Summary of main themes

1. Although fluid-flow, thermal and structural analysis are well handled by modern software packages, certain deficiencies remain, of which the chief are:
   • The road from CAD to CFD is not yet easy to travel;
   • The analyses of stresses in solids and of the flow of fluids are handled by two distinct sets of algorithms, computer codes and specialists;
   • In respect of fluid flow (at least) the models of the physical processes are often either inexact or computationally expensive, and frequently both.
2. Some progress is here reported regarding the CAD-to-CFD difficulty, with the STL format proving to be of key importance.
3. It will be shown that solid stress and fluid flow can be analysed by a single algorithm, a single code, and therefore a single specialist.
4. Good compromises between economy and realism for simple circumstances are:
   • the LVEL model of turbulence and
   • the IMMERSOL model of radiation.
5. MFM, the "multi-fluid model" of turbulence, promises the same for more complex circumstances, especially those involving chemical reaction.

Contents

1. An overview of computer-aided engineering

2. CAD to CFD via VR, with a link to Hotbox
3. SFT: simultaneous Solid-stress, Fluid-flow and Thermal analysis
4. Modelling turbulence, radiation and chemical reaction

5. The revival of remote computing
6. Concluding remarks
7. References