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Table of Contents
1. Introduction to the ANSYS TurboGrid Tutorials ...................................................................................... 1
1.1. Preparing a Working Directory .......................................................................................................... 1
1.2. Setting the Working Directory and Starting ANSYS TurboGrid ............................................................ 1
1.3. Changing the Display Colors ............................................................................................................. 2
1.4. Editor Buttons .................................................................................................................................. 2
1.5. Using Help ........................................................................................................................................ 2
2. Rotor 37 ................................................................................................................................................... 3
2.1. Overview of the Mesh Creation Process ............................................................................................. 4
2.2. Before You Begin .............................................................................................................................. 5
2.3. Starting ANSYS TurboGrid ................................................................................................................. 5
2.4. Defining the Geometry ..................................................................................................................... 5
2.5. Defining the Topology ...................................................................................................................... 7
2.6. Reviewing the Mesh Data Settings .................................................................................................... 9
2.7. Reviewing the Mesh Quality on the Hub and Shroud Tip Layers ......................................................... 9
2.8. Adding Intermediate Layers ............................................................................................................ 10
2.9. Generating the Mesh ...................................................................................................................... 11
2.10. Analyzing the Coarse Mesh ........................................................................................................... 11
2.10.1. Analyzing the Coarse Mesh Quality ....................................................................................... 11
2.10.2. Looking at Mesh Data Values ................................................................................................ 13
2.10.3. Visualizing the Hub-to-Shroud Element Distribution ............................................................. 13
2.11. Increasing the Mesh Density ......................................................................................................... 14
2.12. Regenerating the Mesh ................................................................................................................. 15
2.13. Analyzing the Fine Mesh ............................................................................................................... 15
2.13.1. Analyzing the Fine Mesh Quality ........................................................................................... 15
2.13.2. Visualizing the Hub-to-Shroud Element Distribution in the Fine Mesh .................................... 16
2.13.3. Observing the Shroud Tip Mesh ............................................................................................ 17
2.13.4. Examining the Mesh Qualitatively ......................................................................................... 18
2.13.5. Creating a Legend ................................................................................................................ 19
2.14. Saving the Mesh ........................................................................................................................... 19
2.15. Saving the State (Optional) ............................................................................................................ 20
3. Steam Stator .......................................................................................................................................... 21
3.1. Before You Begin ............................................................................................................................. 22
3.2. Starting ANSYS TurboGrid ............................................................................................................... 22
3.3. Defining the Geometry ................................................................................................................... 22
3.3.1. Loading the Curves ................................................................................................................ 22
3.3.2. Modifying the Curve Type ....................................................................................................... 24
3.4. Defining the Topology .................................................................................................................... 25
3.5. Reviewing the Mesh Data Settings .................................................................................................. 26
3.6. Reviewing the Mesh Quality on the Hub and Shroud Layers ............................................................. 26
3.6.1. Modifying the Hub and Shroud Layers .................................................................................... 26
3.7. Generating the Mesh ...................................................................................................................... 28
3.8. Analyzing the Mesh ........................................................................................................................ 28
3.8.1. Examining the Mesh Qualitatively ........................................................................................... 29
3.8.1.1. Editing a Turbo Surface .................................................................................................. 29
3.8.1.2. Creating a Legend ......................................................................................................... 29
3.9. Saving the Mesh ............................................................................................................................. 30
3.10. Saving the State (Optional) ............................................................................................................ 30
4. Radial Compressor ................................................................................................................................ 31
4.1. Before You Begin ............................................................................................................................. 32
4.2. Starting ANSYS TurboGrid ............................................................................................................... 32
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iv
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Note
These tutorials assume that you are using ANSYS TurboGrid in stand-alone mode. If you
would like to attempt running one of these tutorials in ANSYS Workbench, you should first
be familiar with ANSYS Workbench and review the documentation in ANSYS TurboGrid in
ANSYS Workbench in the TurboGrid Introduction.
You should review the following topics before attempting to start a tutorial for the first time:
1.1. Preparing a Working Directory
1.2. Setting the Working Directory and Starting ANSYS TurboGrid
1.3. Changing the Display Colors
1.4. Editor Buttons
1.5. Using Help
2.
3.
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2.
3.
Click OK.
Apply applies the information contained within all the tabs of an editor.
Cancel and Close both close the editor without applying or saving any changes.
Reset returns the settings for the object to those stored in the database for all the tabs. The settings
are stored in the database each time the Apply button is clicked.
Defaults restores the system default settings for all the tabs of the edited object.
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Chapter 2: Rotor 37
This tutorial includes:
2.1. Overview of the Mesh Creation Process
2.2. Before You Begin
2.3. Starting ANSYS TurboGrid
2.4. Defining the Geometry
2.5. Defining the Topology
2.6. Reviewing the Mesh Data Settings
2.7. Reviewing the Mesh Quality on the Hub and Shroud Tip Layers
2.8. Adding Intermediate Layers
2.9. Generating the Mesh
2.10. Analyzing the Coarse Mesh
2.11. Increasing the Mesh Density
2.12. Regenerating the Mesh
2.13. Analyzing the Fine Mesh
2.14. Saving the Mesh
2.15. Saving the State (Optional)
This tutorial demonstrates the basic workflow for generating a CFD mesh using ANSYS TurboGrid. As
you work through this tutorial, you will create a mesh for a blade passage of an axial compressor blade
row. A typical blade passage is shown by the black outline in the figure below.
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Chapter 2: Rotor 37
The blade row contains 36 blades that revolve about the negative Z-axis. A clearance gap exists between
the blades and the shroud, with a width of 2.5% of the total span. Within the blade passage, the maximum diameter of the shroud is approximately 51 cm.
After creating the mesh with the default mesh density, you will check the mesh quality. You will then
increase the mesh density and regenerate the mesh. Finally, you will save the mesh in a format that
can be used by ANSYS CFX in a CFD simulation.
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2.
Define the topology by choosing a topology type and optionally changing other topology settings.
3.
Optionally modify the Mesh Data settings that govern the number and the distribution of nodes in
various parts of the mesh.
If you plan to make a fine (high-resolution) mesh, you can optionally set the mesh density at a
later time in order to minimize processing time while establishing the topology. Keep in mind
that changing the mesh density can affect the mesh quality.
4.
5.
Optionally add intermediate 2D layers that guide the 3D topology and mesh. If you do not add layers
at this point, they will be added as required when you generate the mesh. Adding them early gives
you a chance to check and adjust the 2D mesh quality on the intermediate layers before generating
the full 3D mesh.
6.
7.
Check the mesh quality. As required, adjust the topology type and distribution, and Mesh Data settings. If you make changes, go back to the previous step.
8.
Prepare the working directory using the files in the examples/rotor37 directory.
For details, see Preparing a Working Directory (p. 1).
2.
Chapter 2: Rotor 37
1.
2.
Note
It is possible to adjust the upstream and downstream extents of the hub and shroud
surfaces (by changing the Inlet and Outlet geometry objects). It is also possible
to create an extended mesh that includes the inlet and outlet domains (by editing the
Mesh Data settings).
To understand the correlation between the geometry objects listed in the object selector and the
locations in the geometry, toggle the visibility check box next to each object in the object selector
and observe the change in the viewer. In order to avoid cluttering the view, ensure that only the Hub,
Shroud, Blade 1, and Outline objects have visibility turned on before continuing to the next
step.
2.
Open Geometry > Machine Data from the object selector by double-clicking Machine Data in
the object selector, or by right-clicking Machine Data and selecting Edit from the shortcut menu
that appears.
Here you can see basic information about the geometry. Note that the units specified for Base
Units represent the scale of the geometry being meshed; these units are not used for importing
geometric data nor do they govern the units written to a mesh file; they are used for the internal
representation of the geometry to minimize computer round-off errors.
3.
4.
5.
To complete the geometry, create a small gap between the blade and the shroud. The blade should
be shortened to 97.5% of its original span because the gap width, as specified in the problem description,
is 2.5% of the total span.
1.
2.
3.
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Click Apply.
The names of the objects in the Geometry branch of the object selector are shown in black non-italic
text, indicating that the Geometry objects are all defined. This completes the geometry definition.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Click Apply.
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Chapter 2: Rotor 37
8.
9.
Click Freeze.
It is recommended that you freeze the topology after you specify and generate it. This prevents
the settings on the Advanced Parameters tab of Topology Set > Blade 1 from inadvertently
changing. Without freezing the topology, unwanted changes to the topology block counts might
occur as a result of making small adjustments to the topology (for example, moving a control
point).
Estimates of the total number of nodes and elements are displayed at the bottom left of the screen.
These estimates are based on the default Mesh Data settings.
Change the view to clearly show the topology on the hub:
1.
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Reviewing the Mesh Quality on the Hub and Shroud Tip Layers
2.
Turn off the visibility of Layers > Shroud Tip to hide the topology on the shroud tip.
3.
Right-click a blank area in the viewer, and click Predefined Camera > View From +X from the shortcut
menu.
The heavy lines in Figure 2.1 (p. 9) indicate the (master) topology lines; the thinner lines show the 2D
mesh for the hub. Note that the 3D mesh does not yet exist.
The mesh wraps around the blade at the leading and trailing edges. This is the main characteristic of
the J-Grid topology.
2.7. Reviewing the Mesh Quality on the Hub and Shroud Tip Layers
Layers are constant-span surfaces that are used for displaying and editing the topology, and for displaying
a preview of the refined mesh. You have already seen the hub layer in Figure 2.1 (p. 9). At this point,
there are two layers: Layers > Hub, and Layers > Shroud Tip.
Before generating the 3D mesh, it is recommended that you check the mesh quality on the layers, especially the hub and shroud tip layers. By correcting any mesh problems early, you can save time by
minimizing the number of times you generate the full 3D mesh.
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Chapter 2: Rotor 37
If the topology were grossly skewed or distorted on the hub or shroud tip layer, the Layers object
would be shown with red text in the object selector. Since the Layers object is shown in black text,
the mesh contains no regions with high skew on the hub and shroud tip layers.
For a more detailed analysis of the mesh quality on a layer, open the layer object and read the list of
mesh measures. If the mesh measures are not shown, select Refined Mesh Visibility and click Apply.
The mesh measures show the extreme values for the mesh elements. If any of the mesh measures are
considered bad, they are listed in red text. The criteria for bad mesh elements are set in the Mesh
Analysis > Mesh Limits object. You can double-click a red mesh measure to color the bad mesh
elements red in the viewer.
In this case, elements with a very high aspect ratio exist close to the blade. This is to be expected, especially for a coarse mesh.
Note
The quality criterion for the Maximum Aspect Ratio mesh measure is controlled by the Edge
Length Ratio setting in the Mesh Analysis > Mesh Limits object.
Turn on the visibility of Layers > Shroud Tip to show the shroud layer, then right-click in the
viewer and click Predefined Camera > Isometric View (Y up).
By viewing the hub and shroud layers from this angle, you can see where the new layers are added.
2.
Open Layers.
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ANSYS TurboGrid adds additional layers as required; in this case, 1 layer is added.
4.
Turn on the visibility of Layers > Layer 1 to see the new layer in the viewer.
5.
To check the mesh quality on the new layer, open Layers > Layer 1, select Refined Mesh Visibility,
and click Apply.
Note that the face angles are acceptable on the new layer.
After the mesh has been generated, 3D mesh measures are available. You will check these in the next
section. Mesh visualization objects, listed under 3D Mesh, are also available. By default, one of these
objects, called Show Mesh, is shown in the viewer. You can alter this object or view other 3D Mesh
objects to inspect different parts of the mesh. Later in this tutorial, you will view some of the objects
listed under 3D Mesh.
Before proceeding to the next section, turn off the visibility of 3D Mesh > Show Mesh so that you
can see the mesh without obstruction.
The mesh is relatively coarse. Such a mesh is suitable when you need to regenerate the mesh repeatedly
in the course of improving the mesh quality. After attaining the required level of mesh quality, you
should make a finer mesh. Later in this tutorial, you will generate a finer mesh.
Note
In some cases, the mesh quality can be adversely affected by increasing the mesh density,
making further adjustments necessary.
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Chapter 2: Rotor 37
Check the 3D mesh statistics:
1.
For a visual frame of reference, ensure that Layers > Hub and Layers > Shroud Tip are visible.
2.
In this case, Maximum Element Volume Ratio and Maximum Edge Length Ratio do
not meet the criteria. Not all of the mesh statistics carry the same importance. For example, it is
necessary to have a mesh with no negative volumes. Generally, poor angles should also be fixed,
but Maximum Edge Length Ratio and Maximum Element Volume Ratio values should
be judged based on your requirements.
3.
Double-click Maximum Element Volume Ratio to display the elements that have an element
volume ratio greater than 2 (the default criterion). Alternatively, you can select Maximum Element
Volume Ratio and then click Display.
A built-in volume object, Mesh Analysis > Show Limits, automatically changes its definition
and appears in the viewer. This volume object includes the mesh elements that fail to meet the
criteria for the selected mesh measure.
The volume object appears mainly on the blade, hub, and shroud surfaces. This is normal. Note
that part of the mesh upstream and downstream of the blade is also included in the volume object.
To improve the element volume ratio in these regions, you will increase the mesh density later
in this tutorial.
4.
Double-click Maximum Edge Length Ratio to display the elements that have an edge length
ratio greater than 100 (the default criterion).
The Mesh Analysis > Show Limits object appears mainly on the blade, hub and shroud
surfaces. This is normal.
5.
Click Close.
6.
12
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2.
3.
2.
3.
4.
Observe the element distribution from hub to shroud tip and from shroud tip to shroud.
See Figure 2.2 (p. 14).
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Chapter 2: Rotor 37
2.
On the Mesh Size tab, leave Method set to Target Passage Mesh Size.
3.
14
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4.
Click Apply.
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Chapter 2: Rotor 37
You can see that, in this case, after increasing the mesh density, the Maximum Element Volume
Ratio mesh statistic has improved.
2.
3.
Click Close.
4.
Turn off the visibility of Mesh Analysis (Error) > Show Limits.
On the Passage tab for the Mesh Data object, compare the number of elements from hub to shroud
tip (66) with the value obtained for the coarse mesh (20). The number of elements has risen.
2.
Look at the Shroud Tip tab to verify that more elements now exist between the shroud tip and shroud
(11 before, now 16).
3.
See Figure 2.3 (p. 17), and compare it with Figure 2.2 (p. 14).
16
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4.
2.
3.
Figure 2.4 (p. 18) shows this mesh at the leading edge of the blade. Note how the nodes do not
line up along the middle of the blade, due to the default use of a general grid (GGI) interface
along the shroud tip of the blade.
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Chapter 2: Rotor 37
4.
5.
2.
3.
4.
Set Value to 1.
This will cause the turbo surface to appear on the hub.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
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Note
You can create new turbo surfaces. To begin the process of creating a new turbo surface,
click Insert > User Defined > Turbo Surface.
Note
To show distinct color bands, you could make a contour plot object that applies to an existing
locator (geometric surface, turbo surface, or other graphic objects that involve surfaces). To
begin the process of creating a contour plot, ensure that you have a suitable locator already
defined, then click Insert > User Defined > Contour.
Tip
For objects that are colored by a variable, it is best to view them with lighting turned off, so
that the colors are not altered according to the angle of view. The lighting is controlled by
a setting on the Render tab.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Click Apply.
A legend appears in the viewer, showing the correspondence between values of Edge Length
Ratio and colors for the Show Mesh object.
You may want to modify 3D Mesh > Show Mesh to plot it on different locations, or to color it by
different variables. The legend will be updated automatically whenever you make changes to the turbo
surface.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Click Save.
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Chapter 2: Rotor 37
2.
3.
Click Save.
20
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Import hub, shroud, and blade geometry from individual curve files.
Change the method of constructing the hub and shroud curve types.
Make colored surfaces to show variations in mesh measures (such as Minimum Face Angle).
As you work through this tutorial, you will create a mesh for a blade passage of a steam stator. A typical
blade passage is shown by the black outline in the figure below.
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21
The stator contains 60 blades distributed about the Z-axis. Within the blade passage, the maximum
diameter of the shroud is approximately 97.5 cm.
Prepare the working directory using the files in the examples/stator directory.
For details, see Preparing a Working Directory (p. 1).
2.
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Click File > Load Curves to open the Load TurboGrid Curves dialog box.
The Load TurboGrid Curves dialog box appears. ANSYS TurboGrid fills in the names of the curve
files based on the files that are present in the working directory; The first .crv or .curve file
found that has a name containing hub, shroud, or blade/profile is selected as the hub,
shroud, or blade file, respectively.
2.
3.
4.
Set Coordinates and Units > Coordinates to Cartesian and Length Units to cm.
These units are used to interpret the data in the curve files.
5.
Ensure that, under TurboGrid Curve Files, Hub is set to ./hub.curve, Shroud is set to
./shroud.curve, and Blade is set to ./profile.curve.
6.
The progress bar at the bottom right of the screen shows the geometry generation progress. After the
geometry has been generated, you can see the hub, shroud, and blade for one passage. Along the
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23
Rotate the geometry into the position shown in Figure 3.1 (p. 24).
As shown in Figure 3.1 (p. 24), the hub and shroud are greatly distorted. This is the result of using spline
curves to construct the hub and shroud based on relatively few data points. This problem will be corrected in the next section.
2.
3.
Click Apply.
4.
5.
6.
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When you are notified that intermediate points will be deleted, click Yes to continue.
Note
Note that the intermediate outlet points disappear. This happens because the regenerated set of outlet points happens to contain no intermediate points.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
It is recommended that you freeze the topology after you specify and generate it. This prevents the
settings on the Advanced Parameters tab of Topology Set > Blade 1 from inadvertently changing
due to changes to the geometry or the topology distribution. For example, an adjustment to the position
of an inlet point could cause a change to the number of topology blocks from the blade to the inlet.
1.
Open Topology Set > Blade 1, visit the Advanced Parameters tab, and observe that no overrides
exist for any of the settings.
2.
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25
Note
Note that the Freeze button has the same function whether you are on the Advanced
Parameters tab or the Definition tab.
3.6. Reviewing the Mesh Quality on the Hub and Shroud Layers
Before generating the 3D mesh, it is recommended that you check the mesh quality on the layers. By
correcting any mesh problems early, you can save time by minimizing the number of times you generate
the full 3D mesh.
If the topology were grossly skewed or distorted on the hub or shroud layer, the Layers object would
be shown with red text in the object selector. Since the Layers object is shown in black text, the mesh
contains no regions with high skew on the hub or shroud.
Although the mesh has no areas with severe skew, improvements are still possible. In the next section,
you will reduce the amount of skew by adjusting the topology distribution on the hub and shroud
layers.
Zoom in on the region of the shroud layer shown in Figure 3.2 (p. 27). If you are not sure which layer
is the shroud layer, try toggling the visibility of Layers > Shroud.
2.
Hold Ctrl+Shift and drag the control point as indicated by the displacement vector. The length of the
displacement vector is a general guide for where to position the control point. Precise positioning of
the point is unnecessary.
Note
To select and drag control points without holding down Ctrl+Shift, you can click the
Select
26
icon, then select and drag control points with the left mouse button.
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This movement of the control point helps to improve mesh element angles in the region around
it.
3.
Right-click Layers > Shroud and select Copy Control Points to Hub.
This causes the corresponding control point on the hub to move in a similar way.
Note
In a case that has more than two layers, you can modify the control points on the intermediate layers, but this is discouraged unless you intend to make no further changes to the
hub and shroud layers.
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27
Note
You can change visibility settings for a layer using the object editor for that layer. By default,
the master topology and refined mesh are visible. You can also make the (entire) topology
visible. You can choose to work with any combination of the visibility settings.
ANSYS TurboGrid automatically generates the recommended number of layers before the mesh is
generated. This default behavior can be disabled by editing the Layers object by clearing Automatically generate required layers at mesh creation on the Advanced Parameters tab.
A turbo surface of constant K (a nodal coordinate) appears. This surface is listed in the object selector
as 3D Mesh > Show Mesh. Later in this tutorial, you will change the location and coloring of this
surface to explore the mesh.
2.
Double-click Maximum Element Volume Ratio to display the elements that have an element
volume ratio greater than 2 (the default criterion set in the Mesh Analysis > Mesh Limits object).
The Mesh Analysis > Show Limits volume object shows the areas in the mesh that do not
meet the criteria. For the Maximum Element Volume Ratio mesh measure, the volume
object appears mainly on the blade, hub, and shroud surfaces. This is normal. Note that part of
28
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Double-click Maximum Edge Length Ratio to display the elements that have an edge length
ratio greater than 100 (the default criterion).
The Mesh Analysis > Show Limits object appears mainly on the blade, hub and shroud
surfaces. This is normal.
4.
In the viewer, right-click the Show Limits object and click Set Turbosurface Position from the
shortcut menu.
The constant-K turbosurface (3D Mesh > Show Mesh) moves to the location where you rightclicked to invoke the shortcut menu.
Another way to move this object is by editing its definition in the object editor.
5.
6.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
2.
29
4.
5.
6.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Click Save.
2.
3.
Click Save.
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As you work through this tutorial, you will create a mesh for a blade passage of a radial compressor
blade row using the Automatic Topology and Meshing (ATM Optimized) feature. A typical blade passage
is shown by the black outline in the figure below.
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31
The blade row contains 9 blades that revolve about the negative Z-axis. The blades are flank milled,
and have cut-off trailing edges. Within the blade passage, the maximum diameter of the shroud is approximately 125 mm.
Prepare the working directory using the files in the examples/radcomp directory.
For details, see Preparing a Working Directory (p. 1).
2.
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2.
Set # of Bladesets to 9.
3.
4.
2.
3.
Ensure that File Name is set to ./hub.curve from your working directory.
4.
Click Apply.
2.
3.
Ensure that File Name is set to ./shroud.curve from your working directory.
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Click Apply.
Note
If you had loaded the BladeGen.inf file, the Curve Type settings for the Hub and
Shroud objects would have been set to Piece-wise linear instead of the default:
Bspline. Either setting will work for this geometry.
At this point, the entire hub and shroud surfaces are shown. After a blade is defined (in the next step),
the hub and shroud will be trimmed to show only one passage.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Click Apply.
When you apply the Flank Milled option, Lofting is set to Streamwise, Curve Type is set
to Piece-wise Linear, and Surface Type is set to Ruled. The Flank Milled option is
appropriate for this geometry since there are 2 blade profiles and the data points correspond
with each other in position around the profile.
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The progress bar at the bottom right of the screen shows the geometry generation progress. After the
geometry has been generated, you can see the hub, shroud, and blade for one passage. Along the
blade, you can see the leading and trailing edge curves (green and red lines, respectively).
2.
3.
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The ATM Optimized method automatically computes a default mesh and sets the base mesh dimensions.
Each unique mesh dimension has an edge refinement factor that is multiplied by the base mesh dimension and global size factor to determine the final mesh size. The overall mesh size is controlled using
the Method setting. Setting the Method to Target Passage Mesh Size enables you to specify
a Node Count. Using this method specifies an approximate mesh size (in nodes) and lets ANSYS TurboGrid compute the mesh dimensions automatically. Setting the Method to Global Size Factor
enables you to specify a Size Factor. Increasing this factor will increase the overall mesh size, and decreasing it will decrease the overall mesh size. The change is not linear.
36
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The Proportional Refinement setting controls the number of elements across the boundary layer in
proportion to the specified Factor Ratio. ANSYS TurboGrid computes the edge refinement factor as
the Factor Ratio times the global size factor. Increasing or decreasing the Factor Ratio will effectively
increase or decrease the expansion rate, respectively.
The Cutoff Edge to Boundary Layer setting controls the number of elements along the cut-off edge
in proportion to the specified Factor. The number of elements along the cut-off edge is also proportional
to the number of elements across the boundary layer. Increasing or decreasing the Factor will effectively
increase or decrease the number of elements along the cut-off edge, respectively.
The Near Wall Element Size Specification setting controls the method by which the near-wall node
spacing is specified on the Passage, Hub Tip, and Shroud Tip tabs. The near-wall node spacing is the
distance between a wall (for example, hub, shroud, or blade) and the first layer of nodes from the wall.
The available Method options are:
Y Plus The y+ method sets the near-wall spacing to a target value, y+, and in relation to a set
Reynolds number.
Normalized The Normalized method sets the near-wall spacing to a normalized value. Normalization is interpreted as the absolute distance divided by the maximum possible distance.
Absolute The Absolute method enables you to set the near-wall spacing directly on the Passage,
Hub Tip, and Shroud Tip tabs.
The Inlet Domain and Outlet Domain check boxes allow you to generate the inlet and outlet domains
as part of the mesh. Settings that affect these grid regions are found on the Inlet/Outlet tab.
Selecting the Lock mesh size check box forces the total number of nodes and elements to remain
constant.
For a description of the available options, see Mesh Data and ATM Optimized Topology in the TurboGrid
User's Guide.
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37
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Click Save.
2.
3.
Click Save.
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Change the shape and position of the Inlet and Outlet geometry objects which bound the blade
passage in the streamwise direction.
Use the ATM Optimized feature to generate and customize a mesh as desired.
This tutorial is very similar to Axial Fan Using Traditional Topology (p. 49). The notable difference is the
use of the ATM Optimized feature to generate and control the mesh. As you work through this tutorial,
you will create a mesh for a blade passage of a fan. A typical blade passage, inlet domain, and outlet
domain, are shown by the black outline in the figure below.
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39
The fan contains 10 blades that revolve about the negative Z-axis. A clearance gap exists between the
blades and the shroud, with a width of 5% of the total span. The shroud diameter is approximately 26.4
cm.
Let the mesh contain an inlet domain and an outlet domain.
Prepare the working directory using the files in the examples/fan directory.
For details, see Preparing a Working Directory (p. 1).
2.
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2.
3.
Right-click a blank area in the viewer, and click Transformation > Meridional (A-R) from the shortcut
menu.
The passage inlet, which appears in the object selector as Geometry > Inlet, is the upstream end
of the blade passage (but not necessarily the upstream end of the mesh, since, as you will see in this
tutorial, you can add an inlet domain upstream of the passage inlet). The passage inlet is generated by
revolving a curve, which is defined in an axial-radial plane, about the machine axis. That curve, in turn,
is generated according to a set of points, known here as inlet points. These points appear as white octahedrons in the viewer. The passage outlet is analogous to the passage inlet, and is downstream of
the blade passage.
Notice that, in this case, there are two inlet points and they are located at different distances from the
blade. In order to obtain a high-quality mesh topology for the blade passage, the inlet points should
be repositioned.
Reposition the inlet and outlet points as follows, and observe the movement of the inlet and outlet
points in the viewer:
1.
2.
Select Low Hub Point, then set Method to Set A and Location to -0.008.
3.
Click Apply.
4.
Select Low Shroud Point, then set Method to Set A and Location to 0.002.
5.
Click Apply.
6.
7.
Select Low Hub Point, then set Method to Set A and Location to 0.03.
8.
Click Apply.
9.
Select Low Shroud Point, then set Method to Set A and Location to 0.03.
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41
2.
3.
4.
Click Apply.
Right-click a blank area in the viewer, and click Transformation > Cartesian (X-Y-Z) from the shortcut
menu.
2.
This gives you an unobstructed view of the topology, and later the mesh.
3.
4.
5.
6.
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Changing the edge refinement on a specific edge, including within the boundary layer.
We will demonstrate how to use the global size factor to change the overall mesh size and how to
change the refinement in the boundary layer, with and without proportional refinement. For the other
options, please see ATM Optimized Topology in the TurboGrid User's Guide.
Apply these settings:
1.
2.
Note
If the method is left as Target Passage Mesh Size, the behavior of the mesh topology
is different. ANSYS TurboGrid targets the node count as specified regardless of changes
made. This may alter the mesh size at various locations where you did not intend.
3.
4.
Set Boundary Layer Refinement Control > Method to Proportional to Mesh Size.
5.
6.
Click Apply.
Observe that the number of nodes and the mesh size at the boundary layer is far greater. With
proportional refinement enabled, the relationship between the height of the first element in the
boundary layer and the global size factor should be approximately inversely proportional (that is,
an increase in the global size factor will cause a decrease in the element height). With proportional
refinement disabled, the number of elements in the boundary layer will vary proportionally to
the global size factor. Right-click a blank area in the viewer, and select Predefined Camera >
Isometric View (X Up).
7.
Change Boundary Layer Refinement Control > Method to Edge Refinement Factor.
8.
The Edge Refinement Factor option is selected, and Parameters > Factor is already set. The
value of this factor was chosen by default to maintain a similar mesh topology as when Proportional
to Mesh Size was selected. The edge refinement factor is defined as the global size factor multiplied
by the proportional refinement factor.
9.
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Click Mesh
A K-Plane is displayed by default. This shows the 2D mesh on a layer. The plane can be moved
in the spanwise direction by holding Ctrl + Shift and dragging using the left mouse button.
2.
Enable 3D Mesh > HIGHBLADE, 3D Mesh > HUB, 3D Mesh > LOWBLADE and 3D Mesh > SHROUD
in the object selector.
Observe that the increase in mesh size near the boundary layer also occurs in the spanwise direction, as can be seen in Figure 5.1 (p. 44).
The mesh size in the spanwise direction is automatically changed depending on the global size factor
and the mesh size at the boundary layer. It can also be specified. You are going to increase the mesh
size in the spanwise direction by a factor of 1.5:
1.
2.
On the Passage tab, set Spanwise Blade Distribution Parameters > Factor to 1.5.
Note that the greyed out # of Elements field indicates a total of 65 elements in the spanwise
direction. This will now increase.
3.
Click Apply.
The number of elements has increased to 98. This is roughly an increase by a factor of 1.5.
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2.
Set Boundary Layer Refinement Control > Near Wall Element Size Specification > Method to y+.
3.
4.
Change Boundary Layer Refinement Control > Method to First Element Offset.
The field for specifying Offset Y+ is enabled.
5.
6.
Click Apply.
You should see an increase in the mesh size at the boundary layer. You will generate the mesh
to inspect your changes.
7.
Click Mesh
The latest mesh will have very small elements near the boundary layer. This can be seen in Figure
5.2 (p. 46).
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45
To be able to see which boundary to modify, it's best to hide the currently generated mesh. Ultimately, only the topology will be visible when refinements are made.
2.
Right-click the edge of the shroud tip layer, marked A in Figure 5.3 (p. 47), and select Increase Edge
Refinement > 100%.
After a few seconds of processing, you should observe the mesh size increasing by a factor of 2
at the edge you selected. Only topologically parallel edges will be affected by this change.
46
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3.
Click Mesh
You can double-click one of the items in red to see the locations in the mesh where the statistics fail
to meet the criteria set in Mesh Analysis > Mesh Limits. Further improvements to the mesh are
possible, but are beyond the scope of this tutorial.
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47
2.
On the Mesh Size tab, select Inlet Domain and Outlet Domain.
3.
Click Apply.
4.
Click Mesh
Open Mesh Analysis. Note that the Maximum Edge Length Ratio mesh measure is extremely
large. By displaying this mesh measure, you will see that some of the mesh elements that exceed the
criterion are at the inlet where the mesh meets the rotation axis. This is to be expected wherever the
hub reaches the axis of rotation because at these locations the element edges have zero length.
2.
View the mesh on the inlet and outlet (not the passage inlet and outlet, but the inlet and outlet of
the entire mesh) by turning on the visibility of the corresponding 3D Mesh objects.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Click Save.
2.
3.
Click Save.
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Change the shape and position of the Inlet and Outlet geometry objects which bound the blade
passage in the streamwise direction.
Specify the use of a General Grid Interface on the periodic surfaces of the blade passage.
As you work through this tutorial, you will create a mesh for a blade passage of a fan. A typical blade
passage, inlet domain, and outlet domain, are shown by the black outline in the figure below.
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49
The fan contains 10 blades that revolve about the negative Z-axis. A clearance gap exists between the
blades and the shroud, with a width of 5% of the total span. The shroud diameter is approximately 26.4
cm.
Let the mesh contain an inlet domain and an outlet domain.
Prepare the working directory using the files in the examples/fan directory.
For details, see Preparing a Working Directory (p. 1).
2.
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2.
3.
Right-click a blank area in the viewer, and click Transformation > Meridional (A-R) from the shortcut
menu.
The passage inlet, which appears in the object selector as Geometry > Inlet, is the upstream end
of the blade passage (but not necessarily the upstream end of the mesh, since, as you will see in this
tutorial, you can add an inlet domain upstream of the passage inlet). The passage inlet is generated by
revolving a curve, which is defined in an axial-radial plane, about the machine axis. That curve is, in
turn, generated according to a set of points, known here as inlet points. These points appear as white
octahedrons in the viewer. The passage outlet is analogous to the passage inlet, and is downstream of
the blade passage.
Notice that, in this case, there are two inlet points and they are located at different distances from the
blade. In order to obtain a high-quality mesh topology for the blade passage, the inlet points should
be repositioned.
The outlet points should also be repositioned; they should be moved closer to the blade to reduce the
aspect ratio of mesh elements immediately downstream of the blade trailing edge, as shown in Figure
6.1 (p. 52).
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51
Reposition the inlet and outlet points as follows, and observe the movement of the inlet and outlet
points in the viewer:
1.
2.
Select Low Hub Point, then set Method to Set A and Location to -0.008.
3.
Click Apply.
4.
Select Low Shroud Point, then set Method to Set A and Location to 0.002.
5.
Click Apply.
6.
7.
Select Low Hub Point, then set Method to Set A and Location to 0.03.
8.
Click Apply.
9.
Select Low Shroud Point, then set Method to Set A and Location to 0.03.
2.
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4.
Click Apply.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
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53
6.6. Reviewing the Mesh Quality on the Hub and Shroud Tip Layers
The Layers > Shroud Tip object is shown in red text in the object selector.
Right-click a blank area in the viewer, and click Transformation > Blade-to-Blade (Theta-M') from
the shortcut menu.
This causes the viewer to use blade-to-blade coordinates, making it easy to see the mesh topology.
This coordinate system is angle-preserving and minimizes the effect of changing radius on viewing
and manipulation.
2.
3.
4.
5.
54
Move the master control point as indicated by the displacement vector in Figure 6.2 (p. 55).
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Right-click a blank area in the viewer, and click Transformation > Cartesian (X-Y-Z) from the shortcut
menu.
You can double-click one of the items in red to see the locations in the mesh where the statistics fail
to meet the criteria set in Mesh Analysis > Mesh Limits. Further improvements to the mesh are
possible, but are beyond the scope of this tutorial.
2.
On the Mesh Size tab, select Inlet Domain and Outlet Domain.
3.
Click Apply.
Open Mesh Analysis. Note that the Maximum Edge Length Ratio mesh measure is extremely
large. By displaying this mesh measure, you will see that some of the mesh elements that exceed the
criterion are those at the inlet where the mesh meets the rotation axis. This is expected, since the
element edges at this location have zero length. This is normal and expected wherever the hub reaches
the axis of rotation.
2.
View the mesh on the inlet and outlet (not the passage inlet and outlet, but the inlet and outlet of
the entire mesh) by turning on the visibility of the corresponding 3D Mesh objects.
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2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Click Save.
2.
3.
Click Save.
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As you work through this tutorial, you will create a mesh for a blade set of a centrifugal compressor
that has splitter blades. A typical blade set is shown by the black outline in the figure below.
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59
The blade row contains 7 blade sets, each containing one main blade and one splitter blade. The blade
row revolves about the negative Z-axis. The blades are flank milled and have cut-off trailing edges.
Within the blade passage, the maximum diameter of the shroud is approximately 13 cm.
Prepare the working directory using the files in the examples/splitter directory.
For details, see Preparing a Working Directory (p. 1).
2.
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2.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
Open Topology Set > Main Blade and click the Advanced Parameters tab.
Note that ANSYS TurboGrid has selected a J-Grid topology for the leading edge, and an H-Grid
topology for the trailing edge. The J-Grid is more suitable than the H-Grid for the leading edge
because of the higher blade angle.
2.
Open Topology Set > Splitter Blade 1 and click the Advanced Parameters tab.
Note that ANSYS TurboGrid has selected an H-Grid topology for both ends of the splitter blade.
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7.7. Reviewing the Mesh Quality on the Hub and Shroud Layers
The Layers > Hub object is shown in red text in the object selector.
Right-click a blank area in the viewer, and click Transformation > Blade-to-Blade (Theta-M') from
the shortcut menu.
This causes the viewer to use blade-to-blade coordinates, making it easy to see the mesh topology.
This coordinate system is angle-preserving and minimizes the effect of changing radius on viewing
and manipulation.
.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
62
Move the master control point as indicated by the displacement vector in Figure 7.1 (p. 63).
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Figure 7.1 Master Control Point Adjusted Near Hub Leading Edge
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63
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Click Save.
2.
3.
Click Save.
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Copy control points and their custom positional offsets from one topology layer to another.
As you work through this tutorial, you will create a mesh for a blade set of a radial machine component
that has tandem vanes. A typical blade set is shown by the black outline in the figure below.
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65
The component has 16 blade sets, each containing one main blade and one tandem vane. A clearance
gap exists between each blade and the shroud. Within the blade passages, the maximum diameter of
the shroud is approximately 52.2 cm.
You will begin by loading the geometry from a CFG file. You will define the mesh topology with settings
that help to reduce mesh skew by making the mesh around each blade more independently-controlled.
Finally, you will adjust the topology and generate a fine (high-resolution) mesh.
In order to avoid long processing times, you will establish a reasonable topology before specifying a
fine mesh density.
Prepare the working directory using the files in the examples/tandem directory.
For details, see Preparing a Working Directory (p. 1).
2.
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2.
In the top-right corner of the Load CFG File dialog box, set Length Units to cm.
ANSYS TurboGrid will interpret the numerical data in the CFG file using these units.
3.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
67
10. Right-click Topology Set and turn off Suspend Object Updates.
After a short time, the topology is generated.
11. Click Freeze to freeze the topology settings.
This completes the topology definition.
Open Topology Set > Main Blade and click the Advanced Parameters tab.
Note that ANSYS TurboGrid has selected a J-Grid topology for both ends of the main blade.
2.
Open Topology Set > Blade Blade 1 and click the Advanced Parameters tab.
Note that ANSYS TurboGrid has selected a J-Grid topology for the leading edge, and an H-Grid
topology for the trailing edge. The H-Grid is more suitable than the J-Grid for the trailing edge
because of the lower blade angle.
8.7. Reviewing the Mesh Quality on the Hub and Shroud Layers
The Layers > Hub and Layers > Shroud Tip objects are shown in red text in the object selector.
In this case, the main problem is a high amount of skew in the mesh upstream of the tandem vane.
This problem will be fixed by moving and adding control points.
2.
Right-click a blank area in the viewer, and select Predefined Camera > View From +Z from the
shortcut menu.
3.
4.
5.
Observe the areas that are marked as red. These areas have face angles that are too small.
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7.
Move the master control point as indicated by the displacement vector in Figure 8.1 (p. 69).
8.
Double-click Minimum Face Angle to refresh the display of areas that still require adjustments.
9.
Insert a master control point at the top of the red area, then move it as indicated by the displacement
vector in Figure 8.2 (p. 70):
1.
2.
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69
Figure 8.2 Inserting and Moving a Control Point on the Hub Layer
10. Double-click Minimum Face Angle and then Maximum Face Angle to see which area of the
hub requires improvement.
There is an area of high skew, shown in the left side of Figure 8.3 (p. 71), that may or may not be
shown in red (because the face angles are near the limit established in the Mesh Analysis >
Mesh Limits object).
11. Insert a master control point and move it as shown in Figure 8.3 (p. 71).
The control point is on the interface between blades and belongs to the tandem vane blade
passage. You may need to zoom in and turn on the topology visibility (in the Layers > Hub
object) to insert the point at the desired location. The desired location of the point to be inserted
is at the intersection of the topology line that you want to move and the topology line on the
interface between the adjacent passages. If you have chosen the correct location, a red line that
shows the range of influence of the new control point will stretch into the passage for the tandem
vane; if the red line stretches downward into the main blade passage, click Edit > Undo and try
again.
Note that you are moving the new control point past a control point in the main passage. This is
possible because One-to-one Interface Ranges > Passage is set to None, meaning that the interface is a GGI interface.
70
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Figure 8.3 Inserting and Moving Another Control Point on the Hub Layer
12. Confirm that the mesh statistics have improved for the Hub layer.
Make further adjustments as necessary in order to achieve an acceptable range of face angles.
Confirm that the only elements that exceed the maximum aspect ratio are those next to the blade
surfaces.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Right-click the Hub layer object in the object selector, then select Copy Control Points to Shroud.
icon.
The control point adjustments you made to the hub layer, and the newly-created control point,
are copied to the shroud tip layer. The mesh statistics improve on the shroud tip layer as a result
of this operation.
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71
2.
On the Mesh Size tab, leave Method set to Target Passage Mesh Size.
3.
4.
Click Apply.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Examine the mesh statistics and note the area with bad face angles downstream of the main blade,
as shown in Figure 8.4 (p. 72).
6.
72
In preparation for the next step, make the two control points that are located slightly downstream of
the main blade sticky by right-clicking each one and selecting Sticky.
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7.
Add two master control points further downstream on the same master topology lines, then move
them as shown in Figure 8.6 (p. 74).
As you move these control points, the other control points that you previously made sticky remain
stationary because they are sticky. If they were not sticky, they would move because they are on
the line of influence of the added master control points.
Note
A sticky control point will not remain stationary if you move a pre-defined master
control point on the same master topology line.
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2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Click Save.
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2.
3.
Click Save.
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Part 1 of this tutorial demonstrates one basic way of performing a parametric study using ANSYS TurboGrid in batch mode: using a script loop to repeatedly modify and run a session file with ANSYS TurboGrid. Each modified session file loads a baseline state file, reloads the blade geometry from a different
file, and generates and saves output (including a mesh).
Part 2 of this tutorial demonstrates a grid refinement study using a method similar to part 1. The main
difference in part 2 is the use of the end ratio option throughout the mesh data specification to allow
the grid refinement to occur evenly through the mesh.
Variations of the algorithm described in this tutorial are possible. For example:
You could modify the state file instead of the session file.
You could use a loop within a session file (written in Perl) to avoid loading and closing ANSYS TurboGrid
repeatedly, which should improve efficiency.
Such variations are beyond the scope of this tutorial. You are encouraged to try the algorithm used in
this tutorial and then explore other methods as required in order to meet your specific requirements.
Prepare the working directory using the files in the examples/rotor37 directory.
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77
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Edit Geometry > Blade Set > Shroud Tip to use the Constant Span tip option and leave
Span set to the default value.
7.
Click Apply.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Double-click Mesh Data to open it for editing. All settings will be changed to use explicit node
counts.
8.
Option
Value
Mesh
Size
Method
Passage
Shroud
Tip
9.
Click Apply.
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2.
Select Session > New Session from the menu bar to create a new session named generate_mesh.tse.
3.
4.
The session is now at the point where you would typically make a change to the state. In this
case, the change will be to select a new blade curve file. To be able to load a new file, the CCL
(CFX Command Language) block responsible for loading the geometry will be included in the
session file at this point; you will create this CCL block in the next step. With that block created,
you can create a script to control which blade geometry file is loaded by changing the name of
the file within the CCL block. (The script creation is in the next section.)
5.
Open Geometry > Blade Set > Blade 1 for editing and click Apply without changing any settings.
6.
7.
Select File > Save Mesh As and save the mesh with filename mesh.1.gtm with File type set to
ANSYS CFX and Export Units set to cm.
8.
Select Tools > Command Editor and enter the following lines in the Command Editor dialog box:
!
!
!
!
9.
Click Process, then Close. This adds Power Syntax commands that cause Minimum Face Angle to
be written to a file.
Using a basic text editor, write a script that, in a loop, modifies the blade file name in the session file,
and runs each modified session file using ANSYS TurboGrid in batch mode. You may give this file any
name. The example script shown here is written in Perl:
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79
Note
This script defines and uses a variable, turbogrid, which must be defined as the full
path name to the cfxtg.exe in the bin directory of the ANSYS TurboGrid installation.
#!/usr/bin/perl
# Point to the location of the cfxtg.exe (full pathname),
# usually in <CFXROOT>/bin/
$turbogrid = "C:/Program Files/ANSYS Inc/v140/TurboGrid/bin/cfxtg.exe";
# Initialize the input and output session filenames.
$base_tse = "generate_mesh.tse";
$output_tse = "gen_mesh.tse";
# Get the baseline session file data.
open(BASE_FH, "<$base_tse")
or die "Can't open file (${base_tse}) for input: $!";
@session_data = <BASE_FH>;
close(BASE_FH);
# Loop over each blade geometry file.
foreach $loopindex(1,2){
# Make a copy of the baseline session file
# so we don't destroy the original template.
@copy_data = @session_data;
# Write a session file (based on the original session file) that is
# customized to use the blade associated with this loop.
open(OUTPUT_FH, ">$output_tse")
or die "Can't open file (${output_tse}) for output: $!";
foreach $line (@copy_data) {
chomp($line);
$line =~ s/\.1\./\.${loopindex}\./g;
print OUTPUT_FH "$line\n";
}
close(OUTPUT_FH);
# Run TurboGrid in batch mode with the customized session file.
(system("\"${turbogrid}\" -batch \"${output_tse}\"") == 0)
or die "Batch run of TurboGrid failed ($?): $!";
}
exit 0;
2.
Run the script shown above by opening a command prompt from the ANSYS TurboGrid Launcher
(with the correct working directory set) and entering the line:
perl <scriptname>
where <scriptname> represents the name of the script file.
The script will take a few minutes to run. When it completes, it will have written two .gtm files to your
working directory, as well as two text files containing the value of the minimum face angle.
80
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Prepare the working directory using the files in the examples/rotor37 directory.
For details, see Preparing a Working Directory (p. 1).
2.
2.
3.
Edit Geometry > Blade Set > Shroud Tip to use the Constant Span tip option and leave
Span set to the default value. Remember to click Apply when finished.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
Option
Value
Mesh
Size
Method
Node Count
Specify
End Ratio
End Ratio
Match Expansion at
Blade Tip
Passage
Shroud
Tip
12. Click Apply.
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81
2.
3.
4.
The session is now at the point where you would typically make a change to the state. In this
case, the change will be to select a different target mesh node count. To be able to change the
target mesh node count, the CCL (CFX Command Language) block responsible for specifying the
mesh data settings will be included at this point in the session file; you will do this in the next
step. With that block created, you can create a script to control the target mesh node count by
changing the Target Mesh Node Count CCL parameter in the CCL block. (The script creation
is in the next section.)
5.
Double-click Mesh Data to open it and click Apply without changing any settings.
6.
7.
Select File > Save Mesh As and save the mesh as outputmesh.1.gtm with File type set to ANSYS
CFX and Export Units set to cm.
8.
Select Tools > Command Editor and enter the following lines in the Command Editor dialog box:
!
!
!
!
!
!
9.
Click Process, then Close. This adds Power Syntax commands that cause Minimum Face Angle
and the node count to be written to a file.
82
Write a script that, in a loop, modifies the target passage node count in the session file, and runs each
modified session file using ANSYS TurboGrid in batch mode. The example script shown here is written
in Perl:
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Note
In the following script, the two lines following the commented line
#### The next two lines ... ####are meant to be entered as a single line.
Also, this script defines and uses a variable, turbogrid, which must be defined as
the full pathname to the cfxtg (cfxtg.exe) file in the bin directory of the installation.
#!/usr/bin/perl
# Point to the location of the cfxtg.exe (full pathname),
# usually in <CFXROOT>/bin/cfxtg.exe
$turbogrid = "C:/Program Files/ANSYS Inc/v140/TurboGrid/bin/cfxtg.exe";
# Initialize the input and output session filenames.
$base_tse = "generate_mesh.tse";
$output_tse = "gen_mesh.tse";
# This is a list of the target node values to be used.
@target_nodes = (50000, 100000, 200000);
# Get the baseline session file data.
open(BASE_FH, "<$base_tse")
or die "Can't open file (${base_tse}) for input: $!";
@session_data = <BASE_FH>;
close(BASE_FH);
# Loop over each target node value.
$loopindex = 1;
foreach $target (@target_nodes) {
# Make a copy of the baseline session file
# so we don't destroy the original template.
@copy_data = @session_data;
# Write a session file (based on the original session file) that is
# customized to use the target node count associated with this loop.
open(OUTPUT_FH, ">$output_tse")
or die "Can't open file (${output_tse}) for output: $!";
foreach $line (@copy_data) {
chomp($line);
$line =~ s/\.1\./\.${loopindex}\./g;
#### The next two lines should be combined into one single line. ####
$line =~ s/Target Mesh Node Count =
[0-9][0-9]*/Target Mesh Node Count = ${target}/g;
print OUTPUT_FH "$line\n";
}
close(OUTPUT_FH);
# Run TurboGrid in batch mode with the customized session file.
(system("\"${turbogrid}\" -batch \"${output_tse}\"") == 0)
or die "Batch run of TurboGrid failed ($?): $!";
# Prepare for next loop iteration.
$loopindex++;
}
exit 0;
2.
Run the script shown above by opening a command prompt from the ANSYS TurboGrid Launcher
(with the correct working directory set) and entering the line:
perl <scriptname>
where <scriptname> represents the name of the script file.
The script will take a few minutes to run. When it completes, it will have written some .gtm files to
your working directory, as well as some text files containing the value of the minimum face angle and
the number of nodes in the mesh.
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83
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Build a blade set by loading blades separately from files and rotating them into position.
Make separate and different meshes that are designed to fit together in a CFD simulation.
As you work through this tutorial, you will create meshes for modeling an axial turbine blade row that
has a deformed blade. The technique learned here can be extended to model a blade row with several
deformed blades. A blade can become deformed after being damaged, for example by the passage of
a foreign object.
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85
The blade row contains 71 blades, one of which is deformed. The blade row revolves about the Z-axis.
A clearance gap exists between the blades and the shroud, with a width of 0.05 cm. Within the blade
passage, the maximum diameter of the shroud is approximately 56 cm.
In this case, the full 360 geometry needs to be modeled. You will accomplish this by producing a pair
of complementary meshes: one mesh for a blade group consisting of a deformed blade between two
undeformed blades, and one mesh for a single undeformed blade. By using 68 instances of the mesh
for the undeformed blade, the entire blade row can be modeled.
For compatibility between the two meshes, the mesh density should be comparable. In this case, choose
a mesh density of about 250000 nodes per blade. You will also have to ensure that the interface between
the meshes has the same shape.
Let each mesh contain an inlet domain and an outlet domain.
86
Prepare the working directory using the files in the examples/deformed directory.
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2.
2.
3.
4.
Click Apply.
Right-click Geometry > Blade Set and click Insert > Blade.
2.
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87
3.
Setting
Value
Blade
File Name
deformed.curve
Transform
Axial Rotation
(Selected)
5.070423 [degree]
Click Apply.
The tree view now displays Deformed Blade in plain black text. This indicates that the object
now has all the required information.
4.
5.
6.
Tab
Setting
Value
Blade
File Name
profile.curve
Transform
Axial Rotation
(Selected)
10.140845 [degree]
Click Apply.
You now have a blade set with three blades, as shown in Figure 10.1 (p. 89).
88
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2.
3.
Tab
Setting
Value
Shroud
Tip
Normal Distance
0.05 [cm]
Click Apply.
ANSYS TurboGrid requires, and uses, the same shroud tip clearance for all blades in the blade set. The
shroud tips of all blades in the blade set lie on the same surface of revolution when revolved about the
axis of rotation.
Right-click a blank area in the viewer, and click Transformation > Meridional (A-R) from the shortcut
menu.
With the inlet points in their initial positions, the inlet domain (the portion of the mesh upstream of
the inlet points) is much larger at the shroud than at the hub, as measured in the axial direction. To
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89
2.
Setting
Value
Inlet
Curve
Low Hub
Pointa
Curve >
Method
Set A
0.045
The word Low in Low Hub Point refers to the side of the passage in terms of the Theta coordinate. The Low Hub Point
inlet point is at the intersection of the hub and the inlet curve on the low-Theta side of the passage. Note that the Theta coordinate cannot be seen in the Meridional (A-R) transform.
3.
Click Apply.
4.
5.
90
Tab
Setting
Value
Inlet
Curve
Low Shroud
Point
Curve >
Method
Set A
0. 055
Click Apply.
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For consistency, move the outlet points closer to the blade as shown in Figure 10.3 (p. 92), using the
following procedure:
1.
2.
Setting
Value
Outlet
Curve
Low Hub
Point
Curve >
Method
Set A
0.099
3.
Click Apply.
4.
Setting
Value
Outlet
Curve
Low Shroud
Point
Curve >
Method
Set A
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91
5.
Setting
Value
0. 089
Click Apply.
2.
3.
4.
5.
92
Click Choose.
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Description
Blade_1_LP.crv
Blade_1_Deformed_Blade_interface.crv
Deformed_Blade_Blade_3_interface.crv
Blade_3_HP.crv
2.
3.
4.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
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93
8.
9.
10.3.3. Reviewing the Mesh Data Settings for the Deformed Blade Group
Leave the Mesh Data settings at their default values. The target number of nodes is set to produce
a coarse mesh. In accordance with the problem description, you will increase the mesh density later in
this tutorial. Leaving the mesh density coarse in the meantime will reduce processing time while you
adjust the topology.
As prescribed in the problem description, the mesh should contain an inlet domain and an outlet domain.
For now, leave the Inlet Domain and Outlet Domain check boxes cleared; you will select these check
boxes later in this tutorial. Omitting the inlet and outlet domains in the meantime will reduce the processing time while you adjust the topology.
10.3.4. Reviewing the Mesh Quality on the Hub and Shroud Tip Layers of the
Deformed Blade Group
The Layers > Hub and Layers > Shroud Tip objects are colored red in the tree view, indicating
that there are problems with mesh quality that should be resolved.
Right-click a blank area in the viewer, and select Transformation > Blade-to-Blade (Theta-M') from
the shortcut menu.
2.
3.
4.
94
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2.
3.
95
3.
2.
3.
96
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2.
Add a master control point at the location shown in Figure 10.6 (p. 98):
1.
2.
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97
3.
4.
Restrict the freedom of movement of the added control point to movement along the O-Grid curve:
1.
Open Layers.
2.
On the Advanced Parameters tab, set Leading And Trailing Edge O-Grid Control Points >
Method to Curve.
3.
Click Apply.
98
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Improve mesh orthogonality near the deformed blade by adding and moving a master control point,
and moving another control point, as shown in Figure 10.7 (p. 99).
Figure 10.7 Shroud Tip Layer Changes - A Second New Control Point
10.3.5. Increasing the Mesh Density for the Deformed Blade Group
As stated in the problem description, the mesh requires a density of about 250000 nodes per blade.
Increase the mesh density. Also add inlet and outlet blocks as prescribed in the problem description:
1.
2.
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99
3.
Tab
Setting
Value
Mesh
Size
Method
Node
Count
Specify
Target
750000
Inlet Domain
(Selected)
Outlet Domain
(Selected)
Click Apply.
As a result of choosing the mesh size in the previous step, ANSYS TurboGrid has re-calculated the
number of elements along various topological paths. In order to provide higher mesh resolution near
the walls, set the size for mesh elements touching the hub, blade, shroud tip, and shroud to a y+
value of 1. These changes can cause the mesh density to become too sparse in some locations. In this
case, the density across the O-Grid would be too sparse if left unchanged. To compensate, increase the
number of elements across the O-Grid from 9 to 18.
1.
Setting
Value
Mesh
Size
y+
Reynolds No.
1.0e6
Element Count
and Size
66
33
(Selected)
Element Count
and Size
18
Element Count
and Size
Passage
Shroud
Tip
2.
100
Click Apply.
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2.
3.
4.
Click Close.
10.3.6. Revisiting the Mesh Quality on the Hub and Shroud Tip Layers of the
Deformed Blade Group
After changing the mesh size, it is possible for the mesh quality to change. You can quickly confirm
that the face angles are acceptable by verifying that all layers are shown in black text in the tree view.
To see the exact values of the minimum and maximum face angles, open each layer in the object editor:
1.
2.
3.
4.
2.
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101
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Click Save.
10.3.10. Saving the State for the Deformed Blade Group (Optional)
If you want to revisit this mesh at a later date, save the state:
1.
2.
3.
Click Save.
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2.
3.
Use the same file, Blade_1_LP.crv, to define both periodic surfaces, and apply a (360/71) rotation
for the high periodic surface:
1.
2.
Setting
Value
Data
Method
From File
File Name
Blade_1_LP.crv
Rotation
Angle
0 [degree]
3.
Click Apply.
4.
5.
Setting
Value
Data
Method
From File
File
Blade_1_LP.crv
Name
Rotation
Angle
a
6.
4.
5.070423 [degree]
Click Apply.
Load the inlet and outlet curve files inlet.crv and outlet.crv:
1.
Right-click a blank area in the viewer, and click Transformation > Meridional (A-R) from the
shortcut menu so that you can better see the effect of loading the inlet and outlet curve files.
2.
3.
Select inlet.crv.
5.
Click Open.
6.
Open Geometry > Outlet and load outlet.crv in the same way.
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103
2.
3.
Tab
Setting
Value
Shroud
Tip
Normal Distance
0.05 [cm]
Click Apply.
Right-click a blank area in the viewer, and select Transformation > Blade-to-Blade (Theta-M') from
the shortcut menu.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Click Apply.
Constrain the topology so that the resulting mesh has periodic surfaces that fall exactly on the geometric
periodic surfaces. This will ensure that the periodic surfaces of the present mesh will fit with those of
the mesh you created earlier for the deformed blade group.
1.
2.
3.
4.
104
10.4.4. Reviewing the Mesh Data Settings for the Undeformed Blade
Leave the Mesh Data settings at their default values. The target number of nodes is set to produce
a coarse mesh. In accordance with the problem description, you will increase the mesh density later in
this tutorial. Leaving the mesh density coarse in the meantime will reduce processing time while you
adjust the topology.
As prescribed in the problem description, the mesh should contain an inlet domain and an outlet domain.
For now, leave the Inlet Domain and Outlet Domain check boxes cleared; you will select these check
boxes later in this tutorial. Omitting the inlet and outlet domains in the meantime will reduce the processing time while you adjust the topology.
10.4.5. Reviewing the Mesh Quality on the Hub and Shroud Tip Layers of the
Undeformed Blade
The Layers > Hub object is colored red in the tree view, indicating that there are problems with mesh
quality that should be resolved.
2.
3.
2.
3.
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105
2.
3.
Tab
Setting
Value
Mesh
Size
Method
Node
Count
Specify
Target
250000
Inlet Domain
(Selected)
Outlet Domain
(Selected)
Click Apply.
To further improve similarity with the mesh for the deformed blade group, use the same y+ values
and element counts as for that mesh:
1.
106
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Setting
Value
Mesh
Size
y+
Reynolds No.
1.0e6
Element Count
and Size
66
33
Element Count
and Size
18
Element Count
and Size
Passage
Shroud
Tip
2.
Click Apply.
10.4.7. Revisiting the Mesh Quality on the Hub and Shroud Tip Layers of the
Undeformed Blade
After changing the mesh size, it is possible for the mesh quality to change. You can quickly confirm
that the face angles are acceptable by verifying that all layers are shown in black text in the tree view.
To see the exact values of the minimum and maximum face angles, open each layer in the object editor:
1.
2.
3.
4.
107
2.
3.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Click Save.
2.
3.
Click Save.
10.5. Summary
In this tutorial, you created two meshes for modeling an axial turbine blade row with one deformed
blade. The first mesh, DeformedSection.gtm, models one deformed blade between a pair of undeformed blades. The second mesh, UndeformedSection.gtm, models one undeformed blade.
The complete blade row contains 71 blades. To model the complete blade row using CFX-Pre, you could
begin a new simulation using Turbo mode to define a set of 68 blades based on UndeformedSection.gtm, then you could enter General mode and add DeformedSection.gtm.
This technique for modeling a single deformed blade can be extended to model multiple deformed
blades by creating a larger blade group for the deformed section.
108
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Use edge split controls to increase the mesh density at specific locations.
As you work through this tutorial, you will create a mesh for a blade passage of a Francis water turbine.
A typical blade passage is shown by the black outline in the figure below.
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109
The turbine contains 13 blades that revolve about the X-axis. Within the blade passage, the maximum
diameter of the shroud is approximately 4.23 m.
The mesh density should be set appropriately for using the SST turbulence model in a CFD simulation.
Prepare the working directory using the files in the examples/francis directory.
For details, see Preparing a Working Directory (p. 1).
2.
110
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2.
Right-click a blank area in the viewer, and click Transformation > Meridional (A-R) from the shortcut
menu.
Note the discontinuity in the hub geometry. In order to capture this discontinuity in the final mesh, the
background mesh on which it is based must also capture the discontinuity. The background mesh is
an internal mechanism that ANSYS TurboGrid uses to represent the geometry. It is based on the original
curve files and other geometry settings, and is used to generate the topology and ultimately the CFD
mesh. In general, if you have a step change or other discontinuity in the hub, shroud, or blade, you
should try increasing the resolution of the background mesh. The goal is to line up a node of the
background mesh with the point at which the discontinuity occurs. By increasing the background mesh
density, the probability increases that a background mesh node will exist within a tolerable distance of
the discontinuity. If the (CFD) mesh does not adequately follow the geometry (even with sufficientlyhigh CFD mesh resolution), then increase the background mesh density further.
Increase the resolution of the background mesh:
1.
Right-click Geometry > Machine Data and click Edit in Command Editor.
2.
Change Turbo Transform Background Mesh Size For Topology from 2000 to 80000.
3.
4.
Click Close.
2.
3.
4.
Click Apply.
5.
6.
7.
Click Apply.
8.
9.
A message box warns you that the intermediate points will be deleted. Click Yes to delete the existing
intermediate points and replace them with new ones.
Looking at the intermediate point distribution in the viewer, you can see that adding more points would
significantly improve the smoothness of the curve. Add two more points to Geometry > Outlet using
one of the following procedures:
Under Curve, right-click Point 3 in the list and click New from the shortcut menu.
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111
Select the newly-added point, point 5, and set its location to (1.51, 1.10) so that it is at about
the same distance from the trailing edge as the other points.
These coordinates were originally determined by moving point 5 using the mouse.
3.
Click Apply.
4.
Right-click Point 4 in the list and click New from the shortcut menu.
5.
Set the location of the newly created point, point 6, to (1.73, 1.73) and click Apply.
Under Curve, right-click Point 2 in the list and click New from the shortcut menu.
Alternatively, select Point 2 then, beside the list of points, click New
2.
Select the newly-added point, point 4, and set its location to (1.51, 1.10) so that it is at about
the same distance from the trailing edge as the other points.
These coordinates were originally determined by moving point 4 using the mouse.
3.
Click Apply.
4.
Right-click Point 3 in the list and click New from the shortcut menu.
5.
Set the location of the newly created point, point 5, to (1.73, 1.73) and click Apply.
Before continuing, ensure that the outlet points are on a relatively smooth curve at a uniform distance
from the blade.
Right-click a blank area in the viewer, and click Transformation > Cartesian (X-Y-Z) from the shortcut
menu.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
112
Set One-to-one Interface Ranges > Periodic to Between Blades & Upstream.
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9.
Click Apply.
10. Right-click Topology Set and turn off Suspend Object Updates.
After a short time, the topology appears.
11. Open Topology Set > Blade 1.
12. On the Advanced Parameters tab, confirm that H/J/C/L Topology Definition > Trailing Edge is set
to L-Grid.
13. On the same tab, confirm that Override Sharp TE Determination > Sharp Trailing Edge is selected.
14. Click Freeze to freeze the topology settings.
11.5. Reviewing the Mesh Quality on the Hub and Shroud Layers
The Layers > Hub and Layers > Shroud objects are shown in red text in the object selector.
Right-click a blank area in the viewer, and click Transformation > Blade-to-Blade (Theta-M') from
the shortcut menu.
2.
3.
4.
5.
2.
3.
113
Insert a master control point and move it as shown in Figure 11.1 (p. 114):
1.
2.
2.
114
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of ANSYS, Inc. and its subsidiaries and affiliates.
3.
For better mesh resolution along the periodic interface, use an edge split control to double the mesh
density at the lower location indicated in Figure 11.3 (p. 116):
1.
Right-click the master topology line marked A in Figure 11.3 (p. 116) and select Insert Edge Split
Control from the shortcut menu.
2.
3.
Click Apply.
This causes more elements to be placed along the topology line marked A in the figure.
Note that edge split controls act on all layers.
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115
4.
In order to reduce the aspect ratio of mesh elements downstream of the blade, use edge split controls
to double the mesh density along the topology lines marked B and C in Figure 11.3 (p. 116).
2.
3.
2.
3.
116
2.
117
Setting
Value
Mesh
Size
Method
Node Count
Specify
Target
750000
y+
Outlet Domain
(Selected)
80
25
Spanwise Blade Distribution Parameters > Size of Elements Next to Wall (y+) > Hub
Spanwise Blade Distribution Parameters > Size of Elements Next to Wall (y+) > Shroud
20
Passage
H-Grid in Parametric
Space
(Selected)
30
In order to set the y+ value on the hub and shroud, you could use either the Element Count
and Size method or the Boundary Layer method. In this case, the Element Count and
Size option was arbitrarily chosen. As a result, the number of elements from hub to shroud, and
the number of constant-size elements in the middle section (away from the hub and shroud) were
required. The values given here were found, by trail and error, to produce a good mesh.
Similarly, to set the y+ value on the blade, you could use either the Element Count and
Size method or the Expansion Rate method. The Element Count and Size method
was arbitrarily chosen. As a result, the number of elements across the O-Grid was required. The
value given here was found, by trail and error, to produce a good mesh.
The number of elements in the outlet domain and in the O-Grid were changed to values that
were found, by trail and error, to produce a good mesh.
3.
Click Apply.
118
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of ANSYS, Inc. and its subsidiaries and affiliates.
2.
3.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Click Save.
2.
3.
Click Save.
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of ANSYS, Inc. and its subsidiaries and affiliates.
119
120
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Index
C
cfg file, 67
E
edge split control, 109
examples, 1
L
layers
suppressing additional, 28
S
splitter blades, 59
step change in geometry, 109
T
tutorial examples, 1
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of ANSYS, Inc. and its subsidiaries and affiliates.
121
122
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of ANSYS, Inc. and its subsidiaries and affiliates.