title: Three-dimensional solutions of the Boltzmann equation: heat transport at long mean free paths.
abstract: A kinetic transport model for arbitrary meshes is presented and the method is applied to heat transfer in a rare gas between parallel plates at different temperatures. The method uses "propagating" rays for tracking the transport of particles throughout the phase space in three-dimensional spatial meshes. Two collision operators are tested with the model, a simple monoenergetic operator and the Bhatnagar-Gross-Krook (BGK) model. Results are generated for several Knudsen numbers in the transition regime. The results of the kinetic simulation, which employ the BGK operator, compare favorably with those of a finite-difference solution of the Boltzmann equation using the BGK collision operator [T. Ohwada, Phys. Fluids 8, 2153 (1996)]. In addition, the results for both collision models exhibit fair agreement with experimental data of Teagan and Springer [Phys. Fluids. 11, 497 (1968)].
authors.affiliation: Department of Aerospace Engineering, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109-2140, USA. christli@engin.umich.edu
authors.forename: A J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Christlieb
authors.forename: W N G
authors.initials: WN
authors.lastname: Hitchon