A Lattice Boltzmann Relaxation Scheme for Inviscid Compressible Flows

A novel Lattice Boltzmann Method applicable to compressible fluid flows is developed. This method is based on replacing the governing equations by a relaxation system and the interpretation of the diagonal form of the relaxation system as a discrete velocity Boltzmann system. As a result of this interpretation, the local equilibrium distribution functions are simple algebraic functions of the conserved variables and the fluxes, without the low Mach number expansion present in the equilibrium distribution of the traditional Lattice Boltzmann Method (LBM). This new Lattice Boltzmann Relaxation Scheme (LBRS) thus overcomes the low Mach number limitation and can successfully simulate compressible flows. While doing so, our algorithm retains all the distinctive features of the traditional LBM. Numerical simulations carried out for inviscid flows in one and two dimensions show that the method can simulate the features of compressible flows like shock waves and expansion waves.