Meshing03 CFD

Workshop 01
Fluid Flow and Heat Transfer in a

Mixing Tee 16.0 Release
Introduction to ANSYS
CFX
© 2015 ANSYS, Inc. February 27, 2015 1 Release 16.0
Introduction
• Introductory tutorial for ANSYS CFX
• Starting from existing mesh
– Mesh generated in earlier tutorial during the DM / Meshing session, if available
• Model set-up, solution and post-processing

• Mixing of cold and hot water in a T-piece
– How well do the fluids mix?
– What are the pressure drops?
It’s a good idea to identify the

key simulation outcomes
from the start. You can use
these to monitor progress of
solution.

Pre-processing steps
• Launch CFX-Pre from Workbench • Launch CFD-Post from an
• Use pre-defined materials existing CFX simulation in
Workbench
• Define the fluid models in a domain
• Rotate, zoom and pan the
• Create & edit objects in CFX-Pre view
• Define boundary conditions • Create contour plots
• Create a plane for use as a
• Set up monitor points using simple
expressions locator
• Create a velocity vector plot
• Use pre-defined views
• Create streamlines of velocity
• Launch the CFX Solver Manager from • Create an isosurface, coloured
Workbench by a separate variable
• Monitor convergence

Start Workbench
• Start Workbench either from the desktop icon or from
– Start > All Programs > ANSYS 16.0 > Workbench 16.0
Before proceeding further

with this workshop, we will
take a look at the Workbench
interface and how a project is
constructed

ANSYS Workbench - Overview
“Analysis Systems” are ready-
The options visible in
made stencils that include all
the Toolbox show all
the individual systems
the products (systems)
(applications) needed for
you have licenses for.
common analyses (e.g.
TIP: If this list appears Geometry + Mesh + Solver +
empty, you have a Post-Processor)
problem with your
licensing! “Component Systems” are the
individual building-blocks for
each stage of the analysis
“Custom Systems” are ready-

made combinations of
“Design Exploration” systems, e.g. for fluid structure
provides tools for interaction, FSI
optimising designs and
understanding the “External Connection
parametric response. Systems” allows integration of
external processes &
customisation
ANSYS Workbench - Basic Workflow
•Dragging an Analysis System on to
the Project Schematic lays out a
workflow, comprising all the steps
needed for a typical analysis.
•Workflow is from top to bottom. As
each stage is complete, the icon at
the right-hand side changes

ANSYS Workbench - Alternative Workflow
An analysis can also be prepared by selecting the individual

Component Systems and linking them together with connectors.
TIP: There are two ways to create the connectors between the
systems:
1) Use the mouse to draw a line (e.g. A2 to B2, B3 to C2 etc.)
2) Or drop the new system on the cell of the upstream one - the
link will be generated automatically.

Your Workbench project – existing project
• If you have attended the ANSYS Meshing course then you can use the
mixing tee mesh from the first workshop of that course (if not then skip
to the slide headed Your Workbench Project – new project, slide 8)
– Open the existing project
– Drag a CFX Component System on to the Mesh cell

Your Workbench project – existing project
• Right-click on the Mesh cell and select Update
– This will convert the mesh format to one that is compatible with ANSYS CFX
– The lightning symbol will change to a green tick
• Next double-click on Setup to open CFX-Pre

Your Workbench project – new project
• If you do not already have a mesh then you will need to import
one into Workbench
– From the Analysis Systems toolbox, drag a Fluid Flow (CFX) Analysis System into
the Project Schematic

Your Workbench project – new project
• Right-click on Mesh and select Import Mesh File
• Select mixing_tee.msh (workshop_input_files\WS_01_Mixing Tee)

– Note: Change the filter on the right side of the file selection box to read Fluent
Files (*.cas,*.msh)
• You can now double-click Setup
to open CFX-Pre

CFX-Pre GUI Overview
• Outline Tree
– To define your simulation, follow
the Outline tree from top to
bottom
– Double-click to edit existing object
– Some items are optional,
depending on your simulation
– New objects are inserted by right-
clicking in the Outline tree
• Message Window
– Warnings, errors and messages
appear here

CFX-Pre GUI Overview - Useful Shortcuts
Icons on Viewer Toolbar Shortcuts to functions
Rotate
Pan + CTRL
Zoom + SHIFT
Box Zoom (Hold while

tracing a box)
Rotate + CTRL
(on screen plane)

CFX-Pre Mesh and Regions
Expand the Mesh The Mesh is

object to see all represented in
3D & 2D mesh Wireframe
regions listed format in the
Viewer
A domain named Default Domain is automatically created from all 3-D regions in the
mesh file(s)
A boundary named Default Domain Default is automatically created from all 2D
regions for each domain

CFX-Pre – Domain settings
The Default Domain contains all imported 3D mesh
regions. If you create new domains, those regions
are automatically removed from the Default
Domain. The Default Domain is automatically
deleted if no unassigned 3D regions remain.
The first step is to change the domain name to
something more meaningful
• Right-click on Default Domain in the Outline

tree
• Select Rename
– The domain name can now be edited
• Change the domain name to junction

CFX-Pre – Domain settings (continued)
• Double-click on the
domain junction
The Domain panel contains three tabs named

Basic Settings, Fluid Models and Initialization.
For more complex simulations additional tabs
may appear
• Set the Material to Water
• The available materials can be found in the
drop-down menu
– Note that CFX has a comprehensive library of
materials. These can be accessed by using the
icon, and then selecting the Import Library Data
icon.

CFX-Pre – Domain settings (continued)
• Click the Fluid Models tab
• In the Heat Transfer section, change Option
to Thermal Energy
– Heat transfer will be modelled. This model is
suitable for incompressible flows
• Leave all other settings as they are
– The k-Epsilon turbulence model will be used,
which is the default
• Click OK to apply the new settings and close
the domain form

Boundary Conditions
The next step is to create the boundary conditions. You will create a cold
inlet, a hot inlet and an outlet. The remaining faces will be set to adiabatic
walls. Currently all external 2D regions are assigned to the junction Default
boundary condition.
Each domain has an automatic default boundary condition for external

surfaces. The default boundary condition is a No Slip, Smooth, Adiabatic wall.
As you create new boundary conditions, those regions are automatically
removed from the default boundary condition.

CFX-Pre – Inlet boundary conditions
Now that the domain is set up, boundary conditions can be added
Cold Inlet
• Right-click on the junction domain
• Select Insert > Boundary
• Set the Name to inlety
• Click OK

• Click on the drop-down menu for

Boundary Type to see the options
available. Leave the field set to Inlet
• Set Location to inlet y

– The available locations can be found in
the drop-down menu

This inlet will have a normal speed of 5m/s
and temperature of 10°C
• Click the Boundary Details tab
• Enter a value of 5 for Normal Speed. The
default units are [m s^-1]
• Enter a value of 10 for Static
Temperature.
– You will need to change the units
• Use the drop-down menu to the right of
the field to change the units to C (Celsius)
• Click OK to apply the boundary and close
the form

Hot Inlet
• Repeating the steps used for the previous
boundary condition, create a new Inlet
boundary called inletz, located on inlet z
• The Normal Speed will be 3 [m s^-1] and
the Static Temperature, 90 [C]

CFX-Pre – Outlet boundary conditions
• Create an Outlet boundary called outlet
and located on outlet
• Click the Boundary Details tab
• Set Relative Pressure to 0 [Pa]
– This is relative to the domain Reference
Pressure, which is 1 [atm]
• Leave all other settings at their default
values
• Click OK
The Average Static Pressure boundary condition allows pressure to float locally on the
boundary while preserving an specified average pressure. If Static Pressure had been
chosen a fixed pressure would be applied at every nodal location on the outlet
boundary
CFX-Pre – Wall boundary conditions
The default boundary condition, junction Default, comprises all the 2D
regions not yet assigned to a boundary condition
• Right-click junction Default, select Rename and change the boundary
name to wall
The default boundary type is an
adiabatic wall, which is appropriate
here. To check, double-click on wall
and select the Boundary Details tab

CCL at a Glance
• Before proceeding you will now take a quick look at CCL (CFX Command
Language). CCL will be covered in detail in a later lecture.
• CCL describes objects in a command language format. You will come
across CCL in all CFX modules. CCL allows you to perform batch
processing and scripting. You can also use it to make changes to your
set-up more quickly.
• Right-click on inlety and select Edit in Command Editor
• Close the Command Editor after taking a quick look

at the CCL definition of the inlet boundary condition

Initialisation
• Initial values must be provided for all solved variables. This gives the solver
a starting point for the solution
• There are two options when setting an initial value for a variable
– Automatic: This will use a previous solution if provided. Otherwise the solver will
generate an initial guess based on the boundary conditions
– Automatic with Value: This will use a previous solution if provided. Otherwise the
value you specify will be used
The solver-generated initial conditions are often good enough as a starting
point. However, in some cases you will need to provide a better starting
point to avoid solver failure
• Initial conditions can be set on a per-domain basis or on a global basis.
Those set per domain take precedence
• You will use Automatic initial conditions and so there is no need to set any
values. Click the Initialization icon to view the settings, and then
close the form

Solver Control
• The Solver Control options set various parameters that are used by the
solver and can affect the speed of convergence and the accuracy of the
results. For this model the default settings are reasonable but will not be
suitable for all simulations
• Double-click on Solver Control from the Outline tree

– The solver will stop after Max. Iterations regardless of the convergence level
– Advection Scheme and Timescale Control will be discussed in a later lecture.

You will not normally need to change the Advection Scheme from the default
option of High Resolution.
– Residuals are a measure of how well the equations have been solved. In this
case the solver will stop when the RMS (Root Mean Squared) residuals have
reached 1.E-4. Tighter convergence is achieved with lower residuals

CFX-Pre – Monitor points
In all engineering flows there are specific variables or quantities of interest.
Sometimes they do not reach a satisfactory value by the time the overall
solution has reached the convergence criteria. So it is always a good idea to
monitor them as the solution progresses. For a steady-state simulation we
want the monitors to settle to a constant value. Variation, particularly if it
follows a repeated pattern, can indicate time dependency. In this simulation
pressure will be monitored at both inlets.
• Double-click Output Control from the
Outline tree
• On the Output Control form, select the
Monitor tab
• Check the Monitor Objects box
• Click the New icon
• Set the Name to p inlety and click OK

CFX-Pre – Monitor points (continued)
• An expression will be used to define the monitor
point. Expressions are written using CFX
Expression Language, CEL, which is covered in a
later lecture.
• Set Option to Expression so that you can enter

the following expression in the Expression Value
field : areaAve(Pressure)@inlety
– The expression calculates the area-weighted
average of pressure at the boundary inlety.
• Note that expressions are case sensitive.

– To avoid syntax errors, right-click in the box to
obtain drop-down menus.
• areaAve is a locator-based function
• Pressure is a variable
• Inlety is a physics locator

CFX-Pre – Monitor points (continued)
• A second monitor point will be used to monitor the pressure at the second
inlet, inletz
• Click the New icon
• Set the Name to p inletz and click OK
• Set Option to Expression
• For Expression Value enter:
areaAve(Pressure)@inletz
• Click OK to apply the settings and close the Output Control form
The monitor points can be viewed during the solution

Solution steps
Workbench
expressions locator

Obtaining a solution
• Close CFX-Pre
– The CFX-Pre case will be saved
automatically
• In Workbench save the project to
MixingTee.wbpj in your working
directory
• Note that now the physics set-up
is complete, the symbol in the
Solution cell of the Analysis
System indicates that it is ready to
be refreshed
• Double-click Solution to launch
the CFX-Solver Manager
The CFX-Solver Manager will start
with the simulation ready to run
• Click Start Run to begin the
solution process
46 iterations are required to reduce the RMS residuals to below the target of
1.0x10-4. The pressure monitor points approach steady values
• Click on the tabs to view the plots of RMS residuals for each equation and the
User Points tab to see the monitor plot.

It is good practice also to check the global
imbalances, i.e. the differences between
flows into and out of the domain. They
can be viewed as plot lines.
• To view plots of imbalances

– Select the New Monitor icon
– Click on OK in the pop-up
– In the Monitor Properties menu that appears,
click on the Plot Lines tab
– Expand the IMBALANCE object

– Check each of the boxes in the tree to switch
on the lines for each equation
– Click on OK to create the monitor plot

• To view plots of imbalances, continued
– To see the plots at the end of the run in more detail, right-click in the window and select Monitor
Properties
– On the Range Settings tab set Timestep Range Mode to Most Recent & Timestep Window Size to 10
– The Energy Imbalance is still decreasing. So we would need to continue the run to improve accuracy

Post-processing Steps
Workbench
expressions locator

Launching CFD-Post
• Close the CFX-Solver

Manager
• Save the project
• Double-click Results to
launch CFD-Post
• The layout is similar to that
of CFX-Pre
• The model is displayed in
wireframe

CFD-Post Overview
• Outline Window
– Lists currently-defined graphics objects,
including boundary conditions and Mesh
Regions.
– To edit an object, double-click or right-click on
the icon
– The check boxes next to each object turn the
visibility on or off in the Viewer
• Details Window
– When you edit an object the Details window
shows the current status of the object

CFD-Post
• As in CFX-Pre, in CFD-Post the Viewer toolbar

buttons allow you to manipulate the view
Shortcut
• Rotate
• Pan Ctrl +
• Zoom Shift +
• Box zoom
• Fit to view
• Rotate on screen plane Ctrl +

CFD-Post
• You can create many different
objects in CFD-Post. The Insert menu
shows a full list but there are toolbar
shortcuts for all items
• Some common object are:
– Location: Points, Lines, Planes,
Surfaces, Volumes
– Vector Plots
– Contour Plots
– Streamline Plots
– Particle Track (if Lagrangian Particle
tracking has been enabled in CFX-Pre)

CFD-Post – Temperature contour plot
In the first step you will plot contours
of temperature on the exterior walls of
the model
• Click the Contour icon from the
toolbar
• Click OK to accept the default name,
Contour 1
• Set Locations to wall

CFD-Post – Temperature contour plot
• Set the Variable to Temperature
– The drop-down menu provides a list of common variables. Use the “…” icon
to access a full list
• Leave the other settings unchanged
• Click Apply to generate the plot

CFD-Post - Temperature contour plot
A temperature contour plot on the walls
is now visible
• Try changing the view using rotate,
zoom and pan. You may find it easier
to use the middle mouse button in
combination with <Ctrl> and <Shift>
• Try clicking on the axes in the bottom
right corner of the Viewer
• Right-click in the Viewer window,
outside the model, to see the options
available for Predefined Camera and
Projection
• See what happens if you use the X, Y and Z keys with and without Shift (make
sure that you have clicked in the Viewer first)
• Use the arrow keys with Shift and with Ctrl

CFD-Post – Creating a plane at x = 0
• First hide the previously created
contour plot by un-checking the
associated box in the tree view
• Click the Location button on the
toolbar and select Plane from the
drop-down menu
• Click OK, accepting the default
name of Plane 1

CFD-Post – Creating a plane at x = 0
• Set Method to YZ Plane
• Leave X set to 0 [m]
• Click Apply to generate the plane

CFD-Post – Creating a velocity vector plot
The plane will be used as a locator for a vector plot
• Hide the plane by un-

checking the associated
box in the tree view
• Click the Vector icon from
the toolbar
• Click OK, accepting the
default name of Vector 1

CFD-Post – Velocity vector plot
• Set Locations to Plane 1
• Leave the Variable field set to Velocity
• Click Apply

CFD-Post – Aligning the view
Given that the vector plot is on a Y-Z plane, you might want to view the plot
along the X axis
• Click on the red x-axis in the

bottom right corner of the
Viewer to orientate the view

CFD-Post – Creating velocity streamlines
• Hide the previously created vector plot, by un-checking the associated
box in the tree view
• Click the Streamline icon from the toolbar
• Click OK, accepting the default name of Streamline 1

CFD-Post – Velocity streamlines
• In the Start From field select both inlety and inletz. Use the ‘…’ icon to
the right of the field and select both locations using the CTRL key
• Leave the Variable field set to Velocity

CFD-Post – Velocity streamlines
• Click the Symbol tab
• Change the Stream Type to Ribbon
• Click Apply
• Examine the streamlines from different views
using rotate, zoom and pan
– The ribbons give a 3-D representation of the flow
direction
– Their colour indicates the velocity magnitude
– Velocity streamlines may be coloured using other
variables e.g. temperature

CFD-Post – Creating a velocity isosurface
• Hide the previously created
streamlines by un-checking the
associated box in the tree view
• Click the Location button on the

toolbar and select Isosurface from
the drop-down menu
• Click OK, accepting the default
name of Isosurface 1

CFD-Post – Velocity isosurface
• Set the Variable to Velocity (magnitude used in this context)
• Enter a value of 7.5 [m s^-1] in the Value field (this is an arbitrary value)
• Click Apply
– The speed is > 7.5 m/s inside the isosurface and < 7.5 m/s outside. Isosurfaces in
general are useful for showing pockets of high velocity, temperature, turbulence,
etc.
– Try values above and below 7.5 m/s

CFD-Post – Velocity isosurface (continued)
By default an isosurface is coloured according with the variable used to create it
(speed in this case) but a different variable can be used
• Click the Color tab
• Set the Mode to Variable
• Set Variable to Temperature
• Set the Range to Local
• Click Apply

Optional Exercise 1
If you have sufficient time available, you could investigate the effect of changes in
the set-up on the pressure drop.
Increase the velocity on inletz to 5 [m s^-1]
• First make a copy of Analysis System A
– Right-click on the first cell and select Duplicate
• Next rename the new system, B

– Right-click on the first cell and select Rename
– Type the name, velocity, in the box
• Now double-click on Setup in the new system so that you can edit inletz in CFX-Pre
• Run the CFX-Solver and check the User Points to see that the values have increased

Optional Exercise 2
Change to a more viscous fluid
• Make a copy of Analysis System A and re-name it glycerol
• Open CFX-Pre and double-click on junction in the Outline tree to edit the domain
• Click on the ‘…’ button for Material and then on to access the list of Library Data
• Select Glycerol C3H8O3 from Constant Property Liquids and click on OK and OK
again to set it as the Material.
• Click on OK for the domain

Optional Exercise 2 continued
• In the Outline tree expand Materials and open up the details
for Glycerol CH8O3
• On the Material Properties tab expand the Transport Properties
section to see the Dynamic Viscosity
• It is 1.495 [Pa s] compared with 0.0008899 [Pa s] for water
• Close CFX-Pre and run the CFX-Solver
• Check the plot of User Points to see the pressure drop

Optional Exercise 3
If you have attended the ANSYS DesignModeler and Meshing courses
then you can see the effect of extending the outlet 16 inches further
downstream
• In ANSYS DesignModeler you can
use the high-y face as the base object
for an extrusion and use the face
normal to define the direction

Optional Exercise 3 continued
• In ANSYS Meshing you will need

to re-apply the Named Selection
called outlet
• One you have re-generated and
updated the mesh, you can refresh
the Setup cell to replace the old mesh
with the new one and then re-run the
CFX-Solver. It will initialise the run
with the previous results and should
take about 34 iterations to converge
• Open the new results in CFD-Post
and view the plots

Further work
There are many ways the simulation in this workshop could be extended
• Better inlet profiles
– current boundary conditions (velocity inlets) assume uniform profiles
– specify profiles (of velocity, turbulence, etc), or
– extend the geometry so that inlets and outlets are further from junction
• Mesh independence
– check that results do not depend on mesh
– run with the Upwind advection scheme (first order) to see how much
the solution differs
– re-run simulations with finer mesh(es)
• Temperature-dependent physical properties
– Density
– Viscosity, etc

Wrap-up
• This workshop has shown the basic steps that are applied in all CFD
simulations:
– Defining Material Properties
– Setting Boundary Conditions and Solver settings
– Running a simulation whilst monitoring quantities of interest
– Postprocessing the results in CFD-Post
• One of the important things to remember in your own work is, before
even starting the ANSYS software, is to think WHY you are performing
the simulation:
– What information are you looking for
– What do you know about the inlet conditions
In this case we were interested in checking the pressure drop, and
assessing the amount of mixing present around this T-piece.
• Knowing your aims from the start will help you make sensible decisions
of how much of the part to simulate, the level of mesh refinement
needed, and which numerical schemes should be selected.

Meshing03 CFD

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Workshop 01

Fluid Flow and Heat Transfer in a

• Model set-up, solution and post-processing

It’s a good idea to identify the

© 2015 ANSYS, Inc. February 27, 2015 2 Release 16.0

© 2015 ANSYS, Inc. February 27, 2015 3 Release 16.0

Before proceeding further

© 2015 ANSYS, Inc. February 27, 2015 4 Release 16.0

“Custom Systems” are ready-

© 2015 ANSYS, Inc. February 27, 2015 6 Release 16.0

An analysis can also be prepared by selecting the individual

© 2015 ANSYS, Inc. February 27, 2015 7 Release 16.0

© 2015 ANSYS, Inc. February 27, 2015 8 Release 16.0

• Next double-click on Setup to open CFX-Pre

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• Select mixing_tee.msh (workshop_input_files\WS_01_Mixing Tee)

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Box Zoom (Hold while

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Expand the Mesh The Mesh is

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• Right-click on Default Domain in the Outline

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The Domain panel contains three tabs named

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Each domain has an automatic default boundary condition for external

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• Click on the drop-down menu for

• Set Location to inlet y

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• Close the Command Editor after taking a quick look

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• Double-click on Solver Control from the Outline tree

– Advection Scheme and Timescale Control will be discussed in a later lecture.

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• Set Option to Expression so that you can enter

• Note that expressions are case sensitive.

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The monitor points can be viewed during the solution

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• To view plots of imbalances

– Expand the IMBALANCE object

– Click on OK to create the monitor plot

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• Close the CFX-Solver

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• As in CFX-Pre, in CFD-Post the Viewer toolbar

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