Equilibrium-type and link-type lattice Boltzmann models for generic advection and anisotropic-dispersion equation

We extend lattice Boltzmann (LB) methods to advection and anisotropic-dispersion equations (AADE). LB methods are advocated for the exactness of their conservation laws, the handling of different length and time scales for flow/transport problems, their locality and extreme simplicity. Their extension to anisotropic collision operators (L-model) and anisotropic equilibrium distributions (E-model) allows to apply them to generic diffusion forms. The AADE in a conventional form can be solved by the L-model. Based on a link-type collision operator, the L-model specifies the coefficients of the symmetric diffusion tensor as linear combination of its eigenvalue functions. For any type of collision operator, the E-model constructs the coefficients of the transformed diffusion tensors from linear combinations of the relevant equilibrium projections. The model is able to eliminate the second order tensor of its numerical diffusion. Both models rely on mass conserving equilibrium functions and may enhance the accuracy and stability of the isotropic convection-diffusion LB models. The link basis is introduced as an alternative to a polynomial collision basis. They coincide for one particular eigenvalue configuration, the two-relaxation-time (TRT) collision operator, suitable for both mass and momentum conservation laws. TRT operator is equivalent to the BGK collision in simplicity but the additional collision freedom relates it to multiple-relaxation-times (MRT) models. "Optimal convection" and "optimal diffusion" eigenvalue solutions for the TRT E-model allow to remove next order corrections to AADE. Numerical results confirm the Chapman-Enskog and dispersion analysis. (c) 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.