FLUID – Simulation Software for Complex Fluids

Many innovative products are based on materials that have a complex rheological behavior during production. Known examples of such materials are polymer-based liquids, particle and fiber suspensions, foams, concrete and much more.

In order to be able to find simulation solutions for such a range of materials used in industrial applications, we offer the simulation infrastructure FLUID, which is based on the software platform CoRheoS – Complex Rheology Solvers. CoRheoS enables the rapid implementation of new rheological models and their robust and efficient solution for industrial application problems.

Software Platform CoRheoS

  • Validated, documented, graphical software
  • Preparation of CAD data, 3D Postprocessing
  • Use of Multicore Computing
  • Runs on Windows and Linux

Simulation of Injection Molding Processes for Fiber Reinforced Materials

The fiber reinforcement of polymer materials is a very important technique in the production of lightweight construction materials. The potential of these materials can only be exhausted if the fiber direction during the production process can be predicted with high precision.

The software FLUID implements a highly developed, physically based modeling method that takes account not only of the influence of the flow on the fiber concentration and orientation, but also the return of the fiber concentration and orientation to the rheological behavior of the suspension.

Injection molding simulation of polymeric material with 30% glass fiber content.

Simulation Example: Injection Molding Simulation of an Airbag Housing

Spatially resolved information about locally existing:

  • pressure
  • velocity
  • fiber orientation
  • fiber concentration
  • Spread of the flow front
  • fluid temperature

Simulation of Non-Newtonian Multi-Phase Flows

Mikrostruktur
© Fraunhofer ITWM
Microstructure simulation of non-Newtonian multi-phase currents

By FLUID, simulations of non-Newtonian fluids, e.g. In microstructures, which are complex, three-dimensional geometric structures of porous materials. The structures simulated by us can be used directly from computer tomographs or generated with the software GeoDict®.

Such simulations help to understand and identify the relations between the fluid velocity, pressure, viscosity and permeability of the medium. The effective permeability law can be used in macrocale simulations in which the porous structure is only a subset of an overall geometry configuration.

Simulation Example: Infiltration Process of a Non-Newtonian Fluid into a Microscale-Resolved Rock Structure

Spatially resolved information on the Porenskala about:

  • pressure
  • velocity
  • temperature
  • Spread of the flow front

Information on the macroscopic scale

  • Effective permeability tensor

Services:

  • Numerical simulation of complex rheological flows and multiphase flows
  • Injection molding and extrusion of fiber-reinforced materials
  • Powder injection molding process with particle migration
  • Flow simulation of concrete
  • Simulation of expanding PU foams
  • Coupling with granular flow simulation GRAIN
  • Fast implementation of user-defined rheological models
  • Simulation-based, scientific advice for industrial flow problems with complex material behavior

Example Projects

 

Characterization and Modelling of Long Fiber Reinforced Thermoplastics

We contribute our simulation expertise to the AiF project.

 

Potting Process Simulation of Electronic Devices

In the project SOVEB we simulate this process with FLUID so that companies can optimize their production steps.