Flow of a Curtiss-Bird fluid over a transverse slot using the finite element drift-function method (Q2265882)

A finite element method for incompressible flows of a memory fluid is described which is based on macroelements of crossed linear triangles. This allows virtually exact computations of strains in trial velocity fields. Memory is handled by construction of special Gaussian quadrature formulas. The problem of plane flows over slots is studied numerically using the reptational constitutive equation proposed by \textit{C. F. Curtiss} and \textit{R. B. Bird} [The kinetic theory for polymer melts, I and II, J. Chem. Phys. 74, 2016-2025 and 2026-2033 (1981)]. With this constitutive equation and an improved nonlinear iteration scheme, convergence difficulties which plagued earlier attempts at modelling viscoelastic flow seem to be avoided.