Simcenter STAR-CCM+2019.1: What's New?

By Stephen Ferguson

STAR-CCM+ v2019.1 includes a host of new features that increase both the realism of your simulations and your ability to automate them.

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Simcenter STAR-CCM+ has a hard-won reputation for being the leading CFD platform for both realistic multiphysics simulation, capturing the complete geometry of your product, and all of the physics that are likely to influence its real-world performance, and also for the ease with which it allows you to extract maximum value from those simulations through automation and design exploration.

With the release of Simcenter STAR-CCM+ 2019.1, we continue to build on our reputation through a host of new features that increase both the realism of your simulations and your ability to automate them.

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Please note that 2019.1 is the first release to adopt the Simcenter release numbering convention (superseding the October 2018 release of v13.06 ) and is the first in our three release a year schedule for 2019. Simcenter STAR-CCM+ 2019.1 includes a wide range of enhancements, only some of which are highlighted below.

Simcenter STAR-CCM+ 2019.1 benefits and features at a glance:

parametric expressions in coordinates: more control for improved automation

automated replace part: increased flexibility for design exploration

plasma chemistry: simulate the behavior of ionized gas flows

multiscale harmonic balance: faster and more accurate rotating machinery

search the simulation tree: increased productivity for large assemblies

3D CAD colors: easily understand imported assemblies

AUTOMATION

Industry demands that engineering simulation provides a constant stream of engineering data that guide the product development process through every design decision. In this context, success depends entirely on your ability to turn your single point simulations (no matter how complicated) into automated processes which allow you to explore hundreds of design configurations and operating scenarios with little or no extra manual effort.

Parametric Expressions in Coordinates: We are broadening the parameter space available for design exploration studies, with the ability to define coordinate input fields using scalar or global parameter-based expressions. 2019.1 allows you to define coordinate input fields using expressions made up of scalar or global values enabling you to produce powerful parametrically driven solutions that are easy to automate and template without the need for writing complicated macros.

Replace Parts File Parameters: One of the most powerful features in Simcenter STAR-CCM+ is Replace Part, which allows you to substitute design variations of any component in your simulation, without having to redefine simulation or meshing parameters. In v2019.1 we introduce a new Automate Replace Part feature through the provision of a new File Parameter that allows you to sweep through a list of discrete geometry files in a Design Manager optimization study. Although users had previously managed to do this using Java scripting, this new approach is faster and more robust and is able to handle the most sophisticated geometries allowing you to create even more powerful parametrically-driven simulation studies.

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ENHANCED PHYSICS

Each release of Simcenter STAR-CCM+ provides enhanced physics modeling capabilities that expand your application scope and improve the realism of your simulations. In Simcenter STAR-CCM+ 2019.1 we introduce plasma chemistry (useful to simulate the manufacture of electronic devices) and enhancements to the harmonic balance capability (applicable for rotating machinery applications such as gas turbines).

Plasma Chemistry: 2019.1 introduces a new plasma chemistry model that allows you to simulate ionized gases, whose motion is heavily influenced by electrical and magnetic fields. The new model enables you to calculate electron density, electron energy and ion distribution in low-temperature plasmas. Low-temperature plasmas are critical for manufacturing of integrated circuits (IC), used in the production of everyday electronic devices.

Multiscale Harmonic Balance: The harmonic balance method offers the best compromise between accuracy and efficiency for periodic flows, such as those that occur in rotating machinery. 2019.1 includes an enhancement that significantly improves CHT turbomachinery workflows allowing the use of harmonic balance on the fluid side of the fluid-to-solid mapping interface. This enables a single simulation multi-timescale approach while at the same time efficiently taking account of transient flow and thermal effects.

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COMPLEX MODEL HANDLING

Of course, realistic simulation demands much more than just modeling physics: engineers also need to capture the full geometric detail of the product that they are simulating. This often involves working with CAD assemblies that are built of hundreds, or even thousands, of individual parts. Simcenter STAR-CCM+ 2019.1 increases your productivity by introducing new features that allow you to more easily navigate the simulation tree and to quickly understand imported CAD models.

Search the Simulation Tree: When constructing a large or complex simulation, navigating the simulation tree manually can sometimes be time-consuming and mouse click intensive. In 2019.1 you can now search the simulation using “Ctrl+f” resulting in much less time wasted in traversing the tree when searching for an object.

3D CAD Colors: Simcenter STAR-CCM+ 2019.1 allows direct import of colors assigned in any CAD package into its 3D-CAD modeler. After import, you can also assign or edit colors within 3D-CAD. This enhancement is applicable to both neutral and native CAD format and particularly benefits users were the CAD provided for simulation already has real-world colors assigned, delivering greater understanding of the model and enabling collaboration.