A time‐implicit high‐order compact differencing and filtering scheme for large‐eddy simulation

This work investigates a high‐order numerical method which is suitable for performing large‐eddy simulations, particularly those containing wall‐bounded regions which are considered on stretched curvilinear meshes. Spatial derivatives are represented by a sixth‐order compact approximation that is used in conjunction with a tenth‐order non‐dispersive filter. The scheme employs a time‐implicit approximately factored finite‐difference algorithm, and applies Newton‐like subiterations to achieve second‐order temporal and sixth‐order spatial accuracy. Both the Smagorinsky and dynamic subgrid‐scale stress models are incorporated in the computations, and are used for comparison along with simulations where no model is employed. Details of the method are summarized, and a series of classic validating computations are performed. These include the decay of compressible isotropic turbulence, turbulent channel flow, and the subsonic flow past a circular cylinder. For each of these cases, it was found that the method was robust and provided an accurate means of describing the flowfield, based upon comparisons with previous existing numerical results and experimental data. Published in 2003 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A stress‐based least‐squares finite‐element model for incompressible Navier–Stokes equations

In this paper we present a stress‐based least‐squares finite‐element formulation for the solution of the Navier–Stokes equations governing flows of viscous incompressible fluids. Stress components are introduced as independent variables to make the system first order. Continuity equation becomes an algebraic equation and is eliminated from the system with suitable modifications. The h and p convergence are verified using the exact solution of Kovasznay flow. Steady flow past a large circular cylinder in a channel is solved to test mass conservation. Transient flow over a backward‐facing step problem is solved on several meshes. Results are compared with that obtained using vorticity‐based first‐order formulation for both benchmark problems. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A local‐analytic‐based discretization procedure for the numerical solution of incompressible flows

An Erratum has been published for this article in International Journal for Numerical Methods in Fluids 2005, 49(8): 933. We present a local‐analytic‐based discretization procedure for the numerical solution of viscous fluid flows governed by the incompressible Navier–Stokes equations. The general procedure consists of building local interpolants obtained from local analytic solutions of the linear multi‐dimensional advection–diffusion equation, prototypical of the linearized momentum equations. In view of the local analytic behaviour, the resulting computational stencil and coefficient values are functions of the local flow conditions. The velocity–pressure coupling is achieved by a discrete projection method. Numerical examples in the form of well‐established verification and validation benchmarks are presented to demonstrate the capabilities of the formulation. The discretization procedure is implemented alongside the ability to treat embedded and non‐matching grids with relative motion. Of interest are flows at high Reynolds number, ??(10⁵)–??(10⁷), for which the formulation is found to be robust. Applications include flow past a circular cylinder undergoing vortex‐induced vibrations (VIV) at high Reynolds number. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

High‐order filtering for control volume flow simulation

A general methodology is presented in order to obtain a hierarchy of high‐order filter functions, starting from the standard top‐hat filter, naturally linked to control volumes flow simulations. The goal is to have a new filtered variable better represented in its high resolved wavenumber components by using a suitable deconvolution. The proposed formulation is applied to the integral momentum equation, that is the evolution equation for the top‐hat filtered variable, by performing a spatial reconstruction based on the approximate inversion of the averaging operator. A theoretical analysis for the Burgers' model equation is presented, demonstrating that the local de‐averaging is an effective tool to obtain a higher‐order accuracy. It is also shown that the subgrid‐scale term, to be modeled in the deconvolved balance equation, has a smaller absolute importance in the resolved wavenumber range for increasing deconvolution order. A numerical analysis of the procedure is presented, based on high‐order upwind and central fluxes reconstruction, leading to congruent control volume schemes. Finally, the features of the present high‐order conservative formulation are tested in the numerical simulation of a sample turbulent flow: the flow behind a backward‐facing step. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Higher‐order bounded differencing schemes for compressible and incompressible flows

In recent years, three higher‐order (HO) bounded differencing schemes, namely AVLSMART, CUBISTA and HOAB that were derived by adopting the normalized variable formulation (NVF), have been proposed. In this paper, a comparative study is performed on these schemes to assess their numerical accuracy, computational cost as well as iterative convergence property. All the schemes are formulated on the basis of a new dual‐formulation in order to facilitate their implementations on unstructured meshes. Based on the proposed dual‐formulation, the net effective blending factor (NEBF) of a high‐resolution (HR) scheme can now be measured and its relevance on the accuracy and computational cost of a HR scheme is revealed on three test problems: (1) advection of a scalar step‐profile; (2) 2D transonic flow past a circular arc bump; and (3) 3D lid‐driven incompressible cavity flow. Both density‐based and pressure‐based methods are used for the computations of compressible and incompressible flow, respectively. Computed results show that all the schemes produce solutions which are nearly as accurate as the third‐order QUICK scheme; however, without the unphysical oscillations which are commonly inherited from the HO linear differencing scheme. Generally, it is shown that at higher value of NEBF, a HR scheme can attain better accuracy at the expense of computational cost. Copyright © 2006 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.     

A second‐order time accurate finite element method for quasi‐incompressible viscous flows

A finite element method for quasi‐incompressible viscous flows is presented. An equation for pressure is derived from a second‐order time accurate Taylor–Galerkin procedure that combines the mass and the momentum conservation laws. At each time step, once the pressure has been determined, the velocity field is computed solving discretized equations obtained from another second‐order time accurate scheme and a least‐squares minimization of spatial momentum residuals. The terms that stabilize the finite element method (controlling wiggles and circumventing the Babuska–Brezzi condition) arise naturally from the process, rather than being introduced a priori in the variational formulation. A comparison between the present second‐order accurate method and our previous first‐order accurate formulation is shown. The method is also demonstrated in the computation of the leaky‐lid driven cavity flow and in the simulation of a crossflow past a circular cylinder. In both cases, good agreement with previously published experimental and computational results has been obtained. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Numerical simulation of flows around two circular cylinders by mesh‐free least square‐based finite difference methods

In this paper, the mesh‐free least square‐based finite difference (MLSFD) method is applied to numerically study the flow field around two circular cylinders arranged in side‐by‐side and tandem configurations. For each configuration, various geometrical arrangements are considered, in order to reveal the different flow regimes characterized by the gap between the two cylinders. In this work, the flow simulations are carried out in the low Reynolds number range, that is, Re=100 and 200. Instantaneous vorticity contours and streamlines around the two cylinders are used as the visualization aids. Some flow parameters such as Strouhal number, drag and lift coefficients calculated from the solution are provided and quantitatively compared with those provided by other researchers. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Numerical investigation from rarefied flow to continuum by solving the Boltzmann model equation

Based on the Bhatnagar–Gross–Krook (BGK) Boltzmann model equation, the unified simplified velocity distribution function equation adapted to various flow regimes can be presented. The reduced velocity distribution functions and the discrete velocity ordinate method are developed and applied to remove the velocity space dependency of the distribution function, and then the distribution function equations will be cast into hyperbolic conservation laws form with non‐linear source terms. Based on the unsteady time‐splitting technique and the non‐oscillatory, containing no free parameters, and dissipative (NND) finite‐difference method, the gas kinetic finite‐difference second‐order scheme is constructed for the computation of the discrete velocity distribution functions. The discrete velocity numerical quadrature methods are developed to evaluate the macroscopic flow parameters at each point in the physical space. As a result, a unified simplified gas kinetic algorithm for the gas dynamical problems from various flow regimes is developed. To test the reliability of the present numerical method, the one‐dimensional shock‐tube problems and the flows past two‐dimensional circular cylinder with various Knudsen numbers are simulated. The computations of the related flows indicate that both high resolution of the flow fields and good qualitative agreement with the theoretical, DSMC and experimental results can be obtained. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A finite element formulation for global linear stability analysis of a nominally two‐dimensional base flow

A stabilized finite element method, to carry out the linear stability analysis of a two‐dimensional base flow to three‐dimensional perturbations that are periodic along span, is presented. The resulting equations for the time evolution of the disturbance requires a solution to the generalized eigenvalue problem. The analysis is global in nature and is also applicable to non‐parallel flows. Equal‐order‐interpolation functions for velocity and pressure are utilized. Stabilization terms are added to the Galerkin formulation to admit the use of equal‐order‐interpolation functions and to eliminate node‐to‐node oscillations that might arise in advection‐dominated flows. The proposed formulation is tested on two flow problems. First, the mode transitions in the circular Couette flow are investigated. Two scenarios are considered. In the first one, the outer cylinder is at rest, while the inner one spins. Two linearly unstable modes are identified. The primary mode is real and represents the axisymmetric Taylor vortices. The second mode is complex and consists of spiral vortices. For the counter‐rotating cylinders, the primary transition is via the appearance of spiral vortices. Excellent agreement with results from earlier studies is observed. The formulation is also utilized to investigate the parallel and oblique modes of vortex shedding past a cylinder for the Re = 100 flow. It is found that the flow is associated with a large number of unstable oblique shedding modes. The parallel mode of vortex shedding is a special case of this family of modes and is associated with the largest growth rate. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

An improved hybrid Cartesian/immersed boundary method for fluid–solid flows

An improved hybrid Cartesian/immersed boundary method is proposed based on ghost point treatment. A second‐order Taylor series expansion is used to evaluate the values at the ghost points, and an inverse distance weighting method to interpolate the values due to its properties of preserving local extrema and smooth reconstruction. The present method effectively eliminates numerical instabilities caused by matrix inversion and flexibly adopts the interpolation in the vicinity of the boundary. Some typical fluid–solid flows, including viscous flow past a circular cylinder, a sphere, two cylinders in a side‐by‐side arrangement, and an array of 18 staggered cylinders, are examined. These benchmark simulations reasonably indicate the reliability and capability of the present method. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Shallow flow simulation on dynamically adaptive cut cell quadtree grids

A computationally efficient, high‐resolution numerical model of shallow flow hydrodynamics is described, based on dynamically adaptive quadtree grids. The numerical model solves the two‐dimensional non‐linear shallow water equations by means of an explicit second‐order MUSCL‐Hancock Godunov‐type finite volume scheme. Interface fluxes are evaluated using an HLLC approximate Riemann solver. Cartesian cut cells are used to improve the fit to curved boundaries. A ghost‐cell immersed boundary method is used to update flow information in the smallest cut cells and overcome the time step restriction that would otherwise apply. The numerical model is validated through simulations of reflection of a surge wave at a wall, a low Froude number potential flow past a circular cylinder, and the shock‐like interaction between a bore and a circular cylinder. The computational efficiency is shown to be greatly improved compared with solutions on a uniform structured grid implemented with cut cells. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

3D free‐surface flow computation using a RANSE/Fourier–Kochin coupling

A coupling method for numerical calculations of steady free‐surface flows around a body is presented. The fluid domain in the neighbourhood of the hull is divided into two overlapping zones. Viscous effects are taken in account near the hull using Reynolds‐averaged Navier–Stokes equations (RANSE), whereas potential flow provides the flow away from the hull. In the internal domain, RANSE are solved by a fully coupled velocity, pressure and free‐surface elevation method. In the external domain, potential‐flow theory with linearized free‐surface condition is used to provide boundary conditions to the RANSE solver. The Fourier–Kochin method based on the Fourier–Kochin formulation, which defines the velocity field in a potential‐flow region in terms of the velocity distribution at a boundary surface, is used for that purpose. Moreover, the free‐surface Green function satisfying this linearized free‐surface condition is used. Calculations have been successfully performed for steady ship‐waves past a serie 60 and then have demonstrated abilities of the present coupling algorithm. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Fourth‐ and tenth‐order compact finite difference solutions of perturbed circular vortex flows

In this study, high‐order compact finite difference calculations are reported for 2D unsteady incompressible circular vortex flow in primitive variable formulation. The fourth‐order Runge–Kutta temporal discretization is used together with fourth‐ or tenth‐order compact spatial discretization. Dependent on the perturbation initially imposed, the solutions display a tripole, triangular or square vortex. The comparison of the predictions with the detailed spectral calculations of Kloosterziel and Carnevale (J. Fluid Mech. 1999; 388 :217–257) shows that the vorticity fields are very well captured. The spectral resolution of the present method was quantified from the decomposition of the vorticity distribution in its azimuthal components and compared with reported spectral results. Using identical grid resolution to the reference results yields negligible differences in the main features of the flow. The perturbation amplitude and its first harmonic are virtually identical to the reference results for both fourth‐ or tenth‐order spatial discretization, as theoretically expected but seldom a posteriori verified. The differences between the two spatial discretizations appear only for coarser grids, favouring the tenth‐order discretization. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A class of finite difference schemes for interface problems with an HOC approach

In this paper, we propose a new methodology for numerically solving elliptic and parabolic equations with discontinuous coefficients and singular source terms. This new scheme is obtained by clubbing a recently developed higher‐order compact methodology with special interface treatment for the points just next to the points of discontinuity. The overall order of accuracy of the scheme is at least second. We first formulate the scheme for one‐dimensional (1D) problems, and then extend it directly to two‐dimensional (2D) problems in polar coordinates. In the process, we also perform convergence and related analysis for both the cases. Finally, we show a new direction of implementing the methodology to 2D problems in cartesian coordinates. We then conduct numerous numerical studies on a number of problems, both for 1D and 2D cases, including the flow past circular cylinder governed by the incompressible Navier–Stokes equations. We compare our results with existing numerical and experimental results. In all the cases, our formulation is found to produce better results on coarser grids. For the circular cylinder problem, the scheme used is seen to capture all the flow characteristics including the famous von Kármán vortex street. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Numerical study of the atmospheric flow over a coastal cliff

This work presents a numerical method suitable for the study of the development of internal boundary layers (IBL) and their characteristics for flows over various types of coastal cliffs. The IBL is an important meteorological occurrence for flows with surface roughness and topographical step changes. A two‐dimensional flow program was used for this study. The governing equations were written using the vorticity–velocity formulation. The spatial derivatives were discretized by high‐order compact finite differences schemes. The time integration was performed with a low storage fourth‐order Runge–Kutta scheme. The coastal cliff (step) was specified through an immersed boundary method. The validation of the code was done by comparison of the results with experimental and observational data. The numerical simulations were carried out for different coastal cliff heights and inclinations. The results show that the predominant factors for the height of the IBL and its characteristics are the upstream velocity, and the height and form (inclination) of the coastal cliff. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Free‐surface flow over a semi‐circular obstruction

The fully non‐linear free‐surface flow over a semi‐circular bottom obstruction was studied numerically in two dimensions using a mixed Eulerian–Lagrangian formulation. The problem was solved in the time domain that allows the prediction of a number of transient phenomena, such as the generation of upstream advancing solitary waves, as well as the simulation of wave breaking. A parametric study was performed for a range of values of the depth‐based Froude number up to 2.5 and non‐dimensional obstacle heights, α up to 0.9. When wave breaking does not occur, three distinct flow regimes were identified: subcritical, transcritical and supercritical. When breaking occurs it may be of any type: spilling, plunging or surging. In addition, for values of the Froude number close to 1, the upstream solitary waves break. A systematic study was undertaken to define the boundaries of each type of breaking and non‐breaking pattern and to determine the drag and lift coefficients, free‐surface profile characteristics and transient behavior. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Verification testing in computational fluid dynamics: an example using Reynolds‐averaged Navier–Stokes methods for two‐dimensional flow in the near wake of a circular cylinder

Verification testing was performed for various Reynolds‐averaged Navier–Stokes methods for uniform flow past a circular cylinder at Re= 5232. The standard and renormalized group (RNG) versions of the k–ε method were examined, along with the Boussinesq, Speziale and Launder constitutive relationships. Wind tunnel experiments for flow past a circular cylinder were also performed to obtain a comparative data set. Preliminary studies demonstrate poor convergence for the Speziale relationship. Verification testing with the standard and RNG k–ε models suggests that the simulations exhibit global monotonic convergence for the Boussinesq models. However, the global order of accuracy of the methods was much lower than the expected order of accuracy of 2. For this reason, pointwise convergence ratios and orders of accuracy were computed to show that not all sampling locations had converged (standard k–ε model: 19% failed to converge; RNG k–ε model: 14% failed to converge). When the non‐convergent points were removed from consideration, the average orders of accuracy are closer to the expected value (standard k–ε model: 1.41; RNG k–ε model: 1.27). Poor iterative and global grid convergence was found for the RNG k–ε/Launder model. The standard and RNG k–ε models with the Boussinesq relationship were compared with experimental data and yielded results significantly different from the experiments. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Finite‐difference 4th‐order compact scheme for the direct numerical simulation of instabilities of shear layers

An algorithm based on the 4th‐order finite‐difference compact scheme is developed and applied in the direct numerical simulations of instabilities of channel flow. The algorithm is illustrated in the context of stream function formulation that leads to field equation involving 4th‐order spatial derivatives. The finite‐difference discretization in the wall‐normal direction uses five arbitrarily spaced points. The discretization coefficients are determined numerically, providing a large degree of flexibility for grid selection. The Fourier expansions are used in the streamwise direction. A hybrid Runge–Kutta/Crank–Nicholson low‐storage scheme is applied for the time discretization. Accuracy tests demonstrate that the algorithm does deliver the 4th‐order accuracy. The algorithm has been used to simulate the natural instability processes in channel flow as well as processes occurring when the flow is spatially modulated using wall transpiration. Extensions to three‐dimensional situations are suggested. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A hybrid immersed‐boundary and multi‐block lattice Boltzmann method for simulating fluid and moving‐boundaries interactions

A numerical method is developed for modelling the interactions between incompressible viscous fluid and moving boundaries. The principle of this method is introducing the immersed‐boundary concept in the framework of the lattice Boltzmann method, and improving the accuracy and efficiency of the simulation by refining the mesh near moving boundaries. Besides elastic boundary with a constitutive law, the method can also efficiently simulate solid moving‐boundary interacting with fluid by employing the direct forcing technique. The method is validated by the simulations of flow past a circular cylinder, two cylinders moving with respect to each other and flow around a hovering wing. The versatility of the method is demonstrated by the numerical studies including elastic filament flapping in the wake of a cylinder and fish‐like bodies swimming in quiescent fluid. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.