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Results for “numerical approximations”

Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1983

Numerical approximations to nonlinear conservation laws with locally varying time and space grids

Numerical approximations to the initial value problem for nonlinear systems of conservation laws are considered. The considered system is said to be hyperbolic when all eigenvalues of every real linear combination of the Jacobian matrices are real. Solutions may develop discontinuities in finite time, even when the initial data are smooth. In the investigation, explicit finite difference methods which use locally varying time grids are considered. The global CFL restriction is replaced by a local restriction. The numerical flux function is studied from a finite volume viewpoint, and a differencing technique is developed at interface points between regions of distinct time increments.

Osher, S.↗
NASA NTRS1990

Semigroup theory and numerical approximation for equations in linear viscoelasticity

A class of abstract integrodifferential equations used to model linear viscoelastic beams is investigated analytically, applying a Hilbert-space approach. The basic equation is rewritten as a Cauchy problem, and its well-posedness is demonstrated. Finite-dimensional subspaces of the state space and an estimate of the state operator are obtained; approximation schemes for the equations are constructed; and the convergence is proved using the Trotter-Kato theorem of linear semigroup theory. The actual convergence behavior of different approximations is demonstrated in numerical computations, and the results are presented in tables.

Fabiano, R. H.↗
NASA NTRS1981

Numerical approximation of boundary conditions with applications to inviscid equations of gas dynamics

A comprehensive overview of the state of the art of well-posedness and stability analysis of difference approximations for initial boundary value problems of the hyperbolic type is presented. The applicability of recent theoretical development to practical calculations for nonlinear gas dynamics is examined. The one dimensional inviscid gas dynamics equations in conservation law form are selected for numerical experiments. The class of implicit schemes developed from linear multistep methods in ordinary differential equations is chosen and the use of linear extrapolation as an explicit or implicit boundary scheme is emphasized. Specification of boundary data in the primitive variables and computation in terms of the conservative variables in the interior is discussed. Some numerical examples for the quasi-one-dimensional nozzle are given.

Yee, H. C.↗
NASA NTRS1986

Numerical approximation for the infinite-dimensional discrete-time optimal linear-quadratic regulator problem

An abstract approximation framework is developed for the finite and infinite time horizon discrete-time linear-quadratic regulator problem for systems whose state dynamics are described by a linear semigroup of operators on an infinite dimensional Hilbert space. The schemes included the framework yield finite dimensional approximations to the linear state feedback gains which determine the optimal control law. Convergence arguments are given. Examples involving hereditary and parabolic systems and the vibration of a flexible beam are considered. Spline-based finite element schemes for these classes of problems, together with numerical results, are presented and discussed.

Gibson, J. S.↗
NASA NTRS1988

Numerical approximation for the infinite-dimensional discrete-time optimal linear-quadratic regulator problem

An abstract approximation framework is developed for the finite and infinite time horizon discrete-time linear-quadratic regulator problem for systems whose state dynamics are described by a linear semigroup of operators on an infinite dimensional Hilbert space. The schemes included the framework yield finite dimensional approximations to the linear state feedback gains which determine the optimal control law. Convergence arguments are given. Examples involving hereditary and parabolic systems and the vibration of a flexible beam are considered. Spline-based finite element schemes for these classes of problems, together with numerical results, are presented and discussed.

Gibson, J. S.↗
NASA NTRS1986

On substructuring algorithms and solution techniques for the numerical approximation of partial differential equations

Substructuring methods are in common use in mechanics problems where typically the associated linear systems of algebraic equations are positive definite. Here these methods are extended to problems which lead to nonpositive definite, nonsymmetric matrices. The extension is based on an algorithm which carries out the block Gauss elimination procedure without the need for interchanges even when a pivot matrix is singular. Examples are provided wherein the method is used in connection with finite element solutions of the stationary Stokes equations and the Helmholtz equation, and dual methods for second-order elliptic equations.

Gunzburger, M. D.↗
NASA NTRS2019

Multilevel Monte Carlo Estimation of Unbiased Expectation via Sample Reuse and the Low Variance Estimation of Asymptotic Rates

A new variant of the multilevel Monte Carlo estimator [5, 3, 9, 12] is presented for the estimation of expectation statistics that utilizes sample reuse in specified levels, explicitly removes approximation error bias associated with numerically computed output quantities of interest that have an asymptotic limit behavior, and permits a low variance estimate of the asymptotic rate of convergence to that limit. In addition, it is shown that this new multilevel Monte Carlo variant can yield a computational cost savings. A review of Monte Carlo and multilevel Monte Carlo estimators is presented that includes analysis of expected value, expected mean squared error, and the calculation of optimized multilevel sample size parameters. The multilevel Monte Carlo estimator produces estimates of expectation for numerically approximated output quantities of interest that are biased by approximation error. When the quantity of interest can be modeled as the asymptotic limit of numerically approximated output quantities of interest, it is theoretically possible to remove this approximation error bias in the multilevel Monte Carlo estimator. In actual implementations, however, this procedure is unreliable due to statistical variability and inaccuracy in estimating the needed asymptotic limit. Analysis and numerical experiment show that the proposed variant of the multilevel Monte Carlo method greatly reduces (in some cases eliminates) the statistical variability in this limit estimation.

Barth, Timothy↗
NASA NTRS1974

Comparison of approximate and numerical analyses of nonlinear combustion instability

At the present time, there are three general analytical techniques available to study problems of unsteady motions in rocket motors: linear stability analysis; approximate nonlinear analysis, founded on examining the behavior of coupled normal modes; and numerical calculations based on the conservation equations for one-dimensional flows. The last two yield the linear results as a limit. It is the main purpose of this paper to check the accuracy of the approximate analysis against the numerical analysis for some special cases. The results provide some justification for using the approximate analysis to study three-dimensional problems.

Culick, F. E. C.↗
NASA NTRS1995

A case study of view-factor rectification procedures for diffuse-gray radiation enclosure computations

The view factors which are used in diffuse-gray radiation enclosure calculations are often computed by approximate numerical integrations. These approximately calculated view factors will usually not satisfy the important physical constraints of reciprocity and closure. In this paper several view-factor rectification algorithms are reviewed and a rectification algorithm based on a least-squares numerical filtering scheme is proposed with both weighted and unweighted classes. A Monte-Carlo investigation is undertaken to study the propagation of view-factor and surface-area uncertainties into the heat transfer results of the diffuse-gray enclosure calculations. It is found that the weighted least-squares algorithm is vastly superior to the other rectification schemes for the reduction of the heat-flux sensitivities to view-factor uncertainties. In a sample problem, which has proven to be very sensitive to uncertainties in view factor, the heat transfer calculations with weighted least-squares rectified view factors are very good with an original view-factor matrix computed to only one-digit accuracy. All of the algorithms had roughly equivalent effects on the reduction in sensitivity to area uncertainty in this case study.

Taylor, Robert P.↗
NASA NTRS1976

Numerical and approximate solution of the high Reynolds number small separation problem

Several possible methods of solving the small separation problem at high Reynolds number are investigated. In addition to using analytical methods, there are several numerical approaches which are used. High Reynolds number laminar two dimensional problems are used for simplicity. A brief discussion is given of the finite difference methods since these methods are discussed in detail. Most of the emphasis is placed on developing an approximate integral method. As a model problem the supersonic compression ramp problem is chosen since several numerical solutions along with experimental data are available. The techniques discussed are modified and applied to other similar type wall geometries.

Davis, R. T.↗
NASA NTRS1983

Legendre-Tau approximations for functional differential equations

The numerical approximation of solutions to linear functional differential equations are considered using the so called Legendre tau method. The functional differential equation is first reformulated as a partial differential equation with a nonlocal boundary condition involving time differentiation. The approximate solution is then represented as a truncated Legendre series with time varying coefficients which satisfy a certain system of ordinary differential equations. The method is very easy to code and yields very accurate approximations. Convergence is established, various numerical examples are presented, and comparison between the latter and cubic spline approximations is made.

Ito, K.↗
NASA NTRS1986

Legendre-tau approximations for functional differential equations

The numerical approximation of solutions to linear retarded functional differential equations are considered using the so-called Legendre-tau method. The functional differential equation is first reformulated as a partial differential equation with a nonlocal boundary condition involving time-differentiation. The approximate solution is then represented as a truncated Legendre series with time-varying coefficients which satisfy a certain system of ordinary differential equations. The method is very easy to code and yields very accurate approximations. Convergence is established, various numerical examples are presented, and comparison between the latter and cubic spline approximation is made.

Ito, K.↗
NASA NTRS1988

On the coupling of hyperbolic and parabolic systems: Analytical and numerical approach

The coupling of hyperbolic and parabolic systems is discussed in a domain Omega divided into two distinct subdomains omega(+) and omega(-). The main concern is to find the proper interface conditions to be fulfilled at the surface separating the two domains. Next, they are used in the numerical approximation of the problem. The justification of the interface conditions is based on a singular perturbation analysis, i.e., the hyperbolic system is rendered parabolic by adding a small artifical viscosity. As this goes to zero, the coupled parabolic-parabolic problem degenerates into the original one, yielding some conditions at the interface. These are taken as interface conditions for the hyperbolic-parabolic problem. Actually, two alternative sets of interface conditions are discussed according to whether the regularization procedure is variational or nonvariational. It is shown how these conditions can be used in the frame of a numerical approximation to the given problem. Furthermore, a method of resolution is discussed which alternates the resolution of the hyperbolic problem within omega(-) and of the parabolic one within omega(+). The spectral collocation method is proposed, as an example of space discretization (different methods could be used as well); both explicit and implicit time-advancing schemes are considered. The present study is a preliminary step toward the analysis of the coupling between Euler and Navier-Stokes equations for compressible flows.

Gastaldi, Fabio↗