Convergence and nonlinear stability of the Lagrange-Galerkin method for the Navier-Stokes equations (Q1098699)

The Lagrange-Galerkin method is a numerical technique for solving convection-dominated diffusion problems, based on combining a special discretization of the Lagrangian material derivative along particle trajectories with the Galerkin finite element method. In this paper optimal error estimates are presented for the Lagrange-Galerkin mixed finite element approximation of the Navier-Stokes equations in a velocity/pressure formulation. The method is shown to be nonlinearly stable.