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At least 631 records · Page 35

Constrained Local Approximate Ideal Restriction for Advection-Diffusion Problems

Herein this paper focuses on developing a reduction-based algebraic multigrid (AMG) method that is suitable for solving general (non)symmetric linear systems and is naturally robust from pure advection to pure diffusion. Initial motivation comes from a new reduction-based AMG approach, $\ell \text{AIR}$ (local approximate ideal restriction), that was developed for solving advection-dominated problems. Though this new solver is very effective in the advection-dominated regime, its performance degrades in cases where diffusion becomes dominant. This is consistent with the fact that in general, reduction-based AMG methods tend to suffer from growth in complexity and/or convergence rates as the problem size is increased, especially for diffusion-dominated problems in two or three dimensions. Motivated by the success of $\ell \text{AIR}$ in the advective regime, our aim in this paper is to generalize the AIR framework with the goal of improving the performance of the solver in diffusion-dominated regimes. To do so, we propose a novel way to combine mode constraints as used commonly in energy-minimization AMG methods with the local approximation of ideal operators used in $\ell \text{AIR}$. The resulting constrained $\ell \text{AIR}$ algorithm is able to achieve fast scalable convergence on advective and diffusive problems. In addition, it is able to achieve standard low complexity hierarchies in the diffusive regime through aggressive coarsening, something that was previously difficult for reduction-based methods.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗

Parallel implicit unstructured grid Euler solvers

A mesh-vertex finite volume scheme for solving the Euler equations on triangular unstructured meshes is implemented on an MIMD (multiple instruction/multiple data stream) parallel computer. An explicit four-stage Runge-Kutta scheme is used to solve two-dimensional flow problems. A family of implicit schemes is also developed to solve these problems, where the linear system that arises at each time step is solved by a preconditioned GMRES algorithm. Two partitioning strategies are employed, one that partitions triangles and the other that partitions vertices. The choice of the preconditioner in a distributed memory setting is discussed. All the methods are compared both in terms of elapsed times and convergence rates. It is shown that the implicit schemes offer adequate parallelism at the expense of minimal sequential overhead. The use of a global coarse grid to further minimize this overhead is also investigated. The schemes are implemented on a distributed memory parallel computer, the iPSC/860.

Venkatakrishnan, V.↗

Parallel implicit unstructured grid Euler solvers

A mesh-vertex finite volume scheme for solving the Euler equations on triangular unstructured meshes is implemented on a multiple-instruction/multiple-data stream parallel computer. An explicit four-stage Runge-Kutta scheme is used to solve two-dimensional flow problems. A family of implicit schemes is also developed to solve these problems, where the linear system that arises at each time step is solved by a preconditioned GMRES algorithm. Two partitioning strategies are employed: one that partitions triangles and the other that partitions vertices. The choice of the preconditioner in a distributed memory setting is discussed. All of the methods are compared both in terms of elapsed times and convergence rates. It is shown that the implicit schemes offer adequate parallelism at the expense of minimal sequential overhead. The use of a global coarse grid to further minimize this overhead is also investigated. The schemes are implemented on a distributed memory parallel computer, the Intel iPSC/860.

TRT-THEORETICAL↗

Transition Analysis for the CRM-NLF Wind Tunnel Configuration using Transport Equation Models and Linear Stability Correlations

Transition models based on auxiliary transport equations augmenting the Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) framework rely upon transition correlations that were derived from a limited number of low-speed experiments. Furthermore, these models often account for only a subset of the relevant transition mechanisms and/or cannot accurately predict the sensitivity of those mechanisms to the changes in significant flow parameters. A preceding investigation had targeted the assessment of the transport-equation-based transition models in NASA's OVERFLOW 2.3b solver, namely, the amplification factor transport (AFT-2017b) equation model coupled with the Spalart-Allmaras RANS model and the Langtry-Menter transition models (LM2009 without crossflow effects and LM2015 including the modeling of crossflow transition) implemented with Menter’s shear-stress transport equation (SST2003) RANS model. Comparisons with recent measurements at transonic freestream conditions on the Common Research Model with Natural Laminar Flow (CRM-NLF) reinforced our earlier finding that all three of the above models significantly underpredict the reported extent of the laminar flow region over the entire span of the wing, regardless of the dominant instability mechanism(s) underlying the onset of the transition process. The underprediction of the laminar flow extent was attributed to the failure of the above models in accounting for the stabilizing effect of compressibility on the amplification of Tollmien-Schlichting instabilities. Based on previous linear stability studies related to compressibility effects, the present work proposes modifications to the two classes of transition models that reduce to the original form of each model at low subsonic speeds and do not require any nonlocal flow information or additional transport equation(s). The modifications are shown to significantly improve the predicted laminar extent of the flow and compare well against the data from the CRM-NLF experiment. Additionally, a previous assessment of transition prediction based on the dual, nonparallel N -factor method in conjunction with linear parabolized stability equations (PSE) is extended to additional angles of attack to provide the first comprehensive assessment of transition models based on nonparallel disturbance amplification over the CRM-NLF. In general, the transition criterion based on the dual, nonparallel N-factor method with N TS = N CF = 6 is reasonably successful at correlating with the measured transition fronts at R eMAC = 15 million for all angles of attack investigated herein and provides additional validation of the improved predictions from the compressibility-corrected transition models.

CFD modeling↗

Transition Analysis for the CRM-NLF Wind Tunnel Configuration using Transport Equation Models and Linear Stability Correlations

Transition models based on auxiliary transport equations augmenting the Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) framework rely upon transition correlations that were derived from a limited number of low-speed experiments. Furthermore, these models often account for only a subset of the relevant transition mechanisms and/or cannot accurately predict the sensitivity of those mechanisms to the changes in significant flow parameters. A preceding investigation had targeted the assessment of the transport-equation-based transition models in NASA's OVERFLOW 2.3b solver, namely, the amplification factor transport (AFT-2017b) equation model coupled with the Spalart-Allmaras RANS model and the Langtry-Menter transition models (LM2009 without crossflow effects and LM2015 including the modeling of crossflow transition) implemented with Menter’s shear-stress transport equation (SST2003) RANS model. Comparisons with recent measurements at transonic freestream conditions on the Common Research Model with Natural Laminar Flow (CRM-NLF) reinforced our earlier finding that all three of the above models significantly underpredict the reported extent of the laminar flow region over the entire span of the wing, regardless of the dominant instability mechanism(s) underlying the onset of the transition process. The underprediction of the laminar flow extent was attributed to the failure of the above models in accounting for the stabilizing effect of compressibility on the amplification of Tollmien-Schlichting instabilities. Based on previous linear stability studies related to compressibility effects, the present work proposes modifications to the two classes of transition models that reduce to the original form of each model at low subsonic speeds and do not require any nonlocal flow information or additional transport equation(s). The modifications are shown to significantly improve the predicted laminar extent of the flow and compare well against the data from the CRM-NLF experiment. Additionally, a previous assessment of transition prediction based on the dual, nonparallel N -factor method in conjunction with linear parabolized stability equations (PSE) is extended to additional angles of attack to provide the first comprehensive assessment of transition models based on nonparallel disturbance amplification over the CRM-NLF. In general, the transition criterion based on the dual, nonparallel N-factor method with N TS = N CF = 6 is reasonably successful at correlating with the measured transition fronts at R eMAC = 15 million for all angles of attack investigated herein and provides additional validation of the improved predictions from the compressibility-corrected transition models.

CFD modeling↗

A High-Throughput Solver for Marginalized Graph Kernels on GPU

Here, we present the design and optimization of a solver for efficient and high-throughput computation of the marginalized graph kernel on General Purpose GPUs. The graph kernel is computed using the conjugate gradient method to solve a generalized Laplacian of the tensor product between a pair of graphs. To cope with the large gap between the instruction throughput and the memory bandwidth of the GPUs, our solver forms the graph tensor product on-the-fly without storing it in memory. This is achieved by using threads in a warp cooperatively to stream the adjacency and edge label matrices of individual graphs by small square matrix blocks called tiles, which are then staged in registers and the shared memory for later reuse. Warps across a thread block can further share tiles via the shared memory to increase data reuse. We exploit the sparsity of the graphs hierarchically by storing only non-empty tiles using a coordinate format and nonzero elements within each tile using bitmaps. We propose a new partition-based reordering algorithm for aggregating nonzero elements of the graphs into fewer but denser tiles to further exploit sparsity. We carry out extensive theoretical analyses on the graph tensor product primitives for tiles of various density and evaluate their performance on synthetic and real-world datasets. Our solver delivers three to four orders of magnitude speedup over existing CPU-based solvers such as GraKeL and GraphKernels. The capability of the solver enables kernel-based learning tasks at unprecedented scales.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗

The Adaptively-Refined MHD Solver (ARMS)

ARMS is a robust code for solving the single-fluid, fully compressible equations of magnetohydrodynamics. In this presentation I will describe how to access and run ARMS and how to use HelioSpace to analyze the results. The main features of the code are the following: 1. Equations are solved in either Cartesian or Spherical coordinates. For the latter, either a linear or a Log(r) coordinate can be used. 2. The latest flux-corrected-transport schemes developed at NRZ, are used to advance the convective equations. All waves and shocks are accurately captured. 3. A fully adaptive grid can be used. The code incorporates the PARAMESH technology for block-adaptation. Arbitrary adaptation criteria can be specified. 4. The code maintains a divergence-free magnetic field to machine accuracy throughout all refinement and de-refinement. 5. A uniform resistivity and thermal conduction can be included. Solution is either explicit or implicit. 6. Arbitrary boundary and initial conditions can be used in either Cartesian or spherical coordinates. 7. An accompanying visualization package, HelioSpace, is available for viewing and analyzing the native ARMS output, (without need for interpolating onto a structured grid).

Antichos, S. K.↗

Simulating Sea-Ice Deformation in Viscous-Plastic Sea-Ice Models With CD-Grids

Linear kinematic features (LKFs) are found everywhere in the Arctic sea-ice cover. They are strongly localized deformations often associated with the formation of leads and pressure ridges. In viscous-plastic (VP) sea-ice models, the simulation of LKFs depends on several factors such as the grid resolution, the numerical solver convergence, and the placement of the variables on the mesh. In this study, we compare two recently proposed discretization with a CD-grid placement with respect to their ability to reproduce LKFs. The first (CD1) is based on a nonconforming finite element discretization, whereas the second (CD2) uses a conforming subgrid discretization. To analyze their resolution properties, we evaluate runs from different models (e.g., FESOM, MPAS) on a benchmark problem using quadrilateral, hexagonal and triangular meshes. Our findings show that the CD1 setup simulates more deformation structure than the CD2 setup. This highlights the importance of the type of spatial discretization for the simulation of LKFs. Due to the higher number of degrees of freedom, both CD-grids resolve more LKFs than traditional A, B, and C-grids at fixed mesh level. This is an advantage of the CD-grid approach, as high spatial mesh resolution is needed in VP sea-ice models to simulate LKFs.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

A robust fourth-order finite-difference discretization for the strongly anisotropic transport equation in magnetized plasmas

We propose a second-order temporally implicit, fourth-order-accurate spatial discretization scheme for the strongly anisotropic heat transport equation characteristic of hot, fusion-grade plasmas. Following Du Toit et al. (2018), the scheme transforms mixed-derivative diffusion fluxes (which are responsible for the lack of a discrete maximum principle) into nonlinear advective fluxes, amenable to nonlinear-solver-friendly monotonicity-preserving limiters. The scheme enables accurate multi-dimensional heat transport simulations with up to seven orders of magnitude of heat-transport-coefficient anisotropies with low cross-field numerical error pollution and excellent algorithmic performance, with the number of linear iterations scaling very weakly with grid resolution and grid anisotropy, and scaling with the square-root of the implicit timestep. We propose a multigrid preconditioning strategy based on a lower-order approximation that renders the scheme efficient and scalable under grid refinement. Several numerical tests are presented that display the expected spatial convergence rates and strong algorithmic performance, including fully nonlinear magnetohydrodynamics simulations of kink instabilities in a Bennett pinch in 2D helical geometry and of ITER in 3D toroidal geometry.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

On relaxations of the max k -cut problem formulations

Here, a tight continuous relaxation is a crucial factor in solving mixed integer formulations of many NP-hard combinatorial optimization problems. The (weighted) max k-cut problem is a fundamental combinatorial optimization problem with multiple notorious mixed integer optimization formulations. In this paper, we explore four existing mixed integer optimization formulations of the max k-cut problem. Specifically, we show that the continuous relaxation of a binary quadratic optimization formulation of the problem is: (i) stronger than the continuous relaxation of two mixed integer linear optimization formulations and (ii) at least as strong as the continuous relaxation of a mixed integer semidefinite optimization formulation. We also conduct a set of experiments on multiple sets of instances of the max k-cut problem using state-of-the-art solvers that empirically confirm the theoretical results in item (i). Furthermore, these numerical results illustrate the advances in the efficiency of global non-convex quadratic optimization solvers and more general mixed integer nonlinear optimization solvers. As a result, these solvers provide a promising option to solve combinatorial optimization problems. Our codes and data are available on GitHub.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗

2D Simulations of Diamagnetic Loop Calibrations

Diamagnetic loops can be used as a non-invasive method for measurements of beam size in electron beam accelerators that use solenoidal magnetic transport. A comprehensive theory for interpreting data from a diamagnetic loop relates the rms beam radius to the excluded flux measured by the loop and the beam current. Thus, primary calibration of the loop must relate the loop signal directly to the exclude d flux. We have simulated these calibrations with a 2D field solver in order to identify possible sources of uncertainty in our calibration technique.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗

Snap-Through Buckling Pressure Prediction of Spherical Caps: A Comparison of Analytical, Implicit, and Explicit Methods

Snap-through buckling is a nonlinear and dynamic instability that occurs in curved shell structures such as domes, pressure vessels, and aerospace panels. Unlike classical linear buckling, it involves a sudden transition between equilibrium states caused by geometric nonlinearity and rapid strain-to-kinetic energy conversion (Timoshenko & Gere, 1961; Budiansky & Roth, 1962). This study investigates the snap-through behavior of thin spherical caps using both implicit and explicit solvers in ANSYS Workbench. While implicit analysis accurately captures quasi-static response, it struggles with convergence near instability. In contrast, explicit LS-DYNA simulation naturally handles the nonlinear dynamic event with minimal tuning and computational cost.

42 ENGINEERING↗

Supersonic airfoil optimization

A procedure for the optimization of supersonic airfoils is presented. A nonlinear, full-potential solver (NCOREL) is coupled with a numerical optimizer (CONMIN). The NCOREL code is a three-dimensional supersonic marching method, however, only two-dimensional (conical) results are used for the airfoil problem. Each airfoil evaluated in the NCOREL aerodynamic code is composed of a linear combination of user-specified basis airfoils. The weighting factors of the basis airfoils plus the angle of attack form the design variable vector. The inviscid drag coefficient is minimized subject to lift and crossflow Mach number gradient constraints. The optimization strategy is found to be extremely important for the efficient determination of an optimum airfoil.

Pittman, J. L.↗

A staggered mesh finite difference scheme for the computation of compressible flows

A simple high resolution finite difference technique is presented to approximate weak solutions to hyperbolic systems of conservation laws. The method does not rely on Riemann problem solvers and is therefore easy to extend to a wide variety of problems. The overall performance (resolution and CPU requirements) is competitive, with other state-of-the-art techniques offering sharp nonoscillatory shocks and contacts. Theoretical results confirm the reliability of the approach for linear systems and nonlinear scalar equations.

Sanders, Richard↗

A Numerical Study of Low-Reynolds-Number Separation Bubbles

The present study uses two dimensional numerical simulations to study unsteady low-Reynolds-number separation bubbles. The numerical study is in two parts: (1) a two dimensional time-accurate Navier-Stokes solver is used to simulate flows over the APEX airfoil, and (2) a numerical procedure is developed for localized simulations of transitional separation bubbles. The 2-D computations of flow over the APEX airfoil show that the flow is unsteady with periodic vortex shedding. A linear stability analysis of the separated flow shows that the vortex shedding is caused due to the instability of the separated flow. For transonic flows over the APEX airfoil the vortex shedding is additionally influenced by the presence of shocks. The flowfield has two characteristic time scales, one corresponding to the vortex shedding and another corresponding to the movement of the shocks. The two dimensional (2-D) airfoil simulations also showed the presence of nonlinear effects in the separated region. To better understand the characteristics of separation bubbles a numerical procedure has been developed for localized separation bubble calculations. This procedure is used to perform computations for a flat plate separation bubble test case. The separation bubble is induced by specifying a velocity gradient in the freestream. The growth of disturbances in the separation bubble is analyzed by introducing disturbances upstream of the separation bubble.

Tatineni, Mahidhar↗

Numerical solution of 3D Navier-Stokes equations with upwind implicit schemes

An upwind MUSCL type implicit scheme for the three-dimensional Navier-Stokes equations is presented. Comparison between different approximate Riemann solvers (Roe and Osher) are performed and the influence of the reconstructions schemes on the accuracy of the solution as well as on the convergence of the method is studied. A new limiter is introduced in order to remove the problems usually associated with non-linear upwind schemes. The implementation of a diagonal upwind implicit operator for the three-dimensional Navier-Stokes equations is also discussed. Finally the turbulence modeling is assessed. Good prediction of separated flows are demonstrated if a non-equilibrium turbulence model is used.

Marx, Yves P.↗

Semi-discrete Galerkin solution of the compressible boundary-layer equations with viscous-inviscid interaction

A semi-discrete Galerkin (SDG) method is under development to model attached, turbulent, and compressible boundary layers for transonic airfoil analysis problems. For the boundary-layer formulation the method models the spatial variable normal to the surface with linear finite elements and the time-like variable with finite differences. A Dorodnitsyn transformed system of equations is used to bound the infinite spatial domain thereby providing high resolution near the wall and permitting the use of a uniform finite element grid which automatically follows boundary-layer growth. The second-order accurate Crank-Nicholson scheme is applied along with a linearization method to take advantage of the parabolic nature of the boundary-layer equations and generate a non-iterative marching routine. The SDG code can be applied to any smoothly-connected airfoil shape without modification and can be coupled to any inviscid flow solver. In this analysis, a direct viscous-inviscid interaction is accomplished between the Euler and boundary-layer codes through the application of a transpiration velocity boundary condition. Results are presented for compressible turbulent flow past RAE 2822 and NACA 0012 airfoils at various freestream Mach numbers, Reynolds numbers, and angles of attack.

Day, Brad A.↗

Aeroelastic Computations of a Compressor Stage Using the Harmonic Balance Method

The aeroelastic characteristics of a compressor stage were analyzed using a computational fluid dynamic (CFD) solver that uses the harmonic balance method to solve the governing equations. The three dimensional solver models the unsteady flow field due to blade vibration using the Reynolds-Averaged Navier-Stokes equations. The formulation enables the study of the effect of blade row interaction through the inclusion of coupling modes between blade rows. It also enables the study of nonlinear effects of high amplitude blade vibration by the inclusion of higher harmonics of the fundamental blade vibration frequency. In the present work, the solver is applied to study in detail the aeroelastic characteristics of a transonic compressor stage. Various parameters were included in the study: number of coupling modes, blade row axial spacing, and operating speeds. Only the first vibration mode is considered with amplitude of oscillation in the linear range. Both aeroelastic stability (flutter) of rotor blade and unsteady loading on the stator are calculated. The study showed that for the stage considered, the rotor aerodynamic damping is not influenced by the presence of the stator even when the axial spacing is reduced by nearly 25 percent. However, the study showed that blade row interaction effects become important for the unsteady loading on the stator when the axial spacing is reduced by the same amount.

Reddy, T. S. R.↗