An Energy-Stable Implicit Convex-Splitting BDF2 Scheme for the Cahn-Hilliard-Navier-Stokes Equations

Abstract

We develop an energy-stable implicit convex-splitting BDF2 discretization (CS-BDF2) of the Cahn--Hilliard--Navier--Stokes equations. For the Cahn--Hilliard equation, BDF2 analyses can establish energy stability by testing the phase equation in the (H^{-1}) metric. For CHNS, this test is not compatible with the coupled energy estimate: the momentum equation is tested by (\bfu^{n+1}), while the transported phase equation is tested by (μ^{n+1}) so that transport cancels capillary work. The chemical-potential relation must then be paired with the BDF2 phase increment ((3ϕ^{n+1}-4ϕ^n+ϕ^{n-1})/2); its nonlinear part must produce a BDF2 bulk-energy difference, up to nonnegative higher-order history terms. To overcome this difficulty, we introduce a new BDF2-compatible convex-splitting approximation of the nonlinear bulk force that directly yields a discrete bulk-energy identity and enables a discrete energy analysis for the CHNS system. Specifically, we discretize the bulk force (f(ϕ)=ϕ^3-ϕ) by (χ(ϕ^{\dagger,n+1},ϕ^{\dagger,n})-ϕ^{*,n+1}), where (χ(a,b)=\tfrac14(a^2+b^2)(a+b)), (ϕ^{\dagger,n+1}=\tfrac{3ϕ^{n+1}-ϕ^n}{2}), (ϕ^{\dagger,n}=\tfrac{3ϕ^n-ϕ^{n-1}}{2}), and (ϕ^{*,n+1}=2ϕ^n-ϕ^{n-1}). This discretization is based on the shifted BDF2 identity ((3ϕ^{n+1}-4ϕ^n+ϕ^{n-1})/2=ϕ^{\dagger,n+1}-ϕ^{\dagger,n}). With a matching discretization of the reversible coupling terms in CHNS, the scheme is mass conservative, uniquely solvable, and unconditionally energy stable. We prove second-order convergence for the phase variable, chemical potential, velocity, and pressure.