Computational Fluid Dynamics

(CFD)
U7AEA29
Dr. S. Senthil Kumar
Associate Professor
Dept. of Aeronautical Engineering
Vel Tech Dr. RR & Dr. SR Technical University
Avadi, Chennai
.

Outline
What

is CFD?
Why use CFD?
Where is CFD used?
Physics
Modeling
Numerics
CFD process
Resources

What is CFD?

What is CFD and its objective?

Computational Fluid Dynamics

Historically Analytical Fluid Dynamics (AFD) and EFD
(Experimental Fluid Dynamics) was used. CFD has become
feasible due to the advent of high speed digital computers.
Computer simulation for prediction of fluid-flow phenomena.
The objective of CFD is to model the continuous fluids with
Partial Differential Equations (PDEs) and discretize PDEs into
an algebra problem (Taylor series), solve it, validate it and
achieve simulation based design.

Why use CFD?

Why

use CFD?

Analysis and Design

Simulation-based design instead of build & test

More cost effectively and more rapidly than with experiments
CFD solution provides high-fidelity database for interrogation of
flow field

Simulation of physical fluid phenomena that are difficult to be

measured by experiments
Scale simulations (e.g., full-scale ships, airplanes)
Hazards (e.g., explosions, radiation, pollution)
Physics (e.g., weather prediction, planetary boundary layer, stellar
evolution)

Knowledge and exploration of flow physics

Where is CFD used? (Aerospace)

Where is CFD used?
Aerospace

Appliances
Automotive
Biomedical
Chemical Processing
HVAC&R
Hydraulics
Marine
Oil & Gas
Power Generation
Sports

F18 Store Separation

Wing-Body Interaction

Hypersonic Launch
Vehicle

Where is CFD used? (Appliances)

Where is CFD used?
Aerospace

Appliances

Automotive
Biomedical
Chemical Processing
HVAC&R
Hydraulics
Marine
Oil & Gas
Power Generation
Sports

Surface-heat-flux plots of the No-Frost

refrigerator and freezer compartments helped
BOSCH-SIEMENS engineers to optimize the
location of air inlets.
7

Where is CFD used? (Automotive)

Where is CFD used?
Aerospace
Appliances

Automotive

Biomedical
Chemical Processing
HVAC&R
Hydraulics
Marine
Oil & Gas
Power Generation
Sports

External Aerodynamics

Interior Ventilation

Undercarriage
Aerodynamics

Engine Cooling 8

Where is CFD used? (Biomedical)

Where is CFD used?
Aerospace
Appliances
Automotive

Biomedical

Chemical Processing
HVAC&R
Hydraulics
Marine
Oil & Gas
Power Generation
Sports

Medtronic Blood Pump

Temperature and natural

convection currents in the eye
following laser heating.

Where is CFD used? (Chemical Processing)

Where is CFD used?

Aerospace
Appliances
Automotive
Biomedical

Chemical Processing

HVAC&R
Hydraulics
Marine
Oil & Gas
Power Generation
Sports

Polymerization reactor vessel - prediction

of flow separation and residence time
effects.

Twin-screw extruder
modeling

Shear rate distribution in twinscrew extruder simulation

10

Where is CFD used? (HVAC&R)

Where is CFD used?

Aerospace
Appliances
Automotive
Biomedical
Chemical Processing

Streamlines for workstation

ventilation

HVAC&R

Hydraulics
Marine
Oil & Gas
Power Generation
Sports
Mean age of air contours indicate
location of fresh supply air

Particle traces of copier VOC emissions

colored by concentration level fall
behind the copier and then circulate
through the room before exiting the
exhaust.

Flow pathlines colored by

pressure quantify head loss
in ductwork
11

Where is CFD used? (Hydraulics)

Where is CFD used?

Aerospace
Appliances
Automotive
Biomedical
Chemical Processing
HVAC&R

Hydraulics

Marine
Oil & Gas
Power Generation
Sports
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Where is CFD used? (Marine)

Where is CFD used?

Aerospace
Appliances
Automotive
Biomedical
Chemical Processing
HVAC&R
Hydraulics

Marine
Oil & Gas
Power Generation
Sports
13

Where is CFD used? (Oil & Gas)

Where is CFD used?

Aerospace
Appliances
Automotive
Biomedical
Chemical Processing
HVAC&R
Hydraulics
Marine

Volume fraction of gas

Flow vectors and pressure

distribution on an offshore oil rig

Volume fraction of oil

Volume fraction of water

Analysis of multiphase
separator

Oil & Gas

Power Generation
Sports
Flow of lubricating
mud over drill bit

14

Where is CFD used? (Power Generation)

Where is CFD used?

Aerospace
Appliances
Automotive
Biomedical
Chemical Processing
HVAC&R
Hydraulics
Marine
Oil & Gas

Flow around cooling

towers

Flow in a
burner

Power Generation
Sports
Flow pattern through a water
turbine.

Pathlines from the inlet

colored by temperature
during standard 15
operating conditions

Where is CFD used? (Sports)

Where is CFD used?
Aerospace

Appliances
Automotive
Biomedical
Chemical Processing
HVAC&R
Hydraulics
Marine
Oil & Gas
Power Generation

Sports
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Physics
CFD

codes typically designed for representation of

specific flow phenomenon

Viscous vs. inviscid (no viscous forces) (Re)

Turbulent vs. laminar (Re)
Incompressible vs. compressible (Ma)
Single- vs. multi-phase (Ca)
Thermal/density effects and energy equation (Pr, , Gr, Ec)
Free-surface flow and surface tension (Fr, We)
Chemical reactions, mass transfer
etc

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Physics
Fluid Mechanics
Inviscid

Viscous
Laminar

Compressible
(air, acoustic)

Incompressible
(water)

Internal
(pipe,valve)

Turbulence
External
(airfoil, ship)

Components of Fluid Mechanics

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Navier-Stokes Equation

Claude-Louis Navier

George Gabriel Stokes

D
2

v p v g
Dt
19

Modeling

Mathematical representation of the physical problem

Some problems are exact (e.g., laminar pipe flow)
Exact solutions only exist for some simple cases. In these cases nonlinear
terms can be dropped from the N-S equations which allow analytical solution.
Most cases require models for flow behavior [e.g., Reynolds Averaged Navier
Stokes equations (RANS) or Large Eddy Simulation (LES) for turbulent
flow]
Initial Boundary Value Problem (IBVP), include: governing Partial
Differential Equations (PDEs), Initial Conditions (ICs) and Boundary Conditions
(BCs)

20

Governing Equations (B,S,& L)

(Equations based on average velocity)
v

ux u y uz 0
t x
y
z

Continuity
u x

u
u
u
p

u x x u y x u z x

xx yx zx g x
x
y
z
x x
y
z
t

x - Equation of motion

21

Numerics / Discretization
Computational

solution of the IBVP

Method dependent upon the model equations and
physics
Several components to formulation
Discretization and linearization
Assembly of system of algebraic equations
Solve the system and get approximate solutions

22

Finite Differences
u

i, j

ui 1, j ui , j

2u

2
x

x
i, j

Finite difference
representation

3u
x 3

x 2
i, j

Truncation error

Methods of Solution
Direct methods
Cramers Rule, Gauss elimination
LU decomposition

Iterative methods
Jacobi method, Gauss-Seidel
Method, SOR method
23

Numeric Solution
(Finite Differences)
ui 1, j

jmax
j+1
j
j-1

u
ui , j

2u

x
2
i, j
x

x 3u
x 3
2

i, j

i, j

i-1 i i+1

imax

Discrete Grid Points

Taylors Series Expansion

u i,j = velocity of fluid
x
24

CFD process
Geometry

description
Specification of flow conditions and properties
Selection of models
Specification of initial and boundary conditions
Grid generation and transformation
Specification of numerical parameters
Flow solution
Post processing: Analysis, and visualization

25

Geometry description
Typical

approaches

Make assumptions and

simplifications
CAD/CAE integration
Engineering drawings
Coordinates include Cartesian
system (x,y,z), cylindrical system (r,
, z), and spherical system(r, , )

26

Selection of models for flow field

Direct Numerical Simulations (DNS) is to solve the N-S equations

directly without any modeling. Grid must be fine enough to resolve
all flow scales. Applied for laminar flow and rare be used in
turbulent flow.
Reynolds Averaged Navier-Stokes (NS) equations (RANS) is to
perform averaging of NS equations and establishing turbulent
models for the eddy viscosity. Too many averaging might damping
vortical structures in turbulent flows
Large Eddy Simulation (LES), Smagorinsky constant model and
dynamic model. Provide more instantaneous information than
RANS did. Instability in complex geometries
Detached Eddy Simulation (DES) is to use one single formulation
to combine the advantages of RANS and LES.

27

CFD - how it works

Analysis begins with a mathematical

model of a physical problem.
Conservation of matter, momentum, and
energy must be satisfied throughout the
region of interest.
Fluid properties are modeled
empirically.
Simplifying assumptions are made in
order to make the problem tractable
(e.g., steady-state, incompressible,
inviscid, two-dimensional).
Provide appropriate initial and
boundary conditions for the problem.

Filling
Nozzle
Bottle

Domain for bottle filling

problem.

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CFD - how it works (2)

CFD applies numerical methods (called

discretization) to develop approximations of the
governing equations of fluid mechanics in the fluid
region of interest.
Governing differential equations: algebraic.
The collection of cells is called the grid.
The set of algebraic equations are solved
numerically (on a computer) for the flow field
variables at each node or cell.
System of equations are solved simultaneously to
provide solution.
The solution is post-processed to extract quantities of
interest (e.g. lift, drag, torque, heat transfer,
separation, pressure loss, etc.).

Mesh for bottle filling

problem.

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Discretization
Domain is discretized into a finite set of control volumes
or cells. The discretized domain is called the grid or the mesh.
General conservation (transport) equations for mass, momentum, energy,
etc., are discretized into algebraic equations.
All equations are solved to render flow field.

dV V dA dA S dV
t V
A
A
V
unsteady

convection

Eqn.
continuity
x-mom.
y-mom.
energy

diffusion

1
u
v
h

generation

control
volume

Fluid region of
pipe flow
discretized into
finite set of
control volumes
(mesh).

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Design and create the grid

Should you use a quad/hex grid, a tri/tet grid, a hybrid grid, or a

non-conformal grid?
What degree of grid resolution is required in each region of the
domain?
How many cells are required for the problem?
Will you use adaption to add resolution?
Do you have sufficient computer memory?
tetrahedron

hexahedron

pyramid

triangle
arbitrary polyhedron

prism or wedge

quadrilateral
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Tri/tet vs. quad/hex meshes

For simple geometries, quad/hex

meshes can provide high-quality
solutions with fewer cells than a
comparable tri/tet mesh.

For complex geometries, quad/hex

meshes show no numerical
advantage, and you can save
meshing effort by using a tri/tet
mesh.

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Hybrid mesh example

Valve port grid.

Specific regions can be meshed with
different cell types.
Both efficiency and accuracy are
enhanced relative to a hexahedral or
tetrahedral mesh alone.

tet mesh
hex mesh

wedge mesh
Hybrid mesh for an
IC engine valve port
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Dinosaur mesh example

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Set up the numerical model

For a given problem, you will need to:

Select appropriate physical models.
Turbulence, combustion, multiphase, etc.
Define material properties.
Fluid.
Solid.
Mixture.
Prescribe operating conditions.
Prescribe boundary conditions at all boundary zones.
Provide an initial solution.
Set up solver controls.
Set up convergence monitors.

35

Initial and boundary conditions

For

steady/unsteady flow

IC should not affect final solution, only convergence path, i.e.

iteration numbers needed to get the converged solution.
Robust codes should start most problems from very crude IC, .
But more reasonable guess can speed up the convergence.

Boundary

conditions

No-slip or slip-free on the wall, periodic, inlet (velocity

inlet, mass flow rate, constant pressure, etc.), outlet

(constant pressure, velocity convective, buffer zone,
zero-gradient), and non-reflecting (compressible flows,
such as acoustics), etc.

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Compute the solution

The discretized conservation equations are solved iteratively. A number

of iterations are usually required to reach a converged solution.
Convergence is reached when:
Changes in solution variables from one iteration to the next are
negligible.
Residuals provide a mechanism to help monitor this trend.
Overall property conservation is achieved.
The accuracy of a converged solution is dependent upon:
Appropriateness and accuracy of the physical models.
Grid resolution and independence.
Problem setup.

37

Numerical parameters & flow

solution
Typical

time
history of
residuals
The closer the
flow field to the
converged
solution, the
smaller the speed
of the residuals
decreasing.

Solution converged, residuals do

not change after more iterations
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Post-processing

Analysis, and visualization

Calculation of derived variables

Vorticity
Wall shear stress
Calculation of integral parameters: forces, moments
Visualization (usually with commercial software)
Simple X-Y plots
Simple 2D contours
3D contour carpet plots
Vector plots and streamlines (streamlines are the lines
whose tangent direction is the same as the velocity vectors)
Animations (dozens of sample pictures in a series of time
were shown continuously)

39

Examine the results

Visualization can be used to answer such questions as:

What is the overall flow pattern?
Is there separation?
Where do shocks, shear layers, etc. form?
Are key flow features being resolved?
Are physical models and boundary conditions appropriate?
Numerical reporting tools can be used to calculate quantitative
results, e.g:
Lift, drag, and torque.
Average heat transfer coefficients.
Surface-averaged quantities.

40

Velocity vectors around a

dinosaur

41

Velocity magnitude (0-6 m/s)

on a dinosaur

42

Pressure field on a dinosaur

43

Advantages of CFD

Relatively low cost.

Using physical experiments and tests to get essential engineering data for
design can be expensive.
CFD simulations are relatively inexpensive, and costs are likely to decrease
as computers become more powerful.
Speed.
CFD simulations can be executed in a short period of time.
Quick turnaround means engineering data can be introduced early in the
design process.
Ability to simulate real conditions.
Many flow and heat transfer processes can not be (easily) tested, e.g.
hypersonic flow.
CFD provides the ability to theoretically simulate any physical condition.

44

Limitations of CFD

Physical models.
CFD solutions rely upon physical models of real world processes (e.g.
turbulence, compressibility, chemistry, multiphase flow, etc.).
The CFD solutions can only be as accurate as the physical models on
which they are based.
Numerical errors.
Solving equations on a computer invariably introduces numerical errors.
Round-off error: due to finite word size available on the computer.
Round-off errors will always exist (though they can be small in most
cases).
Truncation error: due to approximations in the numerical models.
Truncation errors will go to zero as the grid is refined. Mesh refinement is
one way to deal with truncation error.

45

Limitations of CFD (2)

Boundary conditions.
As with physical models, the accuracy of the CFD solution
is only as good as the initial/boundary conditions provided
to the numerical model.
Example: flow in a duct with sudden expansion. If flow is
supplied to domain by a pipe, you should use a fullydeveloped profile for velocity rather than assume uniform
conditions.
Computational
Domain

Computational
Domain

Uniform Inlet
Profile

Fully Developed Inlet

Profile

poor

better

46

Software and resources

CFD software was built upon physics, modeling, numerics.
Two types of available software
Commercial (e.g., FLUENT, CFX, Star-CD)
Research (e.g., CFDSHIP-IOWA, U2RANS)
More information on CFD can be got on the following website:
CFD Online: http://www.cfd-online.com/
CFD software
FLUENT: http://www.fluent.com/
CFDRC: http://www.cfdrc.com/
Computational Dynamics: http://www.cd.co.uk/
CFX/AEA: http://www.software.aeat.com/cfx/
Grid generation software
Gridgen: http://www.pointwise.com
GridPro: http://www.gridpro.com/
Hypermesh
Visualization software
Tecplot: http://www.amtec.com/
Fieldview: http://www.ilight.com/

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THANK YOU

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