The finite element method in low speed aerodynamics

The finite element procedure is shown to be of significant impact in design of the 'computational wind tunnel' for low speed aerodynamics. The uniformity of the mathematical differential equation description, for viscous and/or inviscid, multi-dimensional subsonic flows about practical aerodynamic system configurations, is utilized to establish the general form of the finite element algorithm. Numerical results for inviscid flow analysis, as well as viscous boundary layer, parabolic, and full Navier Stokes flow descriptions verify the capabilities and overall versatility of the fundamental algorithm for aerodynamics. The proven mathematical basis, coupled with the distinct user-orientation features of the computer program embodiment, indicate near-term evolution of a highly useful analytical design tool to support computational configuration studies in low speed aerodynamics

Simulation of flows with violent free surface motion and moving objects using unstructured grids

This is the peer reviewed version of the following article: [Löhner, R. , Yang, C. and Oñate, E. (2007), Simulation of flows with violent free surface motion and moving objects using unstructured grids. Int. J. Numer. Meth. Fluids, 53: 1315-1338. doi:10.1002/fld.1244], which has been published in final form at https://doi.org/10.1002/fld.1244. This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance with Wiley Terms and Conditions for Self-Archiving.A volume of fluid (VOF) technique has been developed and coupled with an incompressible Euler/Navier–Stokes solver operating on adaptive, unstructured grids to simulate the interactions of extreme waves and three-dimensional structures. The present implementation follows the classic VOF implementation for the liquid–gas system, considering only the liquid phase. Extrapolation algorithms are used to obtain velocities and pressure in the gas region near the free surface. The VOF technique is validated against the classic dam-break problem, as well as series of 2D sloshing experiments and results from SPH calculations. These and a series of other examples demonstrate that the ability of the present approach to simulate violent free surface flows with strong nonlinear behaviour.Peer ReviewedPostprint (author's final draft

Institute for Computational Mechanics in Propulsion (ICOMP) fourth annual review, 1989

The Institute for Computational Mechanics in Propulsion (ICOMP) is operated jointly by Case Western Reserve University and the NASA Lewis Research Center. The purpose of ICOMP is to develop techniques to improve problem solving capabilities in all aspects of computational mechanics related to propulsion. The activities at ICOMP during 1989 are described

Parallel computations based on domain decompositions and integrated radial basis functions for fluid flow problems

The thesis reports a contribution to the development of parallel algorithms based on Domain Decomposition (DD) method and Compact Local Integrated Radial Basis Function (CLIRBF) method. This development aims to solve large scale fluid flow problems more efficiently by using parallel high performance computing (HPC). With the help of the DD method, one big problem can be separated into sub-problems and solved on parallel machines. In terms of numerical analysis, for each sub-problem, the overall condition number of the system matrix is significantly reduced. This is one of the main reasons for the stability, high accuracy and efficiency of parallel algorithms. The developed methods have been successfully applied to solve several benchmark problems with both rectangular and non-rectangular boundaries. In parallel computation, there is a challenge called Distributed Termination Detection (DTD) problem. DTD concerns the discovery whether all processes in a distributed system have finished their job. In a distributed system, this problem is not a trivial problem because there is neither a global synchronised clock nor a shared memory. Taking into account the specific requirement of parallel algorithms, a new algorithm is proposed and called the Bitmap DTD. This algorithm is designed to work with DD method for solving Partial Differential Equations (PDEs). The Bitmap DTD algorithm is inspired by the Credit/Recovery DTD class (or weight-throw). The distinguishing feature of this algorithm is the use of a bitmap to carry the snapshot of the system from process to process. The proposed algorithm possesses characteristics as follows. (i) It allows any process to detect termination (symmetry); (ii) it does not require any central control agent (decentralisation); (iii) termination detection delay is of the order of the diameter of the network; and (iv) the message complexity of the proposed algorithm is optimal. In the first attempt, the combination of the DD method and CLIRBF based collocation approach yields an effective parallel algorithm to solve PDEs. This approach has enabled not only the problem to be solved separately in each subdomain by a Central Processing Unit (CPU) but also compact local stencils to be independently treated. The present algorithm has achieved high throughput in solving large scale problems. The procedure is illustrated by several numerical examples including the benchmark lid-driven cavity flow problem. A new parallel algorithm is developed using the Control Volume Method (CVM) for the solution of PDEs. The goal is to develop an efficient parallel algorithm especially for problems with non-rectangular domains. When combined with CLIRBF approach, the resultant method can produce high-order accuracy and economical solution for problems with complex boundary. The algorithm is verified by solving two benchmark problems including the square lid-driven cavity flow and the triangular lid-driven cavity flow. In both cases, the accuracy is in great agreement with benchmark values. In terms of efficiency, the results show that the method has a very high efficiency profile and for some specific cases a super-linear speed-up is achieved. Although overlapping method yields a straightforward implementation and stable convergence, overlapping of sub-domains makes it less applicable for complex domains. The method even generates more computing overhead for each subdomain as the overlapping area grows. Hence, a parallel algorithm based on non-overlapping DD and CLIRBF has been developed for solving Navier-Stokes equations where a CLIRBF scheme is used to solve the problem in each subdomain. A relaxation factor is employed for the transmission conditions at the interface of sub-domains to ensure the convergence of the iterative method while the Bitmap DTD algorithm is used to achieve the global termination. The parallel algorithm is demonstrated through two fluid flow problems, namely the natural convection in concentric annuli (Boussinesq fluids) and the lid-driven cavity flow (viscous fluids). The results confirm the high efficiency of the present method in comparison with a sequential algorithm. A super-linear efficiency is also observed for a range of numbers of CPUs. Finally, when comparing the overlapping and non-overlapping parallel algorithms, it is found that the non-overlapping one is less stable. The numerical results show that the non-overlapping method is not able to converge for high Reynolds number while overlapping method reaches the same convergence profile as the sequential CLIRBF method. Thus, in this research when dealing with non-Newtonian fluids and large scale problems, the overlapping method is preferred to the nonoverlapping one. The flow of Oldroyd-B fluid through a planar contraction was considered as a benchmark problem. In this problem, the singularity of stress at the re-entrant corners always poses difficulty to numerical methods in obtaining stable solutions at high Weissenberg numbers. In this work, a high resolution simulation of the flow is obtained and the contour of streamline is shown to be in great agreement with other results

Computational fluid dynamics

An overview of computational fluid dynamics (CFD) activities at the Langley Research Center is given. The role of supercomputers in CFD research, algorithm development, multigrid approaches to computational fluid flows, aerodynamics computer programs, computational grid generation, turbulence research, and studies of rarefied gas flows are among the topics that are briefly surveyed

Vector potential methods

Vector potential and related methods, for the simulation of both inviscid and viscous flows over aerodynamic configurations, are briefly reviewed. The advantages and disadvantages of several formulations are discussed and alternate strategies are recommended. Scalar potential, modified potential, alternate formulations of Euler equations, least-squares formulation, variational principles, iterative techniques and related methods, and viscous flow simulation are discussed