Unfitted finite element methods for axisymmetric two-phase flow

Harald Garcke, Robert Nürnberg, Quan Zhao

Published 2023-03-06, updated 2023-07-01Version 2

We propose and analyze unfitted finite element approximations for the two-phase incompressible Navier--Stokes flow in an axisymmetric setting. The discretized schemes are based on an Eulerian weak formulation for the Navier--Stokes equation in the 2d-meridian halfplane, together with a parametric formulation for the generating curve of the evolving interface. We use the lowest order Taylor--Hood and piecewise linear elements for discretizing the Navier--Stokes formulation in the bulk and the moving interface, respectively. We discuss a variety of schemes, amongst which is a linear scheme that enjoys an equidistribution property on the discrete interface and good volume conservation. An alternative scheme can be shown to be unconditionally stable and to conserve the volume of the two phases exactly. Numerical results are presented to show the robustness and accuracy of the introduced methods for simulating both rising bubble and oscillating droplet experiments.