A unified gas-kinetic framework from Boltzmann to Navier-Stokes scales
Abstract
Abstract Neither molecular kinetics nor continuum fluid dynamics alone is adequate to describe multiscale gas flows across different regimes. Bridging these regimes within a single self-consistent framework has long been a central challenge in fluid mechanics. We propose a unified gas kinetic framework that classifies molecules by their collision histories over an observation timescale. This formulation recovers the Boltzmann and Navier–Stokes equations as limiting cases, providing a transparent connection between kinetic and hydrodynamic descriptions. Beyond practical advantages for multiscale modeling, this framework offers a new perspective on Hilbert’s sixth problem by linking microscopic dynamics to continuum mechanics through a tunable observational scale.
Fields of Study & Subjects
Gas Dynamics and Kinetic Theory
Lattice Boltzmann Simulation Studies
Micro and Nano Robotics
Publication details
- Journal / source
- Advances in Aerodynamics
- Publisher
- Springer Science and Business Media LLC
- Volume
- 8
- Issue
- 1
- Publication date
- 14 February 2026
- Language
- EN