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Chapter 1
Introduction
What is CFD?
CFD is the simulation of fluids engineering systems using
modeling (mathematical physical problem formulation) and
numerical methods (discretization methods, solvers, numerical
parameters,
t
and
d grid
id generations,
ti
etc.)
t )
Historically only Analytical Fluid Dynamics (AFD) and
Experimental Fluid Dynamics (EFD).
CFD made possible by the advent of digital computer and
advancing with improvements of computer resources
(500 flops, 194720 teraflops, 2003)
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Why use CFD?
Analysis and Design
1. Simulation-based design instead of build & test
More cost effective and more rapid than EFD
CFD provides high-fidelity database for diagnosing flow
field
2. Simulation of physical fluid phenomena that are
difficult for experiments
Full scale simulations (e.g., ships and airplanes)
Environmental effects (wind, weather, etc.)
Hazards (e.g., explosions, radiation, pollution)
Physics (e
(e.g.,
g planetary boundary layer
layer, stellar evolution)
Knowledge and exploration of flow physics
Where is CFD used?
Where is CFD
Aerospace
used?
Aerospace
Automotive
Biomedical
Chemical
Processing
HVAC
Hydraulics
Marine
Oil & Gas
Power Generation
Sports
Biomedical
F18 Store Separation
Automotive
Temperature and natural
convection currents in the eye
following laser heating.
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Where is CFD used?
Chemical Processing
Where is CFD used?
Aerospacee
Automotive
Biomedical
Chemical
Processing
HVAC
Hydraulics
Marine
Oil & G
Gas
Power Generation
Sports
Polymerization reactor vessel - prediction
of flow separation and residence time
effects.
Hydraulics
HVAC
Streamlines for workstation
ventilation
Where is CFD used?
Marine (movie)
Sports
Where is CFD used?
Aerospace
Automotive
Biomedical
Chemical Processing
HVAC
Hydraulics
Marine
Oil & Gas
Power Generation
Sports
Oil & Gas
Flow of lubricating
mud over drill bit
Power Generation
Flow around cooling
towers
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COMMERCIAL SOFTWARE
The market is currently dominated by four codes:
1) PHOENICS
2) FLUENT
3) FLOW3D
4) STAR
STAR-CD
CD
Prices of the commercial software range between
10 000 and 50 000.
Advantages of CFD over EFD
Substantial reduction of lead times and costs of
new designs
designs.
Ability to study systems where controlled
experiments are difficult or impossible to
perform (e.g. very large systems).
Ability to study systems under hazardous
conditions
di i
at andd beyond
b
d their
h i normall
performance limits (e.g. safety studies and
accident scenarios).
Practically unlimited level of detail of results.
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CFD process
Purposes of CFD codes will be different for different
applications: investigation of bubble-fluid
interactions for bubbly
y flows,, studyy of wave induced
massively separated flows for free-surface, etc.
Depend on the specific purpose and flow conditions
of the problem, different CFD codes can be chosen
for different applications (aerospace, marines,
combustion, multi-phase flows, etc.)
Once purposes and CFD codes chosen,
chosen CFD
CFD
process is the steps to set up the IBVP problem
and run the code:
How does a CFD code work?
Geometry
Physics
Mesh
Solve
Reports
PostProcessing
Select
Geometry
Heat Transfer
ON/OFF
Unstructured
(automatic/
manual)
Steady/
Unsteady
Forces Report
(lift/drag, shear
stress, etc)
Contours
Compressible
ON/OFF
Structured
(automatic/
manual)
Iterations/
Steps
XY Plot
Vectors
Flow
properties
Convergent
Limit
Verification
Streamlines
Viscous
Model
Precisions
(single/
double)
Validation
Boundary
Conditions
Numerical
Scheme
Geometry
Parameters
Domain Shape
and Size
Initial
Conditions
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All commercial codes contain three basic elements:
1. Pre-processor
2. Solver
3. Post-processor
1)
Pre-processor
Provides the input of the problem and transforms
this input in a form suitable for use by the solver.
Preprocessing involve:
a)
Definition of the geometry of the region of interest: the
computational domain
domain.
Selection of an appropriate coordinate
Determine the domain size and shape
Any simplifications needed?
What kinds of shapes needed to be used to best resolve
the geometry? (lines, circular, ovals, etc.)
For commercial code, g
geometry
y is usually
y created using
g
commercial software (either separated from the
commercial code itself, like Gambit, or combined
together, like FlowLab)
For research code, commercial software (e.g. Gridgen) is
used.
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b) Grid Generation
Grids can either be structured
structured
(hexahedral) or unstructured
(tetrahedral). Depends upon type of
discretization scheme and application
Scheme
Finite differences: structured
Finite volume or finite element:
structured or unstructured
Application
Thin boundary layers best
unstructured
resolved with highly-stretched
structured grids
Unstructured grids useful for
complex geometries
Unstructured grids permit
automatic adaptive refinement
based on the pressure gradient,
or regions interested (FLUENT)
2) SOLVER
There are three basic numerical solution techniques:
a) Finite difference methods
b) Finite element methods
c) Spectral methods
All of these numerical methods perform the following steps:
Approximation of the unknown flow variables by means
of simple functions.
functions
Discretisation by substitution of the approximations into
the governing flow equations and subsequent
mathematical manipulations.
Solution of the algebraic equations.
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a) Finite Difference Method
The unknowns at each grid point are approximated
by using Taylor series expansion of the derivatives of
Di
Discretise
i the
h governing
i differential
diff
ti l equations
ti
directly; e.g.
0=
u v ui +1, j ui 1, j vi , j +1 vi , j 1
+
+
2 x
2y
x y
b) Finite Element Method
Use simple, piecewise functions valid on the elements to
describe the local variations of unknown flow variables
( x) = S ( x)
where S is the shape function.
The finite element method is popular in solid mechanics.
c) Spectral Methods
Approximate the unknowns by means of
Fourier
F
i S
Series
i
Or series of Chebysev polynomials.
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Finite Volume Method
is a special form of the finite difference methods.
4 of the 5 commercially available CFD codes use this
method.
Discretise the governing integral equations directly; e.g.
Net mass flow =
( uA)e ( uA)w + ( vA)n ( vA)s = 0
The finite-volume method is popular in fluid
mechanics because:
it rigorously enforces conservation;
it is flexible in terms of both geometry and the
variety of fluid phenomena;
it is directly relatable to physical quantities
(mass flux, etc.).
The conservation of a general flow variable
volume can be expressed as
, within a control
Rate of change Net flux of
of in the control due to
volume with
convection into
respect to time the control volume
Net flux of
due to
+
diffusion into the
control volume
Net rate of creation
+ of inside the
control volume
An iterative solution approach is used.
Most popular is the TDMA line-by-line solver for the set of algebraic
equations.
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3) Post Processor
The leading CFD packages are now equipped with
versatile data visualization tools. These include:
Domain geometry and grid display
Vector plots
Line and shaded contour plots
p
2D and 3D surface plots
Particle tracking
View manipulation (translation, rotation, scaling etc)
Color postscript output.
Post-Processing (visualization, XY plots)
Lift and drag coefficients of
NACA12 with
ith 60o angle
l off attack
tt k
(CFDSHIP-IOWA, DES)
Wave profile of surface-piercing
NACA24, Re=1.52e6, Fr=0.37
(CFDSHIP-IOWA, DES)
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Post-Processing (visualization, Tecplot)
Different colors illustrate different blocks (6)
Re=10^5, DES, NACA12 with angle of attack 60 degrees
Post-Processing (NACA12, 2D contour plots,
vorticity)
Define and compute new variable: DataAlterSpecify
equationsvorticity in x,y plane: v10computeOK.
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Post-Processing (NACA12, 2D contour plot)
Extract 2D slice from 3D geometry: DataExtractSlice
from planez=0.5extract
Post-Processing (NACA12, 2D contour
plots)
2D contour plots on z=0.5 plane (vorticity and eddy
viscosity)
Vorticity z
Eddy viscosity
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Post-Processing (NACA12, 2D contour
plots)
2D contour plots on z=0.5 plane (pressure and
streamwise velocity)
Pressure
Streamwise velocity
Post-Processing (2D velocity vectors)
2D velocity vectors on z=0.5 plane: turn off contour and
activate vector, specify the vector variables.
Zoom in
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Post-Processing (3D Iso-surface plots, contd)
3D Iso-surface plots: pressure, p=constant
3D Iso-surface plots: vorticity magnitude
= x2 + y2 + z2
3D Iso-surface plots: 2 criterion
1 2
p
2
3D Iso-surface plots: Q criterion
Second eigenvalue of
Q=
1
(ij ij Sij Sij )
2
ij = (ui , j u j ,i ) 2
Sij = (ui , j + u j ,i ) 2
Post-Processing (3D Iso-surface plots)
3D Iso-surface plots: used to define the coherent vortical structures,
including pressure, voriticity magnitude, Q criterion, 2, etc.
Iso-surface of vorticity magnitude
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Post-Processing (streamlines)
Streamlines (2D):
Streamlines with contour of pressure
Streaklines and pathlines (not shown here)
Post-Processing (Animations)
Animations (3D): animations can be created by saving CFD
solutions with or without skipping certain number of time steps and
playing the saved frames in a continuous sequence.
Animations are important tools to study time-dependent
developments of vortical/turbulent structures and their interactions
Q=0 4
Q=0.4
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Problem Solving with CFD
The results of a CFD code are:
at best as good as the physics embedded in it.
at worst as good as its operator.
Three mathematical concepts are useful in determining the success
off CFD codes:
d
1) Convergence:
- is a property of a numerical method to produce a solution
which approaches the exact solution as the grid spacing is
reduced to zero.
2) Consistency:
- consistent numerical schemes produce systems of algebraic
equations which are equivalent to the original governing
equations as the grid spacing tend to zero.
3) Stability:
- is associated with damping of errors as the numerical method
proceeds.
A CFD code should also have the following
properties:
Conservativeness:
C
Conservation
ti off a fluid
fl id property
t for
f eachh control
t l
volume.
A numerical scheme which possesses the
conservativeness property also ensure global
conservation of the fluid property over the entire
geometry.
Is achieved by means of consistent fluxes of through
the cell faces of adjacent control volumes.
The finite volume approach guarantees
conservativeness.
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Boundedness:
is crucial for stability and requires that in a linear
problem without sources the solution is bounded by
the maximum and minimum boundary values of the
flow variable.
Transportiveness
is a property that accounts for the directional
property of convection terms.
in co
convection
vect o pphenomena
e o e a a po
pointt oonly
y eexperiences
pe e ces
effects due to changes at upstream locations.
a finite volume scheme should consider the relative
strength of diffusion to convection.
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