EDITOR’S NOTEDURING THE PAST FEW YEARS, computationalengineering has undergone a number of changes atmany companies around the world. In some cases,customized interfaces have been developed that allownon-CFD analysts to use CFD during the design phaseof new products. In other cases, CAD, CFD, and structuralengineering software packages have been integratedunder a common umbrella so that processesand data can be better managed and shared throughoutthe company. These new trends in engineering areexplored in a series of articles featured in this newsletter.Following an introduction to Simulation Processand Data Management, or SPDM, examples are presentedfrom three different industries that illustrate thebenefits of this new approach to digital engineering.We also are pleased to report on two important eventsthat took place this year. In February, we announcedfive winners of the first annual CFD User of the YearAwards. The categories were chosen to highlight innovation,industrial relevance, business process improvement,impact on society, and design process. An articleon page 30 summarizes the winning entries. InJune, the second biannual European Automotive CFDConference (EACC) was held in Germany, and our supplementis dedicated to this popular event. Over twodozen papers were submitted by authors from aroundthe world, and are available in the form of a <strong>2005</strong>EACC Proceedings CD. A sampling of these papers – incondensed form – appears in the supplement. It isinteresting to note that some of the EACC papers werefocused on our current newsletter theme of customizedand integrated solutions. One of them,Customizing FLUENT to speed-up aerodynamic vehicledevelopment, by Silvestre Artiaga-Hahn from AdamOpel AG, won an award at the EACC, sponsored by HP,for the Best Applied Automotive CFD Paper. A shortenedversion of his paper appears on page 12 of themain newsletter.A number of other interesting stories appear that illustratethe many uses of CFD for industrial purposes andacademic studies. For example, FLUENT has been usedto improve the airflow in a particle separator (p. 14) andthe efficiency of a multi-stage water pump (p. 16).Simulations of a large wind turbine and the flow in itswake are described on page 18, and the use of a virtualblade model to study different modes of flight for theV-22 Osprey aircraft is reported on page 20. The flow inmicrochannels and microreactors continues to be ofinterest among researchers, and in this newsletter, simulationsof a post microreactor are reviewed on page 15.Several student academic projects are described, includingan Airpak simulation of a solar house (p. 25) and aFLUENT simulation of an Olympic kayak (p. 29). Studentfinal projects from a graduate-level CFD course atDartmouth College are summarized on p. 26.In this issue, we introduce a new department: Researchand Development Corner. This space will be used forupdates on projects that are ongoing at <strong>Fluent</strong>. TheSupport Corner continues, with an overview of someof the drag laws available for multiphase simulationsin FLUENT.As with every issue of <strong>Fluent</strong> News, we hope that thearticles inspire you to think about new possibilities foryour own work, whether through built-in physicalmodels, integrated software solutions, or customizedinterfaces. LIZ MARSHALLfluentnews@fluent.com<strong>Fluent</strong> News is published by10 Cavendish Court • Lebanon, NH 03766 USA1-603-643-2600 • www.fluent.com© <strong>2005</strong> <strong>Fluent</strong> Inc. All rights reserved.ON THE COVER:Temperature contours on a heatsink, computed using Icepak througha design portalCourtesy of Aavid ThermalloyON THE SUPPLEMENT COVER:Peugeot 307 underhood thermalmanagement simulation usingFLUENT and visualized by EnSightCourtesy of PSA Peugeot CitroënEditor: Liz MarshallAssistant Editor: Nancy FontaineContributing Editors: Erik Ferguson, Keith Hanna,and Sajitha JayaprakashDesign: Lufkin Graphic DesignsFLUENT, FiDAP, GAMBIT, POLYFLOW, G/Turbo, MixSim,FlowLab, Icepak, Airpak, and FloWizard are trademarks of<strong>Fluent</strong> Inc. Icepak and Airpak are joint developments of<strong>Fluent</strong> Inc. and ICEM-CFD Engineering. All other productsor name brands are trademarks of their respective holders.
CONTENTS2126392519324032372933FEATURESAPPLICATIONS5CUSTOMIZEDSOLUTIONSBetter BusinessThrough Dataand ProcessManagement6How CAEfits into thePLM World7Heat SinkDesign Portal10 Sharpeninga Cyclone’sRecovery Profile13Speeding upAerodynamicVehicleDevelopment14 MINERALSReally FineParticle Separation15 CHEMICALSThe Power ofMicroreactors16 ENVIRONMENTALStaging a BetterPump Design17 HEALTHCAREThe Ins & Outs ofBreathing18POWER GENERATIONThe Economy of LargeScale Wind Turbines20 AEROSPACEThe Osprey Takes Offwith Virtual BladeModeling23 AUTOMOTIVERainwater Collectionby an AutomotiveAir Scoop<strong>Fluent</strong> News · <strong>Summer</strong> <strong>2005</strong> 3
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