TriVista’s Computational Fluid Dynamics specialist, Mr Gary McDonald, wrote an editorial in the Business Edge magazine edition 76 [December/January 2024] Page 14 on ” Multi-physics engineering analyses using combined Finite Element Analysis (FEA) and Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) tools. This magazine issue produced by the Sussex Chamber of Commerce was focussed on Advanced engineering and manufacturing in Sussex. He explained how certain products can involve the coupling of different physics with complex interactions. Multiphysics computational analyses enable these complicated interactions to be simulated and the product performance to be optimised. Examples given of Multiphysics analyses are:
• Multi-physics thermal stress and fatigue analyses
For products where heat transfer is highly non-uniform owing to complex geometry or flow features, CFD enables three-dimensional wall heat transfer to be accurately predicted. Static or time varying predictions can then be exported to FEA for more accurate thermal stress or thermal fatigue analyses.
• Multi-physics fluid structural interaction (FSI) simulations
[CFD to FEA]: The full interaction between a product and its operational flow loads are evaluated using CFD and the resultant flow induced structural stresses or deformation are then quantified using FEA. This multi-physics FSI can be used to either avoid harmful flow resonances or evaluate structural fatigue life under a cyclic loading e.g. vortex shedding.
[FEA TO CFD]: FEA predictions are used to predict the product deformation under operational loading and the resulting modified flow field geometry is then used in CFD analysis for more accurate calculation of the product flow performance.
For the above multi-physics analyses, FEA and CFD solvers are directly coupled. Analyses can be fully coupled (two way) feeding information continuously in both directions or can just be connected in a single direction with one solver result serving as the initial condition for the secondary solver solution.
TriVista are now routinely providing multi-physics analyses services helping clients with product analyses.
