Basic terms used in Computational Fluid Dynamics
Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) is a field of engineering that deals with the numerical simulation of fluid flow and heat transfer phenomena. Here are some basic terms commonly used in Computational Fluid Dynamics:
- Fluid: A substance that flows and takes the shape of its container, such as liquids and gases.
- Flow: The movement of fluid particles over time.
- Navier-Stokes Equations: A set of partial differential equations that describe the motion of fluid substances. These equations govern the conservation of mass, momentum, and energy.
- Boundary Conditions: Specifications of fluid properties (e.g., velocity, pressure, temperature) at the boundaries of the computational domain.
- Mesh: A discretized representation of the computational domain, consisting of interconnected geometric elements (e.g., triangles, quadrilaterals, tetrahedra, hexahedra) that cover the entire domain.
- Grid: The structured or unstructured arrangement of nodes and elements that define the mesh.
- Finite Volume Method (FVM): A numerical method used to solve partial differential equations by discretizing the computational domain into control volumes and integrating the governing equations over these volumes.
- Finite Difference Method (FDM): A numerical method used to solve partial differential equations by discretizing the computational domain into a grid of points and approximating derivatives using finite differences.
- Finite Element Method (FEM): A numerical method used to solve partial differential equations by discretizing the computational domain into elements and approximating the solution within each element using piecewise polynomial functions.
- Conservation Laws: Principles that describe the conservation of mass, momentum, and energy in fluid flow and heat transfer processes.
- Turbulence: Chaotic, irregular fluid motion characterized by fluctuations in velocity and pressure. Turbulence modeling is used to predict turbulent flow behavior.
- Reynolds Number (Re): A dimensionless parameter used to characterize the relative importance of inertial forces to viscous forces in a fluid flow. It is defined as the ratio of inertial forces to viscous forces.
- Boundary Layer: A thin layer of fluid adjacent to a solid boundary where the velocity gradients are significant. Boundary layer analysis is important in understanding fluid flow near solid surfaces.
- Drag and Lift: Forces exerted on bodies immersed in fluid flow. Drag is the force acting in the direction of the flow, while lift is the force perpendicular to the flow direction.
- Convergence: The condition where the numerical solution of a CFD simulation stabilizes and no longer changes significantly with additional iterations or time steps.
These are some fundamental terms used in Computational Fluid Dynamics, providing a basis for understanding and discussing fluid flow simulations and analyses.
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