Extensive analysis of the lattice Boltzmann method on shifted stencils

Particles on demand method: Theoretical analysis, simplification techniques, and model extensions

The particles on demand method [Phys. Rev. Lett. 121, 130602 (2018)0031-900710.1103/PhysRevLett.121.130602] was recently formulated with a conservative finite-volume discretization and validated against challenging benchmarks. In this work, we focus on the properties of the reference frame transformation and its implications on the accuracy of the model. Based on these considerations, we propose strategies that simplify the scheme and generalize it to include a tunable Prandtl number via quasi-equilibrium relaxation. Finally, we adapt concepts from the multiscale semi-Lagrangian lattice Boltzmann formulation to the proposed framework, further improving the potential and the operating range of the kinetic model. Numerical simulations of high Mach compressible flows demonstrate excellent accuracy and stability of the model over a wide range of conditions.

Entropic equilibrium for the lattice Boltzmann method: Hydrodynamics and numerical properties

The entropic lattice Boltzmann framework proposed the construction of the equilibrium by taking into consideration minimization of a discrete entropy functional. The effect of this entropic equilibrium on properties of the resulting solver has been the topic of discussions in the literature. Here we present a rigorous analysis of the hydrodynamics and numerics of the entropic equilibrium. We demonstrate that the entropic equilibrium features unconditional linear stability, in contrast to the conventional polynomial equilibrium. We reveal the mechanisms through which unconditional linear stability is maintained, most notable of which are adaptive propagation velocity of normal modes and the positive-definite nature of the dissipation rates of hydrodynamic eigenmodes. We further present a simple local correction to considerably reduce the deviations in the effective bulk viscosity.

Linear and brute force stability of orthogonal moment multiple-relaxation-time lattice Boltzmann methods applied to homogeneous isotropic turbulence

Multiple-relaxation-time (MRT) lattice Boltzmann methods (LBM) based on orthogonal moments exhibit lattice Mach number dependent instabilities in diffusive scaling. The present work renders an explicit formulation of stability sets for orthogonal moment MRT LBM. The stability sets are defined via the spectral radius of linearized amplification matrices of the MRT collision operator with variable relaxation frequencies. Numerical investigations are carried out for the three-dimensional Taylor-Green vortex benchmark at Reynolds number 1600. Extensive brute force computations of specific relaxation frequency ranges for the full test case are opposed to the von Neumann stability set prediction. Based on that, we prove numerically that a scan over the full wave space, including scaled mean flow variations, is required to draw conclusions on the overall stability of LBM in turbulent flow simulations. Furthermore, the von Neumann results show that a grid dependence is hardly possible to include in the notion of linear stability for LBM. Lastly, via brute force stability investigations based on empirical data from a total number of 22 696 simulations, the existence of a deterministic influence of the grid resolution is deduced. This article is part of the theme issue 'Progress in mesoscale methods for fluid dynamics simulation'.

High-order semi-Lagrangian kinetic scheme for compressible turbulence

Turbulent compressible flows are traditionally simulated using explicit time integrators applied to discretized versions of the Navier-Stokes equations. However, the associated Courant-Friedrichs-Lewy condition severely restricts the maximum time-step size. Exploiting the Lagrangian nature of the Boltzmann equation's material derivative, we now introduce a feasible three-dimensional semi-Lagrangian lattice Boltzmann method (SLLBM), which circumvents this restriction. While many lattice Boltzmann methods for compressible flows were restricted to two dimensions due to the enormous number of discrete velocities in three dimensions, the SLLBM uses only 45 discrete velocities. Based on compressible Taylor-Green vortex simulations we show that the new method accurately captures shocks or shocklets as well as turbulence in 3D without utilizing additional filtering or stabilizing techniques other than the filtering introduced by the interpolation, even when the time-step sizes are up to two orders of magnitude larger compared to simulations in the literature. Our new method therefore enables researchers to study compressible turbulent flows by a fully explicit scheme, whose range of admissible time-step sizes is dictated by physics rather than spatial discretization.

Parallel finite-volume discrete Boltzmann method for inviscid compressible flows on unstructured grids

In this paper, a finite-volume discrete Boltzmann method based on a cell-centered scheme for inviscid compressible flows on unstructured grids is presented. In the new method, the equilibrium distribution functions are obtained from the circle function in two-dimensions (2D) and the spherical function in three-dimensions (3D). Moreover, the advective fluxes are evaluated by Roe's flux-difference splitting scheme, the gradients of the density and total energy distribution functions are computed with a least-squares method, and the Venkatakrishnan limiter is employed to prevent oscillations. To parallelize the method we use a graph-based partitioning approach that also guarantees the load balancing. The method is validated by seven benchmark problems: (a) a 2D flow pasting a bump, (b) a 2D Riemann problem, (c) a 2D flow passing the RAE2822 airfoil, (d) flows passing the NACA0012 airfoil, (e) 2D supersonic flows around a cylinder, (f) an explosion in a 3D box, and (g) a 3D flow around the ONERA M6 wing. The benchmark tests show that the results obtained by the proposed method match well with the published results, and the parallel numerical experiments show that the proposed parallel implementation has close to linear strong scalability, and parallel efficiencies of 95.31% and 94.56% are achieved for 2D and 3D problems on a supercomputer with up to 4800 processor cores, respectively.

Linear stability and isotropy properties of athermal regularized lattice Boltzmann methods

The present work proposes a general methodology to study stability and isotropy properties of lattice Boltzmann (LB) schemes. As a first investigation, such a methodology is applied to better understand these properties in the context of regularized approaches. To this extent, linear stability analyses of two-dimensional models are proposed: the standard Bhatnagar-Gross-Krook collision model, the original precollision regularization, and the recursive regularized model, where off-equilibrium distributions are partially computed thanks to a recursive formula. A systematic identification of the physical content carried by each LB mode is done by analyzing the eigenvectors of the linear systems. Stability results are then numerically confirmed by performing simulations of shear and acoustic waves. This work allows drawing fair conclusions on the stability properties of each model. In particular, among the aforementioned models, recursive regularization turns out to be the most stable one for the D2Q9 lattice, especially in the zero-viscosity limit. Two major properties shared by every regularized model are highlighted: (1) a mode filtering property and (2) an incorrect, and broadly anisotropic, dissipation rate of the modes carrying physical waves in under-resolved conditions. The first property is the main source of increased stability, especially for the recursive regularization. It is a direct consequence of the reconstruction of off-equilibrium populations before each collision process, decreasing the rank of the system of discrete equations. The second property seems to be related to numerical errors directly induced by the equilibration of high-order moments. In such a case, this property is likely to occur with any collision model that follows such a stabilization methodology.

Efficient supersonic flow simulations using lattice Boltzmann methods based on numerical equilibria

A double-distribution-function based lattice Boltzmann method (DDF-LBM) is proposed for the simulation of polyatomic gases in the supersonic regime. The model relies on a numerical equilibrium that has been extensively used by discrete velocity methods since the late 1990s. Here, it is extended to reproduce an arbitrary number of moments of the Maxwell-Boltzmann distribution. These extensions to the standard 5-constraint (mass, momentum and energy) approach lead to the correct simulation of thermal, compressible flows with only 39 discrete velocities in 3D. The stability of this BGK-LBM is reinforced by relying on Knudsen-number-dependent relaxation times that are computed analytically. Hence, high Reynolds-number, supersonic flows can be simulated in an efficient and elegant manner. While the 1D Riemann problem shows the ability of the proposed approach to handle discontinuities in the zero-viscosity limit, the simulation of the supersonic flow past a NACA0012 aerofoil confirms the excellent behaviour of this model in a low-viscosity and supersonic regime. The flow past a sphere is further simulated to investigate the 3D behaviour of our model in the low-viscosity supersonic regime. The proposed model is shown to be substantially more efficient than the previous 5-moment D3Q343 DDF-LBM for both CPU and GPU architectures. It then opens up a whole new world of compressible flow applications that can be realistically tackled with a purely LB approach. This article is part of the theme issue 'Fluid dynamics, soft matter and complex systems: recent results and new methods'.

Impact of collision models on the physical properties and the stability of lattice Boltzmann methods

The lattice Boltzmann method (LBM) is known to suffer from stability issues when the collision model relies on the BGK approximation, especially in the zero viscosity limit and for non-vanishing Mach numbers. To tackle this problem, two kinds of solutions were proposed in the literature. They consist in changing either the numerical discretization (finite-volume, finite-difference, spectral-element, etc.) of the discrete velocity Boltzmann equation (DVBE), or the collision model. In this work, the latter solution is investigated in detail. More precisely, we propose a comprehensive comparison of (static relaxation time based) collision models, in terms of stability, and with preliminary results on their accuracy, for the simulation of isothermal high-Reynolds number flows in the (weakly) compressible regime. It starts by investigating the possible impact of collision models on the macroscopic behaviour of stream-and-collide based D2Q9-LBMs, which clarifies the exact physical properties of collision models on LBMs. It is followed by extensive linear and numerical stability analyses, supplemented with an accuracy study based on the transport of vortical structures over long distances. In order to draw conclusions as generally as possible, the most common moment spaces (raw, central, Hermite, central Hermite and cumulant), as well as regularized approaches, are considered for the comparative studies. LBMs based on dynamic collision mechanisms (entropic collision, subgrid-scale models, explicit filtering, etc.) are also briefly discussed. This article is part of the theme issue 'Fluid dynamics, soft matter and complex systems: recent results and new methods'.

Compressibility in lattice Boltzmann on standard stencils: effects of deviation from reference temperature

With growing interest in the simulation of compressible flows using the lattice Boltzmann (LB) method, a number of different approaches have been developed. These methods can be classified as pertaining to one of two major categories: (i) solvers relying on high-order stencils recovering the Navier-Stokes-Fourier equations, and (ii) approaches relying on classical first-neighbour stencils for the compressible Navier-Stokes equations coupled to an additional (LB-based or classical) solver for the energy balance equation. In most cases, the latter relies on a thermal Hermite expansion of the continuous equilibrium distribution function (EDF) to allow for compressibility. Even though recovering the correct equation of state at the Euler level, it has been observed that deviations of local flow temperature from the reference can result in instabilities and/or over-dissipation. The aim of the present study is to evaluate the stability domain of different EDFs, different collision models, with and without the correction terms for the third-order moments. The study is first based on a linear von Neumann analysis. The correction term for the space- and time-discretized equations is derived via a Chapman-Enskog analysis and further corroborated through spectral dispersion-dissipation curves. Finally, a number of numerical simulations are performed to illustrate the proposed theoretical study. This article is part of the theme issue 'Fluid dynamics, soft matter and complex systems: recent results and new methods'.

Semi-Lagrangian lattice Boltzmann method for compressible flows

This work thoroughly investigates a semi-Lagrangian lattice Boltzmann (SLLBM) solver for compressible flows. In contrast to other LBM for compressible flows, the vertices are organized in cells, and interpolation polynomials up to fourth order are used to attain the off-vertex distribution function values. Differing from the recently introduced Particles on Demand (PoD) method [Dorschner, Bösch, and Karlin, Phys. Rev. Lett. 121, 130602 (2018)PRLTAO0031-900710.1103/PhysRevLett.121.130602], the method operates in a static, nonmoving reference frame. Yet the SLLBM in the present formulation grants supersonic flows and exhibits a high degree of Galilean invariance. The SLLBM solver allows for an independent time step size due to the integration along characteristics and for the use of unusual velocity sets, like the D2Q25, which is constructed by the roots of the fifth-order Hermite polynomial. The properties of the present model are shown in diverse example simulations of a two-dimensional Taylor-Green vortex, a Sod shock tube, a two-dimensional Riemann problem, and a shock-vortex interaction. It is shown that the cell-based interpolation and the use of Gauss-Lobatto-Chebyshev support points allow for spatially high-order solutions and minimize the mass loss caused by the interpolation. Transformed grids in the shock-vortex interaction show the general applicability to nonuniform grids.