We prove stability and derive error estimates for the recently introduced central discontinuous Galerkin method, in the context of linear hyperbolic equations with possibly discontinuous solutions. A comparison between the central discontinuous Galerkin method and the regular discontinuous Galerkin method in this context is also made. Numerical experiments are provided to validate the quantitative conclusions from the analysis.

We investigate sufficient and possibly necessary conditions for the L2 stability of the upwind first order finite volume scheme for Maxwell equations, with metallic and absorbing boundary conditions. We yield a very general sufficient condition, valid for any finite volume partition in two and three space dimensions. We show this condition is necessary for a class of regular meshes in two space dimensions. However, numerical tests show it is not necessary in three space dimensions even on regular...

We propose and analyze a semi Lagrangian method for the convection-diffusion equation. Error estimates for both semi and fully discrete finite element approximations are obtained for convection dominated flows. The estimates are posed in terms of the projections constructed in [Chrysafinos and Walkington, SIAM J. Numer. Anal. 43 (2006) 2478–2499; Chrysafinos and Walkington, SIAM J. Numer. Anal. 44 (2006) 349–366] and the dependence of various constants upon the diffusion parameter is ...

The computation of nonlinear quasistationary two-dimensional magnetic fields leads to a nonlinear second order parabolic-elliptic initial-boundary value problem. Such a problem with a nonhomogeneous Dirichlet boundary condition on a part $\Gamma {}_1$ of the boundary is studied in this paper. The problem is discretized in space by the finite element method with linear functions on triangular elements and in time by the implicit-explicit method (the left-hand side by the implicit Euler method and the right-hand...

For robust discretizations of the Navier-Stokes equations with small viscosity, standard Galerkin schemes have to be augmented by stabilization terms due to the indefinite convective terms and due to a possible lost of a discrete inf-sup condition. For optimal control problems for fluids such stabilization have in general an undesired effect in the sense that optimization and discretization do not commute. This is the case for the combination of streamline upwind Petrov-Galerkin (SUPG) and pressure...

The finite element method (FEM) is popularly used for numerically approximating PDE(s) over complicated domains due to its rich mathematical background, versatility, and ease of implementation. In this article, we investigate one of its important features, i.e., the approximation of PDE(s) over nonpolygonal Lipschitz domains by higher-order simplicial elements in 2D and 3D. This important issue is not well understood and often ignored by engineers due to its mathematical complexity, i.e., the FEM...

We consider the development and analysis of local discontinuous Galerkin methods for fractional diffusion problems in one space dimension, characterized by having fractional derivatives, parameterized by β ∈[1, 2]. After demonstrating that a classic approach fails to deliver optimal order of convergence, we introduce a modified local numerical flux which exhibits optimal order of convergence 𝒪(hk + 1) uniformly across the continuous range between pure advection (β = 1) and pure diffusion...

The swelling and shrinkage of biological tissues are modelled by a four-component mixture theory [J.M. Huyghe and J.D. Janssen, Int. J. Engng. Sci.35 (1997) 793–802; K. Malakpoor, E.F. Kaasschieter and J.M. Huyghe, Mathematical modelling and numerical solution of swelling of cartilaginous tissues. Part I: Modeling of incompressible charged porous media. ESAIM: M2AN41 (2007) 661–678]. This theory results in a coupled system of nonlinear parabolic differential equations together with an algebraic...

In recent years several papers have been devoted to stability and smoothing properties in maximum-norm of finite element discretizations of parabolic problems. Using the theory of analytic semigroups it has been possible to rephrase such properties as bounds for the resolvent of the associated discrete elliptic operator. In all these cases the triangulations of the spatial domain has been assumed to be quasiuniform. In the present paper we show a resolvent estimate, in one and two space dimensions,...


In recent years several papers have been devoted to stability and smoothing properties in maximum-norm of finite element discretizations of parabolic problems. Using the theory of analytic semigroups it has been possible to rephrase such properties as bounds for the resolvent of the associated discrete elliptic operator. In all these cases the triangulations of the spatial domain has been assumed to be quasiuniform. In the present paper we show a resolvent estimate, in one and two space dimensions, under...

In this paper, we are interested in the modelling and the finite element approximation of a petroleum reservoir, in axisymmetric form. The flow in the porous medium is governed by the Darcy-Forchheimer equation coupled with a rather exhaustive energy equation. The semi-discretized problem is put under a mixed variational formulation, whose approximation is achieved by means of conservative Raviart-Thomas elements for the fluxes and of piecewise constant elements for the pressure and the temperature....

In this paper, we are interested in the modelling and the finite element approximation of a petroleum reservoir, in axisymmetric form. The flow in the porous medium is governed by the Darcy-Forchheimer equation coupled with a rather exhaustive energy equation. The semi-discretized problem is put under a mixed variational formulation, whose approximation is achieved by means of conservative Raviart-Thomas elements for the fluxes and of piecewise constant elements for the pressure and the temperature....

The numerical solution of the flow of a liquid crystal governed by a particular instance of the Ericksen–Leslie equations is considered. Convergence results for this system rely crucially upon energy estimates which involve $H^2\left(\Omega \right)$ norms of the director field. We show how a mixed method may be used to eliminate the need for Hermite finite elements and establish convergence of the method.

The numerical solution of the flow of a liquid crystal governed by a particular instance of the Ericksen–Leslie equations is considered. Convergence results for this system rely crucially upon energy estimates which involve H2(Ω) norms of the director field. We show how a mixed method may be used to eliminate the need for Hermite finite elements and establish convergence of the method.

Gramicidin A is a small and well characterized peptide that forms an ion channel in lipid membranes. An important feature of gramicidin A (gA) pore is that its conductance is affected by the electric charges near the its entrance. This property has led to the application of gramicidin A as a biochemical sensor for monitoring and quantifying a number of chemical and enzymatic reactions. Here, a mathematical model of conductance changes of gramicidin A pores in response to the presence of electrical...

Many electrorheological fluids are suspensions consisting of solid particles and a carrier oil. If such a suspension is exposed to a strong electric field the effective viscosity increases dramatically. In this paper we first derive a model which captures this behaviour. For the resulting system of equations we then prove local in time existence of strong solutions for large data. For these solutions we finally derive error estimates for a fully implicit time-discretization.

Bacillus subtilis swarms rapidly over the surface of a synthetic medium creating remarkable hyperbranched dendritic communities. Models to reproduce such effects have been proposed under the form of parabolic Partial Differential Equations representing the dynamics of the active cells (both motile and multiplying), the passive cells (non-motile and non-growing) and nutrient concentration. We test the numerical behavior of such models and compare...

This paper develops a framework to include Dirichlet boundary conditions on a subset of the boundary which depends on time. In this model, the boundary conditions are weakly enforced with the help of a Lagrange multiplier method. In order to avoid that the ansatz space of the Lagrange multiplier depends on time, a bi-Lipschitz transformation, which maps a fixed interval onto the Dirichlet boundary, is introduced. An inf-sup condition as well as existence results are presented for a class of second...

We build corotational symmetric solutions to the harmonic map flow from the unit disc into the unit sphere which have constant degree. First, we prove the existence of such solutions, using a time semi-discrete scheme based on the idea that the harmonic map flow is the ${\mathrm{L}}^2$-gradient of the relaxed Dirichlet energy. We prove a partial uniqueness result concerning these solutions. Then, we compute numerically these solutions by a moving-mesh method which allows us to deal with the singularity at the...