Outreach for CFD

The use of computational fluid dynamics (CFD) is becoming more widespread in process engineering to model the behaviour of gases and liquids in process plants, but it is still a rather expensive technique.

Smaller companies, particularly, tend not to have access to the powerful computers required by the technique. Help may be at hand, however, with a new initiative to offer affordable CFD to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

The CFD Outreach Initiative has been organised by the Institute of CFD, based at the Universities of Oxford and Reading, and the European Research Community on Flow, Turbulence and Combustion (ERCOFTAC).

The initiative aims to put SMEs in touch with the most appropriate expert for their particular problem, and will give the companies access to the same expertise as their larger competitors - but without upfront fees.

The initiative is offering help to any companies whose commercial interests include aerodynamics, food processing, heat transfer, turbine and appliance designs, emissions and waste management.