Plasma multistreaming and the viability of fluid codes
Journal
Physics of Fluids
Journal Volume
19
Journal Issue
11
Pages
1788-1795
Date Issued
1976
Author(s)
Abstract
For plasmas in the collisionless regime, the absence of bulk viscosity permits multistreaming; if this occurs, fluid codes, which by definition prohibit multistreaming, give unphysical results. It is shown that a fluid code, using an energy propagation equation, will conserve energy, but nevertheless can give totally incorrect results if multistreaming occurs. If a temperature propagation equation is used instead, the system continuously loses energy when multistreaming occurs. This energy nonconservation, which is completely independent of cell size and time step, can be used as an internal test for multistreaming, requiring no data outside the fluid code itself. Copyright © 1976 American Institute of Physics.
SDGs
Type
journal article