Accuracy of stable, high-order finite difference methods for hyperbolic systems with non-smooth wave speeds (Q2291913)

Analytic solutions are derived to the scalar and vector advection equations with variable wave speeds in one dimension using the Laplace transform, which allows for studying the performance of a class of high-order accurate skew-symmetric finite difference methods satisfying a summation-by-parts (SBP) property. SBP methods together with weak enforcement of boundary conditions through the simultaneous-approximation-term (SAT) technique produce stable numerical discretizations for problems with sufficient smoothness properties. When coefficients are non-smooth at known locations, they can be treated as interfaces and numerical solutions are obtained in the sub-domains where the coefficients are smooth. However, in practice, these locations are not always known. The authors investigate experimentally how accuracy and stability are affected when high-order-accurate, skew-symmetric SBP-SAT methods are applied to hyperbolic problems with discontinuous wave speeds, using new exact analytical solutions. The skew-symmetric methods are based on a splitting that assumes that the variable coefficients are differentiable everywhere. When the coefficients are piecewise continuous and discontinuous, the splitting is no longer justified. In these cases, analytic solutions are derived from the scalar and vector advection equation with spatially-variable wave speeds. They are then used to compute convergence rates of numerical solutions when considering piecewise linear wave speeds that are non-smooth in some cases. For constant and non-constant smooth wave speeds theoretical orders of convergence \(2\), \(3\), \(4\) and \(5\) are achieved. For non-smooth wave speeds, continuous with a discontinuous derivative, and constant with a jump discontinuity, reductions in theoretical convergence rates are observed. The convergence rates for high-order accurate methods drop significantly for non-smooth wave speeds.