Search Results (20)

The fractional advection–dispersion equation is used in groundwater hydrology for modeling the movements of contaminants/solute particles along with flowing groundwater at the seepage velocity in porous media. This model is used for the prediction of the transport of nonreactive dissolved contaminants in groundwater. This paper establishes the existence and the uniqueness of solutions represented as fractional bi-variate power series of some initial-value problems and boundary-value problems for the fractional advection–dispersion equation. Moreover, a method to approximate the solutions using fractional polynomials in two variables and to evaluate the errors in a suitable rectangle is designed. Illustrative examples showing the applicability of the theoretical results are presented. Full article

This study contains a two-dimensional mathematical model of solute transport in a river with temporally and spatially dependent flow, explicitly focusing on pulse-type input point sources with a fractional approach. This model is analyzed by assuming an initial concentration function as a declining exponential function in both the longitudinal and transverse directions. The governing equation is a time-fractional two-dimensional advection–dispersion equation with a variable form of dispersion coefficients, velocities, decay constant of the first order, production rate coefficient for the solute at the zero-order level, and retardation factor. The solution of the present problem is obtained by the fractional reduced differential transform method (FRDTM). The analysis of the initial retardation factor has been carried out via plots. Also, the influence of initial longitudinal and transverse dispersion coefficients and velocities has been examined by graphical analysis. The impact of fractional parameters on pollution levels is also analyzed numerically and graphically. The study of convergence for the FRDTM technique has been conducted to assess its efficacy and accuracy. Full article

The aim of this study is to utilize a differential quadrature method with various kernels, such as Lagrange interpolation and discrete singular convolution, to tackle problems related to the Riesz fractional diffusion equation and the Riesz fractional advection–dispersion equation. The governing equation for convection and diffusion depends on both spatial and transient factors. By using the block marching technique, we transform these equations into an algebraic system using differential quadrature methods and the Caputo-type fractional operator. Next, we develop a MATLAB program that generates code capable of solving the fractional convection–diffusion equation in (1+2) dimensions for each shape function. Our goal is to ensure that our methods are reliable, accurate, efficient, and capable of convergence. To achieve this, we conduct two experiments, comparing the numerical and graphical results with both analytical and numerical solutions. Additionally, we evaluate the accuracy of our findings using the L_∞ error. Our tests show that the differential quadrature method, which relies mainly on the discrete singular convolution shape function, is a highly effective numerical approach for fractional convective diffusion problems. It offers superior accuracy, faster convergence, and greater reliability than other techniques. Furthermore, we study the impact of fractional order derivatives, velocity, and positive diffusion parameters on the results. Full article

Invoking the matrix transfer technique, we propose a novel numerical scheme to solve the time-fractional advection–dispersion equation (ADE) with distributed-order Riesz-space fractional derivatives (FDs). The method adopts the midpoint rule to reformulate the distributed-order Riesz-space FDs by means of a second-order linear combination of Riesz-space FDs. Then, a central difference approximation is used side by side with the matrix transform technique for approximating the Riesz-space FDs. Based on this, the distributed-order time-fractional ADE is transformed into a time-fractional ordinary differential equation in the Caputo sense, which has an equivalent Volterra integral form. The Simpson method is used to discretize the weakly singular kernel of the resulting Volterra integral equation. Stability, convergence, and error analysis are presented. Finally, simulations are performed to substantiate the theoretical findings. Full article

In this study, a numerical solution for degenerate space–time fractional advection–dispersion equations is proposed to simulate atmospheric dispersion in vertically inhomogeneous planetary boundary layers. The fractional derivative exists in a Caputo sense. We establish the maximum principle and a priori estimates for the solutions. Then, we construct a positivity-preserving finite-difference scheme, using monotone discretization in space and L1 approximation on the non-uniform mesh for the time derivative. We use appropriate grading techniques for the time–space mesh in order to overcome the boundary degeneration and weak singularity of the solution at the initial time. The computational results are demonstrated on the Gaussian fractional model as well on the boundary layers defined by height-dependent wind flow and diffusitivity, especially for the Monin–Obukhov model. Full article

In this study, we solve the fractional advection–dispersion equation (FADE) by applying the Laplace transform decomposition method (LTDM) and the variational iteration transform method (VITM). The Atangana–Baleanu (AB) sense is used to describe the fractional derivative. This equation is utilized to determine solute transport in groundwater and soils. The FADE is converted into a system of non-linear algebraic equations whose solution leads to the approximate solution for this equation using the techniques presented. The proposed approximate method’s convergence is examined. The suggested method’s applicability is demonstrated by testing it on several illustrative examples. The series solutions to the specified issues are obtained, and they contain components that converge more quickly to the precise solutions. The actual and estimated results are demonstrated in graphs and tables to be quite similar, demonstrating the usefulness of the proposed strategy. The innovation of the current work is in the application of an effective method that requires less calculation and achieves a greater level of accuracy. Furthermore, the proposed approaches may be implemented to prove their utility in tackling fractional-order problems in science and engineering. Full article

This paper has two main objectives. First, we modify the traffic flow model by introducing the uphill dispersion that derives from the fact that, in peak hours, drivers tend to travel from low to high density regions. This means that the proposed model recovers wrong-way travel and is free from advected discontinuity. Second, in order to describe the anomalous transport behavior, we fractalize the proposed model to include dynamics with the fractional in space. As a result of adopting the fractional Fick’s law, several moving jam waves are presented which elucidate the non-homogeneity of driving styles. Then, the GFFD fractional derivative and the trail equation method are applied and for some special cases solutions are simulated which could help transportation engineers to understand traffic behavior and thus make appropriate decisions when constructing a traffic signals network. Full article

The conventional mathematical model expressed by the advection–dispersion equation has been widely used to describe contaminant transport in porous media. However, studies have shown that it fails to simulate early arrival of contaminant, long tailing breakthrough curves and presents a physical scale-dependency of the dispersion coefficient. Recently, advances in fractional calculus allowed the introduction of fractional order derivatives to model several engineering and physical phenomena, including the anomalous dispersion of solute particles. This approach gives birth to the fractional advection–dispersion equation. This work presents new solutions to the fractional transport equation that satisfies the initial condition of constant solute injection in a semi-infinite medium. The new solution is derived based on a similarity approach. Moreover, laboratory column tests were performed in a Brazilian lateritic soil to validate the new solution with experimental data and compare its accuracy with the conventional model and other fractional solutions. The new solution outperforms the existing ones and reveals an interesting fractal-like scaling rule for the diffusivity coefficients. Full article

Background: solute transport in highly heterogeneous media and even neutron diffusion in nuclear environments are among the numerous applications of fractional differential equations (FDEs), being demonstrated by field experiments that solute concentration profiles exhibit anomalous non-Fickian growth rates and so-called “heavy tails”. Methods: a nonlinear-coupled 3D fractional hydro-mechanical model accounting for anomalous diffusion (FD) and advection–dispersion (FAD) for solute flux is described, accounting for a Riesz derivative treated through the Grünwald–Letnikow definition. Results: a long-tailed solute contaminant distribution is displayed due to the variation of flow velocity in both time and distance. Conclusions: a finite difference approximation is proposed to solve the problem in 1D domains, and subsequently, two scenarios are considered for numerical computations. Full article

The advection–dispersion equations have gotten a lot of theoretical attention. The difficulty in dealing with these problems stems from the fact that there is no perfect answer and that tackling them using local numerical methods is tough. The Riesz fractional advection–dispersion equations are quantitatively studied in this research. The numerical methodology is based on the collocation approach and a simple numerical algorithm. To show the technique’s performance and competency, a comprehensive theoretical formulation is provided, along with numerical examples. Full article

Fractional calculus-based differential equations were found by previous studies to be promising tools in simulating local-scale anomalous diffusion for pollutants transport in natural geological media (geomedia), but efficient models are still needed for simulating anomalous transport over a broad spectrum of scales. This study proposed a hierarchical framework of fractional advection-dispersion equations (FADEs) for modeling pollutants moving in the river corridor at a full spectrum of scales. Applications showed that the fixed-index FADE could model bed sediment and manganese transport in streams at the geomorphologic unit scale, whereas the variable-index FADE well fitted bedload snapshots at the reach scale with spatially varying indices. Further analyses revealed that the selection of the FADEs depended on the scale, type of the geomedium (i.e., riverbed, aquifer, or soil), and the type of available observation dataset (i.e., the tracer snapshot or breakthrough curve (BTC)). When the pollutant BTC was used, a single-index FADE with scale-dependent parameters could fit the data by upscaling anomalous transport without mapping the sub-grid, intermediate multi-index anomalous diffusion. Pollutant transport in geomedia, therefore, may exhibit complex anomalous scaling in space (and/or time), and the identification of the FADE’s index for the reach-scale anomalous transport, which links the geomorphologic unit and watershed scales, is the core for reliable applications of fractional calculus in hydrology. Full article

The approach based on fractional advection–diffusion equations provides an effective and meaningful tool to describe the dispersive transport of charge carriers in disordered semiconductors. A fractional generalization of Fick’s law containing the Riemann–Liouville fractional derivative is related to the well-known fractional Fokker–Planck equation, and it is consistent with the universal characteristics of dispersive transport observed in the time-of-flight experiment (ToF). In the present paper, we consider the generalized Fick laws containing other forms of fractional time operators with singular and non-singular kernels and find out features of ToF transient currents that can indicate the presence of such fractional dynamics. Solutions of the corresponding fractional Fokker–Planck equations are expressed through solutions of integer-order equation in terms of an integral with the subordinating function. This representation is used to calculate the ToF transient current curves. The physical reasons leading to the considered fractional generalizations are elucidated and discussed. Full article

The dynamics of NAPL dissolution into saturated porous media are typically modeled by the inclusion of a reaction term in the advection-dispersion-reaction equation (ADRE) with the reaction rate defined by a Sherwood-Gilland empirical model. This stipulates, among other things, that the dissolution rate is proportional to a power of the NAPL volume fraction, and also to the difference between the local average aqueous concentration of the NAPL species and its thermodynamic saturation concentration. Solute source models of these sorts are ad hoc and empirically calibrated but have come to see widespread use in contaminant hydrogeology. In parallel, a number of authors have employed the method of volume averaging to derive upscaled transport equations describing the same dissolution and transport phenomena. However, these solutions typically yield forms of equations that are seemingly incompatible with Sherwood-Gilland source models. In this paper, we revisit the compatibility of the two approaches using a radically simplified alternative volume averaging analysis. We begin from a classic micro-scale formulation of the NAPL dissolution problem but develop some new simplification approaches (including a physics-preserving transformation of the domain and a new geometric lemma) which allow us to avoid solving traditional closure boundary value problems. We arrive at a general, volume-averaged governing equation that does not reduce to the ADRE with a Sherwood-Gilland source but find that the two approaches do align under straightforward advection-dominated conditions. Full article

Non-Fickian diffusion has been increasingly documented in hydrology and modeled by promising time nonlocal transport models. While previous studies showed that most of the time nonlocal models are identical with correlated parameters, fundamental challenges remain in real-world applications regarding model selection and parameter definition. This study compared three popular time nonlocal transport models, including the multi-rate mass transfer (MRMT) model, the continuous time random walk (CTRW) framework, and the tempered time fractional advection–dispersion equation (tt-fADE), by focusing on their physical interpretation and feasibility in capturing non-Fickian transport. Mathematical comparison showed that these models have both related parameters defining the memory function and other basic-transport parameters (i.e., velocity v and dispersion coefficient D) with different hydrogeologic interpretations. Laboratory column transport experiments and field tracer tests were then conducted, providing data for model applicability evaluation. Laboratory and field experiments exhibited breakthrough curves with non-Fickian characteristics, which were better represented by the tt-fADE and CTRW models than the traditional advection–dispersion equation. The best-fit velocity and dispersion coefficient, however, differ significantly between the tt-fADE and CTRW. Fitting exercises further revealed that the observed late-time breakthrough curves were heavier than the MRMT solutions with no more than two mass-exchange rates and lighter than the MRMT solutions with power-law distributed mass-exchange rates. Therefore, the time nonlocal models, where some parameters are correlated and exchangeable and the others have different values, differ mainly in their quantification of pre-asymptotic transport dynamics. In all models tested above, the tt-fADE model is attractive, considering its small fitting error and the reasonable velocity close to the measured flow rate. Full article

In this article, a numerical scheme is formulated and analysed to solve the time-space fractional advection–diffusion equation, where the Riesz derivative and the Caputo derivative are considered in spatial and temporal directions, respectively. The Riesz space derivative is approximated by the second-order fractional weighted and shifted Grünwald–Letnikov formula. Based on the equivalence between the fractional differential equation and the integral equation, we have transformed the fractional differential equation into an equivalent integral equation. Then, the integral is approximated by the trapezoidal formula. Further, the stability and convergence analysis are discussed rigorously. The resulting scheme is formally proved with the second order accuracy both in space and time. Numerical experiments are also presented to verify the theoretical analysis. Full article