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Steady Flow CFD Simulation with ChopMesh and OpenFOAM in 3 Minutes

Running a CFD Simulation in OpenFOAM Made Easy

This tutorial demonstrates how to use ChopMesh and OpenFOAM for CFD simulations.


Requirements:

ChopMesh v1.1.0

Ubuntu on Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL)

ParaView for postprocessing



Getting Started:

• Open ChopMesh.

• If you don’t already have a license, you can request a trial license by navigating to the License Setup option in the top-right corner of the screen.


Step 1: Load Geometry

• Open ChopMesh v1.1.0 and load your geometry.

• Supported file formats: STL or VDB.


Step 2: Define the Meshing Domain

• Choose whether the meshing domain should be inside or outside the surface, based on your application.

• Note: Overset mesh support will be available in the next version.


Step 3: Set Mesh Resolution

• Specify the resolution parameter, (an integer), for the X direction.

• The domain in the X direction will be divided into segments.

• Use the Octree refinement level to refine the mesh further.

• The actual resolution in the X direction will be calculated as , where is the refinement level.


Step 4: Generate the Mesh

• Click to generate the mesh.

• Once completed, you can visualize the mesh in the GUI.


Step 5: Assign Boundary Conditions

• Use the GUI to assign patch boundary conditions.

• Currently, ChopMesh supports up to 6 patches.

• Note: Automatic patch generation is limited to planar surfaces.


Step 6: Set Simulation Parameters

• Configure the simulation settings, including:

Viscosity

Simulation time

Output frequency


Step 7: Export and Run in OpenFOAM

• Export the mesh to OpenFOAM.

• Ensure that the scaling is correct before running the simulation.

• Use the simpleFOAM solver to run the simulation.


Common Issues:

1. Mesh Quality Check

Before running simpleFOAM, use checkMesh to ensure the meshes pass the quality check.

• If the mesh fails, consider increasing the mesh resolution in Step 3.

2. Unit Standardization

We recommend converting the mesh and simulation setup to standard units.

• During the final mesh export step, apply a scaling factor to adjust the length.

• For example, if your geometry was imported in millimetres (mm), use a scaling factor of to convert the mesh to meters (m).

3. Turbulence Models

• If the Reynolds number is high, consider using turbulence models in OpenFOAM.

• Note: Automatic scripting turbulence model will be supported in a future release.

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