Latest Posts
Microwave Plasmas
Microwave plasmas, or wave-heated discharges, find applications in many industrial areas such as semiconductor processing, surface treatment, and the abatement of hazardous gases. This blog post describes the theoretical basis of the Microwave Plasma interface available in the Plasma Module.
Meshing Considerations for Nonlinear Static Finite Element Problems
As part of our solver blog series we have discussed solving nonlinear static finite element problems, load ramping for improving convergence of nonlinear problems, and nonlinearity ramping for improving convergence of nonlinear problems. We have also introduced meshing considerations for linear static problems, as well as how to identify singularities and what to do about them when meshing. Building on these topics, we will now address how to prepare your mesh for efficiently solving nonlinear finite element problems.
Photos from the COMSOL 4.4 Launch Event in Silicon Valley
In anticipation of the COMSOL 4.4 release, the COMSOL office in Palo Alto decided to try something new. Feeling inspired by the very successful COMSOL Conference in Boston, we held an all-day launch event in Silicon Valley. Here’s a round-up of the event and some of the photos we took.
New Mixer Module Showcases CFD Capabilities of COMSOL
The Mixer Module provides ready-made interfaces for describing the difficult problem of laminar and turbulent flows in rotating machinery with free liquid surfaces. COMSOL has been developing different techniques for modeling CFD, moving geometries, and free surfaces during the past few years for a number of different applications. This has now culminated in the new Mixer Module that was released with version 4.4, and it clearly showcases the improved CFD capabilities of COMSOL.
COMSOL 4.4 Brings Particle-Field and Fluid-Particle Interactions
The trajectories of particles through fields can often be modeled using a one-way coupling between physics interfaces. In other words, we can first compute the fields, such as an electric field, magnetic field, or fluid velocity field, and then use these fields to exert forces on the particles using the Particle Tracing Module. If the number density of the particles is very large, however, the particles begin to noticeably perturb the fields around them, and a two-way coupling is needed […]
3D Printing: Material Matters
In the past, we’ve discussed a few of the extraordinary uses of 3D printing (or additive manufacturing) technology by some innovative engineers, and even printed a few of our COMSOL models. In one of our previous posts on 3D printing, we discussed some of the limitations that this technique poses from both a consumer and manufacturing stand-point — you can only print one material at a time. Now however, as was mentioned in an article in Desktop Engineering, not only […]
Nonlinearity Ramping for Improving Convergence of Nonlinear Problems
As we saw in “Load Ramping of Nonlinear Problems“, we can use the continuation method to ramp the loads on a problem up from an unloaded case where we know the solution. This algorithm was also useful for understanding what happens near a failure load. However, load ramping will not work in all cases, or may be inefficient. In this posting, we introduce the idea of ramping the nonlinearities in the problem to improve convergence.
COMSOL 4.4: Magnetic Saturation Curves at your Fingertips
When designing inductive devices, both challenges and possibilities are associated with the nonlinear behavior of ferromagnetic materials. COMSOL Multiphysics is well-adapted to the solution of highly nonlinear numerical models but high-fidelity modeling of nonlinear inductive devices also requires accurate material data. To meet this challenge, a library of 165 nonlinear magnetic materials is provided in COMSOL 4.4, bringing new powers to the design and modeling of electric motors, transformers, relays, etc. Here, we will discuss how the modeling process is […]