An adaptive finite element discretisation¶for a simplified Signorini problem

Adaptive mesh design based on a posteriori error control is studied for finite element discretisations for variational problems of Signorini type. The techniques to derive residual based error estimators developed, e.g., in ([2, 10, 20]) are extended to variational inequalities employing a suitable adaptation of the duality argument [17]. By use of this variational argument weighted a posteriori estimates for controlling arbitrary functionals of the error are derived here for model situations for contact problems. All arguments are based on Hilbert space methods and can be carried over to the more general situation of linear elasticity. Numerical examples demonstrate that this approach leads to effective strategies for designing economical meshes and to bounds for the error which are useful in practice. Received: May 1999 / Accepted: October 1999     

An explicit nonstandard finite difference scheme for the FitzHugh–Nagumo equations

In this work, we consider numerical solutions of the FitzHugh–Nagumo system of equations describing the propagation of electrical signals in nerve axons. The system consists of two coupled equations: a nonlinear partial differential equation and a linear ordinary differential equation. We begin with a review of the qualitative properties of the nonlinear space independent system of equations. The subequation approach is applied to derive dynamically consistent schemes for the submodels. This is followed by a consistent and systematic merging of the subschemes to give three explicit nonstandard finite difference schemes in the limit of fast extinction and slow recovery. A qualitative study of the schemes together with the error analysis is presented. Numerical simulations are given to support the theoretical results and verify the efficiency of the proposed schemes.     

A unified particle model for fluid–solid interactions

We present a new method for the simulation of melting and solidification in a unified particle model. Our technique uses the Smoothed Particle Hydrodynamics (SPH) method for the simulation of liquids, deformable as well as rigid objects, which eliminates the need to define an interface for coupling different models. Using this approach, it is possible to simulate fluids and solids by only changing the attribute values of the underlying particles. We significantly changed a prior elastic particle model to achieve a flexible model for melting and solidification. By using an SPH approach and considering a new definition of a local reference shape, the simulation of merging and splitting of different objects, as may be caused by phase change processes, is made possible. In order to keep the system stable even in regions represented by a sparse set of particles we use a special kernel function for solidification processes. Additionally, we propose a surface reconstruction technique based on considering the movement of the center of mass to reduce rendering errors in concave regions. The results demonstrate new interaction effects concerning the melting and solidification of material, even while being surrounded by liquids. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A Galerkin finite element scheme for time–space fractional diffusion equation

In this paper, a Galerkin finite element scheme to approximate the time–space fractional diffusion equation is studied. Firstly, the fractional diffusion equation is transformed into a fractional Volterra integro-differential equation. And a second-order fractional trapezoidal formula is used to approach the time fractional integral. Then a Galerkin finite element method is introduced in space direction, where the semi-discretization scheme and fully discrete scheme are given separately. The stability analysis of semi-discretization scheme is discussed in detail. Furthermore, convergence analysis of semi-discretization scheme and fully discrete scheme are given in details. Finally, two numerical examples are displayed to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed method.     

A finite element method with discontinuous rotations for the Mindlin–Reissner plate model

We present a continuous-discontinuous finite element method for the Mindlin–Reissner plate model based on continuous polynomials of degree k ? 2 for the transverse displacements and discontinuous polynomials of degree k ? 1 for the rotations. We prove a priori convergence estimates, uniformly in the thickness of the plate, and thus show that locking is avoided. We also derive a posteriori error estimates based on duality, together with corresponding adaptive procedures for controlling linear functionals of the error. Finally, we present some numerical results.     

A Lagrangian meshless finite element method applied to fluid–structure interaction problems

A method is presented for the solution of the incompressible fluid flow equations using a Lagrangian formulation. The interpolation functions are those used in the meshless finite element method and the time integration is introduced in a semi-implicit way by a fractional step method. Classical stabilization terms used in the momentum equations are unnecessary due to the lack of convective terms in the Lagrangian formulation. Furthermore, the Lagrangian formulation simplifies the connections with fixed or moving solid structures, thus providing a very easy way to solve fluid–structure interaction problems.     

Local and parallel finite element methods for the mixed Navier–Stokes/Darcy model

In this paper, the mixed Navier–Stokes/Darcy problem which describes a fluid flow filtrating through porous media is considered. Based on two-grid discretizations, two local and parallel finite element algorithms for solving this mixed model are proposed. Numerical analysis and experiments are presented to show the efficiency and effectiveness of the local and parallel finite element algorithms.     

Continuous finite element schemes for a phase field model in two-layer fluid Bénard–Marangoni convection computations

In this article, we study a phase field model for a two-layer fluid where the temperature dependence of both the density (buoyancy forces) and the surface tension (Marangoni effects) is considered. The phase field model consisting of a modified Navier–Stokes equation, a Cahn–Hilliard phase field equation and an energy transport equation is derived through an energetic variational procedure. An appropriate variational form and a continuous finite element method are adopted to maintain the underlying energy law to its greatest extent. A few examples for Bénard–Marangoni convection in an Acetonitrile and n-Hexane two-layer fluid system heated from above will be computed to justify our phase field model and further show the good performance of our methods. In addition, an interesting experiment will be performed to show the competition between the Marangoni effects and the buoyancy forces.     

A two-level finite element method for the Allen–Cahn equation

We consider the fully implicit treatment for the nonlinear term of the Allen–Cahn equation. To solve the nonlinear problem efficiently, the two-level scheme is employed. We obtain the discrete energy law of the fully implicit scheme and two-level scheme with finite element method. Also, the convergence of the two-level method is presented. Finally, some numerical experiments are provided to confirm the theoretical analysis.     

An adaptive ARQ–HARQ interworking scheme in WiMAX systems

For reliable data transmissions, WiMAX systems support automatic repeat query (ARQ) that operates at the upper MAC and hybrid automatic repeat query (HARQ) that operates at the lower MAC and PHY. ARQ and HARQ schemes have their own weakness that results in low throughput and high delay in WiMAX systems. Although ARQ and HARQ schemes can complement with each other, they operate independently. Some studies focus on the benefits of the interaction between ARQ and HARQ schemes, but these studies have limitations. In this paper, we propose an adaptive ARQ and HARQ interworking scheme to provide reliable transmissions without performance degradation in WiMAX systems. The proposed scheme has five features that are designed to solve the weaknesses of the ARQ and HARQ schemes. We compare the proposed scheme with existing schemes that utilize the ARQ and HARQ interaction through simulations, and the simulation results show that the proposed scheme shows improved performance over existing schemes.     

Parametric study of fluid–solid interaction for single-particle dissipative particle dynamics model

In this paper, a parametric study of fluid–solid interaction for single-particle dissipative particle dynamics (DPD) model is conducted to describe the hydrodynamic interactions in a large range of particle sizes. To successfully reproduce the hydrodynamics for different particle sizes, and overcome the problem that effective radius of solid sphere does not match its real radius, the cut-off radius and conservative force coefficient of single-particle DPD model have been modified. The cut-off radius and conservative force coefficient are related to the drag force and radial distribution function, so that, for each particle size, they can be determined by DPD simulations. Through numerical fitting, two empirical formulas as a function of spherical radius are developed to calculate the cut-off radius and conservative force coefficient. Numerical results indicate that the single-particle DPD model is, indeed, capable of capturing low Reynolds number hydrodynamic interactions for different particle sizes by selecting these model parameters reasonably. Specifically, the model can not only insure that drag force and torque are quantitatively consistent with theoretical results, but also guarantee the effective radius matches well its real radius. In addition, the shear dissipative force is the major part of drag force and should not be ignored. This study will help to improve the application range of single-particle DPD model to make it suitable for different particle sizes and provide parameter guidance for studying fluid–solid interaction using single-particle DPD model.     

Two-level stabilized finite element method for the transient Navier–Stokes equations

In this article, a two-level stabilized finite element method based on two local Gauss integrations for the two-dimensional transient Navier–Stokes equations is analysed. This new stabilized method presents attractive features such as being parameter-free, or being defined for nonedge-based data structures. Some new a priori bounds for the stabilized finite element solution are derived. The two-level stabilized method involves solving one small Navier–Stokes problem on a coarse mesh with mesh size 0<H<1, and a large linear Stokes problem on a fine mesh with mesh size 0<h?H. A H ¹-optimal velocity approximation and a L ²-optimal pressure approximation are obtained. If we choose h=O(H ²), the two-level method gives the same order of approximation as the standard stabilized finite element method.     

Weighted least-squares finite element methods for the linearized Navier–Stokes equations

We implemented weighted least-squares finite element methods for the linearized Navier-Stokes equations based on the velocity–pressure–stress and the velocity–vorticity–pressure formulations. The least-squares functionals involve the L²-norms of the residuals of each equation multiplied by the appropriate weighting functions. The weights included a mass conservation constant, a mesh-dependent weight, a nonlinear weighting function, and Reynolds numbers. A feature of this approach is that the linearized system creates a symmetric and positive-definite linear algebra problem at each Newton iteration. We can prove that least-squares approximations converge with the linearized version solutions of the Navier–Stokes equations at the optimal convergence rate. Model problems considered in this study were the flow past a planar channel and 4-to-1 contraction problems. We presented approximate solutions of the Navier–Stokes problems by solving a sequence of the linearized Navier–Stokes problems arising from Newton iterations, revealing the convergence rates of the proposed schemes, and investigated Reynolds number effects.     

Characteristic stabilized finite element method for the transient Navier–Stokes equations

Based on the lowest equal-order conforming finite element subspace (X_h, M_h) (i.e. P₁–P₁ or Q₁–Q₁ elements), a characteristic stabilized finite element method for transient Navier–Stokes problem is proposed. The proposed method has a number of attractive computational properties: parameter-free, avoiding higher-order derivatives or edge-based data structures, and averting the difficulties caused by trilinear terms. Existence,uniqueness and error estimates of the approximate solution are proved by applying the technique of characteristic finite element method. Finally, a serious of numerical experiments are given to show that this method is highly efficient for transient Navier–Stokes problem.     

AILU preconditioning for the finite element formulation of the incompressible Navier–Stokes equations

In this paper, the effect of a variable reordering method on the performance of “adapted incomplete LU (AILU)” preconditioners applied to the P2P1 mixed finite element discretization of the three-dimensional unsteady incompressible Navier–Stokes equations has been studied through numerical experiments, where eigenvalue distribution and convergence histories are examined. It has been revealed that the performance of an AILU preconditioner is improved by adopting a variable reordering method which minimizes the bandwidth of a globally assembled saddle-point type matrix. Furthermore, variants of the existing AILU(1) preconditioner have been suggested and tested for some three-dimensional flow problems. It is observed that the AILU(2) outperforms the existing AILU(1) with a little extra computing time and memory.     

Comments on ‘An adaptive control scheme for robot manipulators’

Based on an extension of the classical linearization method, an adaptive control scheme has recently been proposed by Choi et al. (1986). This control scheme, however, implicitly involves taking the inverse of the matrix [I + G(x(t), u(x(t)))], which complicates the computation. Moreover, since the matrix inversion depend- ing on the system state x(t) does not necessarily exist for all time, the proposed control scheme may lose its effectiveness. In this paper, we present a modified control scheme in which the aforementioned weakness does not appear.     

A highly accurate adaptive finite difference solver for the Black–Scholes equation

In this paper, we develop a highly accurate adaptive finite difference (FD) discretization for the Black–Scholes equation. The final condition is discontinuous in the first derivative yielding that the effective rate of convergence in space is two, both for low-order and high-order standard FD schemes. To obtain a method that gives higher accuracy, we use an extra grid in a limited space- and time-domain. This new method is called FD6G2. The FD6G2 method is combined with space- and time-adaptivity to further enhance the method. To obtain solutions of high accuracy, the adaptive FD6G2 method is superior to both a standard and an adaptive second-order FD method.     

An unconditional stable compact fourth-order finite difference scheme for three dimensional Allen–Cahn equation

In this paper, we present an unconditional stable linear high-order finite difference scheme for three dimensional Allen–Cahn equation. This scheme, which is based on a backward differentiation scheme combined with a fourth-order compact finite difference formula, is second order accurate in time and fourth order accurate in space. A linearly stabilized splitting scheme is used to remove the restriction of time step. We prove the unconditional stability of our proposed method in analysis. A fast and efficient linear multigrid solver is employed to solve the resulting discrete system. We perform various numerical experiments to confirm the high-order accuracy, unconditional stability and efficiency of our proposed method. In particular, we show two applications of our proposed method: triply-periodic minimal surface and volume inpainting.