Scalar Auxiliary Variable (SAV) Stabilization of Implicit-Explicit (IMEX) Time Integration Schemes for Non-Linear Structural Dynamics

Abstract

Implicit-explicit (IMEX) time integration schemes are well suited for non-linear structural dynamics because of their low computational cost and high accuracy. However, the stability of IMEX schemes cannot be guaranteed for general non-linear problems. In this article, we present a scalar auxiliary variable (SAV) stabilization of high-order IMEX time integration schemes that leads to unconditional stability. The proposed IMEX-BDFk-SAV schemes treat linear terms implicitly using kth-order backward difference formulas (BDFk) and non-linear terms explicitly. This eliminates the need for iterations in non-linear problems and leads to low computational costs. Truncation error analysis of the proposed IMEX-BDFk-SAV schemes confirms that up to kth-order accuracy can be achieved and this is verified through a series of convergence tests. Unlike existing SAV schemes for first-order ordinary differential equations (ODEs), we introduce a novel SAV for the proposed schemes that allows direct solution of the second-order ODEs without transforming them into a system of first-order ODEs. Finally, we demonstrate the performance of the proposed schemes by solving several non-linear problems in structural dynamics and show that the proposed schemes can achieve high accuracy at a low computational cost while maintaining unconditional stability.