Vorticity—velocity formulation in the computation of flows in multiconnected domains

The thermofluid dynamic fields in two‐dimensional multiconnected domains are analysed by solving the Navier–Stokes equations with the Boussinesq approximation in the vorticity–velocity formulation. The need of an integral condition for the pressure to be single‐valued on each independent irreducible loop, in analogy with the ω–Ψ formulation, is demonstrated. The field equations are discretized by a finite difference technique and solved at the steady state via an alternating direction implicit method of a scalar type. Two test cases at low Reynolds and Rayleigh numbers are considered: the multiconnected driven cavity and an annulus with isothermal walls and stationary or rotating inner cylinder.