A meshless analysis of three-dimensional transient heat conduction problems

In this paper, we consider a numerical modeling of a three-dimensional transient heat conduction problem. The modeling is carried out using a meshless reproducing kernel particle (RKPM) method. In the mathematical formulation, a variational method is employed to derive the discrete equations. The essential boundary conditions of the formulated problems are enforced by the penalty method. Compared with numerical methods based on meshes, the RKPM needs only scattered nodes, rather than having to mesh the domain of the problem. An error analysis of the RKPM for three-dimensional transient heat conduction problem is also presented in this paper. In order to demonstrate the applicability of the proposed solution procedures, numerical experiments are carried out for a few selected three-dimensional transient heat conduction problems. (C) 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.