Heat Transfer#
Flow360 provides sophisticated capabilities for heat transfer simulations, enabling detailed analysis of thermal effects in fluid flows and solid structures. From aerodynamic heating to thermal management systems, this section covers advanced techniques for accurately predicting temperature distributions and heat fluxes in complex configurations.
Learn how to set up and analyze coupled fluid-solid thermal simulations for accurate prediction of temperature distributions across material interfaces.
Key Heat Transfer Simulation Concepts#
Heat equation coupling with flow solver
Boundary layer heat transfer modeling
Fluid-solid thermal interface coupling
Temperature-dependent material properties
Thermal boundary conditions (isothermal, adiabatic, heat flux)
Transient thermal response and thermal inertia
Applications#
Flow360’s heat transfer simulation capabilities support a wide range of applications:
Aerodynamic heating during high-speed flight
Turbine blade and vane cooling effectiveness
Heat exchangers and cooling systems
Solar and renewable energy systems
Environmental control systems
Combustion chamber thermal analysis
Aerothermal optimization of vehicle designs
Electronics cooling and thermal management
Simulation Approaches#
Flow360 supports multiple approaches for heat transfer analysis:
Convective Heat Transfer: * Wall temperature and heat flux prediction * Boundary layer thermal profiles * Recovery temperature estimation * Heat transfer coefficient calculation
Conjugate Heat Transfer (CHT): * Coupled fluid-solid thermal analysis * Automatic thermal interface handling * Material property specification * Internal conduction modeling
Thermal Boundary Conditions: * Isothermal walls (using Temperature(value)) * Adiabatic walls (using default HeatFlux(0) or explicitly setting zero heat flux) * Specified heat flux boundaries (using HeatFlux(value)) * Total temperature specification for inflow boundaries * Support for spatially varying thermal conditions using string expressions * Convective boundaries with ambient conditions (not directly supported, but can be approximated)
Thermal Performance Analysis: * Temperature distribution visualization * Heat flux pathways identification * Thermal gradients and stress prediction * Cooling effectiveness quantification