An implicit finite volume method for the solution of 3D low Mach number viscous flows using a local preconditioning technique

This paper presents a cell-centered high order finite volume scheme for the solution of the three-dimensional (3D) Navier–Stokes equations with low Mach number. The system of non-linear equations is solved by means of a fully implicit pseudo-transient scheme. Each pseudo-time step is solved by a Newton-GMRes procedure. A local preconditioning technique is used to scale the speed of sound and to improve the system condition number for low Mach number and low cell Reynolds number. This preconditioning is applied to the AUSM+up flux vector splitting function. The method is tested on 2D and 3D low Mach number laminar flows.     

Higher-order Upwind Distribution-formula Scheme for Structured and Unstructured Adaptive Flow Solvers

The development of inviscid and viscous flow solvers for both structured and unstructured meshes is presented in this paper. The solution method is the distribution-formula scheme. This is an explicit, cell-vertex, finite volume method which is essentially second-order accurate in both space and time. The Euler and Navier-Stokes equations are integrated over each finite volume cell to determine the change in flow properties (e.g. density) for the cell. Distribution formulas are then used to distribute such changes to the surrounding vertices. Increments in each vertex (which is a calculation point) thus consist of contributions from the surrounding cells. The original discretization technique involves central differencing and is simple, robust and computationally efficient. In this work, starting with inviscid flow simulations using the original scheme on structured grids, improvements are subsequently made to the scheme by replacing the central differencing portion with MUSCL type higher-order upwind differencing. Numerical investigations with the improved scheme are performed using inviscid flow simulations on structured grids. Upon establishing improved accuracy, stability and excellent shock capturing properties, further extension to viscous flow computations on unstructured adaptive meshes is implemented. Results are presented for laminar, viscous flow over a NACA 0012 airfoil.     

Computation of Compressible Flows using a Two-equation Turbulence Model on Unstructured Grids

This paper presents a numerical method for solving compressible turbulent flows using a k - l turbulence model on unstructured meshes. The flow equations and turbulence equations are solved in a loosely coupled manner. The flow equations are advanced in time using a multi-stage Runge-Kutta time stepping scheme, while the turbulence equations are advanced using a multi-stage point-implicit scheme. The positivity of turbulence variables is achieved using a simple change of dependent variables. The developed method is used to compute a variety of turbulent flow problems. The results obtained are in good agreement with theoretical and experimental data, indicating that the present method provides a viable and robust algorithm for computing turbulent flows on unstructured meshes.     

On the Computation of Compressible Turbulent Flows on Unstructured Grids

An accurate, fast, matrix-free implicit method has been developed to solve compressible turbulent How problems using the Spalart and Allmaras one equation turbulence model on unstructured meshes. The mean-flow and turbulence-model equations are decoupled in the time integration in order to facilitate the incorporation of different turbulence models and reduce memory requirements. Both mean flow and turbulent equations are integrated in time using a linearized implicit scheme. A recently developed, fast, matrix-free implicit method, GMRES+LU-SGS, is then applied to solve the resultant system of linear equations. The spatial discretization is carried out using a hybrid finite volume and finite element method, where the finite volume approximation based on a containment dual control volume rather than the more popular median-dual control volume is used to discretize the inviscid fluxes, and the finite element approximation is used to evaluate the viscous flux terms. The developed method is used to compute a variety of turbulent flow problems in both 2D and 3D. The results obtained are in good agreement with theoretical and experimental data and indicate that the present method provides an accurate, fast, and robust algorithm for computing compressible turbulent flows on unstructured meshes.     

Cell-vertex Based Parallel and Adaptive Explicit 3D Flow Solution on Unstructured Grids

A parallel adaptive Euler flow solution algorithm is developed for 3D applications on distributed memory computers. Significant contribution of this research is the development and implementation of a parallel grid adaptation scheme together with an explicit cell vertex-based finite volume 3D flow solver on unstructured tetrahedral grids. Parallel adaptation of grids is based on grid-regeneration philosophy by using an existing serial grid generation program. Then, a general partitioner repartitions the grid. An adaptive sensor value, which is a measure to refine or coarsen grids, is calculated considering the pressure gradients in all partitioned blocks of grids. The parallel performance of the present study was tested. Parallel computations were performed on Unix workstations and a Linux cluster using MPI communication library. The present results show that overall adaptation scheme developed in this study is applicable to any pair of a flow solver and grid generator with affordable cost. It is also proved that parallel adaptation is necessary for accurate and efficient flow solutions.     

The simulation of inviscid,compressible flows using an upwind kinetic method on unstructured grids

A kinetic flux-vector-splitting method has been used to solve the Euler equations for inviscid, compressible flow on unstructured grids. This method is derived from the Boltzmann equation and is an upwind, cell-centered, finite volume scheme with an explicit time-stepping procedure. The Delaunay triangulation has been used to generate the grids. The approach is demonstrated for three flow field simulations, namely the subsonic flow over a two-component high-lift aerofoil, the transonic flow over an aerofoil and the supersonic flow in a channel.     

A Godunov-type finite-volume scheme for unified solid-liquid elastodynamics on arbitrary two-dimensional grids

A Godunov-type finite-volume scheme is presented for the elastodynamic equations written in terms of displacement velocities and stresses. The mathematical model universally includes elastic solids and liquids resulting in a method highly suitable for studies of acoustic wave scattering at solid-liquid interfaces. The scheme is written for a generic grid of control volumes in two spatial dimensions. The governing equations in an integral conservation form are applied to the control volumes. The exact one-dimensional Riemann problem solution at the volumes borders is used to evaluate fluxes. The spatial accuracy of the scheme is enhanced to second order using linear extrapolation of variables to the volumes faces where the Riemann solver is applied. A predictor-corrector technique is used to improve the accuracy in time. The scheme is then considered in a triangular unstructured grid environment with a dual grid of node-centered control volumes. A dynamic reversible refinement/derefinement procedure is described to enhance resolution locally at sharp variations in the solution or in subdomains of special interest. Implementation of the external and internal boundary conditions is discussed. A demonstrative application to acoustic pulse interaction with a solid shell in liquid is presented.Received: 13 February 2003, Accepted: 29 July 2003, Published online: 2 September 2003     

A second-order upwind finite-volume method for the Euler solution on unstructured triangular meshes

A scheme for the numerical solution of the two-dimensional (2D) Euler equations on unstructured triangular meshes has been developed. The basic first-order scheme is a cell-centred upwind finite-volume scheme utilizing Roe's approximate Riemann solver. To obtain second-order accuracy, a new gradient based on the weighted average of Barth and Jespersen's three-point support gradient model is used to reconstruct the cell interface values. Characteristic variables in the direction of local pressure gradient are used in the limiter to minimize the numerical oscillation around solution discontinuities. An Approximate LU (ALU) factorization scheme originally developed for structured grid methods is adopted for implicit time integration and shows good convergence characterisitics in the test. To eliminate the data dependency which prohibits vectorization in the inversion process, a black-gray-white colouring and numbering technique on unstructured triangular meshes is developed for the ALU factorization scheme. This results in a high degree of vectorization of the final code. Numerical experiments on transonic Ringleb flow, transonic channel flow with circular bump, supersonic shock reflection flow and subsonic flow over multielement aerofoils are calculated to validate the methodology.     

Realizable high-order finite-volume schemes for quadrature-based moment methods

Dilute gas–particle flows can be described by a kinetic equation containing terms for spatial transport, gravity, fluid drag and particle–particle collisions. However, direct numerical solution of kinetic equations is often infeasible because of the large number of independent variables. An alternative is to reformulate the problem in terms of the moments of the velocity distribution. Recently, a quadrature-based moment method was derived for approximating solutions to kinetic equations. The success of the new method is based on a moment-inversion algorithm that is used to calculate non-negative weights and abscissas from the moments. The moment-inversion algorithm does not work if the moments are non-realizable, which might lead to negative weights. It has been recently shown [14] that realizability is guaranteed only with the 1st-order finite-volume scheme that has an inherent problem of excessive numerical diffusion. The use of high-order finite-volume schemes may lead to non-realizable moments. In the present work, realizability of the finite-volume schemes in both space and time is discussed for the 1st time. A generalized idea for developing realizable high-order finite-volume schemes for quadrature-based moment methods is presented. These finite-volume schemes give remarkable improvement in the solutions for a certain class of problems. It is also shown that the standard Runge–Kutta time-integration schemes do not guarantee realizability. However, realizability can be guaranteed if strong stability-preserving (SSP) Runge–Kutta schemes are used. Numerical results are presented on both Cartesian and triangular meshes.     

Direct discontinuous Galerkin method for nonlinear reaction–diffusion systems in pattern formation

Nonlinear reaction–diffusion systems are often employed in mathematical modeling for pattern formation. Most of the work to date has been concerned within one-dimensional or rectangular domains. However, it is recognised that in most applications multidimensional complex geometrical domains are typically more important. In this paper we solve reaction–diffusion systems by combining direct discontinuous Galerkin (DDG) finite element methods with implicit integration factor (IIF) time integration method, on triangular meshes. This allows us solve the nonlinear algebraic systems on an element-by-element bases with significant gains in computational time. Numerical solutions of two reaction–diffusion systems, the well-studied Schnakenberg model and chloride–iodide–malonic acid (CIMA) reactive model, are presented to demonstrate effects of various domain geometries on the resulting biological patterns. Our numerical results are in good agreement with other numerical and analytical results, and with experimental results.