The Piecewise Cubic Method (PCM) for computational fluid dynamics

We present a new high-order finite volume reconstruction method for hyperbolic conservation laws. The method is based on a piecewise cubic polynomial which provides its solutions a fifth-order accuracy in space. The spatially reconstructed solutions are evolved in time with a fourth-order accuracy by tracing the characteristics of the cubic polynomials. As a result, our temporal update scheme provides a significantly simpler and computationally more efficient approach in achieving fourth order accuracy in time, relative to the comparable fourth-order Runge-Kutta method. We demonstrate that the solutions of PCM converges at fifth-order in solving 1D smooth flows described by hyperbolic conservation laws. We test the new scheme on a range of numerical experiments, including both gas dynamics and magnetohydrodynamics applications in multiple spatial dimensions.