Long time behavior of unsteady flow computations

Abstract

This paper addresses a specific issue of time accuracy in the calculation of external aerodynamic problems. The class of problems discussed consists of inviscid compressible subsonic flows. These problems are governed by a convective equation. A key issue that is not understood is the long time behavior of the solution. This is important if one desires transient calculations of problems governed by the Euler equations or its derivatives such as the small disturbance equations or the potential formulations for the gust problem. Difficulties arise for two dimensional problems where the time rate decay solutions of the wave equation is slow. In concert with the above mentioned problem, exterior flows require proper modeling of the boundary conditions. In particular, this requires the truncation of infinite regions into finite regions with the aid of artificial boundaries. These boundary conditions must be consistent with the physics of the unbounded problem as well as consistent in time and space. Our treatment of the problem is discussed in detail and examples are given to verify the results.