On the Comparison between Compact Finite Difference and Pseudospectral Approaches for Solving Similarity Boundary Layer Problems

We introduce two methods based on higher order compact finite differences for solving boundary layer problems. The methods called compact finite difference relaxation method (CFD-RM) and compact finite difference quasilinearization method (CFD-QLM) are an alternative form of the spectral relaxation method (SRM) and spectral quasilinearization method (SQLM). The SRM and SQLM are Chebyshev pseudospectral-based methods which have been successfully used to solve boundary layer problems. The main objective of this paper is to give a comparison of the compact finite difference approach against the pseudo-spectral approach in solving similarity boundary layer problems. In particular, we seek to identify the most accurate and computationally efficient method for solving systems of boundary layer equations in fluid mechanics. The results of the two approaches are comparable in terms of accuracy for small systems of equations. For larger systems of equations, the proposed compact finite difference approaches are more accurate than the spectral-method-based approaches.