Hybrid Viscous Unstructured CFD Mesh

Technology

Boeing CFD Synergy Geometry and Grid Team Effort

Presented By:
Steven Barson
Process Leader, Computational Fluid Dynamics
The Boeing Company
Rocketdyne Propulsion and Power

NASA Marshall Workshop Nov. 19 – 21, 2002

Huntsville, Alabama

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 Boeing CFD Synergy:
Geometry and Grid Generation Core Team

Rocketdyne Propulsion and Power (Canoga Park)

Ed Ascoli - Boeing Geometry and Grid Co-Lead, surface & edge meshing
Willard Clever - Geometry, template mesh generation
Mark Stewart - Graphics, GUIs, system framework
Armen Darian - testing, application support

Phantom Works (St. Louis):

Todd Michal - Boeing Geometry and Grid Co-Lead, database & volume
meshing
Mark Fisher - Graphics, GUIs, system framework
Andrew Carey - volume extrusion

Mathematics & Computational Technology (Seattle):

Dave Ferguson - Geometry (GEML)
Debbie Nelson - Geometry (GEML)

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 Hybrid Viscous Unstructured Mesh Tool
Development

Motivation:
• Geometry Processing and Mesh Generation are required steps for
every CFD analysis. Frequently these are the most time
consuming steps in the process.

Objective:
• Develop/Acquire Capability to Support Fast Turnaround CFD
geometry processing and Hybrid Viscous Unstructured Mesh
Generation

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 Hybrid Viscous Unstructured Mesh Tool
Development

Approach:
• Synergistic Boeing team effort
• Team members from Seattle, St. Louis, Southern California and other
Boeing locations
• Modular tool development
• Maximize use/reuse of existing in-house and 3rd party software
• Established interfaces (APIs) allow mix of languages (F90, C, C++),
platforms and development teams

• Best use of existing expertise

• MC&T (GEML) and RPP (APPT) for CAD(IGES/STEP) geometry API
• PW (St. Louis) for volume meshing modules, database modules,
general utilities
• RPP for boundary data, boundary distribution, surface meshing
modules, and template meshing tools

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 Hybrid Viscous Unstructured Mesh Tool
Development

Approach (continued):

• Step 1: Develop/Acquire Key Modules (status: complete in beta+ versions)

• Geometry I/O (IGES readers)
• Generic Geometry API (for accessing/evaluating CAD and other
surfaces and curves)
• Data Base Utility
• Boundary Data Module to calculate surface connectivity
• Boundary Distribution Module to create edge meshes on surface
boundaries
• Surface Meshing Modules to create surface triangles
• Surface Merging tools to create one triangle/quad or mixed surface
mesh from meshes across multiple geometry surfaces
• Volume extrusion and meshing tools to create viscous boundary layers
and final volume mesh

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 Hybrid Viscous Unstructured Mesh Tool
Development

Approach (continued):

Step 2: Integrate Key Modules in local grid systems (APPT, MADCAP) for
testing, improvement, … (status: integration complete, testing ongoing)

Step 3: Design/Develop unified framework, GUI and graphics for integrating

modules using best of all systems (initiated in FY2002, ongoing)

• JAVA3D or JAVA/openGL GUIs and Graphics

• C/C++ and some F90 core tools

Step 4: Integrate modules into unified system (end of FY2002 through FY2003)

• Subsequent Work: Ongoing enhancement, development and integration of

lower priority modules (FY2003 and beyond)

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 Hybrid Viscous Unstructured Element Types
(3D)

• Boundary Layer Region:

• Triangular Prisms (from extrusion of wall triangles)
• Extrusion length scale controlled by user to capture boundary layer
• Hexahedra (from conversion of local structured meshes)

• Away from Boundary Layer Region:

• Tetrahedra (primary element to fill non-boundary layer region)
• Pyramids (generated as a transition element between other elements)

Tetrahedra
Pyramids
Triangular Prisms

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 Meshing Process Overview :

Step 1: Import/Create Geometry Step 3: Create Surface Mesh

Step 2: Create Edge Meshes Step 3: Create Volume Mesh

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 Geometry Import & Preparation

• Import:
• Currently support IGES surfaces (trimmed or
untrimmed)
• Future plans include solids via STEP and
possibly direct CAD via 3rd party software
• Geometry Diagnostics & Repair leading to
watertight volume
• Diagnose and eliminate duplicate surfaces,
embedded surfaces, surface gaps and
overlaps
• Currently use in-house tools (somewhat
manual)
• May also use 3rd party software in the future

(e.g. CADfix)
• Process Surfaces to determine surface-
surface connectivity

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 Automatic Edge Mesh Generation

• Generate Edge distributions on each

surface
• Employs surface-surface
connectivity information to
guarantee matching grids across
surfaces
• Automatic in default mode
• Minimal inputs for manually
enhancing edge distributions

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 Surface Mesh Generation

• Meshes generated surface by surface and merged

• several surface meshing algorithms
• AF2D: Boeing advancing front triangle mesher
• AFLR: Professor Marcum (Mississippi State) advancing front
with local reconnection triangle mesher
• All quad and merged quad/tri methods planned for
development
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 Triangle Surface Meshing Tools

Can handle:
• Multiply connected
• Complex trimmed patches
• High curvature
• Non-uniform boundary distributions

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 Changing Grid Resolution By Adjusting
Edge Distributions

• Options:
• Set start and end length scales on an edge (number of points
calculated). Nearby edges automatically blended (as shown)
• Set number of points and arc length distribution
• Set xyz point distribution

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 Changing Grid Resolution Away From
Edges

• Identify region on surface to

subdivide
• Input length scale for subdivided
triangles
• Currently batch module
• Future plans:
• Interactive version
• Use core tools to do automatic
geometry (e.g. surface curvature)
based grid adaptation

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 Changing Grid Resolution By Setting
Surface Length Scales

• Input length scale for triangles on selected surface

• Length scale forces triangle size on selected surface and naturally blends
to neighbor surfaces

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 Surface Grid Smoothing Module

Before smoothing

After smoothing

• Iterative smoothing algorithm

• Parameter or physical space options
• Point average and area weighted options

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 Hybrid Viscous Volume Meshing

• Start with consistent, closed surface mesh (triangles & quadrilaterals)

• Multiple algorithms for hybrid viscous volume mesh generation
• AFLR3D: Advancing Front Local Reconnection algorithm from Professor
Marcum (Mississippi State)
• Boeing viscous extrusion algorithm (extrudes surface grid into boundary layer
region) followed by Boeing Tetrahedral Mesher (to fill the remaining volume)

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 Current and Future Application Areas:

• Current Applications
• RS-83 :
• Hot Gas Manifold
• Fuel Turbopump Turbine
• Exit bowl and crossover duct
• Inlet manifold
• SLI Vehicle (Huntington Beach)
• Hi-Fly, JDAM, C-130, X-37

• Anticipated Future Applications:

• RS-84
• UCAV
• Sonic Cruiser

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 Disseminating Hybrid Viscous
Unstructured Mesh Technology at Boeing:

• Boeing wide team and development effort assists tremendously in

disseminating technology

• Pilot projects demonstrate benefits of technology on critical

programs

• Modular approach with underlying tool libraries enables sites to

gradually transition technology into local (existing) tools

• General GUI & framework (under development) allows site specific

customizations

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 Issues:

Most likely problem:

• Bad geometry (IGES format)
• (proE & “home-grown” good, CATIA v4 bad, CATIA v5 very bad)

When the tools work they are “home runs”

When they don’t work, they are show stoppers (need to make the tools more
robust, etc)

Limitations and issues:

• Extrusion with non-planar surfaces as a side boundary
• Need more control over volume cell size away from the boundary layer region
• Periodic surface gridding utilities needed
• Volume grid generation with consistent periodic extrusion
• Quad/Tri mixed surface meshing tools needed
• Miscellaneous utilities needed

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 Future Plans:

• Geometry Issues
• Identify geometry requirements and communicate to CAD designers
• Identify “best” IGES flavorizations for most frequently encountered CAD systems
(e.g. CATIA, proEngineer and UniGraphics )
• Improve in-house geometry import, diagnostic and repair tools
• Further assess employ 3rd party diagnostics and repair software (e.g. CADfix).
Integrate into process if assessment proves positive
• Add STEP geometry import
• Explore direct CAD import through 3 rd party software

• Fill in holes in technology

• Improved volume extrusion features
• Periodic grids
• Added Control of volume mesh cell distribution in interior regions
• Quad/tri hybrid surface mesh tools

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