“Many CFX users like Gridgen’s flexibility in creating structured, unstructured, and hybrid grids all in one program,” said Dr. Richard Matus, V.P., Sales and Marketing at Pointwise. “And when they factor in being able to use Gridgen’s powerful scripting language to automate many tasks, Gridgen is a natural supplement for CFX users.”

STAR/KINetics is a close coupling of STAR-CD, the leading tool for complex flow simulation, with proprietary solvers and components of CHEMKIN®, Reaction Design's powerful chemical kinetic simulation package. STAR/KINetics allows researchers to seamlessly solve reacting flows with comprehensive treatment of both detailed chemistry and intricate flow geometries, including heterogeneous interaction at gas-solid interfaces. The tool's great strength lies in an unrivalled ability to predict the interplay between fluid transport, heat transfer, and chemistry in applications ranging from materials processing, to combustion, and to chemical manufacture.

Over 100 participants attended 36 lectures in two parallel sessions. The lectures covered almost all fields of CFX applications including turbomachinery, chemical process, HVAC, and fire & safety. In addition, topics such as fluid-structure interaction, optimization and acoustics were addressed.

Thomas Frank gave a plenary lecture,"Numerical Simulations of Multiphase Flows using CFX 5", and Florian Menter delivered "Recent Advances in Turbulence and Transition Modeling in CFX 5". These presentations generated lots of lively discussion.

DEI’s engineers use Fluent’s software (called FLUENT) to simulate the performance of racing vehicle components. “FLUENT has been used to analyze coolant, oil, cylinder head and intake manifold flows of the engine. FLUENT has also been useful in improving the performance of the race car's over body and under body, cooling system, under hood and brake duct flows, as well as the combustion air inlet,” says Charles Jenckes, DEI’s team engineer. "In the ultra competitive world of NASCAR racing, top teams rely on tools that generate results. Fluent's suite of CFD tools allows Dale Earnhardt, Inc. to accomplish its mission of developing winning race cars and engines.”

As a sponsor/supplier to DEI, Fluent provides DEI engineers with the software, training, and unlimited technical support to ensure that they successfully introduce CFD to their intensive design environment, and achieve maximum benefit from the technology.

es-pemfc works with STAR-CD (the Group's computational fluid dynamics, CFD, code) as a specialized virtual design, prototyping and testing environment. Typical issues that can be handled include: cooling channel design, water management to optimize humidity and avoid flooding, design and operation with safe pressure balance across the membrane, and more. These aspects together with gaining a better understanding of the electrochemistry and electrical properties involved enable a better overall balance between all parameters to be achieved, leading to optimized fuel cell performance.