CFDanalyysit

CFD analyses (Finnish: CFD-analyysit) are computational analyses of fluid flow, heat transfer, chemical species transport, and related phenomena performed using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) techniques. They are used across engineering and science to predict how fluids behave in complex geometries where experiments are difficult or expensive.

A typical CFD analysis involves defining the physical problem, creating a geometric model, generating a mesh, selecting governing equations and models (such as the Navier–Stokes equations with turbulence models), and specifying boundary and initial conditions. The problem is then solved numerically, and results are post-processed to obtain quantities such as velocity fields, pressure distributions, wall shear, temperature, heat transfer rates, and species concentrations.

Analyses can be steady or unsteady, two- or three-dimensional, and can treat incompressible or compressible flow. Turbulence modeling, multiphase flow, heat transfer, and chemical reactions are common features, depending on the application. Verification and validation are important; grid independence studies, benchmarking against analytical solutions, and experimental data help assess accuracy.

CFD analyses are performed with commercial software (e.g., ANSYS Fluent, STAR-CCM+, COMSOL) and open-source tools (e.g., OpenFOAM). They enable applications in aerospace, automotive and energy design, HVAC and buildings, environmental studies, and process engineering. Limitations include computational cost, model assumptions, and potential numerical errors, so results are typically used alongside experiments and other analyses.