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CFD

CFD

(OP)
I want to learn Computational Fluid Dynamics, especially how this can be applied to understand/model the fluid flow through water and wastewater pipes, channels, pumps, and pumping stations.  Can someone suggest me a good reference for a beginner that will have sample problems? Any feedback on this will be highly appreciated.
Thanks

RE: CFD

It depends your approach for using CFD as a tool for your problems. Do you want it as Colors For Directives?! or a real applicable tool.

Usually having some courses in numerical modeling, finite element & finite volume methods are fundamental to get the understanding behind the CFD softwares and modeling. there are many text books but all involves a certain level of complexity that makes them suitable for academic studies.

If you aim to be the end user of a commercial package then first pick the software that you want to work and then follow its instruction manual. These softwares are usually relatively expensive and consist of different packages/alternative for doing the pre & post processing. They usually have pretty neat step by step manuals in the form of real applications from different sectors including water&ww.There is a free alternative named openfoam that you might like to take a look to its manual.

There are pretty much examples in implementation of CFD in water and wastewater sector by ANSYS FLUENT. Check their website as well as the site for STAR-CD. If you let us know about your intension (academic or an end-user) then you'd probably receive better help. I have to get back to my office next year to give you some names and references.

Happy new year till then.  

RE: CFD

(OP)
Thanks waterpipe for the reply. My aim is to be an end user. Happy new year to you as well.
 

RE: CFD

CFD is not something you can learn with just books. You need run many models and many different physical environments to understand how to properly model physics.

CFD is only as good as the modeler. It requires a very keen eye and attention to detail, you must also know what assumptions cause what type of resulting physical model. You should always have a way to validate any type of CFD model you run, CFD alone is almost arbitrary if you dont have even a basic hand calc to confirm that you are ballpark.

There are many resources online for CFD tutorials. But like others have said you should learn a little theory behind finite element analysis and finite volume method.

If you want to use CFD to calculate pressure drops and fluid transfer in systems, then CFD is not for you. But if you want to calculate the velocity field inside of a ball valve or pump then CFD would be the correct tool.

Remember that CFD is like a pair of tweezers and pipe flow softwares like flowmaster or AFT are a pair of channel locks wrenches. They have different purposes. What is it exactly that you are trying to model that requires the detail of CFD?

 

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