A Decoupled Low-Order Conforming Mixed Finite Element Method for a Three-Dimensional Fourth-Order Singularly Perturbed Problem

Abstract: This paper develops a decoupled low-order conforming finite element method for a fourth-order elliptic singular perturbation problem in three dimensions. By means of a generalized Helmholtz decomposition, the problem is reduced to two second-order elliptic problems and a system of generalized singularly perturbed Stokes-type equations subject to a curl-free constraint. The former are discretized by standard linear finite elements. For the latter, we employ the MINI element and show that, after adding an $L<sup>2$ term involving a Lagrange multiplier, the resulting discretization becomes robust with respect to the perturbation parameter. We further establish an error estimate of order $h<sup>{1/2}$ uniform with respect to the perturbation parameter. Numerical experiments are included to support the theory.