MESHING WORKSHOP

Thursday, November 13th, 2014

Metin Ozen, Ph.D., ASME Fellow

OZEN ENGINEERING, INC.

www.ozeninc.com

WHAT DO WE DO?

Ozen Engineering, Inc. helps solve challenging and multidisciplinary engineering problems with
industry leading computational simulation technologies
We provide advanced
Multi-Physics FEA
Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulations

INTRODUCTION TO ANSYS MESHING

In this lecture we will learn:

Process for pre-processing using ANSYS tools
What is the ANSYS Meshing?
Meshing Fundamentals
How to launch ANSYS Meshing?
ANSYS Meshing interface
Geometry concepts
Meshing methods

PREPROCESSING WORKFLOW
Import/
Geometry
Creation

Sketches and
Planes
3D Operations
Extrude, Revolve,
Sweep, etc

Geometry Import
Options
Bi-Directional
CAD/ Neutral

Geometry
Modifications

3D Operations
Booleans,
Decompose, etc.

Geometry
Cleanup and
Repair
Automatic
Cleanup
Simplification,
Mid-surface,
Fluid Extraction

Meshing

Meshing Methods
Hybrid Mesh: Tet,
Prisms, Pyramids
Hexa Dominant,
Sweep meshing
Assembly
Meshing

Global Mesh
Settings
Local Mesh
Settings
Sizing, Controls,
etc.

Solver

WHAT IS ANSYS MESHING

ANSYS Meshing is a component of ANSYS Workbench

Meshing platform
Combines and builds on strengths of preprocessing offerings from ANSYS:
ICEM CFD, TGRID (Fluent Meshing), CFX-Mesh, Gambit

Able to adapt and create Meshes for different Physics and Solvers
CFD: Fluent, CFX and POLYFLOW
Mechanical: Explicit dynamics, Implicit
Electromagnetic
Integrates directly with other WB systems

MESHING FUNDAMENTALS

Purpose of the Mesh

Equations are solved at cell/nodal locations
Domain is required to be divided into discrete cells
(meshed)

Mesh Requirements
Efficiency & Accuracy
Refine (smaller cells) for high solution gradients and
fine geometric detail.
Coarse mesh (larger cells) elsewhere.
Quality
Solution accuracy & stability deteriorates as mesh
cells deviate from ideal shape

MESHING PROCESS IN ANSYS MESHING

Physics, Sizing, Inflation, Pinch,

Sizing, Refine, Pinch, Inflation,

Preview surface mesh,

Inflation

Mesh metrics, Charts

LAUNCHING ANSYS MESHING

ANSYS Meshing is launched within Workbench
2 ways :

From Analysis Systems

Fluid Flow (Fluent), Fluid Flow (CFX),

From Component Systems

Mesh

Double click
Mesh in the
System

or right click
and select
Edit

GRAPHICS USER INTERFACE

Toolbars

Outline

Graphics window

Worksheet

Details view

Manage views

Mesh Metrics

Section Planes
Message window

Entity Details Bar

Units Bar

OUTLINE

Three default sections

Geometry
Bodies

Coordinate Systems
Default global & user defined systems

Mesh
Meshing operations (controls & methods)
displayed in the order in which they are inserted

In the tree
Right clicking on any object
launches a context sensitive menu
Example: contains commands to generate, preview, clear mesh etc.

DETAILS VIEW

Accessing Object Details

Select an object (in the Outline)
Related information to that object are displayed in the Details View below
Ex: Select a body (Fluid) in the Outline
Details of Fluid : contains graphical and geometric details
To access 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

Geometry composed of Multiple parts
No connection between parts (no face sharing)
Contact Region
is automatically
created between
2 faces

Each part
meshed
independently

Results in Non-conformal interface.

Meshes do not match.
No nodes connection.

Grid interface
- Fluent

Independent faces

GGI - CFX

GEOMETRY CONFIGURATION MULTI-BODY PARTS

Geometry composed of multiple bodies in a part
Depend on Shared Topology method (in DM)
None

Results in a none connection between the bodies (similar to multiple parts)

Automatic

Faces in contact imprinted & fused

Form a single face shared between the 2 bodies

Results in Conformal
mesh

Common face acts

as Interior

GEOMETRY CONFIGURATION MULTIPLE BODY PARTS

Geometry composed of multiple bodies in a part
Imprints

Faces are imprinted

on each other
like faces

Contact Region
is automatically
created

For identical mesh on these

faces, use Match Control
Results in unconnected mesh

non
conformal
interface

Grid interface
- Fluent
GGI - CFX

MESHING 3D GEOMETRY
3D cell Types
First Meshing Approach
Part/Body Methods
Part/Body based

Tetrahedrons.

Meshing occurs at part or

body level.
Meshing Methods are
scoped to individual bodies.
Method assignment can be
automatic or manual.
Bodies contained in one
part are conformally
meshed.

Sweep.

Tetras only
Prisms &
hexahedrons

MultiZone.
Mainly hexahedron

Hex Dominant
Not for CFD

Automatic.
Combines any types

MESHING 3D GEOMETRY
Second Meshing Approach
Cut Cell Meshing

Assembly Meshing
Meshes an entire model in
one process.
Assembly of parts

Performs boolean operations.

Volume filling, intersection &
combination
Does not require prior fluid
body definition or shared
topology.

Conformal mesh created

across parts.

Assembly Meshing
Methods

Generate mainly
Hexahedrons
Tetrahedrons

Part/Body Meshing &

Assembly Meshing
not interoperable

MESHING METHODS

In this lecture we will learn:

Meshing Methods for Part/Body Meshing
Assembly Meshing covered separately
Methods & Algorithms for;
Tetrahedral Meshing
Hex Meshing
2D Meshing
Meshing Multiple Bodies
Selective Meshing
Recording Meshing Order

PREPROCESSING WORKFLOW
Import/
Geometry
Creation

Sketches and
Planes
3D Operations
Extrude, Revolve,
Sweep, etc

Geometry Import
Options
Bi-Directional
CAD/ Neutral

Geometry
Modifications

3D Operations
Booleans,
Decompose, etc.

Geometry
Cleanup and
Repair
Automatic
Cleanup
Simplification,
Mid-surface,
Fluid Extraction

Meshing

Meshing Methods
Hybrid Mesh: Tet,
Prisms, Pyramids
Hexa Dominant,
Sweep meshing
Assembly
Meshing

Global Mesh
Settings
Local Mesh
Settings
Sizing, Controls,
etc.

Solver

WHICH METHOD TO CHOOSE?

Why Multiple Methods?
Choice depends on :

High aspect ratio cells

(Inflation) near wall to capture
boundary layer gradients

Cells refined around

small geometric details
and complex flow

Physics
Geometry
Resources

Mesh could require just

one or a combination of
methods.

Hex (3d) or Quad (2d)

cells used to mesh
simple regions

Tet (3d) or Tri (2d) cells used

here to mesh complex region

PATCH CONFORMING VERSUS INDEPENDENT

Patch Conforming

Patch Independent

Clean CAD, Accurate surface mesh

Dirty Geometry, defeatured surface mesh

TETRAHEDRONS METHODS
Patch Conforming
Bottom up approach: Meshing process
Edges Faces volume
All faces and their boundaries are respected
(conformed to) and meshed
Good for high quality (clean) CAD geometries
CAD cleanup required for dirty geometry
Sizing is defined by global and/or local controls
Compatible with inflation

To access it
Insert Method
Set to Tetrahedrons
Set to Patch Conforming

Patch Independent
Top down approach: Meshing process
Volume meshed first projected on to faces
& edges
Faces, edges & vertices not necessarily conformed
Controlled by tolerance and scoping of Named
Selection, load or other object
Good for gross de-featuring of poor quality (dirty)
CAD geometries
Method Details contain sizing controls
Compatible with inflation
To access it
Insert Method
Set to Tetrahedrons
Set to Patch Independent

TETRAHEDRONS METHOD : CONTROL

Patch Conforming - Sizing
Mesh sizing for the Patch Conforming algorithm is
defined by Global & Local Controls
Automatic refinement based on curvature and/or
proximity accessible in Global Controls
Details of Global & Local Controls covered in
separate lectures
Choice of surface
mesher algorithm
in global controls

TETRAHEDRONS METHOD : CONTROL

Patch Independent - Sizing
Sizing for the Patch Independent algorithm
defined in Patch Independent Details
Automatic curvature & proximity refinement
option

Name Selec. assigned &

defeaturing Tol = 0.02
Features > 0.02m respected

Defeaturing Control
Set Mesh Based Defeaturing On
Set Defeaturing Tolerance
Assign Named Selections to selectively preserve
geometry

Defeaturing Tolerance off

TETRAHEDRONS METHOD : ALGORITHM COMPARISON

Patch conforming : details caputred

Patch independent : details ignored

Delaunay mesh - smooth growth rate

Octree mesh . approximate growth rate

Geometry with small details

HEXA MESH - INTRODUCTION

Hex Meshing
Reduced element count
Reduced run time
Elements aligned in direction of
flow
Reduced numerical error

Initial Requirements
Clean geometry
May require geometric
decomposition

Tetra mesh - 48 000 Cells

Hexa mesh - 19 000 Cells

SWEEP MESHING
Mesh Method & Behavior
Generates hex/wedge elements
Meshes source surfaces Sweeps through to the
target
Body must have topologically identical source
and target faces
Side faces must be mappable
A sweep path must be identified
Only one source and one target face is allowed
Alternative thin sweep algorithm can have
multiple source & target faces

To access it
Insert Method
Set to Sweep

Sweep Direction

Source face

Target face

Sweep Path

Side Face(s)
Target Face

Source Face

SWEEP MESHING
Source & Target selection
Automatic
Source & Target faces identified automatically
Requires that the mesher find the sweeping
direction
Manual source & Manual source and target
User selection
Source face colored in red
Target face colored in blue
Rotational Sweeping

Define the nbr of

intervals on the
side face(s)

Sweep Path

Sweep around an axis

Requires selection of both - Source & target

Note
Specifying both Source & Target accelerate
meshing

Generation of wedges
& hex elements

SWEEP MESHING
Source & Target selection
Automatic Thin & Manual Thin
Alternate sweep algorithm
Advantages
Sweep multiple Source & Target faces
Can perform some automatic defeaturing

Source
Faces

Target

Limitations
X For multibody parts only one division allowed
across the sweep
X Inflation not allowed
X Sweep bias not allowed
Source Faces imprinted
on Target

SWEEP MESHING
Sweep and Inflation
Compatibility with Src/Trg Selection
X

X
X

Sweep Mesh - No Inflation

Use of Inflation
Defined on source face ( NOT on target one)
From boundary edges (2D)
Swept through volume
Sweep Mesh with Inflation

SWEEP MESHING
Geometry

Identifying sweepable bodies

Right mouse button

Automatic detection of sweepable bodies

Rotational ones are not identified
Identification method
Right click on mesh object
Outline tree
Select : Sweepable Bodies

Sweepable bodies in
green color
Unsweepable

Making bodies sweepable

Decompose bodies into multi-simple topological
shapes
Perform decomposition in CAD/DM

Decompose
Sweep Mesh

MULTIZONE MESHING
Mesh Method & Behavior
Based on blocking approach (ANSYS ICEM CFD
Hexa)
Automatically decomposes geometry into blocks
Generates structured hexa mesh where block
topology permits
Remaining region filled with unstructured
Hexa Core or Tetra or Hexa dominant mesh
Src/Trg Selection
Automatic or Manual source selection
Multiple source faces
Select Target faces as Source
Compatible with 3D Inflation

To access it
Insert Method Set to Multizone

MULTIZONE MESHING
Mapped Mesh Type
Determines which elements to use
Hexa
Default
Only Hexahedral elements are generated
Hexa/prism
For quality and transition, triangles will be
inserted on the surface mesh (sources)
Prism
Only prisms will be generated
Useful when the adjacent volume is filled in
with tet mesh

Geometry

Hexa

Hexa - Prism

MULTIZONE MESHING
Surface Mesh Method
Specify a method to create the surface mesh
Uniform
Uses a recursive loop-splitting method which
creates a highly uniform mesh
Pave
Creates a good quality mesh on faces with high
curvature, and also when neighboring edges
have a high aspect ratio
Program controlled
Combination of Uniform and Pave methods
depends on the mesh sizes set and face
properties

Geometry

Pave

Uniform

AUTOMATIC METHOD
Mesh Method & Behavior
Combination of Tetrahedron Patch Conforming
and Sweep Method
Automatically identifies sweepable bodies and
creates sweep mesh
All non-sweepable bodies meshed using
tetrahedron Patch Conformal method
Compatible with inflation

To access it
Default method
Insert method Set to Automatic

2D MESHING
Automatic

Triangles

MultiZone
Quad/Tri

MultiZone
Quad

Mesh Method & Behavior

Quadrilateral Dominant & Triangles
Patch conforming methods
MultiZone Quad/tri
Patch Independent Methods
Associated with face mesh type
All Tri
Quad/tri
All Quad

Advanced size function & local size controls are

supported

2D MESHING
2D Mapped
mesh

Control
Mapped Surface Meshes
Local mesh controls
Fully Mapped surface meshes
Specified edge sizing/intervals

Inflation
Boundary edges are inflated
Global & local inflation controls are supported

2D MESH SOLVER GUIDELINES

ANSYS Fluent

ANSYS CFX

For a 2D analysis in Fluent generate the mesh in

the XY plane
Z=0

For 2D analysis in CFX, create a volume mesh

(using Sweep)
1 element thick in the symmetry direction, i.e.,

For axisymmetric applications y 0 and make sure

that the domain is axisymmetric about x axis

Thin Block for Planar 2D

Thin Wedge (< 5) for 2D Axis-symmetric

In ANSYS Meshing, by default, a thickness is

defined for a surface body and is visible when the
view is not normal to the XY Plane.
This is purely graphical no thickness will be
present when the mesh is exported into the
Fluent 2D solver

SELECTIVE MESHING
What is ?
Selectively picking bodies and meshing them incrementally

Why ?

Bodies can be meshed individually

Mesh seeding from meshed bodies influences neighboring bodies (user has control)
Automated meshing can be used at any time to mesh all remaining bodies
When controls are added, only affected body meshes require remeshing
Selective body updating
Extensive mesh method interoperability

SELECTIVE MESHING
Meshing first the pipe then the block

Local Meshing
Clear meshes on individual bodies
Generate meshes on individual bodies
Subsequent bodies will use the attached face
mesh
The meshing results (cell types) will depend on
the meshing order
Adjust/add controls able to remesh only
affected body
Select body(s)
Right click

Meshing first the block then the pipe

SELECTIVE MESHING
Example : Meshing cylinder first and then block

Recording Mesh Operations

Use it to record the order of meshing to automate
future use
Right click Mesh in the
Outline to access it

A Worksheet is generated
Record mesh operations as ordered steps
Named Selections are automatically created for
each meshed body for reference in the Worksheet

SELECTIVE MESHING
Selective Body Updating
Remeshing only bodies that have changed
Access option through Tools > Options
No: All geometry updated, all bodies remeshed.
Associatively: Accommodates for body
topology change (add/delete) (slower)
Non-Associatively: Assumes no topology
change (faster)

Example :
Geometric
change to block

GLOBAL MESH CONTROLS

In this section, we will learn about:

Introduction to Global Mesh Controls

Defaults
General Sizing Controls & Advanced Size Functions
Global Inflation
Assembly Meshing Controls
Statistics

PREPROCESSING WORKFLOW
Import/
Geometry
Creation

Sketches and
Planes
3D Operations
Extrude, Revolve,
Sweep, etc

Geometry Import
Options
Bi-Directional
CAD/ Neutral

Geometry
Modifications

3D Operations
Booleans,
Decompose, etc.

Geometry
Cleanup and
Repair
Automatic
Cleanup
Simplification,
Mid-surface,
Fluid Extraction

Meshing

Meshing Methods
Hybrid Mesh: Tet,
Prisms, Pyramids
Hexa Dominant,
Sweep meshing
Assembly
Meshing

Global Mesh
Settings
Local Mesh
Settings
Sizing, Controls,
etc.

Solver

MESHING PROCESS IN ANSYS MESHING

GLOBAL MESH CONTROLS (1)

Global mesh controls are used to make

global adjustment in the meshing
strategy, which includes sizing
functions, inflation, smoothing,
defeaturing, parameter inputs,
assembly meshing inputs, etc.
Minimal inputs
Automatically calculates global
element sizes based on the
smallest geometric entity
Smart defaults are chosen based
on physics preference
Makes global adjustments for required
level of mesh refinement
Advanced Size Functions for resolving
regions with curvatures and proximity
of surfaces

Smart defaults !

GLOBAL MESH CONTROLS (2)

Physics Based Settings

Global Mesh Sizing Controls

Physics and Solver Preferences

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

Patch Confirming Options

Advanced

Activation of CutCell/Tetrahedrons Meshing

Activation of Advancing Front Method
Numer of CPUs for Parallel Part Meshing
Shape Checking
Element midside nodes

Defeaturing

Pinch based
Automatic Mesh Based

Statistics

Mesh statistics, Quality criteria

GLOBAL MESH CONTROLS (3)

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

SIZING : ADVANCED SIZING FUNCTIONS

Controls the growth and distribution of mesh in important regions of

high curvature or close proximity of surfaces
Five Options:

Off. Unavailable for Assembly

Proximity and Curvature
Curvature
Proximity
Fixed

Meshing

When CutCell Meshing is active with Proximity or Proximity and

Curvature Advanced Size Function (ASF), Proximity Size Function
Sources control is displayed to specify the regions of proximity between
Edges, Faces or Faces and Edges in the computation of Proximity
ASF

SIZING : ADVANCED SIZING FUNCTION EXAMPLES

ASF: Off
The edges are meshed with global
Element Size
Then the edges are refined for
curvature and 2D proximity
At the end, corresponding face and
volume mesh is generated
Transition of cell size is defined by
Transition

ASF: Curvature
Determines the Edge and Face
sizes based on Curvature Normal
Angle
Finer Curvature Normal Angle
creates finer surface mesh
Transition of cell size is defined by
Growth Rate

ASF: Proximity
Controls the mesh resolution on
proximity regions in the model
Fits in specified number of elements in
the narrow gaps
Higher Number of Cells Across Gap
creates more refined surface mesh
Transition of cell size is defined by
Growth Rate

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

Mesh size:
GR = 1.1 : 1,263,297 cells
GR = 1.2 : 587,026 cells
GR = 1.3 : 392,061 cells

Growth Rate = 1.2

(Default)

Growth Rate =
1.3

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 : 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

Coarse

Medium

Fine

INFLATION

Inflation

Used to generate thin cells adjacent to boundaries

Required for capture of wall adjacent boundary layers
Resolve viscous boundary layer in CFD
Resolve thin air gaps in Electromagnetic analysis
Resolve high stress concentration regions in Structures
Cells are created by inflating from the surface mesh into the volume (3d) or
inflating from the boundary edge onto the face (2d)
Options to control growth

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:

Smooth
Transition

All available for Patch Conformal (PC ) tets and Assembly

meshing
Smooth Transition
Maintains smooth volumetric growth between each
adjacent layer. Total thickness depends on the
variation of base surface mesh sizes (Default)
First Layer Thickness
Maintains constant first cell height
throughout
Total Thickness
Maintains constant total height of inflation layer
throughout
First Aspect Ratio
Controls the heights of the inflation layers by
defining the aspect ratio of the inflations that are
extruded from the inflation base
Last Aspect Ratio
Creates inflation layers using the values of the first
layer height, maximum layers, and aspect ratio
controls

INFLATION : INFLATION ALGORITHMS

Two Algorithms
Post
Pre

Patch independent
meshes (including
Assembly) use Post

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

Layer Compression (Default for Fluent)

Does not check for proximity regions

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

DEFEATURING

AMBD Off

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
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 7 for details

LOCAL MESH CONTROLS

In this section, we will learn about:
Local mesh controls (Mesh sizing, Refinement, Match
control, Inflation, etc)
How to apply local controls?
Effect of local controls on mesh

PREPROCESSING WORKFLOW
Import/
Geometry
Creation

Sketches and
Planes
3D Operations
Extrude, Revolve,
Sweep, etc

Geometry Import
Options
Bi-Directional
CAD/ Neutral

Geometry
Modifications

3D Operations
Booleans,
Decompose, etc.

Geometry
Cleanup and
Repair
Automatic
Cleanup
Simplification,
Mid-surface,
Fluid Extraction

Meshing

Meshing Methods
Hybrid Mesh: Tet,
Prisms, Pyramids
Hexa Dominant,
Sweep meshing
Assembly
Meshing

Global Mesh
Settings
Local Mesh
Settings
Sizing, Controls,
etc.

Solver

MESHING PROCESS IN ANSYS MESHING

LOCAL MESH CONTROLS

Non-CutCell meshing local controls

Control the mesh locally

Depends on the Mesh Method used

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 - For Edge and Face
Pinch - For Vertex and Edge
Inflation - For Edge and Face

CutCell meshing local controls

Only Sizing and Inflation local controls are available

for CutCell meshing
The latest control added on a particular entity 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
Entity/Option Element Size Number of Divisions Body of Influence
Sizing options vary depending on
Vertices
the entity type chosen
Edges
x
x
Faces
Bodies

x
x

Only Element Size type is available for CutCell

meshing

Sphere of Influence
x
x
x
x
Advanced Size
Function in
Global settings
should be
disabled

Requires a
Coordinate
system for
the sphere

SIZING : EDGES
Sizing Type:
Element Size

Sizing Type:
Number of Divisions

Edge meshed with

constant element size of
60mm

Edge meshed with 10

elements

The Curvature Normal Angle and/or the Growth Rate maybe

not displayed depending on the ASF used

SIZING : EDGES
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 Option:
Bias Factor: is the ratio of the largest element to the smallest element
Smooth Transition: defined by Growth Rate which is ratio of size of an element with
size of previous element. (Growth Rate = Bias Factor^(1(n-1))

SIZING : EDGES
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
size function.

Soft

Number of Division = 4

No influence from other

global settings

Hard

Number of Division = 4

SIZING : FACES & BODY (VOLUME)

Element Size
Defines the maximum element size on the
face

Element Size
Defines the maximum cell size on the Body

SIZING : 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

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

Without BOIs

Solid BOI

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: INTERNAL NO. OF DIVISIONS

If face is defined by two loops, then the Internal Number of Divisions
field is activated
User can specify the number of divisions across the annular region
Also useful for defining number of divisions along sweeping direction for Multizone
when there are no side edges

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

Periodic Model

Model is symmetrical at 90
Selected Faces for
Match control
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

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)

MESH QUALITY
In this section, we will learn:

Impact of the Mesh Quality on the Solution

Quality criteria
Methods for checking the mesh quality
Tools to improve quality in Meshing
Concept of Assembly Meshing
Assembly Meshing Methods & Controls

PREPROCESSING WORKFLOW
Import/
Geometry
Creation

Sketches and
Planes
3D Operations
Extrude, Revolve,
Sweep, etc

Geometry Import
Options
Bi-Directional
CAD/ Neutral

Geometry
Modifications

3D Operations
Booleans,
Decompose, etc.

Geometry
Cleanup and
Repair
Automatic
Cleanup
Simplification,
Mid-surface,
Fluid Extraction

Meshing

Solver

Meshing Methods
Hybrid Mesh: Tet,
Prisms, Pyramids
Hexa Dominant,
Sweep meshing
Assembly
Meshing

Global Mesh
Settings
Local Mesh
Settings
Sizing, Controls,
etc.

Check Mesh
Quality

MESHING PROCESS IN ANSYS MESHING

IMPACT OF THE MESH QUALITY

Good quality mesh means that

Bad quality mesh can cause;

Mesh quality criteria are within correct range

Orthogonal quality
Mesh is valid for studied physics
Boundary layer
Solution is grid independent
Important geometric details are well captured
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
Unphysical values in
vicinity of poor quality
cells

IMPACT OF THE MESH QUALITY ON THE SOLUTION

Diffusion example

Mesh 1

(max,avg)CSKEW=(0.912,0.291)
(max,avg)CAR=(62.731,7.402)

Large cell size

change

VzMIN-90ft/min
VzMAX600ft/min

Mesh 2

(max,avg)CSKEW =(0.801,0.287)
(max,avg)CAR=(8.153,1.298)

VzMIN-100ft/min
VzMAX400ft/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)

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

Hexa: Concentration in one direction

Angles unchanged
Tetra: Concentration in one direction
Angles change
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

Tetra

Prism

Tetra (in volume)

Prisms (near wall)

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

Derived directly from

Fluent solver discretization

A
c1

f1

For a cell it is the minimum of:

Ai fi
| Ai || f i |

Ai ci
| Ai || ci |

On face

c3

f3

f2

A1

c2

e1
e2

e3

A2

A2

A3
A3
Ai ei
For the face it is computed as the minimum of
computed for each edge I
| Ai || ei |
computed for each face 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
Worst

1
Perfect

MESH QUALITY METRICS

Optimal (equilateral) cell

Skewness
Two methods for determining skewness:
1. Equilateral Volume deviation:
Skewness =

2.

optimal cell size cell size

optimal cell size

Applies only for triangles and tetrahedrons

Normalized Angle deviation:

e min
Skewness = max max e ,

e
180 e

Actual cell

max

Circumsphere

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
Used for hexa, prisms and pyramids

0
Perfect

1
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 the mesh contains degenerate cells
Skewness mesh metrics spectrum

Orthogonal Quality mesh metrics spectrum

ASPECT RATIO
2-D:

Length / height ratio: x/y

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 ...)

y
x

SMOOTHNESS
Checked in solver

Volume Change in Fluent

Available in Adapt/Volume
3D : i = Vi / Vnb

Expansion Factor in CFX

Checked during mesh import
Ratio of largest to smallest element volumes
surrounding a node

Recommendation:
Good: 1.0 < < 1.5
Fair: 1.5 < < 2.5
Poor: > 5 20

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
Edit Section Plane button

can be used to drag section plane to new location

Clicking on Edit Section Plane button will make section planes anchor to appear

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 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
Metric Graph button

Axis range can be adjusted using controls

button (details next slide)

Click on bars to view corresponding

elements in the graphics window
Use to help locate poor quality elements

MESH METRIC GRAPH CONTROLS

Elements on Y-Axis can be plotted with
two methods;
Number of Elements
Percentage of Volume/Area

Options to change the range on either axis

Specify which element types to include in
graph

Tet4 = 4 Node Linear Tetrahedron

Hex8 = 8 Node Linear Hexahedron
Wed6 = 6 Node Linear Wedge (Prism)
Pyr5 = 5 Node Linear Pyramid
Quad4 = 4 Node Linear Quadrilateral
Tri3 = 3 Node Linear Triangle
Te10, Hex20, Wed15, Pyr13, Quad8 & Tri6
non-linear elements

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
Minimum Orthogonality Angle [degrees]
=
20.4 ok
Maximum Aspect Ratio
=
13.5 OK
Maximum Mesh Expansion Factor
=
700.4 !
Domain Name: Water Pipe
Minimum Orthogonality Angle [degrees]
=
32.8 ok
Maximum Aspect Ratio
=
6.4 OK
Maximum Mesh Expansion Factor
=
73.5 !
Global Mesh Quality Statistics :
Minimum Orthogonality Angle [degrees]
=
20.4 ok
Maximum Aspect Ratio
=
13.5 OK
Maximum Mesh Expansion Factor
=
700.4 !

Good
(OK)

Acceptable
(ok)

Questionable
(!)

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

Small edge
Gaps
Sharp angle

Geometry cleanup in Design Modeler

or
Virtual topology & pinch in Meshing

Meshing parameters

Sizing Function On / Off

Min size too large
Inflation parameters

Mesh setting change

Total height
Maximum angle
Hard sizing

Meshing methods

Patch conformal or patch independent tetra

Sweep or Multizone
Cutcell

Mesh setting change

VIRTUAL TOPOLOGY
When to use?

Without VT

With VT

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

Restrictions

Limited to developable surfaces

Virtual Faces cannot form a closed region

automatically 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

PINCH
Pinch control removes small features automatically or
manually at the mesh level
Slivers
Short Edges
Sharp Angles

The Pinch feature works on vertices and edges only

before
after
before
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

Vertex-Vertex

after

Edge-Edge

ASSEMBLY
MESHING

MESHING PROCESS IN ANSYS MESHING

ASSEMBLY MESHING
Behavior

Meshes an entire model as single process

Mesh Methods covered so far are part

or body based methods
Not compatible with part/body methods
Two Algorithms available
CutCell & Tetrahedrons

CutCell

Note that some

global and local
controls are not
available for
Assembly
Meshing (eg.
Match Control)

Access

Assembly Meshing is accessible only when

Physics and Solver Preferences are set to

CFD and Fluent respectively
To activate, replace None by Cutcell or
Tetrahedrons

Tetrahedrons

ASSEMBLY MESHING - CUTCELL

CutCell Behavior

Cartesian meshing method designed for

the ANSYS FLUENT solver
Generates a majority of hex cells
Some wedges, tets and pyramids at
boundaries to capture geometry
During transfer to Fluent hexa cells at
size transition are converted into
Polyhedra
Supports Inflation
Post-inflation (TGrid algorithm)
Baffles not supported
High inflation may fail
Cutcell mesh generated first,
inflation generated second (Post)

ASSEMBLY MESHING - TETRAHEDRONS

Tetrahedrons Behavior

Generates a Patch Independent tetra mesh

with automatic defeaturing
Following steps occur in background
Generate CutCell
Delete volume mesh
Triangulate surface mesh and
improve
Fill with tetra mesh
Compatible with inflation
Pre-inflation
Algorithm similar to Tetra
Patch Conformal

ASSEMBLY MESHING - CONTROLS

Controls

Set Advanced Size Functions

Proximity SF Sources : 'edges',
faces or edges and faces
Define correct Min Size (details
next slide)
Inflation defined by Global or Local
controls
Combined Global & Local not
supported
Program Control acts on Fluid
bodies only
Bodies can be set as Fluid in
Body properties
For Virtual Bodies, only automatic
Program Controlled inflation can
be used
Define Feature and Tesselation controls
(see next slide)
Apply any required local size controls
Statistics

ASSEMBLY MESHING - CONTROLS

Example 1. Min Size too
large compared to the size
of the geometric detail

Min Size definition

Assembly Meshing is Patch Independent, geometry recovery and leakage

depend on local sizes
Local sizes are driven by global min sizes and local hard sizing
Min Size and Prox Min Size must be set with care
Local mesh size recommendation to capture 3D features
Local size < feature size
Local mesh size recommendation to close gaps
1/10 local size < gap size < local size : contact sizing can be defined
to close gap
Gap size < 1/10 local size : gap closed
Prior to meshing the user is advised to resolve geometry features properly
in CAD/DM
Avoid unnecessary geometry details
Features aligned with Coord. Syst. will be more easily recovered

Example2 . Doubling the

Min Size closes the gap

ASSEMBLY MESHING - CONTROLS

Feature Capture
Program Controlled : default
which sets feature angle = 40
Feature Angle : user angle to
define features to recover
0 to capture all
Tessellation (faceting) refinement
Program Controlled - default
which sets tessellation refinement
to 10% of the value of smallest
global min size
Absolute Tolerance user defined
tolerance
Must be set to 5-10% of
smallest size (global min
sizes or local hard sizing)
None - Sets tessellation
refinement to the CAD program or
DesignModeler default setting

Incorrect tessellation may lead to

leakage

STAY AHEAD DURING CHALLENGING TIMES

To purchase software or for consulting

please contact us: info@ozeninc.com

(408) 732-4665

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FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:
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