Ansys Fluent

Vorteile

I have used Ansys Fluent for modeling fluid flows for aerospace applications. I particularly like the feature set that Ansys provides. It also has support for distributed computing architecture which has been very beneficial in meshing and processing complex one dimensional CAE problems.

Nachteile

There are multiple UI improvements with each product release. Keeping pace with the changes and new functionalities is a bit of a learning curve. The rendering of 3D heat maps and stress diagrams is a bit choppy with certain older generation GPUs.

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Gründe für den Wechsel zu Ansys Fluent

Vorteile

Comprehensive physics modelling,So very helpfull.

Nachteile

Cost is major factor and meshing sometime not good.

Vorteile

used v19R2, did the basic CFD, however, meshing on a simple geometry such as rounded pipe, seemed like a hassle. So you tell me if there is even worth going forward.

Nachteile

Where do I start.
1) The customer support, is now directed to the ansys forum, which I am sure, some indians are doing a good job on it, however, its a very badly maintained source. The previous version of going to portal and looking for a pdf (assuming due to some blessing, it is available), was a better approach.

If you cannot open a file, becuase someone is trying to send a snapshot, then please find it in your heart to buy a better anti-virus software. I am sure such a big company such as ansys can open an attachment, if it cant get everyone through the ticketing system, which by the way, is also not very useful, or so late, that the user, ends interest, or endures to find a new method, which does not require the crappy customer support of Fluent.
I am guessing that is a win win for Ansys fluent anyways.

3) The ticketing system, never was useful, as I said, needed to couple fluent with python, for v19R2, and appraently, that feature is not made yet. These are the times I wished, my supervisors had agreed on Star-CCM+, instead of fluent.

4) If something has been discontinued, or will be discontinued, take it out from the list of radio buttons or drop down menus. It is simple software engineering basic.

5) Also, again, I wished, the customer portal, were open to more appropriate documentation when required. Putting up everything online in form of instructions manual was a bad decision. Also, i am pretty sure, you had not notice, that the website, opens slowly,

Vorteile

Ansys Fluent's main feature is the ability to run the simulation using GPU and CPU at the same time. Also, the model library, code, and algorithm are robust and proven in both many scientific research and practical applications.

Nachteile

The fact that its price is much higher than its competitor makes customers put Ansys Fluent as a second choice.

Vorteile

ANSYS Fluent is the greatest software for Computational Fluid Dynamics simulations. It comes with a number of add-ons that are incredibly useful for product research and development. Researchers and engineers could also customize the simulation by changing the input parameters needed to solve the problem under consideration (starting by creating geometry, then generating mesh, Setup the parameters, and extract results). One of its advantages is that it provides acceptable and satisfactory outcomes that are accurate and close to the experiment.

Nachteile

The software is difficult and requires a lot of understanding before starting up. You would first comprehend the relevant variables in order to achieve the required result. In addition, it's open source version has very limited number of cells/nodes. On the other hand, the premium version required a high-end computer (could be costly), take significantly longer to solve the problem and achieve the desired results.

Vorteile

When the appropriate parameters are included, it aids in simulating fluid behavior. This was an excellent way to double-check the results of an experiment. Heat transfer, laminar flow, and turbulent flow can all be simulated. You can learn how to use it for minor tasks in less than two months. I particularly like the variety of data and model file extensions it supports; for example, you can import data from Excel and SolidWorks or cad files. I like how the application generates a report automatically at the end of the problem-solving process.

Nachteile

It's a complicated program that necessitates a great deal of knowledge before you can use it. To achieve the desired result, you must first understand the necessary parameters. It also has a high price tag, much higher than comparable applications. It also has minimal system requirements, which means you'll need a high-end laptop, which can be expensive (it can work on low specs devices, but it will take much more time to solve the problem and get the results you are seeking)

Vorteile

The efficiency of its results make Ansys Fluent the most effective tool for solving computational fluid dynamics related problems. From geometry, through meshing, physics, solution and to results, the chronological order of the workflow makes Fluent easy to use, even for beginners. The fact that a user doesn't necessarily need to fully understand the governing equations required in the setup makes the learning curve less steep. A user with a deeper understanding however, can create and modify user defined functions to suit whatever solution that may be required.

Nachteile

There are minimum requirements to install and run Ansys generally but at times, even those minimum requirements seem to be incapable of a ensuring a smooth run. So it is prone to crashes and may require extremely long period of time to solve some complex problems. A high end computer might be required for such. Eventhough it is easy to use, a good knowledge of physics or engineering is usually required of the user to understand some processes. Also, the solver offers the user less control of the solving process as compared to some other tools.

Vorteile

Highly specialized algorithms for diverse geometry and calculation strategies, allowing multi-physics problems could be solved easily without over consuming your hardware resources. Helping us to save an enormous amount of time and effort in understanding and predicting complex phenomena, Ansys seems like a must-have for engineers of our era.

Nachteile

Being a part of the Ansys ecosystem, unlike simple academic softwares, you should at least be familiar with the system in order to fully operate their functions. But for an engineer / numerical simulation professional this should be done in no time.

Vorteile

I have used Ansys extensively in my 3 years of journey with BAJA SAEINDIA, Ansys Fluent is one of the modules provided by ANSYS which attracts a wide range of users, from novice to experts. That is the major advantage of ANSYS when compared to its competitors, the results are also comparatively accurate up till intermediate analysis

Nachteile

It requires a lot of technical understanding to use Fluent, of course its a simulation software and needs knowledge, but my point is Ansys can provide a more user friendly interface to help beginners play with the tool and gain more knowledge by practice

Vorteile

The data visualization on this software is one of the best in the industry right now, especially for people who are dealing with flow dynamics of external or internal flows.

Nachteile

The UI/UX of the software is bit cluttered and its difficult to navigate through all the functions at the same time.

Vorteile

As someone who used Ansys Fluent during my PhD studies for air quality, I found it to be a powerful but complicated simulation software. One of the best things about Fluent is that it allows you to create your 3D geometry using other software and save it in a format that Fluent can read, saving you the trouble of learning how to model in different software. The results provided by Fluent are excellent and provide a wealth of data for analysis, including animations and various plots.

Nachteile

While it has a user-friendly interface, it takes a lot of time to learn and is not very intuitive. I highly recommend trying some tutorials before diving in. Also, running complex simulations with a mesh of millions of elements requires a powerful cluster and can take a long time. The results are great, however, it's not always easy to get there. Errors often appear during the learning process, but the software has a strong community of users, open forums, and assistance to rely on.

Vorteile

I have been using Ansys Fluent for some time now, and I am very impressed with its capabilities. As someone who regularly deals with multiphase flow simulation and critical flow of gas through tight restriction, I have found this software to be particularly useful.One of the things I appreciate most about Ansys Fluent is its reliability. The software has consistently delivered accurate results for a variety of complex simulations. Additionally, the documentation is complete with well-described equations, which has made it easy to set up and solve even the most challenging problems.Ansys Fluent is especially helpful for simulating multiphase flows, such as gas-liquid interactions, and for modeling critical flow of gas through tight restrictions. It allows for accurate modeling of these systems and provides valuable insight into their behavior and performance.Another advantage of using Ansys Fluent is its versatility. The software is capable of modeling a wide range of physical phenomena, including fluid dynamics, heat transfer, combustion, and more. This makes it a valuable tool for engineers, researchers, and scientists working in a variety of fields.

Nachteile

One challenge I have encountered is that errors can be confusing, with little explanation provided. When an error occurs, it can be difficult to determine what caused it, and there may be limited guidance available to help troubleshoot the issue. This can be frustrating for users who are trying to identify and fix problems in their simulations.Additionally, I have found that some of the software's features can be less intuitive than others. While Ansys Fluent is generally user-friendly, there are some aspects of the program that may require additional research or support to fully understand and utilize.

Vorteile

The software, in the Workbench functionality, allows to decide the type of module to use depending on the physics to be solved. In particular, among the different choices for the fluid dynamics part, there is Fluent, a Finite Volume solver. It is very intuitive to import external CADs into the geometry module and prepare the mesh accordingly. The internal CAD is also very functional and, for complex components, it is useful for cleaning geometry. The preparation of the solver is also very intuitive. The tree diagram allows to not make mistakes. Very good package for displaying the results data, which is intuitive and easy to use.
Among the best features that have been implemented in the latest versions is the "Named Function": a tool inside the solver part that allows to define mathematical functions, and much more, in order to bypass the use of UDFs which is always a bit difficult and not easy to understand.
Exporting data is very easy since you prefer to use another software viewer or perform numeric post-processing operations with Matlab as an example.

Nachteile

The hardest part of the program is the definition of the mesh. if you work with simple geometries you will not encounter particular problems, but since you want to use polygonal meshes for complex geometries, you have to use another package that integrates the mesh with the solver in a different way. The use of different packages for the management of the single parts makes the program heavy, which is slow in the opening and closing phases of the single packages.
Another slightly critical point is the definition of the parameters. It is not easy to understand and you have to manage them through the Workbanch. This is not a particular problem once you are familiar with the program.

Vorteile

In my opinion ANSYS Fluent is the best software for CFD simulations. It has several add-ons that are extremely helpful for design and product development. It also offers engineers and researchers a lot of flexibility in terms of equations (flow, energy, and turbulence) and boundary conditions to setup the simulation as customizable as possible.

Nachteile

What I don't like very much about ANSYS Fluent is the file management. I have had a hard time finding the files I save specially when the software crashes. Hopefully, with the newest updates ANSYS will fix these bugs.

Vorteile

Best for simpler and small scale FEM analysis... can also work for Solidworks imported mesh.. thats a plus and helpful for me

Nachteile

Just a bit slow.... requires more processor. But that isnt a drawback because FEM software have to calculate value on each node so in refined mesh they are compelled to require time.

Vorteile

The price is good and there is a good deal of physical model functionality from low to hypersonic.
Significant V&V has been done.
I like the Fluent AERO capability that is being rolled out to do sweeps of AoA, Mach, etc.

Nachteile

The software is very difficult to apply - significant amount of time needs invested in meshing. Other solvers (e.g. CDD++) are much easier to run successfully (i.e. quickly get solve an analysis). Find that other colvers are more capable numerically of running in the hypersonic regime.
Fluent capability of integrating with Pointwise meshes that I receive from my customer is not great.
Sometimes the technical support is good, other times can be a bit distant. Support received from other vendors is more engaged and actively trying to help (i.e. hands on).

Vorteile

Working in heat transfer domain, the software offers plethora of options for different types of thermal management techniques. The interactive user interface allows user to navigate through the options at ease and tutorial support offered gives additional boost to new entrants in the software

Nachteile

Some times the intrinsic details that needs to be tweaked based on experimental conditions remain stubborn and unrealistic causing the software to deviate from the outputs intended from a set of conditions

Vorteile

Ansys fluent provides the opportunity to easily solve multiple physics problems in different physics situations with flow simulations. It is especially solution-oriented in examining the interaction of multiphysical flows with each other. FSI contributes to the strength analysis of flow-borne structures by transferring the values of the flow results (such as temperature, pressure) to the structural side for the solution.

Nachteile

Since Fluent software depends on the geometry to form the finite element mesh structure of the flow volume, it takes a long time to clean the geometries.

Vorteile

It’s easy to start learning cfd using fluent without in-depth knowledge of fluid mechanics.

Nachteile

I wish if we can also see the equations being used in the interface. It will become easier to relate the theory with application.

Vorteile

best simulation software for cfd analysis . animations ,graph of simulated output can be easily extracted .optimization of varying input can be done for suitable output .FEM analysis can also be done. this software is best for mechanical projects . geometry can also be imported from other cad softwares.As being student of mechanical engineering I have working on project of savonious and darrieus vertical axis wind turbine, cfd analysis of wind turbine profile is to be done .using ansys it became easy to analyze the variation of output varying wind speed , aspect ratios and other factors.

Nachteile

A bit slow if number of meshed element are too large, a bit difficult to use for beginners. licensing is a bit costly for students like me.

Vorteile

It is very easy to use and has a user-friendly interface with many built-in options and customized functions. It has been there for industries for years and well known as well as acceptable by experts and professionals.

Nachteile

The codes built inside are black boxes and if some specific requirement needed, the changes would be only made it through updates on new versions. Flexibility is more expected for long tern users.

Vorteile

Fluent has numerous options to solve various types of flow. It produces fast and accurate results. According to comparison with experimental results, CFD results satisfy the researcher most of the time.

Nachteile

The software does not allow the user to modify the source code. It has some features to modify some interface but is not desirable for every researcher.

Vorteile

ANSYS Fluent gather most of physical phenomenums to correctly models our various processes, and the possibility to add our own models allows us to perform specific simulations.

Nachteile

Price is rather high compare to other products (some of them are free), and modelization of big processes needs big computers.

Vorteile

It allows you to assess a lot of situations with different level of details. The clients appreciate the output and it is easy to understand and visualise the results

Nachteile

It requires training and good understanding of the physics otherwise it can lead to wrong conclusions. The design modeller has some issues and it’s easier to use other tools for modelling.

Vorteile

Fluent is a very complex software with various customizable parameters. Results can be very elaborate or simple. From mass, heat, and energy transfer, to temperature, velocity, and pressure gradients, Ansys provides a wide range of high value results for engineers to analyze and take educated decisions.

Nachteile

The complexity can be boggling for users, if the user is not educated on the subject, the adjustable variables are numerous and require previous study to make the best of simulations.

Vorteile

The fact that it is easy to import CAD models through space claim.

It is a software that can easily work on models from any other engineering software.

Nachteile

One of the major disadvantage of this particular software is that it consumes a lot of space on the RAM/ memory of the PC.

The software can not be used by anyone that doesn't have basic knowledge in Physics.

Vorteile

I have been working on Fins of a heat exchanger lately. The thing that impressed me alot, was that i can apply the thermal as well as fluiddynamic analysis on a very wide range of materials. the long list of materials impressed me.
Secondly, the simplified mesh was very easy to construct on ANSYS.

Nachteile

Not that easy to use. It took me a while to get used to stuff.
Secondly while load testing, abaqus was more handy. even solidwork was equally good plus there was an additional advantage of easy (as well as complex) modelling.

Vorteile

I am a mechanical engineer with a focus of fluid simulation and I have to deal with a lot of simulation softwares. But ANSYS is one of the best software I have used so far. It is very user-friendly and the interface is very convenient to understand. Workbench gives me variety of options to do the relevant simulations. Fluent is design in step by step manner like meshing, parameter design, Boundary condition, initialization, simulation and results. The whole sequence of processes is in chronological order and it is very easy to project the mistakes as well as the cloud holes in this software. Ansys can simulate a huge as well as micro system in a quite stable way. Variety of files can be saved and get by Ansys software which includes excel, csv, pdf etc. Also almost all design software files are supported at Fluent interface.

Nachteile

Ansys should increase the meshing range and simulation capacity for the student version. I own a student version of Ansys which is free for students of my university. Secondly, the files storage by the ansys software especially when a video simulation is required is too high. Some considerable. Rar files are recommended.

Vorteile

ANSYS Fluent is a leader in CFD simulations. It has countless features and cover every aspect of simulation you could think of: fluids, batteries, optimization, etc. Also the solver capabilities are very advanced and offer high accuracy.

Nachteile

There is nothing I dislike about ANSYS Fluent. Its licenses are very expensive and can only be afforded by large institutions/companies. Other than that it is a great product.

Vorteile

One of the best things about Ansys Fluent is the user interface. It is extremely beginner friendly. Furthermore there is a help icon below each and every button which allows and opens up a browser which provides an in-depth analysis of the same.

Nachteile

Perhaps, the option of not being able to convert the simulation file into a GUI is something that is still missing in Fluent.

Vorteile

What I liked most about the product was how it made the rather difficult and confusing topic of CFD easy to understand and comprehend. It is a useful tool to carry out several CFD experiments. I dare say that it is the best software out there for this specific problem.

Nachteile

The user interface many times is confusing and difficult. It takes sometime to get used to it.

Vorteile

The GUI is intuitive and there are numerous youtube videos available to get familiarized with the interface. If you are a student you can also get free access to ANSYS Forums where peers help out in setting up a CFD problem.

Nachteile

The user-defined functions, popularly referred to as UDF is difficult to set up especially because of the way Windows handles dependencies. The plotting/visualization interface GUI is not as intuitive as setting up the problem and solving is. For example, it took me a long time to figure out how to set up custom parameters to plot such as vorticity, even with help of youtube tutorials and videos.

Vorteile

ANSYS provided me with the ability to develop high quality simulation models for heat exchanger projects while at university. I was able to import models from Solidworks and provide a comprehensive fairly accurate representation of my CFD projects and final year research project

Nachteile

The software is not as user friendly as other CFD product but easier than STAR CCM for instance. If you need something more accurate and comprehensive but alot easier than STAR CCM then ANSYS is the product you need.

Vorteile

Not so easy to learn but still one of the most effective and efficient tools to be used so designing or creating any kind of structure.

Nachteile

The design of the software makes it a little hard to understand and to use it's great tools.

Vorteile

The ability to perform CFD analysis is amazing and in my opinion no other software can compete with Ansys Fluent because of all the features it has.

Nachteile

Its use could be more intuitive, only people with some know-how are able to use it.

Vorteile

Offers wide range of physical modeling capabilities, including fluid dynamics, heat transfer, and chemical reactions. Allows for both steady-state and transient simulations. Can handle complex geometries and interfaces between different materials and offers pretty advanced capabilities and options to the user.

Nachteile

Can be computationally intensive, requiring significant processing power and time to run simulations. High cost.

Vorteile

video out of a simulation, graph output from your simulation which is fully customizable. the arrangement of the commands are pretty accessible. I love how you are able to link the commands you use.

Nachteile

it is not easy use as a beginner. As a beginner it was pretty hard for me to locate a lot of commands. it is draws a lot of power from my system when I'm running complex simulations.

Vorteile

Ansys fluent is a flexible simulation software, its ability to mesh specific faces and nodes for example using face meshing makes it easy to focus more on the critical portion to be analyzed and thereby the processing unit can be judiciously used for the areas that are more important for the analysis.
Recently, i heard of ansys adoption of Virtual Reality which i think will be perfect for real time simulation of multiphase models.

Nachteile

It's difficult to compute a well refined mesh on low end laptops due to processor and ram limitations. also someone with low or no knowledge of engineering will find it confusing and difficult to use fluent. furthermore, the user interface is not too enticing for new beginners.

Vorteile

Functionality , options and accuracy are good features .

Nachteile

Dynamic mesh features are ver difficult to use . Serious convergence issues for transient analysis. Post processing is not easy.

Vorteile

Extremely powerful simulation software, their expansion has led to the acquisition of several competitors and resulted in a set of simulation packages that can solve most types of problems

Nachteile

The license cost can be quite expensive, and the simulation has to be very carefully configured to generate a proper result.

Vorteile

Doors compatibility and exporting the reports

Nachteile

Not to many system security capability...

Vorteile

The analysis of various mechanical components can be performed through this software.The simulation of any components can be with accurate results and projects can be delivered on time.Through this software we can integrate all types of engineering data for simulation.By this software we can analyse deformation,thermal analysis,we can also perform aerodynamic analysis with this software at each and every desired point of the model.

Nachteile

This software needs good Understanding before starting the analysis.we cannot make changes in the middle of the analysis,for that we need start from the scratch.sometimes the resolution of errors is little difficult.The UI in this software is little slow.

Vorteile

The ability to use it in batch mode and the possibility to implement udf

Nachteile

that you stoppt Gambit (it is much faster and often creates better grids)
the graphical support under linux
it is not possible to export the cases in older versions

Vorteile

Free version has lot of limitations but still workable for academic problem statement. For high grade problem or for meshing paid version the best

Nachteile

Difficult to change the model in between if we come to bout changes. We have to wait for compelete processing and change again.

Vorteile

The ansys software provides accurate results in analysis of components. The intricate projects can be delivered on time. The models can be imported and different analysis like (deformation, thermal analysis etc..)can be done on this software and gives desired results.

Nachteile

Modifications cannot be performed in the middle of the process, entire analysis should be performed again from the start. The space of ansys software is more. This software is not user friendly. It requires heavy computational power to provide accurate results.

Vorteile

Excellent and advanced physics modeling capabilities, industry leading accuracy and features. Great customer service from their capable technical support team.

Nachteile

Simultaneous use of multiple versions (for compliancy with older projects) can be difficult during installation and configuration. When possible, go with latest available version to avoid possible conflicts with different versions of the software application.

Vorteile

- Easy to use, learn and simple user interface
- Free student version available
- supports many CAD file extensions
- Hussle free import and export of files

Nachteile

- Sometimes software can be complicated for students
- Not great functionality on low end laptops and pc

Vorteile

The software give me a lot of choses in reporting and in results analysis

Nachteile

The software is difficult to use , and the acadimec version have a lot of problems

Vorteile

The software has different working modules for battery packs. Another thing I like about using ANSYS is, it simulates the battery performance both, over the molecular and module level.One can simulate battery/battery packs over a wide range of drive cycles (Even custom drive cycle inputs are available)

Nachteile

The simulation consumes a lot of time and hardware RAM to provide results. (Post-processing time)

Vorteile

setting up the model is getting easier and straight forward for users.

Nachteile

It would be good to see the interface with user defined function being improved for easier integration.