Consistent projection methods for variable density incompressible Navier–Stokes equations with continuous surface forces on a rectangular collocated mesh

Two consistent projection methods of second-order temporal and spatial accuracy have been developed on a rectangular collocated mesh for variable density Navier–Stokes equations with a continuous surface force. Instead of the original projection methods (denoted as algorithms I and II in this paper), in which the updated cell center velocity from the intermediate velocity and the pressure gradient is not guaranteed solenoidal, the consistent projection methods (denoted as algorithms III and IV) obtain the cell center velocity based on an interpolation from a conservative fluxes with velocity unit on surrounding cell faces. Dependent on treatment of the continuous surface force, the pressure gradient in algorithm III or the sum of the pressure gradient and the surface force in algorithm IV at a cell center is then conducted from the difference between the updated velocity and the intermediate velocity in a consistent projection method. A non-viscous 3D static drop with serials of density ratios is numerically simulated. Using the consistent projection methods, the spurious currents can be greatly reduced and the pressure jump across the interface can be accurately captured without oscillations. The developed consistent projection method are also applied for simulation of interface evolution of an initial ellipse driven by the surface tension and of an initial sphere bubble driven by the buoyancy with good accuracy and good resolution.