A control volume mixed finite element formulation for tetrahedral elements

The control‐volume mixed finite element method is formulated for and applied to a computational domain consisting of a tetrahedral partitioning to solve the steady groundwater flow equations. Test functions consistent with piecewise constant and piecewise linear pressure distributions are used in the formulation. Comparisons are made with a standard mixed finite element formulation using lowest‐order Raviart Thomas basis functions. Results suggest that the control‐volume based formulation is a viable alternative to the standard formulation. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.