Simulation of Flow in Thin Fluid Films Using the Lattice Boltzmann Method

The present work deals with the application of the Lattice Boltzmann Method (LBM), which is a relatively new Computational Fluid Dynamics approach, to fluid film lubrication. LBM accounts for the inertia forces, while being easier to implement than Navier-Stokes solvers for complex geometric configurations. The LBM solution for a classic case is presented in comparison with the analytic Reynolds solution and the numeric solution obtained with Navier-Stokes solvers.