Computational Fluid Dynamics Fluent Modeling Course

Seventh-Fluent 6.2 Dynamic Mesh

Lecturer: Ehsan Saadati Shari !niversity o "echnology First Edition -Fall 2##$- %ot Completed Edition ehsan.saadati&gmail.com '''.petrodanesh.ir

Fluent Moving (oundary Dynamic Mesh

Introduction
FLUENT can model flow involving moving reference frames and moving cell zones, using several different approaches, and flow in moving and deforming domains (dynamic meshes) !epending on the level of comple"it# of the motion, and on the flow ph#sics involved, one of FLUENT$s moving cell zone models ma# %e the most suited to #our application The most general model for flow in moving and deforming cell zones in FLUENT is the dynamic mesh model

Introduction
To use the d#namic mesh model, #ou need to provide a starting volume mesh and the description of the motion of an# moving zones in the model FLUENT allows #ou to descri%e the motion using either %oundar# profiles, user'defined functions (U!Fs), or the (i" !egree of Freedom solver ()!*F) The update of the volume mesh is handled automaticall# %# FLUENT at each time step %ased on the new positions of the %oundaries

Introduction
FLUENT e"pects the description of the motion to %e specified on either face or cell zones ,f the model contains moving and non moving regions, #ou need to identif# these regions %# grouping them into their respective face or cell zones in the starting volume mesh that #ou generate Furthermore, regions that are deforming due to motion on their ad-acent regions must also %e grouped into separate zones in the starting volume mesh The %oundar# %etween the various regions need not %e conformal .ou can use the nonconformal or sliding interface capa%ilit# in FLUENT to connect the various zones in the final model

Dynamic Mesh

!pdate Methods
Three groups of mesh motion methods are availa%le in FLUENT to update the volume mesh in the deforming regions su%-ect to the motion defined at the %oundaries0 (moothing methods !#namic la#ering Local remeshing methods

Spring-(ased Smoothing Method

,n the spring'%ased smoothing method, the edges %etween an# two mesh nodes are idealized as a networ1 of interconnected springs The initial spacing of the edges %efore an# %oundar# motion constitute the e2uili%rium state of the mesh 3 displacement at a given %oundar# node will generate a force proportional to the displacement along all the springs connected to the node 3t e2uili%rium, the net force on a node due to all the springs connected to the node must %e zero (ince displacements are 1nown at the %oundaries (after %oundar# node positions have %een updated), E2uation 45 )'6 is solved using a 7aco%i sweep on all interior nodes 3t convergence, the positions are updated

)pplica*ility o the Spring(ased Smoothing Methods

For non'tetrahedral cell zones (non'triangular in 2!), the spring'%ased method is recommended when the following conditions are met0 4 The %oundar# of the cell zone moves predominantl# in one direction (i e , no e"cessive anisotropic stretching or compression of the cell zone) The motion is predominantl# normal to the %oundar# zone

! If these conditions are not met, the resulting cells may have high
skewness values, since not all possible combinations of node pairs in nontetrahedral cells (or non-triangular in 2D) are ideali ed as springs!

Laplacian Smoothing Method

Laplacian smoothing is the most commonl# used and the simplest mesh smoothing method This method ad-usts the location of each mesh verte" to the geometric center of its neigh%oring vertices This method is computationall# ine"pensive %ut it does not guarantee an improvement on mesh 2ualit#, since repositioning a verte" %# Laplacian smoothing can result in poor 2ualit# elements To overcome this pro%lem, FLUENT onl# relocates the verte" to the geometric center of its neigh%oring vertices if and onl# if there is an improvement in the mesh 2ualit# (i e , the s1ewness has %een improved)

Dynamic Layering Method

,n prismatic (he"ahedral and:or wedge) mesh zones, #ou can use d#namic la#ering to add or remove la#ers of cells ad-acent to a moving %oundar#, %ased on the height of the la#er ad-acent to the moving surface The d#namic mesh model in FLUENT allows #ou to specif# an ideal la#er height on each moving %oundar# ,f the cells in la#er - are e"panding, the# cell heights are allowed to increase until0

where hmin is the minimum cell height of cell la#er -, hideal is the ideal cell height, and s is the la#er split factor ;hen this condition is met, the cells are split %ased on the specified la#ering option0 constant height or constant ratio

Dynamic Layering Method

,f the cells in la#er - are %eing compressed, the# can %e compressed until

where c is the la#er collapse factor ;hen this condition is met, the compressed la#er of cells is merged into the la#er of cells a%ove the compressed la#er<

)pplica*ility o the Dynamic Layering Method

You can use the dynamic layering method to split or merge cells adjacent to any moving boundary provided the following conditions are met: 3ll cells ad-acent to the moving face zone are either wedges or he"ahedra (2uadrilaterals in 2!) The cell la#ers must %e completel# %ounded %# one'sided face zones, e"cept when sliding interfaces are used ,f the %ounding face zones are two'sided walls, #ou must split the wall and wallshadow pair and use the coupled sliding interface option to couple the two ad-acent cell zones Note that #ou cannot use the d#namic la#ering method in con-unction with hanging node adaption

+emeshing Methods
*n zones with a triangular or tetrahedral mesh, the spring'%ased smoothing method is normall# used The availa%le remeshing methods in FLUENT wor1 for triangular' tetrahedral zones and mi"ed zones where the non' triangular:tetrahedral elements are s1ipped The e"ception is the 2 /! model, where the availa%le remeshing method onl# wor1 on wedges e"truded from triangular surfaces

Local +emeshing Method

Using the local remeshing method, FLUENT mar1s cells %ased on cell s1ewness and minimum and ma"imum length scales as well as an optional sizing function FLUENT evaluates each cell and marks it for remeshing if it meets one or more of the following criteria: ,t has a s1ewness that is greater than a specified ma"imum s1ewness ,t is smaller than a specified minimum length scale ,t is larger than a specified ma"imum length scale ,ts height does not meet the specified length scale (at moving face zones, e g , a%ove a moving piston)
,n addition to remeshing the volume mesh, FLUENT also allows triangular and linear faces on a deforming %oundar# to %e remeshed FLUENT mar1s deforming %oundar# faces for remeshing %ased on moving an deforming loops of faces .ou can use the local remeshing method onl# in cell zones that contain tetrahedral or triangular cells Note that #ou cannot use the face region remeshing method in con-unction with hanging node adaption

2.,D Sur ace +emeshing Method

The 2 /! surface remeshing method onl# applies to e"truded &! geometries and is similar to local remeshing in two dimensions on a triangular surface mesh (not a mi"ed zone) Faces on a deforming %oundar# are mar1ed for remeshing %ased on face s1ewness, minimum and ma"imum length scale and an optional sizing function

)pplica*ility o the 2.,D Sur ace +emeshing Method

The following applies to the 2.5D surface remeshing method:
Triangular faces get remeshed %ased on mar1ing E"truded prisms get remeshed %ased on the remeshing of the triangular face *nl# e"truded regions get remeshed, not mi"ed regions Note that #ou cannot use the 2 /! surface remeshing method in con-unction with hanging node adaption

Local +emeshing (ased on Si-e Functions

,nstead of mar1ing cells %ased on minimum and ma"imum length scales, FLUENT also mar1s cells %ased on the size distri%ution generated %# the sizing function if the (izing Function option under *ptions is ena%led Local remeshing using size functions can %e used with the following remeshing methods0 ' local remeshing -2.5 surface remeshing

Solid-(ody .inematics
FLUENT uses solid'%od# 1inematics if the motion is prescri%ed %ased on the position and orientation of the center of gravit# of a moving o%-ect This is applica%le to %oth cell and face zones The motion of the solid'%od# can %e specified either as a profile or as a user'defined function (U!F)

! "rofile ma# $e defined $# the following "rofile fields: time %time& crank angle %angle& %in-c#linder flows onl#& "osition %'( #( )& linear velocit# %'( #( )& angular velocit# %'( #( )& orientation %'( #( )&

Solid-(ody .inematics
=# default FLUENT assumes that the motion is specified in the inertial coordinate s#stem >owever, it is also possi%le to prescri%e the motion relative to the coordinate s#stem

/ro*lem Setup or Dynamic Meshes

4 Ena%le the appropriate option for modeling unstead# flow in the (olver panel 2 (et %oundar# conditions as re2uired & Ena%le the d#namic mesh model, and specif# related parameters + (pecif# the motion of the d#namic zones in #our model / .ou can displa# the motion of the moving zones with prescri%ed motion to verif# the simulation setup ) !efine the events that will occur during the calculation 8 (ave case and data 6 ?review #our d#namic mesh setup (when the motion is a prescri%ed motion)
9 (pecif# the pressure'velocit# coupling scheme For transient flow calculations, the ?,(* algorithm is recommended, as it is the most efficient for such cases

45 Use the automatic saving feature to specif# the name and fre2uenc# with which case and data les should %e saved during the solution process

Setting /arameters
for Dynamic Mesh Modeling
To ena%le the d#namic mesh model, turn on !#namic @esh in the !#namic @esh ?arameters panel

Setting /arameters
for Dynamic Mesh Modeling
,f #ou are modeling in'c#linder motion, turn on the ,n'A#linder option ,f #ou are modeling 2 /! applications (e g , pumps), turn on the 2 /! option (&! flows onl#) ,f #ou are going to use the si" degrees of freedom solver, then turn on the (i" !*F (olver option

Setting Mesh !pdate /arameters

moothing
To turn on spring'%ased (or Laplacian smoothing if the 2 /! model is ena%led), ena%le the (moothing option under @esh @ethods in the !#namic @esh panel The relevant parameters are specified in the (moothing ta%

Spring-(ased Smoothing
.ou can control the spring stiffness %# ad-usting the value of the (pring Aonstant Factor %etween 5 and 4 3 value of 5 indicates that there is no damping on the springs, and %oundar# node displacements have more influence on the motion of the interior nodes 3 value of 4 imposes the default level of damping on the interior node displacements as determined %# solving related E2uation The effect of the (pring Aonstant Factor is illustrated in front Figures, which show the trailing edge of a N3A3'5542 airfoil after a countercloc1wise rotation of 2 &B and the mesh is smoothed using the spring'%ased smoother %ut limited to 25 iterations

Spring Constant 0.#

Spring Constant #.#

Spring-(ased Smoothing
,f #our model contains deforming %oundar# zones, #ou can use the =oundar# Node Cela"ation to control how the node positions on the deforming %oundaries are updated 3 value of 5 prevents deforming %oundar# nodes from moving (e2uivalent to turning no smoothing on deforming %oundar# zones) and a value of 4 indicates no under' rela"ation

.ou can control the solution of Cemeshing E2uation using the values of Aonvergence Tolerance and Num%er of ,terations FLUENT solves remeshing E2uation iterativel# during each time step until one of the criteria are met

Laplacian Smoothing
Note that for 2 /! modeling (&! flows onl#), #ou can onl# change the =oundar# Node Cela"ation and the Num%er of ,terations Note that the Num%er of ,terations is used for %oth spring'%ased and Laplacian smoothing

Dynamic Layering
.ou can control how a cell la#er is split %# specif#ing either Aonstant >eight or Aonstant Catio under *ptions The (plit Factor and Aollapse Factor are the factors that determine when a la#er of cells (he"ahedra or wedges in &!, or 2uadrilaterals in 2!) that is ne"t to a moving %oundar# is split or merged with the ad-acent cell la#er, respectivel#

+emeshing
,n local remeshing, FLUENT agglomerates cells %ased on s1ewness, size, and height (ad-acent moving face zones) The value of @a"imum Aell (1ewness indicates the desired s1ewness of the mesh =# default, the @a"imum Aell (1ewness is set to 5 9 for &! simulations and 5 ) for 2! simulations Aells with s1ewness a%ove the ma"imum s1ewness are mar1ed for remeshing The size criteria are specified with @inimum Length (cale and @a"imum Length (cale Aells with length scales %elow the minimum length scale and a%ove the ma"imum length scale are mar1ed for remeshing

+emeshing
For &! simulations, the Face Cemeshing option is availa%le, allowing #ou the convenience of remeshing deforming %oundar# faces if #ou so desire

=# default, FLUENT replaces the agglomerated cells onl# if the 2ualit# of the remeshed cells has improved >owever, #ou can override this %ehavior %# disa%ling @ust ,mprove (1ewness under *ptions

+emeshing
;hen #ou use the (ize Function remeshing option, #ou can control three parameters that govern the size function .ou can specif# the (ize Function Cesolution, the (ize Function Dariation, and the (ize Function Cate or #ou can return to FLUENT$s default values %# using the Use !efaults %utton

The (ize Function Cesolution controls the densit# of the %ac1ground grid The (ize Function Dariation is the measure of the ma"imum permissi%le cell size and it ranges from 4 to infinite

The (ize Function Cate is the measure of the rate of growth of the cell size, and it ranges from '5 99 to E5 99

Setting 1n-Cylinder /arameters

,f #ou turn on the ,n'A#linder model in the !#namic @esh ?arameters panel , #ou need to specif# the Aran1 (haft (peed, the (tarting Aran1 3ngle, and the Aran1 ?eriod which are used to convert %etween flow time and cran1 angle

Setting 1n-Cylinder /arameters

FLUENT provides a %uilt'in function to calculate the piston location as a function of cran1 angle ,f the piston motion is specified using this function, #ou need to specif# the ?iston (tro1e and Aonnecting Cod Length The piston location is calculated using

% 2 2 2

C t o

l p om

d e et

where ps is the piston location (5) at top'dead'center (T!A) and 3 at %ottom' dead'center (=!A)), L is the connecting rod length, 3 is the piston stro1e, and c is the current cran1 angle

Dynamic !esh D"#I$" !acros

This section contains descriptions of !EF,NE macros that #ou can use to define U!Fs that control the %ehavior of a d#namic mesh Note that d#namic mesh U!Fs that are defined using !EF,NEFAGF@*T,*N, !EF,NEFGE*@, and !EF,NEFGC,!F@*T,*N can onl# %e e"ecuted as compiled U!Fs

D"#I$"%&'%!(TI($
.ou can use !EF,NEFAGF@*T,*N to specif# the motion of a particular d#namic zone in #)*"$T %# providing #)*"$T with the linear and angular velocities at ever# time step #)*"$T uses these velocities to update the node positions on the d#namic zone %ased on solid'%od# motion Note that U!Fs that are defined using !EF,NEFAGF@*T,*N can onl# %e e"ecuted as compiled U!Fs

D"#I$"%&'%!(TI($

D"#I$"%&'%!(TI($

D"#I$"%'"(!
.ou can use !EF,NEFGE*@ to specif# the geometr# of a deforming zone =# default, #)*"$T provides a mechanism for defining node motion along a planar or c#lindrical surface ;hen #)*"$T updates a node on a deforming zone (e g , through spring'%ased smoothing or after local face re'meshing) the node is Hrepositioned$$ %# calling the !EF,NEFGE*@ U!F Note that U!Fs that are defined using !EF,NEFGE*@ can onl# %e e"ecuted as compiled U!Fs

D"#I$"%'"(!

The "nd
=#0 Ehsan (aadati
?ardad ?etrodanesh Ao ehsan saadatiIgmail com Find out more at0 www petrodanesh ir www petrodanesh com