Entropic lattice Boltzmann model for Burgers's equation

Entropic lattice Boltzmann models are discrete-velocity models of hydrodynamics that possess a Lyapunov function. This feature makes them useful as nonlinearly stable numerical methods for integrating hydrodynamic equations. Over the last few years, such models have been successfully developed for the Navier-Stokes equations in two and three dimensions, and have been proposed as a new category of subgrid model of turbulence. In the present work we develop an entropic lattice Boltzmann model for Burgers's equation in one spatial dimension. In addition to its pedagogical value as a simple example of such a model, our result is actually a very effective way to simulate Burgers's equation in one dimension. At moderate to high values of viscosity, we confirm that it exhibits no trace of instability. At very small values of viscosity, however, we report the existence of oscillations of bounded amplitude in the vicinity of the shock, where gradient scale lengths become comparable with the grid size. As the viscosity decreases, the amplitude at which these oscillations saturate tends to increase. This indicates that, in spite of their nonlinear stability, entropic lattice Boltzmann models may become inaccurate when the ratio of gradient scale length to grid spacing becomes too small. Similar inaccuracies may limit the utility of the entropic lattice Boltzmann paradigm as a subgrid model of Navier-Stokes turbulence.