Applied Numerical Mathematics 132 (2018) 111–126

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Applied Numerical Mathematics

www.elsevier.com/locate/apnum

NURBS curves in direct definition of the shapes of the

boundary for 2D Stokes flow problems in modified classical
BIE
Eugeniusz Zieniuk, Krzysztof Szerszeń
Faculty of Mathematics and Computer Science, University of Bialystok 15-245 Białystok, Konstantego Ciołkowskiego 1M, Poland

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: This paper proposes a modeling of the boundary at the interface between the body and
Received 18 July 2017 the fluid for 2D flow problems described by the Stokes equation with NURBS curves.
Received in revised form 2 January 2018 The theoretical representation of the boundary with the help of these curves is directly
Accepted 21 May 2018
included into the classical boundary integral equations (BIE) for the Stokes equation. After
Available online 25 May 2018
this analytical inclusion of NURBS curves into a mathematical formula of the classical BIE,
Keywords: new generalized parametric integral systems (PIES) are obtained.
Boundary integral equation © 2018 IMACS. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
Parametric integral equation systems (PIES)
NURBS curves
Stokes flow

1. Introduction

One of the fundamental problems in fluid mechanics is the steady flow of incompressible viscous fluids past a solid body.
Under the condition of low Reynolds number, such a flow can be described by the Stokes equation [23,29,4,22]. In order to
model and simulate such flows, apart from the popular finite element method (FEM) [35,14,9] and meshless methods [8,30,
18,28,26], another numerical technique the boundary element method (BEM) [3,1,2,20] is naturally predisposed, in which
only the discretization of the boundary contact between the solid body and the fluid is required. However, due to the nature
of the BEM, the solutions on the boundary are obtained in a discrete form, directly at the nodes of the boundary elements.
Furthermore, the number of the nodes is closely related to the number of defined boundary elements. Therefore, in order
to improve the accuracy, as well as to check the convergence of solutions, we need to divide the boundary into a greater
number of boundary elements. Additional problems are associated with ensuring the continuity between the boundary
elements.
To overcome some of the limitations observed in the case of the elements methods, the authors attempted to apply com-
puter visualization technologies for direct modeling of the boundary in the modified BIE. It may be particularly interesting to
use for this purpose well-known parametric NURBS curves [19]. NURBS curves have been previously used by other authors
[6], but as a technique for defining the boundary within the inverse problems, where the boundary was later divided into
the appropriate number of boundary elements in BEM, or from the direct problems for representing the boundary elements
for which the boundary is divided. In recent times, the strategy of defining the finite and boundary elements using NURBS
is a very dynamic development and is called isogeometric modeling [12,7,5,16,10].

E-mail addresses: ezieniuk@ii.uwb.edu.pl (E. Zieniuk), kszerszen@ii.uwb.edu.pl (K. Szerszeń).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apnum.2018.05.013
0168-9274/© 2018 IMACS. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
112 E. Zieniuk, K. Szerszeń / Applied Numerical Mathematics 132 (2018) 111–126

This paper proposes a different approach consisting of an analytical modification of the classical BIE by using NURBS
curves. The aim of this analytical modification is the direct incorporation of NURBS curves into the mathematical formula
of classical BIE for the Stokes equation. This is a generalization of the previous strategy, which covers the use of more
elementary curves (Bezier or B-spline) for other partial differential equations (Laplace, Helmholtz, Navier–Lame) [31,33,
34]. As a result of these modifications, expressions which are called the parametric integral equation systems (PIES) are
obtained [32].
However, NURBS are more effective than B-spline or Bezier curves, and are commonly used in computer-aided design
(CAD). Therefore, it seems reasonable to perform research in order to incorporate formulas for these curves directly into
BIE. It may give the possibility of a direct integration of the CAD systems with the BIE. Such integrations will significantly
facilitate modeling of the boundary without dividing it into elements for the numerical solving of boundary problems.
The aim of this paper is an analytical modification of the classical BIE for the Stokes equation in 2D, taking into account
NURBS curves. This is a generalization of the previously obtained modification for the other equations and more elementary
curves, such as Bezier and B-spline. It is assumed that the boundary in BIE for the Stokes equation is described by closed
NURBS curves in the same way as in CAD. Integrating CAD systems with BIE will allow for efficient modeling and solving of
boundary value problems. In this paper we obtained the generalized PIES for the Stokes equation by analytical modification
of the classical BIE. Additionally, we will propose a method for the numerical solution of the obtained PIES and solve several
testing examples in order to verify the reliability of the analytical modification of BIE and the accuracy of the obtained
solutions.

2. Nurbs curves

A NURBS curve of degree n, for given m control points P i (i = 0, 1, . . . , m), weights w i (i = 0, 1, . . . , m) and knots t j
( j = 0, 1, . . . , m + n + 1) is defined by the following formula [19]
m
i =0 w i P i N ni (t )
S m (t ) = m , for tn ≤ t ≤ tm+1 . (1)
i =0 w i N ni (t )

Additionally, we should define the basis functions N ni (t ) of degree n, described as normalized B-spline functions recur-
sively expressed as

1 for t ∈ t i , t i +1 
N i0 (t ) = , (1a)
0 otherwise
t − ti t i +k+1 − t 0
N ik (t ) = N k−1 (t ) + N k−1 (t ), where tn ≤ t ≤ tm+1 , t n ≤ t ≤ t m +1 , := 0.
t i +k − t i i t i +k+1 − t i +1 i +1 0
For the proper definition of the shape of the boundary we need not only to declare the appropriate number and locations
of control points, but also to choose the corresponding values of weights and knots.
The boundary modeled by NURBS curves can be defined parametrically with parameter t belonging to interval 0 ≤ t ≤
1.0. Each segment of the curve is separated by knots and knot multiplication in the knot vector gives the ability to control
the degree of continuity at the joints between adjacent curve segments.
The positions of knots and values of weights have influence on the shape of the curve in a global way The incorporation
of such a boundary representation by NURBS directly within the BIE will allow its automatic adjustment during the shape
changes of the boundary. This feature does not exist in the strategy of using NURBS for defining boundary elements on
which the boundary is divided.

3. Modification of BIE for the Stokes equation in 2D

3.1. Governing equations

The general description of an unsteady incompressible homogeneous viscous fluid flow in domain Ω may be given by
the Navier–Stokes equation, as follows [24]
 
∂u
ρ + u · ∇ u = −∇ p + μ∇ 2 u + ρ g , (2a)
∂t
with incompressibility condition

∇ u = 0. (2b)

Here, u, p, g represent the velocity, pressure and external force terms at location x ∈ Ω and time t > 0, respectively. In
turn, ρ and μ denote the density and viscosity of the fluid.
 E. Zieniuk, K. Szerszeń / Applied Numerical Mathematics 132 (2018) 111–126 113

In the case of steady flow, the Navier–Stokes equation is reduced to

ρ u · ∇ u = −∇ p + μ∇ 2 u + ρ g . (3)
The problem of interest here is the incompressible steady Stokes equation, obtained as a simplification of the steady
Navier–Stokes equation for Reynolds number much less than unity. In this case, the non-linear convective term u · ∇ u is
small compared to the rest of the terms in (3) and can be neglected. In this case, Eq. (3) reduces to

−∇ p + μ∇ 2 u + ρ g = 0. (4)
Furthermore, for uniform external forces in the flow domain, we can introduce the modified pressure [21]

P ≡ p − ρ g · x. (5)
In terms of the modified pressure P , Eq. (4) takes the following homogeneous form

−∇ P + μ∇ 2 u = 0. (6)
Eq. (6) is the starting point of our considerations. There is only a narrow class of Stokes-flow problems that might be
solved analytically [25,17,13]. Therefore, the solutions being the subject of computer simulation are mainly obtained by
approximate calculations based on numerical methods.

3.2. Boundary integral equation for the Stokes equation

We consider the boundary value problem described by the Stokes differential equation (6) with the incompressibility
condition (2b) in 2D defined on domain Ω bounded by boundary S. Boundary integral equation (BIE) for the Stokes equation
can be represented by the integral identity [21]
 
−1 1
ū j (x) = U ji (x, y ) f i ( y )dS( y ) + u i ( y ) T ijk (x, y )nk ( y )dS( y ), (7)
4πμ 4π
S S

where
⎧
⎪
⎨ u j ( x) x∈Ω
ū j (x) = 0.5u j (x) for x ∈ S , f ( y ) ≡ σ · n.
⎪
⎩
0 x∈/ Ω̄
In identity (7), integrand U ∗ji (x, y ) i , j = 1, 2 is known as the fundamental solution for the Stokes equation and repre-
sented by the following formula [21]
( y i − xi )( y j − x j )
U ji (x, y ) = −δi j ln r + , (8)
r2
where μ is the dynamic viscosity and δi j is the Kronecker symbol, whereas
0 .5
r = ( y 1 − x1 )2 + ( y 2 − x2 )2 .
In turn T ijk (x, y ), i , j , k = 1, 2 in (7) is represented by traction kernels written as follows

( y i − xi )( y j − x j )( yk − xk )
T ijk (x, y ) = −4 . (9)
r4
The value of ū j (x) depends on the location of x and ū j (x) = u j (x) for x ∈ Ω , ū j (x) = 0.5u j (x) for x ∈ S, ū (x) = 0 for
x∈/ Ω̄ . If x ∈ S, then formula (7) is the classical BIE for a smooth boundary. In physical meaning, U ji (x, y ) can be interpreted
as j-th velocity component at x due to unit force in the i direction applied at y. Boundary functions u i ( y ), f i ( y ) in
(7) in physical interpretation represent the distribution of the velocity and the normal traction fields on the boundary S,
respectively.

3.3. Fourier transformation of the integral identity

The modification of generalized integral identity (2) for the 2D Stokes problem is more complex than the one obtained
for the potential problems modeled by Laplace’s equation [31]. To do that, we need to apply the Fourier transform to
identity (7). As a result, we obtain
 
−1 1
ūˆ j (i ξ ) = Û ji (i ξ , y ) f i ( y )dS( y ) + u i ( y ) T̂ ijk (i ξ , y )nk ( y )dS( y ) (10)
4πμ 4π
S S
114 E. Zieniuk, K. Szerszeń / Applied Numerical Mathematics 132 (2018) 111–126

and
⎧
⎪
⎨ û j (i ξ ) ξ ∈Ω
ūˆ j (i ξ ) = 0.5û j (i ξ ) for ξ ∈ S (10a)
⎪
⎩
0 ξ∈/Ω
where Ω and S are domains of the Fourier transforms for Ω and S, respectively.
In identity (7), Û ji (i ξ , y ) and T ijk (i ξ , y ) are the transforms of the fundamental and singular solutions in the domain of
the Fourier transforms for the Stokes equation presented in the form

Û ji (i ξ , y ) = L ji (i ξ )e −i (ξ1 y 1 +ξ2 y 2 ) , (11)

−i (ξ1 y 1 +ξ2 y 2 )
T̂ ijk (i ξ , y ) = T̄ ijk (i ξ )e , (12)

where
1   
L ji (i ξ ) = δ ji |ξ |2 − ξ j ξi , |ξ |2 = ξ12 + ξ22  (13)
μ| ξ |4
and
 
ξj
T̄ i jk (i ξ ) = −i δik + ξk L i j ( i ξ ) + ξ i L kj ( i ξ ) . (14)
|ξ |2
After substitution (11) and (12) in (10), we obtain the following expression of the Fourier transforms in the domain
−1 1
ūˆ j (i ξ ) = L ji (i ξ ) f̃ i (ξ ) + T̄ ijk (i ξ )ũ i ñk (ξ ), (15)
4πμ 4π

where boundary functions f̃ i (ξ ) and ũ i ñk (ξ ), k = 1, 2 are represented by means of the following boundary integrals

f̃ i (ξ ) = f i ( y )e −i (ξ1 y 1 +ξ2 y 2 ) dS( y ), (16)
S

ũ i ñk (ξ ) = u i ( y )nk ( y )e −i (ξ1 y 1 +ξ2 y 2 ) dS( y ). (17)
S

We can see the separation of the boundary from the domain in equation (15). The boundary is defined by the formalism
of boundary integrals (16) and (17). In our further considerations, integral (17) is used to describe transform ũ i ñk (ξ ) on the
boundary S. The unknown identity function u i ( y ) in (17) can be defined by means of the following Fourier formula

1
ui ( y) = e i (ω1 y 1 +ω2 y 2 ) û i (i ω)dω, ω ≡ (ω1 , ω2 ), (18)
4π 2
R2

where integrand û i (i ω) is written by

−2 2
û i (i ω) = L i j (i ω) f̃ j (ω) + T̄ jik (i ω)ũ j ñk (ω). (19)
4πμ 4π
The formula (19) is a particular case of the transformation (15) for a smooth boundary.

3.4. The definition of the smooth contour integral by curves

After inserting (18) into (17), we obtain the convolution integral equation in the domain of the Fourier transform

ũ i ñk (ξ ) = K k (ω − ξ )û i (i ω)dω, (20)
R2

where the kernel is


1
K k (γ ) = e i (γ1 y 1 +γ2 y 2 ) nk ( y )dS ( y ), γ ≡ {γ1 , γ2 }, γi = ωi − ξi . (21)
4π 2
S

The contour integral in (21) takes into consideration the boundary geometry S which will be represented by a NURBS
curve. For a further transformation of the above analytical formulas, we need to specify the boundary S. We assume that a
 E. Zieniuk, K. Szerszeń / Applied Numerical Mathematics 132 (2018) 111–126 115

NURBS curve is defined with a finite number of segments S l (l = 1, 2, . . . , n) joined with a suitable class of continuity and
separated by knots. In addition, NURBS curves can also be applied in the isogeometric analysis [12]. However in this paper
NURBS curves are used at the level of analytical modification of the identity (7).
Therefore, having considered the boundary geometry defined by NURBS curve consisting of segments in kernel (16), we
obtain


n
(l)
K k (γ ) = K k (γ ), (22)
l =1

where

1
e i (γ1 y 1 +γ2 y 2 ) nk ( y )dS ( y ),
(l) (l)
K k (γ ) = (23)
4π 2
Sl

the upper index in parentheses indicates the index of the segments on which the boundary is theoretically divided.
The boundary transforms ũ i ñk (ξ ) occurring on the left hand side of (20) may be represented in the following form


n
(l)
ũ i ñk (ξ ) = ũ i ñk (ξ ), (24)
l =1

where

e i (γ1 y 1 +γ2 y 2 ) ũ i ( y )ñk ( y )dS ( y ).
(l) (l) (l)
ũ i ñk (ξ ) = (25)
Sl

We mark the boundary transforms f̃ j (ω) and ũ j ñk (ω) on closed NURBS curve on the right hand side of (19)


n
(r )

n
(r )
f̃ j (ω) = f̃ j (ω), ũ j ñk (ω) = ũ j ñk (ω). (26)
r =1 r =1

After substituting (26), (25) and (22) in (20), we obtain the following system of the convolution integral equations
 
n
(l) (l) (r )
0.5ũ i ñk (ξ ) = K k (ω − ξ ) û i (i ω)dω, l = 1, 2, . . . , n , (27)
r =1
R2

where

(r ) −1 (r ) 1 (r )
û i (i ω) = L i j (i ω) f̃ j (ω) + T̄ jik (i ω)ũ j ñk (ω). (28)
4πμ 4π

3.5. Parametric segments for definition of the contour integrals

(l)
The kernel (23) for the segments of the NURBS curve is described by the following formula y α = S α (t ), α = 1, 2
tl
1 (l) (l)
e i [γ1 S 1 (t )+γ2 S 2 (t )]nk (t ) J (l) (t )dt ,
(l) (l)
K k (γ ) = (29)
4π 2
t l −1

while the integral (25) in the following form

tl
(l) (l)
e −i [γ1 S 1 (t )+γ2 S 2 (t )] u i (t )nk (t ) J (l) (t )dt ,
(l) (l) (l)
ũ i ñk (ξ ) = (30)
t l −1

where tl−1 tl are knots, which separate the segments of the curve, respectively at the beginning and ending of the interval
of the parametric domain (marked with index l) with parameters t. Whereas integral functions

(l) (l) (l) (l) (l) (l) (l) (l)

u i (t ) = u i S 1 (t ), S 2 (t ) , nk (t ) = nk S 1 (t ), S 2 (t ) , (31)
(l)
are obtained after substituting for variables y i in segments S i (t ), while J (l) (t ) represents the Jacobian.
116 E. Zieniuk, K. Szerszeń / Applied Numerical Mathematics 132 (2018) 111–126

4. Parametric Integral Equation System (PIES)

After applying the formulas for the inverse of the Fourier transform to (20) and the corresponding transformations, the
following expression requiring further integration is obtained

 tl
1
e −i [ξ1 λ1 +ξ2 λ2 ] u (l) (t )nk (t ) J (l) (t )dtdξ
(l)
4π 2
R 2 t l −1

  tl 
n
1 1 (l) (l)
e i [ξ1 λ1 +ξ2 λ2 ] nk (t ) J (l) (t )e i [ω1 S 1 (t )+ω2 S 2 (t )]
(l)
= û (r ) (i ω)dtdωdξ , (32)
4π 2 4π 2
t l −1 r =1
R2 R2

(l)
where λi = xi − S i (t ), i = 1, 2.
After integrating both sides of (32) with respect to ξ , we get

tl
(l) (l)
δ(λ1 )δ(λ2 )u i (t )nk (t ) J (l) (t )dt
t l −1

 tl 
n
1 (1) (2)
= δ(λ1 )δ(λ2 )nk(l) (t ) J (l) (t )e i [ω1 S l (t )+ω2 S l (t )] (r )
û i (i ω)dtdω. (33)
4π 2
r =1
R 2 t l −1

(l) (l)
Then, integrating both sides of (33) with respect to t, we introduce in λ1 = x1 − S 1 (t ) the substitution S 1 (t ) with
(l) (l)
S 1 (t ) = k and we assume that t = Φ(k). After differentiation of this substitution we obtain { S 1 [Φ(k)]} dt = dk. Taking into
account this substitution in (33) and after integrating, expression (33) takes the following form
 
n
1 (l) (l)
e i {ω1 S 1 [Φ(x1 )]+ω2 S 2 [Φ(x1 )]}
(l) (r )
δ(λ̄2 )u i Φ(x1 ) = 2
δ(λ̄2 ) û i (i ω)dω, (34)
4π
r =1
R2

(l)
where λ̄2 = x2 − S 2 [Φ(x1 )].
In order to eliminate the Dirac distribution on both sides of (34), we integrate both sides of this equation with respect
to x2 . After taking into account substitution Φ(x1 ) = t, finally equation (34) takes the form
 
n
1 (l) (l)
e i [ω1 S 1 (t )+ω2 S 2 (t )]
(l) (r )
u i (t ) = 2
û i (i ω)dω, l = 1, 2, 3, . . . , n . (35)
4π
r =1
R2

Further integration of the right side of (35) with respect to ω requires consideration of the integrand û (r ) (i ω) in explicit
(r ) (r )
form. This function is represented by formula (28), in which f̃ i (ω) and ũ i ñk (ω) on segments r are presented in a similar
form as previously written for segments l in (30) as follows

sr
(r ) (r )
e −i [ω1 S 1 (s)+ω2 S 2 (s)] f i (s) J (r ) (s)ds,
(r ) (r )
f̃ i (ω) = (36)
s r −1

sr
(r ) (r )
e −i [ω1 S 1 (s)+ω2 S 2 (s)] u i (s)nk (s) J (r ) (s)ds,
(r ) (r ) (r )
ũ i ñk (ω) = (37)
s r −1

where sr −1 , sr are knots for segment r with parameter s, while

(r ) (r ) (r ) (r ) (r ) (r ) (r ) (r ) (r ) (r ) (r ) (r )
f i (s) = f i S 1 (s), S 2 (s) , nk (s) = nk S 1 (s), S 2 (s) , u i (s) = u i S 1 (s), S 2 (s) ,
(r )
and J (r ) (s) is the Jacobian, whereas nk (s) is the normal vector. The value of the Jacobian is determined for all segments by
the following formula
 2  2 0.5
∂ S 1(r ) (s) ∂ S 2(r ) (s)
J (r ) (s) = + . (38)
∂s ∂s
 E. Zieniuk, K. Szerszeń / Applied Numerical Mathematics 132 (2018) 111–126 117

After substituting (28) and (36), (37) to (35), we obtain the formula termed parametric integral equation system (PIES)
in the following form
 sr sr 

n
−1 ∗ 1 ∗
Ū˜ ji (t , s) f i (s) u i (s) T̄˜ ijk (t , s)nk (s)
(l) (lr) (lr)
u j (t ) = + J (r ) (s)ds,
2πμ 2π (39)
r =1 s r −1 s r −1

l = 1, 2, 3, . . . , n , t l −1 ≤ t ≤ t l , s r −1 ≤ s ≤ s r .
∗ ∗ ∗
The kernels in (39) are represented by functions Ū˜ ji (t , s) and T̄˜ ijk (t , s). The first integrand Ū˜ ji is represented by the following
expression

∗ −1
Ū˜ (t , s) =
ji e i (ω1 η1 +ω2 η2 ) L ji (i ω)dω, (40)
4π 2
R2

where

η1 = S 1(r ) (s) − S 1(l) (t ), η2 = S 2(r ) (s) − S 2(l) (t ).

Having calculated integral (40), we obtain the expression in an explicit form, which due to its inclusion of the shape of
the boundary geometry in its formalism, is called a modified fundamental boundary solution for the Stokes equation
∗ ηi η j
Ū˜ i j (t , s) = −δi j ln η + , (41)
η2
The second integrand T̄ i∗jk (t , s) in (39) is represented by the

∗ 1
T̄˜ ijk (t , s) = 2
e i (ω1 η1 +ω2 η2 ) T̄ i jk (i ω)dω, (42)
4π
R2

where

η1 = S 1(r ) (s) − S 1(l) (t ), η2 = S 2(r ) (s) − S 2(l) (t ).

After taking in (42) expression (14) and its integrating, we finally obtain
∗ ηi η j ηk
T̄˜ i jk (t , s) = −4 . (43)
η4
Kernels (43) and (41) allow to include in their mathematical formalism the boundary shape generated by parametric
segments l, r = 1, 2, 3, . . . , n which are defined in Cartesian coordinates by the following relations

η1 = S 1(r ) (s) − S 1(l) (t ), η2 = S 2(r ) (s) − S 2(l) (t ),

( j) ( j) ( j) ( j)
and η1 = [η12 + η22 ]0.5 , where S 1 (s), S 2 (s) ( j = l, r) are scalar components of the curves S (s) = [ S 1 (s), S 2 (s)] T and
depend upon parameter s.
In PIES through the introduction of indexes l, r = 1, 2, 3, . . . , n, we take into account the appropriate relationships be-
tween the segments of the NURBS curve defining the boundary. The relationship between the segments modeling the closed
boundary is written by a system of algebraic equations. In view of the fact that the unknowns in this system are functions
along segments, it is a system of integral equations.
After solving PIES represented by the formula (39), we obtain the unknown functions f j (s) or u j (s) on individual seg-
ments of NURBS curves. PIES differs from classical BIE in that in PIES we have formally defined the boundary by curves.
Therefore PIES is physically defined not on the boundary as in BIE, but within the parametric domain of these curves. This is
due to the fact that the modeling the of boundary is done by directly taking into account of PIES’s kernels, called the funda-
mental boundary solutions to distinguish it from the classical counterparts, which are not included in the formalism of the
direct description of the boundary. This advantage allows for the separation between approximation of the boundary shape
and the boundary functions. Thus, this approximation of solutions on the boundary is independent from the approximation
of the boundary shape.

5. Integral identity for solutions in the domain

Once having a solution on the boundary by using PIES, we can obtain solutions in the domain after an appropriate
adaptation of integral identity (15), where boundary integrals f̃ j (ξ ) and ũ j ñk (ξ ) are represented by formulas (26) (with
variable ω is replaced by ξ ). Thus, we finally get the following expression
118 E. Zieniuk, K. Szerszeń / Applied Numerical Mathematics 132 (2018) 111–126

n 
 
−1 (r ) 1 (r )
û j (i ξ ) = L ji (i ξ ) f̃ i (ξ ) + T̄ ijk (i ξ )ũ i ñk (ξ ) , (44)
4πμ 4π
r =1

where
sr
(r ) (r )
e −i [ξ1 S 1 (s)+ξ2 S 2 (s)] f i (s) J (r ) (s)ds,
(r ) (r )
f̃ i (ξ ) = (45)
s r −1

sr
(r ) (r )
e −i [ξ1 S 1 (s)+ξ2 S 2 (s)] u i (s)nk (s) J (r ) (s)ds,
(r ) (r ) (r )
ũ i ñk (ξ ) = (46)
s r −1

and sr −1 , sr are respectively the beginning and ending of the domain of unnormalized curve (indexed by r) with parameter
s.
Having considered (45), (46) in (44) and using the inverse Fourier transform, we obtain the following expression
 sr sr 

n
−1 ∗ 1 ∗
Ū˜ ji (x, s) f i (s) u i (s) T̄˜ ijk (x, s)nk (s)
(r ) (r )
u j ( x) = + J (r ) (s)ds,
4πμ 4π (47)
r =1 s r −1 s r −1

s r −1 ≤ s ≤ s r .
∗
The first integrand Ū˜ ji is represented as follows

∗ −1
Ū˜ ji (x, s) = e i (ξ1 η̄1 +ξ2 η̄2 ) L ji (i ξ )dξ , (48)
4π 2
R2

where
0 .5
η̄1 = S 1(r ) (s) − x1 , η̄2 = S 2(r ) (s) − x2 , η̄ = η̄12 + η̄22 . (48a)
Having calculated integral (48), we obtain the expression in explicit form with taken the shape of boundary geometry in
its formalism
∗ η̄i η̄ j
Ū˜ i j (x, s) = −δi j ln η̄ + . (49)
η̄2
∗
The second integrand T̄˜ ijk (t , s) in (47) is represented by

∗ 1
T̄˜ ijk (x, s) = e i (ξ1 η̄1 +ξ2 η̄2 ) T̄ i jk (i ξ )dξ , (50)
4π 2
R2

after taking in (50) expression (14) and integrating, we finally get

∗ η̄i η̄ j η̄k
T̄˜ i jk (x, s) = −4 . (51)
η̄4
Kernels (49) and (51) directly include in their mathematical formalism the shape of the boundary generated by NURBS
curves r = 1, 2, 3, . . . , n, which are defined in Cartesian coordinates by the following relations η̄1 ,η̄2 described in (48a) and
η̄ = [η̄12 + η̄22 ]0.5 , where S 1(r ) (s), S 2(r ) (s) are scalar components of NURBS curves S (r ) (s) = [ S 1(r ) (s), S 2(r ) (s)]T and depend on
parameter s.

6. Conventional integral representation for the pressure and its modification

Having given and obtained functions on the boundary f j ( y ) or u i ( y ) by the solution of the BIE, we can obtain the
formula for the pressure. The classic integral expression for the pressure is represented by the following formula [21]
 
−1 μ
p ( x) = p j (x, y ) f j ( y )dS( y ) + u i ( y )Πik (x, y )nk ( y )dS( y ), (52)
4π 4π
S S

where
(y j − x j)
p j ( x, y ) = 2 , (53a)
r2
 E. Zieniuk, K. Szerszeń / Applied Numerical Mathematics 132 (2018) 111–126 119

is the pressure Green’s function, whereas

 
δik ( y i − xi )( yk − xk )
Πik (x, y ) = 4 − 2 + 2 4
, (53b)
r r
is the pressure field associated with the stresslet, respectively.
Boundary functions f j ( y ) or u i ( y ) obtained with the help of PIES (47) are only dependent on parameter s. Therefore
the classical integral expression (52) must be modified. The strategy of this modification is similar to that shown in the
previous section for the integral identity. As the result, we obtain the following form of (52) as
 sr sr 

n
−1 (r ) μ (r )
p ( x) = p j ( x, s ) f j ( s ) + u i (s)Πik (x, s)nk (s) J (r ) (s)ds,
4π 4π (54)
r =1 s r −1 s r −1

s r −1 ≤ s ≤ s r ,

where
 
η̄ j η̄i η̄k δik
p j ( x, s ) = 2 2 , Πik (x, s) = 4 − 2 + 2 4 , (54a)
η̄ η̄ η̄
while η̄1 , η̄2 and η̄ are represented by formula (48a).

7. Numerical solution

The next stage is the numerical solution of PIES represented by the formula (39). For this numerical solution, expression
(39) is written in a simplified form with canceled lower indices. The upper indices are preserved (enclosed in parentheses)
and denote the segments, but in (52) are written on the bottom and without parentheses
 sr sr 

n
−1 ∗ 1 ∗
ul (t ) = Ū lr (t , s) f r (s) + T̄ lr (t , s)u r (s) J r (s)ds,
2πμ 2π (55)
r =1 s r −1 s r −1

l = 1, 2, 3, . . . , ntl−1 ≤ t ≤ tl , s r −1 ≤ s ≤ s r ,
∗ ∗ ηη η
where integrand Ū lr (t , s) = [Ū i∗j (t , s)]lr are represented by formula (41) and T̄ lr (t , s) = [ T̄ i∗jk (t , s)nk ]lr = −4 i η4j k nk with help
of expression (43).
The shape of the boundary in PIES is theoretically described by parametric curves, while mathematical formalism of PIES
is defined in the parametric domain of these curves. A significant advantage of the analytical modification of the BIE and
obtaining PIES is that we can approximate the boundary geometry and boundary values separately. This gives us the ability
to apply different and more effective techniques for these approximations independently. To solve PIES, we can use one of
the methods dedicated to solving the classical singular integral equations. We should firstly remember that we must define
the boundary in PIES.
For 2D problems, the solution of PIES is reduced to the approximation of the boundary functions f r (s) and u r (s) defined
on individual segments with index r. The given boundary conditions as well as the searched boundary values on individual
segments are approximated by the following series


M −1 
M −1
p p p p
f r (s) = f r T r (s), u r (s) = u r T r (s), (56)
p =0 p =0

where
p p
f r , u r – are the given or searched coefficients,
M – are the numbers of terms in the series defined in the parametric domain of the NURBS segment,
p
T r (s) – are chosen basis functions, which take the form of the Chebyshev polynomials.

7.1. The approximation of PIES

After substituting (56) to formula (55), we obtain the following approximate expression for PIES

−1 −1
 p r
s sr 

M
p p
 
n M
−fr ∗ ur
p
∗ p
ul T l (t ) = Ū lr (t , s) + T̄ lr (t , s) T r (s) J r (s)ds. (57)
2πμ 2π
p =0 r =1 p =0 s r −1 s r −1
120 E. Zieniuk, K. Szerszeń / Applied Numerical Mathematics 132 (2018) 111–126

In order to solve numerically formula (57), a pseudospectral method is used [11]. After applying (57) at the collocation
points on each segment of the boundary we obtain system of algebraic equations from which we find values of the unknown
p p
coefficients f r , u r from (56).
After applying (57) in all collocation points t (c ) located in the parametric domain tl−1 < t (c ) < tl of individual segments
S l (l = 1, 2, 3, . . . , n) we obtain the system of algebraic equations in the following form

H u = G p. (58)

The number of equations depends on the number of collocation points. After solving (58) we obtain values of coefficients
of terms (56), represented by vectors [hlr ] or [glr ] (in dependence of posed boundary conditions).
The elements of matrices H and G are calculated on the basis of the following expressions requiring integration

 −1 M −1 sr
1 
M
( p )  (c )  ∗  p
[hlr ] = δlr Tl t − T̄ lr t (c ) , s T r (s) J r (s)ds (59)
2π
p =0 p =0 s r −1

and

M −1 sr
−1  ∗  p
[ glr ] = Ū lr t (c ) , s T r (s) J r (s)ds. (60)
2πμ
p =0 s r −1

The elements on the diagonal of matrices (58) require calculation of strongly and weak singular integrals. After taking into
account the boundary conditions in (58) and solving the algebraic system of equations we obtain the unknown coefficients
p p
u r or f r on individual segments of the boundary.

7.2. Approximation of integral identity

After solving equations (58), we obtain the solutions on the boundary. The values of the solutions in the domain Ω at
point x = (x1 , x2 ) are computed by integral identity (47). After substituting approximating series (56) to (47), we are able to
give this identity in the following form
 sr sr 

n
−1 1
∗ ∗
u ( x) = U r ( x, s ) f r ( s ) + T r ( x, s ) u r ( s ) J r (s)ds,
4πμ 4π (61)
r =1 s r −1 s r −1

s r −1 ≤ s ≤ s r ,
∗ η̄ η̄ η̄
where integrand U r∗ (x, s) = [U i∗j (x, s)]r are represented by formulas (49) while T̄ r (x, s) = [ T̄ i∗jk (x, s)nk ]r = −4 i η̄4j k nk by
expression (51).
To determine the solution in the domain, we only need to take into account, within the formula (47) the coefficients
f r (s) and u r (s) for every segment of NURBS which model the boundary.

8. The practical application of the method

An application of the proposed boundary representation in connection with PIES is illustrated by three numerical ex-
amples. We present how to generate the boundary using NURBS curves described in section 2. In addition, the numerical
results are compared with exact solutions known from literature.

Example 1. We consider the Stokes problem defined over a square domain Ω = [−1, 1] × [−1, 1] with the following analyt-
ical solution [27]

u 1 = 4x32 − x21 , u 2 = 4x31 + 2x1 x2 − 1. (62)

As shown in Fig. 1, the boundary of a considered domain is defined using 4 linear NURBS segments declared by 4 points
P 1, . . . , P 4.

Figs. 2, 3 show the values of solutions computed in PIES on the boundary and in the domain, respectively. The solutions
are obtained after employing Chebyshev polynomials of degree 4 on each of the constituent NURBS segments.
The plots show the agreement between the analytical solutions and the results in PIES computed for a relatively small
number of 40 algebraic equations.
 E. Zieniuk, K. Szerszeń / Applied Numerical Mathematics 132 (2018) 111–126 121

Fig. 1. The boundary of the square domain from Example 1 declared by 4 corner points.

Fig. 2. Distribution of tractions t 1 (a) and t 2 (b) around the square boundary.
122 E. Zieniuk, K. Szerszeń / Applied Numerical Mathematics 132 (2018) 111–126

Fig. 3. Distribution of velocity components u 1 , u 2 (a) and pressure (b) in the cross-section between points (−1, −1) and (1, 1). (For interpretation of the
colors in the figure(s), the reader is referred to the web version of this article.)

Fig. 4. Constructing the circular profile from Example 2 by a single NURBS curve.
 E. Zieniuk, K. Szerszeń / Applied Numerical Mathematics 132 (2018) 111–126 123

Fig. 5. Distribution of the velocity u θ obtained in PIES in cross-section between points (1, 0) and (5, 0) from Example 2.

Example 2. In the second example, we consider the Stokes flow outside a circular profile of radius a induced by the steady
rotation of a fluid with angular velocity ū θ = 1. As shown in Fig. √ 4, the√boundary√ is modeled
√ by a single NURBS curve of
degree 2 with 8 control points and associated weights w i = {1, 2/2, 1, 2/2, 1, 2/2, 1, 2/2}. The knot vector is defined
as Ξ = {0, 0, 0, 1, 1, 2, 2, 3, 3, 4, 4, 4}. It should be noted that the above-specified NURBS curve represents the boundary of
the circular profile exactly.

The exact analytical solution for the problem is presented in the form [15]

u r (r , θ) = 0, u θ (r , θ) = ū θ a2 /r , σr θ (r , θ) = −2μū θ a3 /r 2 . (63)
Fig. 5 plots the solution in PIES for the velocity u θ obtained after employing the uniform distribution of 8 collocation
points on each of the four 90 deg. arcs of the curve. The collocation points are placed at the roots of the Chebyshev
polynomials of the second kinds.
The stability of the solutions is investigated as a result of a change in the number of input data in the program that is
responsible for the number of collocation points posed on each of the four 90 deg. arcs of the curve which are equal to the
number of expressions in the approximating series (56). In Fig. 6 we summarize the L 2 error norm in the domain for the
solutions of velocity u θ in the considered cross-section according to the number of collocation points.
The obtained solutions are characterized by low levels of error, which is stabilizing even for 5 and more collocation
points for each of the four 90 deg. arcs of the boundary. The PIES allows for effective convergence analysis. It is performed
by increasing the number of terms in the approximation series (51) without any intervention in the previously declared
boundary geometry.

Example 3. In the last example, we studied the flow induced between 2 rotating cylinders, as shown in Fig. 7. The analytical
solutions for velocity components in polar coordinates are expressed by the following expressions [27]

u θ = c 1 /r + c 2 r , u r = 0, r1 ≤ r ≤ r2 , (64)
where
r1 r2 (u θ1 r2 − u θ2 r1 ) u θ2 r2 − u θ1 r1
c1 = , c2 = .
r22 − r12 r22 − r12
As shown in Fig. 7, the representation of the inner and the outer boundary is the same as in the previous example and
is generated by 2 NURBS curves of degree 2.

Fig. 8 shows the value of the velocity component u θ in the cross-section along x1 axis. We can see the full agreement in
comparison with the analytical solution (64). The results were obtained after declaring 8 collocation points on each of the
90 deg. arcs of the curves.
Below we study the impact of changing the number of collocation points on the accuracy of the solutions in the domain
for velocity u θ in the analyzed cross-section (Fig. 9).
The results were affected by a low level error which is stabilized for 5 or more collocation points defined on each of the
90 deg. arcs of 2 curves.
124 E. Zieniuk, K. Szerszeń / Applied Numerical Mathematics 132 (2018) 111–126

Fig. 6. L2 error norm for solution of velocity u θ between points (1, 0) and (5, 0) depending on the number of collocation points in each of the four 90 deg.
arcs of the boundary.

Fig. 7. The problem definition for Example 3 with the boundary defined by 2 NURBS curves.

Fig. 8. The velocity u θ distribution along the axis x1 between the two rotating cylinders.
 E. Zieniuk, K. Szerszeń / Applied Numerical Mathematics 132 (2018) 111–126 125

Fig. 9. L2 error norm for solution in cross-section (0.5, 0)–(1.5, 0) depending on the number of collocation points.

9. Conclusions

This paper presents the analytical modification of the classical BIE and the integral identity for the Stokes equation in
2D. The purpose of this modification is to incorporate NURBS curves directly into the fundamental solutions of BIE. As a
result of this analytical modification, the new equations, which are called parametric integral equation systems (PIES), are
obtained. PIES are characterized in that they have changed the formula of the fundamental solutions in comparison with BIE,
as they incorporate the description of the boundary geometry given by NURBS curves. This is the main difference compared
with BIE, where the fundamental solutions (Green’s functions) do not include the boundary, but only the properties of the
domain modeled by the Stokes equation, whereas the shape of the boundary in BIE, as the name suggests, is defined by the
contour of the boundary integral.
In PIES, the modified fundamental solutions take into account both of the properties of the domain as in BIE, but in
addition also include NURBS curves, that can be used to model the shape of the boundary of the solved problem. As a
result, PIES are not defined on the physical boundary, but in the parametric reference system. As such, their formulation
(independent from the shape of the boundary) is very effective during their numerical solving. The change of the shape of
the boundary, when moving its control points, automatically adjusts the PIES formula within the modified boundary.
Moreover, we developed the algorithm for solving PIES numerically, which also automatically adapt to the changes in the
boundary shape. In other words, the boundary shape changes do not require additional modification of the algorithm, except
changing the position of control points of NURBS curves. These points are integrated together with the curves directly in
the modified fundamental solutions of PIES. This is not possible in classical BIE during their numerical solving.
On the basis of our presented analytical modification of the classical BIE, we developed the algorithm which can easily
be adapted to other linear elliptic partial differential equations, without performing a laborious analytical modification. The
reliability of the obtained PIES for the Stokes equation is verified through the basis of the testing examples confirming the
accuracy of the solutions.

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