Solving the Boltzmann equation on GPU’s

This paper was presented at the 2nd Micro and Nano Flows Conference (MNF2009), which was held at Brunel University, West London, UK. The conference was organised by Brunel University and supported by the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, IPEM, the Italian Union of Thermofluid dynamics, the Process Intensification Network, HEXAG - the Heat Exchange Action Group and the Institute of Mathematics and its Applications.We present algorithms specifically tailored for solving kinetic equations onto graphics processing units. Unlike particle methods, the proposed methods of solution are ideally suited for solving the unsteady low speed flows which typically occur inMEMS containing oscillating components. The efficiency of the algorithms is demonstrated by solving the two-dimensional low Mach number driven cavity flow of a monatomic gas. Computational results show that it is possible to cut down the computing time of the sequential codes up to two order of magnitudes. The algorithms can easily be extended to three-dimensional flows and to non-equilibrium flows of mixtures