On high-order pressure-robust space discretisations, their advantages for incompressible high Reynolds number generalised Beltrami flows and beyond

Abstract

An improved understanding of the divergence-free constraint for the incompressible Navier--Stokes equations leads to the observation that a semi-norm and corresponding equivalence classes of forces are fundamental for their nonlinear dynamics. The recent concept of {\em pressure-robustness} allows to distinguish between space discretisations that discretise these equivalence classes appropriately or not. This contribution compares the accuracy of pressure-robust and non-pressure-robust space discretisations for transient high Reynolds number flows, starting from the observation that in generalised Beltrami flows the nonlinear convection term is balanced by a strong pressure gradient. Then, pressure-robust methods are shown to outperform comparable non-pressure-robust space discretisations. Indeed, pressure-robust methods of formal order $k$ are comparably accurate than non-pressure-robust methods of formal order $2k$ on coarse meshes. Investigating the material derivative of incompressible Euler flows, it is conjectured that strong pressure gradients are typical for non-trivial high Reynolds number flows. Connections to vortex-dominated flows are established. Thus, pressure-robustness appears to be a prerequisite for accurate incompressible flow solvers at high Reynolds numbers. The arguments are supported by numerical analysis and numerical experiments.