Structural / CFD Heat Transfer

Cyprien Rusu

Difference between Structural Heat Transfer

and CFD Fluid/Solid couple heat analysis

Fluid Volume

Fluid at Ambient
Temperature

convection

Solid Part

Solid Part

FEA Model (Full)

FEA Model

CFD Fluid/Solid Coupled Analysis

Structural Heat Transfer Analysis

Structural Heat Transfer Analysis

Fluid at Ambient
Temperature

convection

Solid Part
FEA Model

Structural Heat Transfer Analysis

When ?
-When the fluid temperature can be
assimilated as uniform around the solid
part
-When we investigate the behavior of
structural components only under
heating (convection, heat generation,
radiation)
-When we investigate the stress and
deformation caused to the part due to
heat load (Thermal Stress Analysis).

CFD Heat Transfer coupled Analysis

When ?
Fluid Volume

Solid Part

FEA Model (Full)

CFD Fluid/Solid Coupled Analysis

-When the distribution of the fluid

around the object need to be studied
-To investigate the impact of the object
on the environment
-To investigate natural cooling

Analysis procedure For Structural

thermal analysis

1. Fluid Volume (inside and outside) is not included in the analysis

Analysis procedure For Structural

thermal analysis

2. Instead, You have to apply Convection to consider the

influence of the external fluid (attention: select only the faces in
contact with air)

Analysis procedure For Structural

thermal analysis

3. You can apply radiation inside the chip to consider the heat
generated by the chip on the other parts.

Steady State & Transient Heat

Transfer
You have 2 types of thermal structural analysis in NFX: Steady
State & Transient
I- Steady State Heat Transfer (Static/Heat Transfer > Heat Load)

II- Transient Heat Transfer (Dynamic/Trans. Heat Transfer > Transient Heat Load)

Thermal loads and Boundary

conditions
Thermal loads and boundary conditions for heat transfer analysis
used in midas NFX include temperature boundary conditions
assigned to nodes, heat flux applied to lines and surfaces, convection
and radiation, which are summarized in Table 6.3.1. Figure 6.3.1
shows the load conditions and boundary conditions that can be
considered for heat transfer analysis in midas NFX.

Heat Loads
Prescribed nodal temperatures

Prescribed nodal temperatures are used to assign uniform known temperatures to a

model. In the same manner as forced displacements of structural analysis, the
temperature degrees of freedom of nodes to which temperature conditions area assigned
are eliminated from the global degrees of freedom and influence the load vectors.
Heat generation
Heat generation is used to simulate the quantity of heat generated inside a solid. By
inputting the rate of heat generation per unit volume, , the effects of heat generation
inside elements can be obtained.
Heat flux
Heat flux expresses power per unit area or energy per unit time and unit area. In midas
NFX, heat flux can be applied to nodes, faces and edges of elements. When heat flux is
assigned to a node, the area is determined through an additional area factor value. When
heat flux is applied to an edge, the area is determined by using the thickness information
of the edge or the area factor provided by the user.

Convection
Convection
In midas NFX, natural convection conditions caused by the difference between the
ambient temperature and the surface temperature can be applied to nodes,
boundary faces and edges of elements. The amount of heat exchange or heat flux
caused by convection is quite empirical. midas NFX provides two different forms of
heat flux relationship equations by convection.

The surface convection coefficient can be expressed as a function of the surface

temperature or ambient temperature. When convection is assigned to a node,
the area is determined through an additional area factor. When convection is
assigned to an edge, the area is determined by using the thickness information of
the edge or the area factor provided by the user.

Steady- State Convection & Transient

Convection

Fluid temperature around the object is

defined here (Ambient Temperature)
For Transient Analysis, fluid
temperature can additionally
be function of the time

h ( film coefficient = convective heat

transfer coefficient = surface convection
coefficient)

Steady State Convection

Transient Convection

Radiation
Radiation
Heat exchange by radiation takes place when a difference between the surface and
ambient temperatures exists. midas NFX can apply heat exchange conditions caused
by radiation. The heat flux from radiation is expressed as,

Cavity Radiation
Since heat exchanges occur in interaction between individual surfaces in radiation
analysis of the interior of a cavity consisting in a number of surfaces, it takes a form
different from the radiation heat exchange with the ambient temperature, which
has been introduced previously. The heat flux per unit area, which is transferred to
the ith face by cavity radiation, is expressed as follows:

A radiation shape factor shows the level of

radiation heat exchange generated between two
faces and is geometrically defined as follows:

The above integration is valid only if a visibility relationship

between two points of both faces is maintained. Parts that
do not maintain such relationships are excluded from the
integration. A radiation blockage corresponds to such a case
(Figure 6.3.3)in which no radiation heat reaches certain
faces due to the blockage by a third object. In case of an
enclosed cavity, the sum of the radiation shape factors of all
other faces relative to the given ith face produces 1, which is
a measure of accuracy in calculations for radiation shape
factors.

In case of an open cavity, the sum from the above equation becomes smaller than 1 in which case
radiation heat is transferred to the ambient air. midas NFX provides a function to automatically calculate
radiation shape factors for specific three-dimensional shapes.

Steady- State Radiation & Transient

Radiation

Fluid temperature around the object is

defined here

For Transient Analysis, fluid

temperature can additionally
be function of the time

Steady State Convection

Transient Convection

Thermal Stress Analysis

(Heat Structure coupled Analysis)

Thermal deformation

Heat Generation
Condition:
0.01W/mm3

Convection Condition
Ambient Temperature: 20 C
Convection Coefficient: 2e-5
W/mm2[T]

Nodal Temperature Results

Thermal stress