Adaptive finite element solution of compressible turbulent flows

An adaptive finite element method for solving compressible turbulent Bows up to transonic regime is presented. Pressure-based methods previously developed for laminar compressible Bows and turbulent incompressible flows are combined to solve compressible turbulent Bows. Turbulence is incorporated via the k-epsilon model. The algorithm uses the logarithms of k and epsilon as computational variables to preserve positivity. Solutions are obtained in primitive variables using quadratic finite elements on unstructured grids. The error is estimated by a local projection method. The solution algorithm and error estimation are validated on problems with known analytical solutions. The method is then applied to compressible subsonic and transonic Bows and predictions are compared with experimental measurements.