A spectral/B-spline method for the Navier–Stokes equations in unbounded domains

The numerical method presented in this paper aims at solving the incompressible Navier–Stokes equations in unbounded domains. The problem is formulated in cylindrical coordinates and the method is based on a Galerkin approximation scheme that makes use of vector expansions that exactly satisfy the continuity constraint. More specifically, the divergence-free basis vector functions are constructed with Fourier expansions in the θ and z directions while mapped B-splines are used in the semi-infinite radial direction. Special care has been taken to account for the particular analytical behaviors at both end points r=0 and r→∞. A modal reduction algorithm has also been implemented in the azimuthal direction, allowing for a relaxation of the CFL constraint on the timestep size and a possibly significant reduction of the number of DOF. The time marching is carried out using a mixed quasi-third order scheme. Besides the advantages of a divergence-free formulation and a quasi-spectral convergence, the local character of the B-splines allows for a great flexibility in node positioning while keeping narrow bandwidth matrices. Numerical tests show that the present method compares advantageously with other similar methodologies using purely global expansions.