914 research outputs found
Whitham modulation theory for the Kadomtsev-Petviashvili equation
The genus-1 KP-Whitham system is derived for both variants of the
Kadomtsev-Petviashvili (KP) equation (namely, the KPI and KPII equations). The
basic properties of the KP-Whitham system, including symmetries, exact
reductions, and its possible complete integrability, together with the
appropriate generalization of the one-dimensional Riemann problem for the
Korteweg-deVries equation are discussed. Finally, the KP-Whitham system is used
to study the linear stability properties of the genus-1 solutions of the KPI
and KPII equations; it is shown that all genus-1 solutions of KPI are linearly
unstable while all genus-1 solutions of KPII {are linearly stable within the
context of Whitham theory.Comment: Significantly revised versio
A moving mesh method for one-dimensional hyperbolic conservation laws
We develop an adaptive method for solving one-dimensional systems of hyperbolic conservation laws that employs a high resolution Godunov-type scheme for the physical equations, in conjunction with a moving mesh PDE governing the motion of the spatial grid points. Many other moving mesh methods developed to solve hyperbolic problems use a fully implicit discretization for the coupled solution-mesh equations, and so suffer from a significant degree of numerical stiffness. We employ a semi-implicit approach that couples the moving mesh equation to an efficient, explicit solver for the physical PDE, with the resulting scheme behaving in practice as a two-step predictor-corrector method. In comparison with computations on a fixed, uniform mesh, our method exhibits more accurate resolution of discontinuities for a similar level of computational work
Unsteady turbulent buoyant plumes
We model the unsteady evolution of turbulent buoyant plumes following
temporal changes to the source conditions. The integral model is derived from
radial integration of the governing equations expressing the conservation of
mass, axial momentum and buoyancy. The non-uniform radial profiles of the axial
velocity and density deficit in the plume are explicitly described by shape
factors in the integral equations; the commonly-assumed top-hat profiles lead
to shape factors equal to unity. The resultant model is hyperbolic when the
momentum shape factor, determined from the radial profile of the mean axial
velocity, differs from unity. The solutions of the model when source conditions
are maintained at constant values retain the form of the well-established
steady plume solutions. We demonstrate that the inclusion of a momentum shape
factor that differs from unity leads to a well-posed integral model. Therefore,
our model does not exhibit the mathematical pathologies that appear in
previously proposed unsteady integral models of turbulent plumes. A stability
threshold for the value of the shape factor is identified, resulting in a range
of its values where the amplitude of small perturbations to the steady
solutions decay with distance from the source. The hyperbolic character of the
system allows the formation of discontinuities in the fields describing the
plume properties during the unsteady evolution. We compute numerical solutions
to illustrate the transient development following an abrupt change in the
source conditions. The adjustment to the new source conditions occurs through
the propagation of a pulse of fluid through the plume. The dynamics of this
pulse are described by a similarity solution and, by constructing this new
similarity solution, we identify three regimes in which the evolution of the
transient pulse following adjustment of the source qualitatively differ.Comment: 41 pages, 16 figures, under consideration for publication in Journal
of Fluid Mechanic
An axisymmetric evolution code for the Einstein equations on hyperboloidal slices
We present the first stable dynamical numerical evolutions of the Einstein
equations in terms of a conformally rescaled metric on hyperboloidal
hypersurfaces extending to future null infinity. Axisymmetry is imposed in
order to reduce the computational cost. The formulation is based on an earlier
axisymmetric evolution scheme, adapted to time slices of constant mean
curvature. Ideas from a previous study by Moncrief and the author are applied
in order to regularize the formally singular evolution equations at future null
infinity. Long-term stable and convergent evolutions of Schwarzschild spacetime
are obtained, including a gravitational perturbation. The Bondi news function
is evaluated at future null infinity.Comment: 21 pages, 4 figures. Minor additions, updated to agree with journal
versio
Dispersive and diffusive-dispersive shock waves for nonconvex conservation laws
We consider two physically and mathematically distinct regularization
mechanisms of scalar hyperbolic conservation laws. When the flux is convex, the
combination of diffusion and dispersion are known to give rise to monotonic and
oscillatory traveling waves that approximate shock waves. The zero-diffusion
limits of these traveling waves are dynamically expanding dispersive shock
waves (DSWs). A richer set of wave solutions can be found when the flux is
non-convex. This review compares the structure of solutions of Riemann problems
for a conservation law with non-convex, cubic flux regularized by two different
mechanisms: 1) dispersion in the modified Korteweg--de Vries (mKdV) equation;
and 2) a combination of diffusion and dispersion in the mKdV-Burgers equation.
In the first case, the possible dynamics involve two qualitatively different
types of DSWs, rarefaction waves (RWs) and kinks (monotonic fronts). In the
second case, in addition to RWs, there are traveling wave solutions
approximating both classical (Lax) and non-classical (undercompressive) shock
waves. Despite the singular nature of the zero-diffusion limit and rather
differing analytical approaches employed in the descriptions of dispersive and
diffusive-dispersive regularization, the resulting comparison of the two cases
reveals a number of striking parallels. In contrast to the case of convex flux,
the mKdVB to mKdV mapping is not one-to-one. The mKdV kink solution is
identified as an undercompressive DSW. Other prominent features, such as
shock-rarefactions, also find their purely dispersive counterparts involving
special contact DSWs, which exhibit features analogous to contact
discontinuities. This review describes an important link between two major
areas of applied mathematics, hyperbolic conservation laws and nonlinear
dispersive waves.Comment: Revision from v2; 57 pages, 19 figure
Roll waves in mud
The stability of a viscoplastic fluid film falling down an inclined plane is explored, with the aim of determining the critical Reynolds number for the onset of roll waves. The Herschel–Bulkley constitutive law is adopted and the fluid is assumed two-dimensional and incompressible. The linear stability problem is described for an equilibrium in the form of a uniform sheet flow, when perturbed by introducing an infinitesimal stress perturbation. This flow is stable for very high Reynolds numbers because the rigid plug riding atop the fluid layer cannot be deformed and the free surface remains flat. If the flow is perturbed by allowing arbitrarily small strain rates, on the other hand, the plug is immediately replaced by a weakly yielded ‘pseudo-plug’ that can deform and reshape the free surface. This situation is modelled by lubrication theory at zero Reynolds number, and it is shown how the fluid exhibits free-surface instabilities at order-one Reynolds numbers. Simpler models based on vertical averages of the fluid equations are evaluated, and one particular model is identified that correctly predicts the onset of instability. That model is used to describe nonlinear roll waves
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