Coupling FEM and CFD solvers for continuous casting process simulation using precice

The numerical investigation of continuous casting requires more than just one simulation technique. In continuous casting, liquid metal is continuously poured into a mould while the starting head is slowly moved downwards, which results in a growing metal ingot. Though, the ingot’s outer surface is solidified after the mould, its inside core is still a mixture of liquid and mushy phases. This mixture of physical states requires different numerical schemes to describe the constitutive behaviour and relation. While the liquid region is described in the Eulerian approach, the solid is well described in the Lagrangian approach. Commonly the finite volume method is chosen for the Eulerian and the finite element method for the Lagrangian perspective. Consequently, it is logical to combine a CFD solver with a FEM solver for an ideal numerical representation of the continuous casting process. The coupling of two different solvers communicating in two different programming languages - in the present work OpenFOAM and LS-DYNA - is not an easy task. However, preCICE enables the coupling of the different solvers with a minimum of intrusive functions. The present work deals with the first step towards the coupled simulation routine for the continuous casting process. A first basic simulation of a simple plate was setup consisting of OpenFOAM for the Eulerian approach and LS-DYNA for the Lagrangian approach. OpenFOAM calculates the temperature field due to time-dependent boundary conditions, while the mechanical LS-DYNA solver calculates resulting strains and stresses considering thermal strain. The aim of this simulation was to develop and test the preCICE adapter for LS-DYNA, as the adapter for OpenFOAM is already available and ready to use. The mapping techniques of preCICE did manage to achieve good energy conservation results. The first results showed a good correlation especially in the middle of the domain. The difference at the plates’ ends between the two different methods defined the next steps for the coupling

Computational Evolving Technique for Casting Process of Alloys

The challenging task of bringing together the advanced computational models (with high accuracy) with reasonable computational time for the practical simulation of industrial process applications has promoted the introduction of innovative numerical methods in recent decades. The time and efforts associated with the accurate numerical simulations of manufacturing processes and the sophisticated multiphysical and multiscale nature of these processes have historically been challenging for mainstream industrial numerical tools. In particular, the numerical simulations of industrial continuous and semicontinuous casting processes for light metal alloys have broadly been reinvigorated to investigate the optimization of casting processes. The development of advanced numerical techniques (e.g., multiscale/physical, finite zoning, and evolving domain techniques) for industrial process simulations including the transient melt flow, heat transfer, and evolution of stress/strain and damage during continuous casting processes have endeavored many new opportunities. However, smarter and broader improvements are needed to capture the underlying physical/chemical phenomena including multiscale/physical transient fluid-thermal-mechanical coupling and dynamic heat-transfer changes during these processes. Within this framework, the cooling system including its fluid flow and its characteristic heat transfer has to be modelled. In the research work herein, numerical studies of a novel transient evolving technique including the thermal-mechanical phenomena and Heat Transfer Coefficient (HTC) estimation using empirical and reverse analyses are presented. The phase change modeling during casting process including liquid/solid interface and also the implementation of dynamic HTC curves are also considered. One of the main contributions of this paper is to show the applicability and reliability of the newly developed evolving numerical simulation approach for in-depth investigations of continuous casting processes

On New Ideas for Design of Road Infrastructure: Hybrid Fatigue Analyses

To increase the pace of the design of safer road infrastructure and raise the active and passive safety features of road structures on the global stage, innovative and smart virtual tools are essential. One of the basic steps for such ground breaking numerical simulation technology would be to develop advanced smart hybrid techniques with dynamic adaptation into mainstream design and simulation tools that are used by engineering offices. In the research work herein, a new numerical framework including dynamic zoning, advanced grid interfacing, new computationally-efficient solvers, and genetic algorithm symbolic-regression has briefly been presented to address long-standing problems of speed, accuracy, and reliability of numerical tools. The fundamental physical and mathematical aspects of the new simulation framework are concisely presented. In addition, some outcomes of real-world case studies utilized using the proposed hybrid analytical and data-driven (i.e., machine learning, ML) scheme have been shown, where the design rule for road gantry structures is interrogated using the developed virtual tool. One of the main contributions of this paper is to show the benefits of using hybrid simulation technologies to model engineering systems along with the ML-based method to optimize their designs

Dynamic Simulations of Manufacturing Processes: Hybrid-Evolving Technique

Hybrid physical-data-driven modeling techniques have steadily been developed to address the multi-scale and multi-physical aspects of dynamic process simulations. The analytical and computational features of a new hybrid-evolving technique for these processes are elaborated herein and its industrial applications are highlighted. The authentication of this multi-physical and multi-scale framework is carried out by developing an integrated simulation environment where multiple solver technologies are employed to create a reliable industrial-oriented simulation framework. The goal of this integrated simulation framework is to increase the predictive power of material and process simulations at the industrial scale

Dynamic Simulations of Manufacturing Processes: Hybrid-Evolving Technique

Hybrid physical-data-driven modeling techniques have steadily been developed to address the multi-scale and multi-physical aspects of dynamic process simulations. The analytical and computational features of a new hybrid-evolving technique for these processes are elaborated herein and its industrial applications are highlighted. The authentication of this multi-physical and multi-scale framework is carried out by developing an integrated simulation environment where multiple solver technologies are employed to create a reliable industrial-oriented simulation framework. The goal of this integrated simulation framework is to increase the predictive power of material and process simulations at the industrial scale

On Numerical Simulation of Casting in New Foundries: Dynamic Process Simulations

New and more complex casting technologies are growing, and foundries are using innovative methods to reduce cost and energy consumption and improve their product qualities. Numerical techniques, as tools to design and examine the process improvements, are also evolving continuously to embrace modelling of more dynamic systems for industrial applications. This paper will present a fresh approach towards the numerical simulation of dynamic processes using an evolving and dynamic mesh technique. While the conventional numerical techniques have been employed for these dynamic processes using a fixed domain approach, the more realistic evolving approach is used herein to match the complex material processes in new foundries. The underpinning of this new dynamic approach is highlighted by an evolving simulation environment where multiple mesh entities are appended to the existing numerical domain at timesteps. Furthermore, the change of the boundary and energy sources within casting process simulations have rationally been presented and its profound effects on the computational time and resources have been examined. The discretization and solver computational features of the technique are presented and the evolution of the casting domain (including its material and energy contents) during the process is described for semi-continuous casting process applications

Coupling FEM and CFD solvers for continuous casting process simulation using precice

The numerical investigation of continuous casting requires more than just one simulation technique. In continuous casting, liquid metal is continuously poured into a mould while the starting head is slowly moved downwards, which results in a growing metal ingot. Though, the ingot’s outer surface is solidified after the mould, its inside core is still a mixture of liquid and mushy phases. This mixture of physical states requires different numerical schemes to describe the constitutive behaviour and relation. While the liquid region is described in the Eulerian approach, the solid is well described in the Lagrangian approach. Commonly the finite volume method is chosen for the Eulerian and the finite element method for the Lagrangian perspective. Consequently, it is logical to combine a CFD solver with a FEM solver for an ideal numerical representation of the continuous casting process. The coupling of two different solvers communicating in two different programming languages - in the present work OpenFOAM and LS-DYNA - is not an easy task. However, preCICE enables the coupling of the different solvers with a minimum of intrusive functions. The present work deals with the first step towards the coupled simulation routine for the continuous casting process. A first basic simulation of a simple plate was setup consisting of OpenFOAM for the Eulerian approach and LS-DYNA for the Lagrangian approach. OpenFOAM calculates the temperature field due to time-dependent boundary conditions, while the mechanical LS-DYNA solver calculates resulting strains and stresses considering thermal strain. The aim of this simulation was to develop and test the preCICE adapter for LS-DYNA, as the adapter for OpenFOAM is already available and ready to use. The mapping techniques of preCICE did manage to achieve good energy conservation results. The first results showed a good correlation especially in the middle of the domain. The difference at the plates’ ends between the two different methods defined the next steps for the coupling