are identical for both Dirichlet and Neumann boundary conditions. However, the Dirichlet problem converges faster than the Neumann case. In the second test case the velocity field is computed from the momentum equations, which are solved iteratively with the pressure Poisson equation. In this case the Neumann problem converges faster than the Dirichlet problem.     

The implementation of normal and/or tangential boundary conditions in finite element codes for incompressible fluid flow

Various techniques for implementing normal and/or tangential boundary conditions in finite element codes are reviewed. The principle of global conservation of mass is used to define a unique direction for the outward pointing normal vector at any node on an irregular boundary of a domain containing an incompressible fluid. This information permits the consistent and unambiguous application of essential or natural boundary conditions (or any combination thereof) on the domain boundary regardless of boundary shape or orientation with respect to the co-ordinate directions in both two and three dimensions. Several numerical examples are presented which demonstrate the effectiveness of the recommended technique.     

A finite element method to solve the Navier-Stokes equations using the method of characteristics

We present a simple and efficient finite element method to solve the Navier-Stokes equations in primitive variables V, p. It uses (a) an explicit advection step, by upwind differencing. Improvement with regard to the classical upwind differencing scheme of the first order is realized by accurate calculation of the characteristic curve across several elements, and higher order interpolation; (b) an implicit diffusion step, avoiding any theoretical limitation on the time increment, and (c) determination of the pressure field by solving the Poisson equation. Two laminar flow calculations are presented and compared to available numerical and experimental results.     

A finite element method for transient compressible flow in pipelines

A finite element method is developed to solve the partial differential equations describing the unsteady flow of gas in pipelines. Excellent agreement is obtained between simulated results and experimental data from a fullscale gas pipeline. The method is used to describe very transient flow (blowout), and to determine the performance of leak detection systems, and proves to be very stable and reliable.     

A Hermite finite element method for incompressible fluid flow

We describe some Hermite stream function and velocity finite elements and a divergence‐free finite element method for the computation of incompressible flow. Divergence‐free velocity bases defined on (but not limited to) rectangles are presented, which produce pointwise divergence‐free flow fields (∇· u _h≡0). The discrete velocity satisfies a flow equation that does not involve pressure. The pressure can be recovered as a function of the velocity if needed. The method is formulated in primitive variables and applied to the stationary lid‐driven cavity and backward‐facing step test problems. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.