ESI releases ACE+ Suite of CFD and Multiphysics simulation software V2009.2

Paris: ESI Group, a supplier of digital simulation software for prototyping and manufacturing processes, announced today the latest release of the ACE+ suite of Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) and Multiphysics simulation software. Version 2009.2 includes new enhancements of significant benefit for automotive, aerospace, fuel cell, and electronics customers.

“The latest release of the ACE+ Suite includes many new features and developments designed to further improve our value proposition of high productivity coupled with highly accurate physics for the applications we have targeted”, said Joseph Strelow, Director of Virtual Environment Solutions at ESI. “This release benefits significantly from the expansion of our global CFD services activity which is becoming the driving force behind this application-focused approach to development”.

Shorter prototyping process

The ACE+ suite allows the acceleration of the product development process by accurately simulating multiple physics in a single solution. Built around the CFD-ACE+ multiphysics solver and including specialized technology tailored to solve difficult applications, the tools within the suite can analyze complex physical phenomenon at the macro, micro, and even nano scales. The suite, also comprised of advanced automated meshing using CFD-VisCART’s adaptive mesh generation, substantially reduces the time needed to prepare complex geometries compared to traditional hex or tetrahedral meshing methods. This unique combination of specialized solver technology and advanced productivity tools makes the ACE+ Suite a powerful asset for customers.
Version 2009.2 includes significant updates to the CFD-ACE+ Advanced CFD and Multiphysics solver, CFD-FASTRAN density-based solver for high-mach flows, CFD-GEOM modeler and mesh generator, CFD-VisCART adaptive automated mesh generator, and CFD-VIEW visualization tools. Those enhancements have been made to increase usability, robustness and accuracy.

Benefits to select industries

Automotive customers will receive an increased benefit from the implementation of a new advanced turbulence model and the inclusion of automated boundary layer meshing in CFD-VisCART, which has dramatically improved both the speed and accuracy for large aerodynamic simulations.
New aerospace applications were addressed in this release with the ability to allow thermal coupling between CFD-FASTRAN and CFD-ACE+ to simulate high-mach re-entry heating of spacecraft.
Fuel cell design engineers continue to benefit from a multi-year investment by the US Department of Energy to refine the multi-phase and porous media capability of CFD-ACE+, allowing ESI customers to simulate more accurately the electrical, structural, and water management performance of these complex electrochemical energy conversion devices.
Finally, the semiconductor manufacturing process simulation toolset received improvements for analyzing capacitive coupled plasma (CCP), which is one of the most common types of industrial plasma sources.