An efficient fractional-step technique for unsteady incompressible flows using a semi-staggered grid strategy (Q1924873)

A version of the fractional-step (projection) method with semi-staggered grids is described. Its main features are the collocation of the velocity components and the pressure variable with grid points and cell centers respectively, a third-order five-point upwind-biased discretization of the convective terms and the three-stages Runge-Kutta method as a time-stepping technique. The proposed approach is tested against the exact solution involving prediction of the decay of periodic vortices, and against two- and three-dimensional driven cavity flows. Good prediction properties of the technique are emphasized.