Numerical modelling of convection-diffusion problems with first-order chemical reaction using the dual reciprocity boundary element method

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to describe an extension of the boundary element method (BEM) and the dual reciprocity boundary element method (DRBEM) formulations developed for one- and two-dimensional steady-state problems, to analyse transient convection-diffusion problems associated with first-order chemical reaction. Design/methodology/approach The mathematical modelling has used a dual reciprocity approximation to transform the domain integrals arising in the transient equation into equivalent boundary integrals. The integral representation formula for the corresponding problem is obtained from the Green's second identity, using the fundamental solution of the corresponding steady-state equation with constant coefficients. The finite difference method is used to simulate the time evolution procedure for solving the resulting system of equations. Three different radial basis functions have been successfully implemented to increase the accuracy of the solution and improving the rate of convergence. Findings The numerical results obtained demonstrate the excellent agreement with the analytical solutions to establish the validity of the proposed approach and to confirm its efficiency. Originality/value Finally, the proposed BEM and DRBEM numerical solutions have not displayed any artificial diffusion, oscillatory behaviour or damping of the wave front, as appears in other different numerical methods.