Boussinesq Algorithm for Buoyant Convection in Polygonal Domains.

Published

April 1, 1992

Author(s)

Kevin B. McGrattan, Ronald G. Rehm, Hai C. Tang, Howard R. Baum

Abstract

A 2-D Boussinesq model describing heat-driven buoyant convection in a polygonal enclosure is presented. The hydrodynamics is based on the time-dependent Navier-Stokes equations with constant viscosity and thermal conductivity; no turbulence model or other empirical parameters are introduced. The polygonal domain is mapped via a Schwarz-Christoffel transformation onto a rectangle. A finite difference scheme second-order in space and first-order in time is used to integrate the evolution equations, and an elliptic solver is used to solve the pressure equation. Computational results for high Reynolds numbers are presented through the use of Lagrangian particles which allow one to visualize the flow patterns.

Citation

NIST Interagency/Internal Report (NISTIR) - 4831

Report Number

4831

NIST Pub Series

NIST Interagency/Internal Report (NISTIR)

Pub Type

NIST Pubs

Download Paper

https://doi.org/10.6028/NIST.IR.4831

Keywords

bossinesq approximation, algorithms, convection, computational fluid dynamics, mapping, thermal conductivity

Citation

McGrattan, K. , Rehm, R. , Tang, H. and Baum, H. (1992), Boussinesq Algorithm for Buoyant Convection in Polygonal Domains., NIST Interagency/Internal Report (NISTIR), National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, MD, [online], https://doi.org/10.6028/NIST.IR.4831 (Accessed October 8, 2025)