A third-order-accurate upwind scheme for Navier-Stokes solutions at high Reynolds numbers

A third-order-accurate upwind scheme is presented for solution of the steady two-dimensional Navier-Stokes equations in stream-function/vorticity form. The scheme is found to be accurate and stable at high Reynolds numbers. A series of test computations is performed on flows with large recirculating regions. In particular, highly accurate solutions are obtained for flow in a driven square cavity up to Reynolds numbers of 10,000. These computations are used to critically evaluate the accuracy of other existing first- and second-order-accurate upwind schemes. In addition, computations are carried out for flow in a channel with symmetric sudden expansion, flow in a channel with a symmetrically placed blunt base, and the flowfield of an impinging jet. Good agreement is obtained with the computations of other investigators as well as with the available experimental data.