CFD-Intro 14.0 L-04 Introduction To Ansys Meshing

Lecture 4
Introduction to ANSYS Meshing

14. 0 Release
Introduction to ANSYS
14.0 CFD
1 © 2011 ANSYS, Inc. April 25, 2012 Release 14.0
Preprocessing Workflow
Geometry Creation
Geometry
OR Meshing Solver
Operations
Geometry Import
Sketches and Meshing

3D Operations
Planes Methods
Boolean, Body Hybrid Mesh: Tet,

Operations, Split, Prisms, Pyramids
3D Operations
etc
Extrude, Revolve, Hexa Dominant,

Sweep, etc Sweep meshing
Geometry
Cleanup and Assembly
Repair Meshing
Geometry Import
Options
Automatic Global Mesh
Cleanup
Direct CAD/Bi-
Settings
Directional CAD
Merge, Connect,
Projection, Flow
Local Mesh
Volume Settings
Extraction, etc
Sizing,
Body/Sphere of
Influence, Match
Control, etc

What is ANSYS Meshing?
ANSYS Meshing is a component of ANSYS Workbench

• Next generation meshing platform
• Combines strengths of preprocessing offerings from ANSYS: ICEM CFD,
TGRID, CFX-Mesh, Gambit
– Plan to complete full integration by R15
Creates Mesh for different Physics and Solvers

• CFD: Fluent, CFX and POLYFLOW
• Mechanical: Explicit dynamics, Implicit
• Electromagnetic
Integrates directly with other WB systems

Meshing Process in ANSYS Meshing
Physics, Sizing, Inflation, Pinch, etc.

Adjust settings if necessary
Sizing, Refine, Pinch, Inflation, etc
Preview Surface Mesh, Inflation
Mesh Metrics, Charts

Launching ANSYS Meshing
From Analysis Systems From Component Systems

Ex: Fluid Flow (Fluent), Fluid Flow (CFX) Ex: Mesh
• ANSYS Meshing is launched within Workbench

• Double click Mesh in the System or right click and select Edit
ANSYS Meshing Graphics User Interface
Toolbars
Outline Graphics
Window
Details
View
Message
Window
Status/Info
Bar Units Bar
6 © 2011 ANSYS, Inc. April 25, 2012 Entity Details Bar Release 14.0
Outline
The Outline contains three default sections

• Geometry
– Bodies
• Coordinate Systems
RMB click on Mesh
– Default global & user defined systems
• Mesh
– Meshing operations (controls & methods)
displayed in the order in which they are
inserted
Right clicking on any object in the tree
Right click context
launches a context sensitive menu menu for Mesh
– Example: Context menu for mesh object object
contains commands to generate, preview,
clear mesh etc.

Details View
Accessing Object Details

• If an object in the Outline is selected
details relating to that object are
displayed in the Details View below
– Example: Selecting a body (“Fluid”)
in the Outline displays Details of
“Fluid” which contains graphical
and geometric details
– For access to meshing details click
the Mesh object or any of the
inserted objects
• The Details View provides options to

review, edit or input values for every
object in the Tree

Geometry Configuration – Multiple Parts
Handling of Multiple Parts

Contact Region
• When multiple parts are attached to
a Meshing session a ‘Contact Region’
is automatically created between
those parts
• 2 Faces at Contact Region
• Each part meshed independently
– Results in a non-conformal
interface between the two parts
(mesh nodes on bodies do not line
up and are not connected)
– Grid Interface in Fluent or GGI in
CFX can be defined for the faces at
the contact region
Independent
Faces
Geometry Configuration – Multi-Body
Parts
Handling of Multi-Body Parts
• In DM, where Shared Topology is set
to Automatic (default) DM Part
– Faces in contact imprinted & fused Details
to form a single face shared
between the two bodies
– Results in Conformal mesh
– Common face acts as ‘Interior’ zone
in Fluent
Common
Shared Face

Geometry Configuration – Multi-body
Parts
Handling of Multi-Body Parts
• In DM, where Shared Topology is set
to Imprints
– The boundaries of the faces at
contact region are imprinted on
each other resulting in ‘like’ faces
– Contact Region is automatically
created at ‘like’ faces
– Results in Non-conformal interface
Two Like Faces
– Grid Interface in Fluent or GGI in
CFX can be defined for the faces at
the contact region
– To create identical mesh on the
‘like’ faces use ‘Match Control’
option (mesh will remain
unconnected)
Meshing Methods for 3D Geometry
Six meshing methods available for 3D geometries:

• Tetrahedrons
– Patch Conforming (TGrid based) & Patch Independent (ICEM
CFD based)
• Sweep
– Generates prisms or hexahedral
• MultiZone
– Mainly hexahedral elements
• Hex Dominant
• CutCell mesh
– Generates Cartesian CutCell mesh
• Automatic
– Combines Tetrahedral Patch Conforming & Sweep Mesh
based on complexity of the geometry
• Interoperability between different meshing methods
Meshing Methods for 3D Geometry -
Examples
Tetrahedral Sweep Automatic
Mesh Meshing (Tetrahedral &
Sweep)
Multizone CutCell
Meshing Meshing

Meshing Methods for 2D Geometry
Four meshing methods available for 2D geometries:

• Automatic Method (Quad Dominant)
• Triangles
• Uniform Quad/Tri
• Uniform Quad
Triangle (Tri) Quadrilateral (Quad)


Global Mesh Controls
Allows definition of Global Mesh settings

• Defaults : Set Physics and Solver preferences
• Sizing : Specify sizing function (curvature,
proximity, fixed), mesh sizes, growth rate, etc.
• Inflation : Prism layer growth
• Assembly Meshing : Assembly meshing method
(None/CutCell/Tetrahedrons)
• Patch Conforming Options : Tri Surface Mesher
• Advanced : Advanced mesh parameters
• Defeaturing : Ignore small features in geometry
for improving mesh quality
• Statistics : View mesh count and mesh quality
How to Access
• Displayed under Details of “Mesh” when the
Mesh object is selected in the Outline

Local Mesh Controls
What are Local Mesh Controls?

Inserting local controls
• Used to control the mesh locally by
using Context Menu
scoping the following options to
geometric entities (bodies, faces,
edges) as required
– Sizing
– Contact Sizing
– Refinement
– Mapped Face Meshing
– Match Control
– Pinch
– Inflation
How to Access
• Context menu accessed by right
Local Controls in Outline
clicking Mesh in Outline
Virtual Topology
Without VT With VT
When to use?
• To merge together a number of small
(connected) faces/edges
• To simplify small features in the
model
• To simplify load abstraction for
mechanical analysis
• To create edge splits for better
control of the surface mesh control
Virtual cells modify topology
• Original CAD model remains
unchanged
• New faceted geometry is created
with virtual topology


Mesh Generation
How to Generate a Mesh

• Right click Mesh in the tree for context
menu
• Generate Mesh
– Generates entire volume mesh on all
bodies
– Right click on individual bodies to
generate mesh on selected body
• Preview
– Generates surface or inflation mesh only
• Allows surface or inflation mesh quality
to be checked before volume meshing
• Not available when using Patch
Independent Tetrahedron, MultiZone
or CutCell methods

Named Selections
• Used to assign a name to one or

more selected entities
– Can be created in Meshing by
selecting entity(s) and right click or
those created in DM or CAD can be
transferred to Meshing
– Entities within a Named Selection
must be of the same topology
(edge/surface/volume)
– Easy to reselect groups that will be
referenced often
– Named selections are automatically
exported to solver modules like
Fluent or CFX-Pre
– Listed under Named Selections
object in Outline

Named Selections
• Named Selections can be applied to

the entities of the same size, type or
location, by using selection options
• A worksheet enables selection
criteria to be modified and Named
Selections regenerated using new
criteria if required
• Drop down boxes display options

• Worksheet toggle button

Mesh Statistics and Mesh Metrics
• Displays global Node/Element count and quality

– For per-body statistics select body in Tree
• Quality defined by Metrics;
– Element Quality
– Aspect Ratio
– Jacobean Ration
– Warping Factor
– Parallel Deviation
– Maximum Corner Angle
– Skewness
– Orthogonal Quality
• Shows min, max, average and standard deviation
• Different physics and different solvers have
different criteria for mesh quality

Mesh Metric Graph
• If Mesh Statistics inform us that the

worst quality does not meet our criteria
we need to locate those elements
– Displays Mesh Metrics graph for the
element quality distribution
– Different element types are plotted
with different colour bars
– Can be toggled through menu bar
using Metric Graph button
– Click on required bar to see
corresponding elements in the
graphics view
– Enables problem elements to be
quickly located
• User can control the histogram display
by clicking the Controls button
Section Planes
Displays internal mesh elements

• Create Section Plane button
• Elements on either side of plane can
be displayed
• Toggle between cut or whole
elements display
• Multiple section planes are allowed
– Switch on/off using the check box
in the Section Planes window
• For large meshes (100,000+), it is

advisable to switch to wireframe
view mode (main menu or toolbar
button), create the section plane and
then go back to mesh model

Parameterization in ANSYS Meshing
Parameterized Meshing controls

• Global controls and local controls
• Selection of parameter promotes the
parameter to the WB project page
– Same process as DM
• Geometry and Meshing parameters can be
related using expressions in the parameter
manager
• Example – Parameterized edge sizing

Parameterization Example
• In this example the parameterised edge sizing is expressed as a function of the

length parameter (from DM). Expressions created in Workbench.
Length = 1m Divisions = 10
Length = 1.5m Divisions = 15
Number of Divisions = 10 x Length

Workshop 3 – ANSYS Meshing Basics
• Workshops are contained within the

ANSYS_Meshing_R14.0 folder supplied.
• Several Workshops require supporting
files which can be found in the Input-Files
Folder.
• Pre-completed projects for each
Workshop are supplied in the Completed-
Workshops folder for your convenience.

Global Mesh Controls
14. 0 Release
14.0 CFD
Geometry Creation
Geometry
OR Meshing Solver
Operations
Geometry Import

3D Operations
Planes Methods

3D Operations
etc

Geometry
Repair Meshing
Geometry Import
Options
Cleanup
Direct CAD/Bi-
Settings
Directional CAD
Merge, Connect,
Projection, Flow
Local Mesh
Volume Settings
Extraction, etc
Sizing,
Body/Sphere of
Influence, Match
Control, etc


Global Mesh Controls (1)
• Global mesh controls are used to make
global adjustment in the meshing strategy,
which includes sizing functions, inflation, Some of the options
smoothing, defeaturing, parameter inputs, are not available for
assembly meshing inputs, etc. Assembly Meshing
• Useful to resolve important features of the
model with minimal inputs
– Automatically calculates global element
sizes based on the smallest geometric
entity
– Smart defaults are chosen based on
physics preference
• For example: Transition ratio,
Transition, Smoothing etc.
– Makes global adjustments for required
level of mesh refinement
– Advanced Size Functions for resolving
regions with curvatures and proximity of
surfaces
34 © 2011 ANSYS, Inc. April 25, 2012 Smart defaults ! Release 14.0
Physics Based Settings
• Physics and Solver Preferences
Global Mesh Sizing Controls
• Relevance and Relevance Center
• Advanced Size Functions
• Smoothing and Transition
• Span Angle Center
• Curvature Normal Angle
• Proximity Accuracy and Cells Across Gap
Inflation
• Inflation Option, Inflation Algorithm
• Collision Avoidance
• Maximum Angle, Fillet Ratio, Smoothing
Assembly Meshing
• Activation of CutCell/Tetrahedrons Meshing
Patch Confirming Options
• Activation of Advancing Front Method
Advanced
• Shape Checking
• Element midside nodes
Defeaturing
• Pinch based
• Automatic Mesh Based
Statistics
• Mesh statistics, Quality criteria

Defaults
• Four options under “Physics Preference”
– CFD, Mechanical, Explicit and Electromagnetic
• Three options under “Solver Preference” when CFD is selected:
– Fluent, CFX and POLYFLOW
• Mesh setting defaults are automatically adjusted to suit the
“Physics Preference” and “Solver Preference”
• Assembly Meshing is active only when Physics Preference is
CFD and Solver Preference is Fluent

Defaults : Relevance
Relevance and Relevance Center
• Useful for automatic Global Refinement or Coarsening of
the mesh
Relevance Center
Coarse Medium Fine
-100 -100 -100

0 0 0
100 100 100

Sizing : Advanced Sizing Functions
Advanced Sizing Functions (ASF)
• Controls the growth and distribution of mesh in important
regions of high curvature or close proximity of surfaces
• Five Options:
– Off. Unavailable for Assembly
Meshing
– Proximity and Curvature
– Curvature
– Proximity
– Fixed
• When CutCellMeshing is active with ‘Proximity’ or ‘Proximity

and Curvature’ ASF, Proximity Size Function Sources control is
displayed to specify the regions of proximity between edges,
faces or both in the computation of proximity SF

Sizing : Advanced Sizing Function Examples
ASF: Off ASF: Curvature ASF: Proximity

• The edges are meshed • Determines the Edge and • Controls the mesh resolution
with global Element Size Face sizes based on on proximity regions in the
• Then the edges are Curvature Normal Angle model
refined for curvature and • Finer Curvature Normal • Fits in specified number of
2D proximity Angle creates finer surface elements in the narrow gaps
• At the end, corresponding mesh • Higher Number of Cells
face and volume mesh is • Transition of cell size is Across Gap creates more
generated defined by Growth Rate refined surface mesh
• Transition of cell size is • Transition of cell size is
defined by Transition defined by Growth Rate
Sizing : Advanced Sizing Function Examples
ASF: Proximity & Curvature ASF: Fixed ASF: Fixed + Local Sizings
• Combines the effect of • Constant mesh size through • Mesh is refined locally due to
‘Proximity’ and ‘Curvature’ out sizing (on 2 edges for that
size function • No refinement due to example)
curvature or proximity in the • Elsewhere size is defined by
model Max (Face) Size
More computational time • Surface mesh is generated • Transition of cell size is
with specified Max Face defined by Growth Rate
Size
• Volume mesh is generated
with specified Max Size

Sizing : Element Size
Element Size
• Element size used for the entire model
– This size will be used for meshing all edges, faces and bodies
• Default value based on Relevance and Initial Size Seed
– User can input required value as per geometry dimensions
Element size option

available when Advanced
Size Function is not used

Sizing : Min and Max Size
Min Size
• Minimum element size that the size function will generate
• Some element sizes may be smaller than this size depending on
the edge length
Max Face Size
• Maximum face size that the size function will generate
• Not supported by CutCell meshing
Max Size
• Maximum element size that can be grown in the interior of
volume mesh
Mouse Pointer serves to estimate

mesh sizes
Min Size
Max Face Size
Min Size ≤ Max Face Size ≤ Max Size Max Size

Sizing : Growth Rate
• Define the ratio between sizes of adjacent cells
– On surfaces and inside the volumes
Growth Rate = 1.1 Growth Rate = 1.2 (Default)
Growth Rate = 1.3
Mesh size:
GR = 1.1 : 1,263,297 cells
GR = 1.2 : 587,026 cells
GR = 1.3 : 392,061 cells

Sizing : Transition
• Controls the rate at which elements grow
• Two level control for transition
– Slow (Default for CFD, Explicit), produces smooth transitions
– Fast (Default for Mechanical and Electromagnetic), produces more
abrupt transitions
• Not available for Cutcell meshing

• Hidden for sheet models, ignored for assemblies containing
sheets, when ASF is On
Fast Slow

Sizing : Smoothing
• Improves quality by moving locations of nodes with respect to
surrounding nodes
• Three level control for smoothing iterations
– High (Default for Explicit)
– Medium (Default for Mechanical, Electromagnetic and CFD)
– Low
• For Cutcell meshing, the Smoothing option controls the quality

threshold at which it will start smoothing
Low Medium High

Sizing : Span Angle Center
• Controls curvature based refinement for Edges
• Three options and corresponding span angle ranges are
– Coarse: 91 to 60
– Medium: 75 to 24
– Fine: 36 to 12
• Not available for Cutcell meshing
Fine
Medium
Coarse

Inflation
• Inflation extrudes faces normal to a boundary to increase the
mesh resolution to:
– Resolve viscous boundary layer in CFD
– Resolve thin air gaps in Electromagnetic analysis
– Resolve high stress concentration regions in Structures
• Inflation layers can be generated from tri and quad surface mesh
• Can be combined with other meshing methods. Hexa Dominant
meshing method can not be inflated
• Variety of options to control the growth and quality of inflation
layers

Inflation : Automatic Inflation
• Three options
– None: Select this for manual inflation settings using local
mesh controls
– Program Controlled: All the faces are selected for inflation
except:
• Faces scoped to a Named Selection
• Faces with manual inflation defined
• Faces in contact regions
• Faces in symmetry
• Faces that belong to a part or body that has a mesh method
defined that does not support 3D inflation, such as sweep or hex-
dominant
• Faces in sheet bodies
– All Faces in chosen Named Selection: can grow inflation
layers from faces grouped in one named selection

Inflation : Inflation Options
Five options: All available for PC tets and Assembly meshing
Smooth Transition
Maintains smooth volumetric growth
between each adjacent layer. Total
Smooth thickness depends on the variation of
Smooth
Transition base surface mesh sizes (Default)
Transition
First Layer Thickness
Maintains constant first cell height
throughout First Layer
Thickness
Total Thickness
Maintains constant total height of inflation
layer throughout
Total
Thickness First Aspect Ratio
Controls the heights of the inflation layers
by defining the aspect ratio of the
inflations that are extruded from the First Aspect
inflation base Ratio
Last Aspect Ratio
Creates inflation layers using the values
Last Aspect of the first layer height, maximum layers,
Ratio and aspect ratio controls
Inflation : Inflation Algorithms
• Two Algorithms
– Post
– Pre
• Not available for
cutcell meshing Post
• First Tet grows then Inflation process starts

• Tet mesh is undisturbed, if the inflation options are altered
• Default option for Patch Independent Tetrahedrons
Preview Inflation
is available only
with Pre Algorithm
Pre
• Surface mesh is inflated first, then rest of the volume mesh grows
• Default method for Patch Conforming Tetrahedrons

Inflation: Automatic Inflation example
Patch Conforming Tets
MultiZone Cutcell

Inflation : Advanced Options
Collision Avoidance: Control to detect proximity regions and adjust
the cells in the inflation layer.
• None
– Does not check for proximity regions
• Layer Compression (Default for Fluent)
– Compresses inflation layers in the proximity regions
– Maintains the given number of layers in the proximity regions
– May stair-step if needed (will give a warning)
• Stair Stepping (Default for CFX)

– Inflation layers are stair stepped in the proximity regions
– Removing layers locally in steps to avoid collisions as well as bad quality
at sharp corners
When Cutcell meshing is used, both Layer Compression and Stair
Steeping algorithms are used depending on the geometry complexity.
Generates combination
of Pyramids and Tets
to fill the stair step
Inflation : Collision Avoidance Example
Example
Layer Compression Stair Stepping

Assembly Meshing: Introduction
• Cartesian/Tetrahedral meshing method acts as a
single mesh process for whole model
• Patch independent volume meshing approach
with automatic edge defeaturing driven by
advanced size functions
• This is active only when ‘CFD’ is selected in
Physics Preference and ‘Fluent’ is selected in
Solver Preference
• CutCell
– ‘CutCell’ results in a cartesian mesh + tets (+ prisms, if
inflation is specified) which is read as polyhedra in
Fluent
• Tetrahedrons
– ‘Tetrahedrons’ results in a tet mesh and also creates
prisms if inflation is specified
Note that when it is activated • To activate Assembly Meshing

some global and local – Set Method to ‘CutCell’ or ‘Tetrahedrons’ under
controls are not available Assembly Meshing option from global controls
Assembly Meshing: Controls
• The Feature Capture control determines
which CAD features are captured for assembly
meshing
– Program Controlled - This is the default where a feature
angle of 40 degrees is used to determine which features
are captured
– Feature Angle - Exposes an additional Feature Angle field,
where you can set a value from 0 to 90 degrees instead of
using the default of 40
• The Tessellation Refinement control specifies

the value to be used for tessellation (faceting)
refinement for
– Program Controlled - This is the default which sets
tessellation refinement to 10% of the value of Min
Size/Proximity Min Size (whichever is smaller)
The recommended range for – Absolute Tolerance - Exposes an additional Absolute
Absolute Tolerance for Tessellation Tolerance field, where you can set a numerical value for
Refinement is between 5 and 10% of refinement
the value of Min Size/Proximity Min – None - Sets tessellation refinement to the CAD program
Size (whichever is smaller) or DesignModeler application default setting
Assembly Meshing: Virtual Body
• Assembly meshing provides the means of
extracting the flow volume through ‘Virtual
Body’ creation
– Works for both internal as well as external flows
– Can create multiple flow volumes in both these scenarios
in one operation
– Eliminates the need for the Boolean operations in
CAD/DM/ASCDM
• Process for Flow Volume Extraction

– Make sure that capping surfaces have been created in
CAD/DM/ASCDM
– Activate Assembly meshing and define all local and global
meshing controls that need to be applied
– Define Co-ordinate system in fluid void where flow
Since meshing all of the solids and volume needs to be extracted
then discarding the solid mesh would – Add Virtual Body to the Virtual Body Group using RMB
not be efficient, you can provide the Insert  Virtual Body or selecting body and using RMB
Fluid Surface in addition to the Insert  Virtual Body
material point inside the Virtual Body – Associate the material point to the co-ordinate system
definition – Set Keep Solid Mesh to ‘No’ to discard mesh in solids
Assembly Meshing: Inflation
• For the CutCell algorithm, inflation is neither Pre nor Post but may be
considered a hybrid of the two
– Technology used is like that of the Pre algorithm, but inflation occurs Post mesh
generation
• For the Tetrahedrons algorithm, Pre inflation is used, with inflation behaviors
very similar to those of the Patch Conforming Tetrahedron mesh method
• A mixture of global (automatic Program Controlled) and local (scoped)
inflation is not supported
For Virtual Bodies, only automatic

Program Controlled inflation can be
used
Only 3D inflation is supported for

Assembly Meshing

Defeaturing
• Removes small geometry features meeting the tolerances
using Pinch or/and Automatic Mesh Based Defeaturing
controls in order to improve the mesh quality. Not all
meshing methods can take advantage of these controls
• Pinch Tolerance control removes small features at the mesh
level depending on the Pinch Tolerance value provided.
ANSYS Meshing offers global and manual pinch controls
• Automatic Mesh Based Defeaturing (AMBD) when it is ‘On’,
features smaller than or equal to the value of Defeaturing
Tolerance are removed automatically
AMBD Off AMBD On With Pinch

Statistics
• Option to view the mesh quality metric
• Exhaustive list of quality metrics
• Orthogonal Quality mesh quality metrics
• Option to view the Mesh Metric chart
– Intuitive controls available under Mesh Metric Chart
– Various options to explore under the ‘Controls’
• See lecture 5 for details

Local Mesh Controls
14. 0 Release
14.0 CFD
Geometry Creation
Geometry
OR Meshing Solver
Operations
Geometry Import

3D Operations
Planes Methods

3D Operations
etc

Geometry
Repair Meshing
Geometry Import
Options
Cleanup
Direct CAD/Bi-
Settings
Directional CAD
Merge, Connect,
Projection, Flow
Local Mesh
Volume Settings
Extraction, etc
Sizing,
Body/Sphere of
Influence, Match
Control, etc


Local Mesh Controls
Control the mesh locally
• Depends on the “Mesh Method” used Non-CutCell meshing local controls
Local Mesh Controls are:

• Sizing
– For Vertex, Edge, Face and Body
• Contact Sizing
– For Edge and face
• Refinement
– For Vertex, Edge and Face
• Mapped Face Meshing
– For Face
• Match Control CutCell meshing local controls
– For Edge and Face
• Pinch
– For Vertex and Edge
• Inflation
– For Edge and Face
Only Sizing and Inflation local controls are The latest control added on a particular entity
available for CutCell meshing overrides any prior controls

Sizing
Recommended for locally defining the mesh sizes
You can only scope sizing to one geometry entity type at a time
• For example: you can apply sizing to a number of edges or a number of faces, but not a mix of
edges and faces.
Four Types of Sizing option

• Element Size specifies average element edge length on bodies, faces or edges
• Number of Divisions specifies number of elements on edge(s)
• Body of Influence specifies average element size within a body
• Sphere of Influence specifies average element size within the sphere
Sizing options vary depending on the entity type chosen

Entity/Option Element Size Number of Divisions Body of Influence Sphere of Influence
Vertices x
Edges x x x Requires a
Coordinate
Faces x x
system for
Bodies x x x the sphere
Advanced Size
Only Element Size type is available for Function in Global
CutCell meshing settings should be
disabled
Sizing : Edges
Sizing Type:
Element Size
Edge meshed with constant

element size of 60mm
Sizing Type:
Number of Divisions
Edge meshed with 10

elements
The Curvature Normal Angle and/or the Growth Rate

maybe not displayed depending on the ASF used

Sizing : Edges (Contd…)
Bias Type and Bias Factor
Specify the grading scheme and factor
• Bias Type: grading of elements towards one end, both ends, or the center
• Bias Factor: is the ratio of the largest element to the smallest element

Sizing : Edges (Contd…)
Behavior
Soft: Sizing will be influenced by global sizing functions such as those based on
proximity and/or curvature as well as local mesh controls
Hard: Size control is strictly adhered to
• Transition between hard edges (or any edge with bias) and adjacent edge
and face meshes may be abrupt
• Hard edges or edges with bias will override Max Face Size and Max Size
properties
Influenced by global
Proximity advanced
Soft size function.
No influence from other

Hard global settings
Sizing : Faces
Element Size
Defines the maximum element size on the face
Face meshed with

constant element
size
Edge curvature is
resolved

Sizing : Body (volume)
Element Size
Defines the maximum cell size on the Body
Tetrahedron patch CutCell

conforming mesh mesh
Without Without
body sizing body sizing
With body Body meshed with max With body

sizing cell size defined sizing
Sizing : Sphere of Influence
Sphere of Influence : on Vertex
– Available with or without Advanced Size Functions
– Sets the average element size around the selected vertex
– Inputs:
• Sphere radius and Element size
• Center of the sphere is defined by a model vertex
• Good resolution at the vertex

• The element size will be applied to all entities
connected to the selected vertex

Sizing : Sphere of Influence
Sphere of Influence : on Bodies
– Available with or without Advanced Size Functions
– Constant element size is applied within the confines
of a sphere
– Use coordinate system to define the center of the
Sphere

Sizing : Bodies of Influence
Bodies of influence (BOI)
– Lines, surfaces and solid bodies can be used to refine
the mesh
– Accessible when ASF is On
– Not available for CutCell meshing
Line BOIs
Surface BOI Solid BOI
Without BOIs
The ‘Body of Influence’ itself will not be meshed

Mapped Face Meshing
• Creates structured meshes on selected mappable surfaces
– Mapped Face Meshing with advanced control is supported for
• Sweep, Patch Conforming, Hexa Dominant
• Quad Dominant and Triangles
– Mapped Face Meshing with basic control is supported for
• MultiZone
• Uniform Quad/Tri and Uniform Quad
– RMB on Mesh and Show/Mappable Faces to display all
mappable faces
If Mapped Face Meshing fails, ( ) icon appears adjacent to corresponding object

in the Tree outline. The mesh will still be created but will ignore this control.
Mapped Face Meshing: Vertex Type
• ‘Side’, ‘Corner’ and ‘End’ controls for vertices, to define strategy for
Mapping
Vertex Type Intersecting Grid Lines Angle Between Edges

End 0 0° — 135°
Side 1 136° — 224°
Corner 2 225° — 314°

Mapped Face Meshing: Example
E
E E
E E E S
E
E
E E
E S
E
E EE E
Vertex type is dependant to the attached face =>

the mesh can be individually controlled on all faces

Mapped Face Meshing: Radial No. of Divisions
• If face is defined by two loops, then the “Radial Number of Divisions”
field is activated
• Specify the number of divisions across the annular region
• Useful for creating number of layers across an annulus
Mapped face is swept to create

pure hex mesh

Match Control
• Define periodicity on faces (3D) or edges (2D)
• The two faces or edges should be topologically and geometrically the same
• A match control can only be assigned to one unique face/edge pair
• Match controls are not supported with Post Inflation Algorithm
• Match Control with Patch Independent tetrahedrons not supported yet
– Two types of match controls available:
• Cyclic and
• Arbitrary
– Not available for CutCell meshing
Matching face
mesh
If ‘Match Control’ fails, ( ) icon appears adjacent to corresponding

object in the outline Tree, however the mesh is created ignoring it
Match Control: Cyclic
• Define Rotational periodic
Full Model Cut Boundaries Periodic Model
Model is symmetrical at 90 so slice the body along dotted lines in DesignModeler
Selected Faces
for Match control
Matching face
mesh

Match Control: Arbitrary
• Two faces or edges to be matched, can be arbitrarily located
Full Model : Tube Banks

Symmetric + Periodic Model Face Mesh before ‘Match Control’
Model extracted through ‘Slice’

operation in DM
Face Mesh after ‘Match Control’
Coordinate systems need

to be suitably defined at
the faces to be matched Matching face mesh
Pinch
• To improve quality Pinch control removes small features (edges
or narrow regions) at the mesh level
• The Pinch feature is supported for the following mesh methods:
• Patch Conforming Tetrahedrons
• Thin Solid Sweeps
• Hex Dominant meshing
• Quad Dominant Surface Meshing
• Triangles Surface meshing
– Not supported for CutCell meshing
– More details in lecture 5 “mesh quality”

Inflation
Used to generate prism layers (as explained in Global settings chapter)
Inflation layer can be applied to faces or bodies using respectively edges or
faces as the boundary
Inflation layer grown on edge boundary (red)
Inflation layer grown on face boundary (red)

Workshop 4 – Local Mesh Controls

Mesh Quality
14. 0 Release
14.0 CFD
Geometry Creation
Geometry
OR Meshing Solver
Operations
Geometry Import

3D Operations
Planes Methods

3D Operations
etc

Geometry
Repair Meshing
Geometry Import
Options
Cleanup
Direct CAD/Bi-
Settings
Directional CAD
Merge, Connect,
Projection, Flow
Local Mesh
Volume Settings
Extraction, etc Check Mesh
Sizing,
Body/Sphere of
Quality
Influence, Match
Control, etc


Impact of the Mesh Quality
Good quality mesh means that…
• Mesh quality criteria are within correct range
– Orthogonal quality …
• Mesh is valid for studied physic
– Boundary layer …
• Solution is grid independent
• Important geometry details are well captured
Bad quality mesh can induce…

• Convergence difficulties
• Bad physic description
• Diffuse solution
User must…
• Check quality criteria and improve grid if needed
• Think about model and solver settings before generating the grid
• Perform mesh parametric study, mesh adaption …
Impact of the Mesh Quality on the Solution
Example showing difference between a mesh with cells
failing the quality criteria and a good mesh
• Hot Spots due to deteriorated cells

Impact of the Mesh Quality on the Solution
• Diffusion example
(max,avg)CSKEW=(0.912,0.291)
(max,avg)CAR=(62.731,7.402)
Mesh 1
VzMIN≈-90ft/min
VzMAX≈600ft/min
Large cell size

change
(max,avg)CSKEW=(0.801,0.287)
(max,avg)CAR=(8.153,1.298)
Mesh 2
VzMIN≈-100ft/min
VzMAX≈400ft/min

Grid Dependency
Solution run with multiple meshes
Note : For all runs the computed Y+ is valid for wall function (first cell not in laminar zone)
DP 0 DP 1 DP 2 DP 3 DP 4
Nb Cells 500 3 000 24 000 190 000 1.5 M
x8
DP 0 DP 3
2%

Grid Dependency
• Hexa cells can be stretched in stream direction to reduce number of cells
– Bias defined on inlet and outlet walls
– Bias defined on inlet edges
16 000 cells (~DP2)

Delta P = 310 Pa (~DP3)

Hexa vs. Tetra
Hexa: Concentration in one direction
 Angles unchanged
Tetra: Concentration in one direction

 Angles deteriorate
Prism: Concentration in one direction

 Angles unchanged
Solution for boundary layer resolution : Hybrid prism/tetra meshes

• Prism in near-wall region, tetra in volume
– Automated
– Reduced CPU-time for good boundary layer resolution

Mesh Statistics and Mesh Metrics
Displays mesh information for Nodes and Elements
List of quality criteria for the Mesh Metric
• Select the required criteria to get details for quality
• It shows minimum, maximum, average and standard deviation
Different physics and different solvers have different requirements for
mesh quality
Mesh metrics available in ANSYS Meshing include:
– Element Quality
– Aspect Ratio
– Jacobean Ration
– Warping Factor
– Parallel Deviation
– Maximum Corner Angle
– Skewness
– Orthogonal Quality
For Multi-Body Parts, go to corresponding body in Tree Outline
to get its separate mesh statistics per part/body
Mesh Quality Metrics
Orthogonal Quality (OQ)
On cell On face
Derived directly from
A1
Fluent solver discretization A1
c1
• For a cell it is the minimum of: f1 c2 e1
A i fi Ai ci f2 e2
f3 A2 e3 A2
| Ai || f i | | Ai || ci | c3
computed for each face i A3 A3
Ai ei
For the face it is computed as the minimum of | Ai || ei | computed for each edge I
Where Ai is the face normal vector and fi is a vector from the centroid of the cell to the centroid
of that face, and ci is a vector from the centroid of the cell to the centroid of the adjacent cell,
where ei is the vector from the centroid of the face to the centroid of the edge
At boundaries and internal walls
ci is ignored in the computations of OQ 0 1
Perfect Worst

Mesh Quality Metrics
Optimal (equilateral) cell
Skewness
Two methods for determining skewness:
1. Equilateral Volume deviation:
Skewness = optimal cell size cell size

optimal cell size
Applies only for triangles and tetrahedrons Actual cell
2. Normalized Angle deviation: Circumsphere
max
max e e min
Skewness = max ,
180 e e min
Where e is the equiangular face/cell (60 for

tets and tris, and 90 for quads and hexas)
– Applies to all cell and face shapes
0 1
– Used for hexa, prisms and pyramids Perfect Worst

Mesh quality
Mesh quality recommendations
Low Orthogonal Quality or high skewness values are not recommended
Generally try to keep minimum orthogonal quality > 0.1, or maximum skewness < 0.95.
However these values may be different depending on the physics and the location
of the cell
Fluent reports negative cell volumes if mesh contains degenerate cells
Skewness mesh metrics spectrum
Excellent Very good Good Acceptable Bad Inacceptable

0-0.25 0.25-0.50 0.50-0.80 0.80-0.94 0.95-0.97 0.98-1.00
Orthogonal quality mesh metrics spectrum
Inacceptable Bad Acceptable Good Very good Excellent

0-0.001 0.001-0.14 0.15-0.20 0.20-0.69 0.70-0.95 0.95-1.00
Aspect Ratio
2-D:
δy
• Length / height ratio: δx/δy
δx
3-D
• Area ratio
• Radius ratio of circumscribed / inscribed
circle
Limitation for some iterative solvers

• A < 10 … 100
• (CFX: < 1000)
Large aspect ratio are accepted where

there is no strong transverse
gradient (boundary layer ...)
Smoothness
Checked in solver
• Volume Change in Fluent
– Available in Adapt/Volume
– 3D : σi = Vi / Vnb
Recommendation:
• Expansion Factor in CFX Good: 1.0 < σ < 1.5
– Checked during mesh import Fair: 1.5 < σ < 2.5
– Ratio of largest to smallest element volumes Poor: σ > 5 … 20
surrounding a node

Mesh Metric Graph
Displays Mesh Metrics graph for the element quality distribution
Different element types are plotted with different color bars
Can be accessed through menu bar using icon
Click on required bar to see corresponding elements in the graphics view

Mesh Metrics Controls
The histogram distribution can be controlled using button in Mesh Metrics
Elements on Y-Axis can be plotted with two methods
• Number of Elements
• Percent of Volume/Area
Options to change the range on either axis as well selection for required type
of elements for metrics display

Mesh Metric Chart example
• Interactive way to view the cells of desired quality only
– Click on the histogram bar to display cells of that quality range in the Graphics Display

Mesh Metric Chart example
Control button options
– Various options to explore under the ‘Controls’

Section Planes
Displays internal elements of the mesh
• Elements on either side of plane can be displayed
• Toggle between cut or whole elements display
• Elements on the plane
Multiple section planes are allowed
For large meshes, it is advisable to switch to geometry mode (click on geometry in the
Tree Outline), create the section plane and then go back to mesh model
Mesh Quality Check for CFX
The CFX solver calculates 3 important measures of mesh
quality at the start of a run and updates them each time the
mesh is deformed
• Mesh Orthogonality
• Aspect Ratio
• Expansion Factor
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Mesh Statistics |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
Domain Name: Air Duct
Good
Minimum Orthogonality Angle [degrees] = 20.4 ok (OK)
Maximum Aspect Ratio = 13.5 OK
Maximum Mesh Expansion Factor = 700.4 !
Domain Name: Water Pipe
Minimum Orthogonality Angle [degrees] = 32.8 ok
Acceptable
Maximum Aspect Ratio = 6.4 OK (ok)
Maximum Mesh Expansion Factor = 73.5 !
Global Mesh Quality Statistics :
Minimum Orthogonality Angle [degrees] = 20.4 ok Questionable
Maximum Aspect Ratio = 13.5 OK
Maximum Mesh Expansion Factor = 700.4 ! (!)

Mesh Quality Check for FLUENT
Grid check tools available
• Check : Perform various mesh consistency
checks
• Report Quality : lists worse values of
orthogonal quality and aspect ratio
• TUI command mesh/check-verbosity sets
the level of details in the report

Factors Affecting Quality
Geometry problems
Geometry cleanup in Design Modeler
• Small edge or
• Gaps Virtual topology & pinch in Meshing
• Sharp angle
Meshing parameters
• Sizing Function On / Off
• Min size too large Mesh setting change
• Inflation parameters
– Total height
– Maximum angle
• Hard sizing
Meshing methods
Mesh setting change
• Patch conformal or patch independent tetra
• Sweep or Multizone
• Cutcell Direct meshing can be used to
minimize remeshing time
Virtual Topology (VT)
• When to use?
– To merge together a number of small (connected)
faces/edges
– To simplify small features in the model
– To create edge splits for better control of the
surface mesh
• Virtual cell modifies the topology
– Original CAD model remains unchanged
– New faceted geometry is created with virtual
topology
• Restrictions
– Limited to “developable” surfaces
– Virtual Faces cannot form a closed region
Beta option for User Defined

Virtual Topology is also available

Creating Virtual Topology
• To acces VT menu, click on Model and then
on Virtual Topology
• Right click on VT menu to access automated

and manual VT tools
Creates VT automatically
Creates VT manually
Automatic Virtual Topology
Automatically creating Virtual Faces
• Left Click Virtual Topology in Model Tree
• Set Behaviour in Details
– Controls aggressiveness of automatic VT algorithm
– Low: merges only the worst faces (and edges)
– Medium & High: try to merge more faces
• Select if Face Edges shall be merged
• Right Click Virtual Topology and click Generate Virtual
Cells
Manually creating a Virtual Face

• RMB on Model tree and select Insert Virtual Topology
• Select Virtual Topology from the Tree Outline
• Pick faces or edges, RMB and Insert Virtual Cell
All VT entities created can be seen in different colors if Virtual
Topology is selected in Tree Outline
Virtual Topology : Example
Without Virtual cells: With Virtual cells:
Edges are respected while Small faces are merged to
creating surface mesh form a single virtual face
and edges of the original
set of faces are no longer
respected for meshing

Virtual Topology : Example
Creating edge split
• Select Virtual Topology from the Tree Outline
• Pick the edge(s)
• RMB and select ‘Virtual Split Edge at +’ or ‘Virtual Split
Edge’ to split the edge at the location specified by the
selection, or to enter the split ratio in the Details
window, respectively
With edge splits:

We can add edge constrains to improve the mesh
Edge splits can be moved interactively. Pick the virtual edge, hold the F4 key
and move the red node along the edge with the mouse
Pinch
• Pinch control removes small features at the mesh level
– Slivers
– Short Edges
– Sharp Angles
• The Pinch feature works on vertices and edges only
• The Pinch feature is supported for the following mesh methods:
– Patch Conforming Tetrahedrons
– Thin Solid Sweeps
– Hex Dominant meshing
– Quad Dominant Surface Meshing
– Triangles Surface meshing
• Not supported for CutCell meshing

Pinch Control
Pinch features can be defined 2 ways
• Automatically : pinches created based on global pinch tolerance in Mesh Detail
• Manually : pinch created one by one by user with local tolerance
All pinches are listed in Model Tree under Mesh menu with methods and
local controls
Automated
Manual

Pinch: Vertex-Vertex
Vertex-vertex ‘Pinch controls’ will be created on an edge with length less
than the specified tolerance
Will pinch out the slave

geometry into the master
geometry
Mesh without Pinch Mesh with Pinch

Control Control

Pinch: Edge-Edge
Edge-Edge ‘Pinch controls’ will be created on any face for which two edges
are within the proximity of specified tolerance
Will pinch out the entire or a

portion of the slave geometry into
the master
Mesh without Pinch Mesh with Pinch

Control Control

Workshops 5 (Applications) – Mixing Tank

CFD-Intro 14.0 L-04 Introduction To Ansys Meshing

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Lecture 4

Introduction to ANSYS Meshing

Sketches and Meshing

Boolean, Body Hybrid Mesh: Tet,

Extrude, Revolve, Hexa Dominant,

2 © 2011 ANSYS, Inc. April 25, 2012 Release 14.0

ANSYS Meshing is a component of ANSYS Workbench

Creates Mesh for different Physics and Solvers

Integrates directly with other WB systems

3 © 2011 ANSYS, Inc. April 25, 2012 Release 14.0

Physics, Sizing, Inflation, Pinch, etc.

Sizing, Refine, Pinch, Inflation, etc

Preview Surface Mesh, Inflation

Mesh Metrics, Charts

4 © 2011 ANSYS, Inc. April 25, 2012 Release 14.0

From Analysis Systems From Component Systems

• ANSYS Meshing is launched within Workbench

The Outline contains three default sections

7 © 2011 ANSYS, Inc. April 25, 2012 Release 14.0

Accessing Object Details

• The Details View provides options to

8 © 2011 ANSYS, Inc. April 25, 2012 Release 14.0

Handling of Multiple Parts

10 © 2011 ANSYS, Inc. April 25, 2012 Release 14.0

Six meshing methods available for 3D geometries:

13 © 2011 ANSYS, Inc. April 25, 2012 Release 14.0

Four meshing methods available for 2D geometries:

14 © 2011 ANSYS, Inc. April 25, 2012 Release 14.0

15 © 2011 ANSYS, Inc. April 25, 2012 Release 14.0

Allows definition of Global Mesh settings

17 © 2011 ANSYS, Inc. April 25, 2012 Release 14.0

What are Local Mesh Controls?

19 © 2011 ANSYS, Inc. April 25, 2012 Release 14.0

20 © 2011 ANSYS, Inc. April 25, 2012 Release 14.0

How to Generate a Mesh

21 © 2011 ANSYS, Inc. April 25, 2012 Release 14.0

• Used to assign a name to one or

22 © 2011 ANSYS, Inc. April 25, 2012 Release 14.0

• Named Selections can be applied to

• Drop down boxes display options

24 © 2011 ANSYS, Inc. April 25, 2012 Release 14.0

• Displays global Node/Element count and quality

25 © 2011 ANSYS, Inc. April 25, 2012 Release 14.0

• If Mesh Statistics inform us that the

Displays internal mesh elements

• For large meshes (100,000+), it is

27 © 2011 ANSYS, Inc. April 25, 2012 Release 14.0

Parameterized Meshing controls

28 © 2011 ANSYS, Inc. April 25, 2012 Release 14.0

• In this example the parameterised edge sizing is expressed as a function of the

Length = 1.5m Divisions = 15

Number of Divisions = 10 x Length

29 © 2011 ANSYS, Inc. April 25, 2012 Release 14.0

• Workshops are contained within the

30 © 2011 ANSYS, Inc. April 25, 2012 Release 14.0

Sketches and Meshing

Boolean, Body Hybrid Mesh: Tet,

Extrude, Revolve, Hexa Dominant,

32 © 2011 ANSYS, Inc. April 25, 2012 Release 14.0

33 © 2011 ANSYS, Inc. April 25, 2012 Release 14.0

36 © 2011 ANSYS, Inc. April 25, 2012 Release 14.0

37 © 2011 ANSYS, Inc. April 25, 2012 Release 14.0

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