A fundamental solution method for three-dimensional viscous flow problems with obstacles in a periodic array

In this paper, we propose a fundamental solution method for three-dimensional viscous flow problems with obstacles in a periodic array. Our problem is mathematically a boundary value problem of the Stokes equation with periodic boundary conditions, to which it is difficult to give a good approximation by the ordinary fundamental solution method. Our method gives an approximate solution by a linear combination of the periodic fundamental solutions. In addition, we can compute the drag forces on the obstacles by using the data obtained in our method. Numerical examples for the problems of flows past spheres show the effectiveness of our method. (c) 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.