A comparison of different finite elements and formulations for the solution of the steady viscous flow

A comparison is made of three different elements for the solution of an incompressible viscous flow problem for which an analytical solution is known. It is shown that elements using a linear expansion for pressure are less accurate than elements using a quadratic expansion for pressure. The element quadratic in pressure and Hermitian cubic in velocity yields the shear stress and accurate pressure on curved walls making it attractive for the fluid-solid interaction.