Contact UsCFD Thermal Simulation Consulting
Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) models can calculate heat transfer due to conduction, convection, and radiation through fluid and solid regions.
CFD Thermal Simulations
In addition to modeling the fluid flow, computational fluid dynamic (CFD) models can be used to calculate the amount of heat transferred through fluid and solid regions. These models can include the effects of conduction, forced and natural convection, as well as radiation heat transfer.
The term conjugate heat transfer modeling refers to CFD simulations where the temperature distribution and heat flux is calculated throughout the fluid and surrounding solid regions. More complicated heat transfer effects such as phase change due to condensation, evaporation, cavitation, and boiling can also be simulated using Ansys CFD software.
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Recent CFD/Thermal Consulting Projects
Transient Heating in Commercial Autoclaves
With modern composite materials, heating and cooling rates can significantly impact the quality of the final cured part. Achieving a specific heating rate requires detailed analysis of the assembly, as the non-linear interactions between convection, conduction, and radiation make it impossible to predict temperatures at specific locations and times using simplified models or hand calculations. Through CFD analysis, the transient thermal response could be characterized for different configurations of air blowers, heating coils, and changes in component masses. The study enabled several design choices to be made without the limitations of physical testing.
Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) Consulting
The effectiveness of the enzymes responsible for various constituent steps, including denaturing, annealing, and extension, determines how effective any PCR process will be. For the DNA amplification project, a thorough thermal analysis was required from the dimensionless Rayleigh number used in simulation to the real temperature and exposure period encountered in practice.
Steam Turbine Building
The natural and forced convection heat transfer were modeled for an HVAC system for a large industrial building that contained numerous pieces of complex industrial equipment and heat sources. The model was then used to evaluate the HVAC design at several different load conditions and potential layout variations.
Direct Contact Steam Heating Tank
The heating time and thermal mixing of a transient batch direct contact heating process for a nuclear sludge tank were modeled. The model required capturing numerous complex physics, including free surface, multiphase, phase change, Bingham plastic mixing model material models, and long transient duration.
Heat Transfer in a Battery Rack
A conjugate heat transfer (CHT) analysis was conducted where both conduction and convective heat transfer were modeled. The objectives included determining appropriate airflow rate and inlet temperature to meet bulk heat removal goals. Peak temperatures, hot spot locations and overall temperature distribution in the rack were additional outputs.
Tablet and Laptop Thermal Management
The thermal management for a mixed convection-cooled Intel i7 Laptop and a natural convection-cooled ARM tablet were calculated. The temperatures were matched to experimental data. The matching required accurate prediction of the convection, conduction, and radiation heat paths.
Electronic Enclosures
The conductive, radiative, and mixed convective heat transfer were modeled for several commercial chips with three different enclosure designs for a large semiconducting company. Additionally, a Conjugate Heat Transfer (CHT) analysis was used to simulate the exchange of thermal energy between the solid and fluid domains at their interfaces.
MEMS Device
The transient thermal performance of a small MEMS device with a natural convection cooling system was modeled under several different thermal loading cases. A successful MEMS project requires the right expertise and experience, accurate identification of the requirements and specifications for the device + system, intelligent process design, proper device design, and a thorough understanding of the difficulties associated with fabrication, testing, and packaging.
Related Thermal Consulting Projects
Thermal Performance Evaluation of a Steam Generator
SimuTech Group regularly conducts consulting studies to help utilities evaluate thermal performance losses in steam generators (SG) caused by corrosion product accumulation, as well as forecast future rates of thermal degradation. In a recent in-field study for a U.S. utility, SimuTech Group provided the following support and recommendations:
- Evaluation of current SG fouling levels and associated thermal efficiency losses
- Forecasting of future thermal performance losses, including a probabilistic estimate of when power output would begin to decline
- Assessment of efficiency losses in the absence of corrective action
- Economic analysis of potential thermal performance restoration and mitigation strategies, including optimal application frequency based on timing
- Follow-up analysis to evaluate the degree of performance recovery achieved after implementing the recommended maintenance procedures, and to assess the subsequent rate of re-fouling
Modeling of Thermal Fatigue in Reactor Coolant Piping
Thermal fatigue caused by turbulence has led to material degradation and primary water leaks in nuclear facilities. Using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and other numerical solvers, SimuTech Group has supported several power generation-focused organizations in developing high-resolution industrial models to evaluate and mitigate thermal fatigue risks.
SimuTech Group’s capabilities in this area include:
- Thermal, structural, and fatigue analyses combined with CFD modeling of mixing tees in residual heat removal systems
- Validation using high-resolution particle image velocimetry (PIV) and comparison to semi-empirical industrial models
- CFD modeling of turbulent swirl penetration in typically stagnant branch lines, supported by high-resolution PIV data
- Determining piping in-leakage and cross-flow using inverse system analysis
- Modeling and evaluation of crack propagation using customized Python scripts and field observations
Related Ansys CFD Software Capabilities
- Full energy equation, including high-Mach number compressibility effects
- Conduction and convection through solids and fluids, including force and natural (buoyancy-driven) convection
- Radiation models including P1, surface-to-surface, and ray tracing
- Phase change and boiling models
- Temperature-dependent material properties
Delivering Clarity and Confidence Through Advanced Thermal Simulations
The SimuTech CFD engineering team brings extensive experience to thermal modeling projects across a wide range of industries. From autoclaves and thermal dilution catheters to electronics cooling, data center HVAC systems, and EV battery thermal management, our engineers use Ansys CFD tools to uncover meaningful insights into thermal performance. In many cases, the knowledge gained through simulation provides a level of detail and foresight that is difficult or nearly impossible to achieve through physical testing alone. Whether you’re troubleshooting an existing design or optimizing a new concept, SimuTech Group delivers the analysis and support you need to move forward with confidence.
Contact us today to learn how thermal simulation can enhance your product development process.
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