An unconditionally stable second-order accurate ALE–FEM scheme for two-dimensional convection–diffusion problems

The aim of this paper is to investigate the stability of time integration schemes for the solution of a finite element semi-discretization of a scalar convection–diffusion equation defined on a moving domain. An arbitrary Lagrangian–Eulerian formulation is used to reformulate the governing equation with respect to a moving reference frame. We devise an adaptive θ-method time integrator that is shown to be unconditionally stable and asymptotically second-order accurate for smoothly evolving meshes. An essential feature of the method is that it satisfies a discrete equivalent of the well-known geometric conservation law. Numerical experiments are presented to confirm the findings of the analysis.