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Article
Publication date: 1 February 2006

A. Rap, L. Elliott, D.B. Ingham, D. Lesnic and X. Wen

To develop a numerical technique for solving the inverse source problem associated with the constant coefficients convection‐diffusion equation.

Abstract

Purpose

To develop a numerical technique for solving the inverse source problem associated with the constant coefficients convection‐diffusion equation.

Design/methodology/approach

The proposed numerical technique is based on the boundary element method (BEM) combined with an iterative sequential quadratic programming (SQP) procedure. The governing convection‐diffusion equation is transformed into a Helmholtz equation and the ill‐conditioned system of equations that arises after the application of the BEM is solved using an iterative technique.

Findings

The iterative BEM presented in this paper is well‐suited for solving inverse source problems for convection‐diffusion equations with constant coefficients. Accurate and stable numerical solutions were obtained for cases when the number of sources is correctly estimated, overestimated, or underestimated, and with both exact and noisy input data.

Research limitations/implications

The proposed numerical method is limited to cases when the Péclet number is smaller than 100. Future approaches should include the application of the BEM directly to the convection‐diffusion equation.

Practical implications

Applications of the results presented in this paper can be of value in practical applications in both heat and fluid flow as they show that locations and strengths for an unknown number of point sources can be accurately found by using boundary measurements only.

Originality/value

The BEM has not as yet been employed for solving inverse source problems related with the convection‐diffusion equation. This study is intended to approach this problem by combining the BEM formulation with an iterative technique based on the SQP method. In this way, the many advantages of the BEM can be applied to inverse source convection‐diffusion problems.

Details

International Journal of Numerical Methods for Heat & Fluid Flow, vol. 16 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0961-5539

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 29 July 2014

Fazhan Geng, Suping Qian and Shuai Li

– The purpose of this paper is to find an effective numerical method for solving singularly perturbed convection-diffusion problems.

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to find an effective numerical method for solving singularly perturbed convection-diffusion problems.

Design/methodology/approach

The present method is based on the asymptotic expansion method and the variational iteration method (VIM). First a zeroth order asymptotic expansion for the solution of the given singularly perturbed convection-diffusion problem is constructed. Then the reduced terminal value problem is solved by using the VIM.

Findings

Two numerical examples are introduced to show the validity of the present method. Obtained numerical results show that the present method can provide very accurate analytical approximate solutions not only in the boundary layer, but also away from the layer.

Originality/value

The combination of the asymptotic expansion method and the VIM is applied to singularly perturbed convection-diffusion problems.

Details

International Journal of Numerical Methods for Heat & Fluid Flow, vol. 24 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0961-5539

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 20 August 2021

Salam Adel Al-Bayati and Luiz C. Wrobel

The purpose of this paper is to describe an extension of the boundary element method (BEM) and the dual reciprocity boundary element method (DRBEM) formulations developed for one…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to describe an extension of the boundary element method (BEM) and the dual reciprocity boundary element method (DRBEM) formulations developed for one- and two-dimensional steady-state problems, to analyse transient convection–diffusion problems associated with first-order chemical reaction.

Design/methodology/approach

The mathematical modelling has used a dual reciprocity approximation to transform the domain integrals arising in the transient equation into equivalent boundary integrals. The integral representation formula for the corresponding problem is obtained from the Green’s second identity, using the fundamental solution of the corresponding steady-state equation with constant coefficients. The finite difference method is used to simulate the time evolution procedure for solving the resulting system of equations. Three different radial basis functions have been successfully implemented to increase the accuracy of the solution and improving the rate of convergence.

Findings

The numerical results obtained demonstrate the excellent agreement with the analytical solutions to establish the validity of the proposed approach and to confirm its efficiency.

Originality/value

Finally, the proposed BEM and DRBEM numerical solutions have not displayed any artificial diffusion, oscillatory behaviour or damping of the wave front, as appears in other different numerical methods.

Details

International Journal of Numerical Methods for Heat & Fluid Flow, vol. 32 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0961-5539

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 7 August 2009

Karen L. Ricciardi and Stephen H. Brill

The Hermite collocation method of discretization can be used to determine highly accurate solutions to the steady‐state one‐dimensional convection‐diffusion equation (which can be…

Abstract

Purpose

The Hermite collocation method of discretization can be used to determine highly accurate solutions to the steady‐state one‐dimensional convection‐diffusion equation (which can be used to model the transport of contaminants dissolved in groundwater). This accuracy is dependent upon sufficient refinement of the finite‐element mesh as well as applying upstream or downstream weighting to the convective term through the determination of collocation locations which meet specified constraints. Owing to an increase in computational intensity of the application of the method of collocation associated with increases in the mesh refinement, minimal mesh refinement is sought. Very often this optimization problem is the one where the feasible region is not connected and as such requires a specialized optimization search technique. This paper aims to focus on this method.

Design/methodology/approach

An original hybrid method that utilizes a specialized adaptive genetic algorithm followed by a hill‐climbing approach is used to search for the optimal mesh refinement for a number of models differentiated by their velocity fields. The adaptive genetic algorithm is used to determine a mesh refinement that is close to a locally optimal mesh refinement. Following the adaptive genetic algorithm, a hill‐climbing approach is used to determine a local optimal feasible mesh refinement.

Findings

In all cases the optimal mesh refinements determined with this hybrid method are equally optimal to, or a significant improvement over, mesh refinements determined through direct search methods.

Research limitations

Further extensions of this work could include the application of the mesh refinement technique presented in this paper to non‐steady‐state problems with time‐dependent coefficients with multi‐dimensional velocity fields.

Originality/value

The present work applies an original hybrid optimization technique to obtain highly accurate solutions using the method of Hermite collocation with minimal mesh refinement.

Details

International Journal of Numerical Methods for Heat & Fluid Flow, vol. 19 no. 7
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0961-5539

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 29 July 2014

Xiaohua Yang, Chongli Di, Ying Mei, Yu-Qi Li and Jian-Qiang Li

The purpose of this paper is to reduce the computational burden and improve the precision of the parameter optimization in the convection-diffusion equation, a new algorithm, the…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to reduce the computational burden and improve the precision of the parameter optimization in the convection-diffusion equation, a new algorithm, the refined gray-encoded evolution algorithm (RGEA), is proposed.

Design/methodology/approach

In the new algorithm, the differential evolution algorithm (DEA) is introduced to refine the solutions and to improve the search efficiency in the evolution process; the rapid cycle operation is also introduced to accelerate the convergence rate. The authors apply this algorithm to parameter optimization in convection-diffusion equations.

Findings

Two cases for parameter optimization in convection-diffusion equations are studied by using the new algorithm. The results indicate that the sum of absolute errors by the RGEA decreases from 74.14 to 99.29 percent and from 99.32 to 99.98 percent, respectively, compared to those by the gray-encoded genetic algorithm (GGA) and the DEA. And the RGEA has a faster convergent speed than does the GGA or DEA.

Research limitations/implications

A more complete convergence analysis of the method is under investigation. The authors will also explore the possibility of adapting the method to identify the initial condition and boundary condition in high-dimension convection-diffusion equations.

Practical implications

This paper will have an important impact on the applications of the parameter optimization in the field of environmental flow analysis.

Social implications

This paper will have an important significance for a sustainable social development.

Originality/value

The authors establish a new RGEA algorithm for parameter optimization in solving convection-diffusion equations. The application results make a valuable contribution to the parameter optimization in the field of environmental flow analysis.

Details

International Journal of Numerical Methods for Heat & Fluid Flow, vol. 24 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0961-5539

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 17 July 2020

Swati Yadav and Pratima Rai

The purpose of this study is to construct and analyze a parameter uniform higher-order scheme for singularly perturbed delay parabolic problem (SPDPP) of convection-diffusion type…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to construct and analyze a parameter uniform higher-order scheme for singularly perturbed delay parabolic problem (SPDPP) of convection-diffusion type with a multiple interior turning point.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors construct a higher-order numerical method comprised of a hybrid scheme on a generalized Shishkin mesh in space variable and the implicit Euler method on a uniform mesh in the time variable. The hybrid scheme is a combination of simple upwind scheme and the central difference scheme.

Findings

The proposed method has a convergence rate of order O(N2L2+Δt). Further, Richardson extrapolation is used to obtain convergence rate of order two in the time variable. The hybrid scheme accompanied with extrapolation is second-order convergent in time and almost second-order convergent in space up to a logarithmic factor.

Originality/value

A class of SPDPPs of convection-diffusion type with a multiple interior turning point is studied in this paper. The exact solution of the considered class of problems exhibit two exponential boundary layers. The theoretical results are supported via conducting numerical experiments. The results obtained using the proposed scheme are also compared with the simple upwind scheme.

Article
Publication date: 4 May 2012

Stephen Brill and Eric Smith

The purpose of this paper is to present the analytical solution to the Hermite collocation discretization of a quadratically forced steady‐state convection‐diffusion equation in…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to present the analytical solution to the Hermite collocation discretization of a quadratically forced steady‐state convection‐diffusion equation in one spatial dimension with constant coefficients, defined on a uniform mesh, with Dirichlet boundary conditions. To improve the accuracy of the method “upstream weighting” of the convective term is used in an optimal way. The authors also provide a method to determine where the forcing function should be optimally sampled. Computational examples are given, which support and illustrate the theory of the optimal sampling of the convective and forcing term.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors: extend previously published results (which dealt only with the case of linear forcing) to the case of quadratic forcing; prove the theorem that governs the quadratic case; and then illustrate the results of the theorem using computational examples.

Findings

The algorithm developed for the quadratic case dramatically decreases the error (i.e. the difference between the continuous and numerical solutions).

Research limitations/implications

Because the methodology successfully extends the linear case to the quadratic case, it is hoped that the method can, indeed, be extended further to more general cases. It is true, however, that the level of complexity rose significantly from the linear case to the quadratic case.

Practical implications

Hermite collocation can be used in an optimal way to solve differential equations, especially convection‐diffusion equations.

Originality/value

Since convection‐dominated convection‐diffusion equations are difficult to solve numerically, the results in this paper make a valuable contribution to research in this field.

Details

International Journal of Numerical Methods for Heat & Fluid Flow, vol. 22 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0961-5539

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 March 1997

Pinhas Z. Bar‐Yoseph and Eduard Moses

Deals with the formulation and application of temporal and spatial spectral element approximations for the solution of convection‐diffusion problems. Proposes a new high‐order…

Abstract

Deals with the formulation and application of temporal and spatial spectral element approximations for the solution of convection‐diffusion problems. Proposes a new high‐order splitting space‐time spectral element method which exploits space‐time discontinuous Galerkin for the first hyperbolic substep and space continuous‐time discontinuous Galerkin for the second parabolic substep. Analyses this method and presents its characteristics in terms of accuracy and stability. Also investigates a subcycling technique, in which several hyperbolic substeps are taken for each parabolic substep; a technique which enables fast, cost‐effective time integration with little loss of accuracy. Demonstrates, by a numerical comparison with other coupled and splitting space‐time spectral element methods, that the proposed method exhibits significant improvements in accuracy, stability and computational efficiency, which suggests that this method is a potential alternative to existing schemes. Describes several areas for future research.

Details

International Journal of Numerical Methods for Heat & Fluid Flow, vol. 7 no. 2/3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0961-5539

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 May 1992

B.P. LEONARD and SIMIN MOKHTARI

In 1982, Smith and Hutton published comparative results of several different convection‐diffusion schemes applied to a specially devised test problem involving…

Abstract

In 1982, Smith and Hutton published comparative results of several different convection‐diffusion schemes applied to a specially devised test problem involving near‐discontinuities and strong streamline curvature. First‐order methods showed significant artificial diffusion, whereas higher‐order methods gave less smearing but had a tendency to overshoot and oscillate. Perhaps because unphysical oscillations are more obvious than unphysical smearing, the intervening period has seen a rise in popularity of low‐order artificially diffusive schemes, especially in the numerical heat‐transfer industry. This paper presents an alternative strategy of using non‐artificially diffusive higher‐order methods, while maintaining strictly monotonic transitions through the use of simple flux‐limiter constraints. Limited third‐order upwinding is usually found to be the most cost‐effective basic convection scheme. Tighter resolution of discontinuities can be obtained at little additional cost by using automatic adaptive stencil expansion to higher order in local regions, as needed.

Details

International Journal of Numerical Methods for Heat & Fluid Flow, vol. 2 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0961-5539

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 14 October 2019

Nagesh Babu Balam and Akhilesh Gupta

Modelling accurately the transient behaviour of natural convection flow in enclosures been a challenging task because of a variety of numerical errors which have limited achieving…

Abstract

Purpose

Modelling accurately the transient behaviour of natural convection flow in enclosures been a challenging task because of a variety of numerical errors which have limited achieving the higher order temporal accuracy. A fourth-order accurate finite difference method in both space and time is proposed to overcome these numerical errors and accurately model the transient behaviour of natural convection flow in enclosures using vorticity–streamfunction formulation.

Design/methodology/approach

Fourth-order wide stencil formula with appropriate one-sided difference extrapolation technique near the boundary is used for spatial discretisation, and classical fourth-order Runge–Kutta scheme is applied for transient term discretisation. The proposed method is applied on two transient case studies, i.e. convection–diffusion of a Gaussian Pulse and Taylor Vortex flow having analytical solution.

Findings

Error magnitude comparison and rate of convergence analysis of the proposed method with these analytical solutions establish fourth-order accuracy and prove the ability of the proposed method to truly capture the transient behaviour of incompressible flow. Also, to test the transient natural convection flow behaviour, the algorithm is tested on differentially heated square cavity at high Rayleigh number in the range of 103-108, followed by studying the transient periodic behaviour in a differentially heated vertical cavity of aspect ratio 8:1. An excellent comparison is obtained with standard benchmark results.

Research limitations/implications

The developed method is applied on 2D enclosures; however, the present methodology can be extended to 3D enclosures using velocity–vorticity formulations which shall be explored in future.

Originality/value

The proposed methodology to achieve fourth-order accurate transient simulation of natural convection flows is novel, to the best of the authors’ knowledge. Stable fourth-order vorticity boundary conditions are derived for boundary and external boundary regions. The selected case studies for comparison demonstrate not only the fourth-order accuracy but also the considerable reduction in error magnitude by increasing the temporal accuracy. Also, this study provides novel benchmark results at five different locations within the differentially heated vertical cavity of aspect ratio 8:1 for future comparison studies.

Details

International Journal of Numerical Methods for Heat & Fluid Flow, vol. 30 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0961-5539

Keywords

1 – 10 of 359