Sep 5 2013
Exa® Corporation, a global innovator of fluid simulation solutions for product engineering, today announced the release of PowerFLOW® 5, the fifth generation of its patented DIGITAL PHYSICS® fluid simulation technology. With over 40 man-years of research and development behind it, this release significantly improves PowerFLOW's inherently transient fluid flow and heat transfer solutions for aerodynamics, thermal, and aeroacoustics applications.
PowerFLOW aerodynamic simulation of airplane wing.
PowerFLOW 5 delivers a level of accuracy and robustness that enables manufacturers to rely on simulation-driven design and to eliminate physical testing for an even wider range of applications. The PowerFLOW 5 platform allows Exa to extend the range of PowerFLOW capabilities to speeds greater than the speed of sound and positions Exa to provide solutions for many fluids-related engineering problems in aerospace.
PowerFLOW 5 features a comprehensive revision of its core fluid simulation technology, including an enhanced model for turbulence, improved treatment of the critical boundary layer at the fluid-solid interface, and a ground-breaking, patent-pending thermal solver based on our proprietary lattice Boltzmann technology. The results are further improvements in PowerFLOW's industry leading accuracy and numerical robustness that widen the gap between Exa's transient lattice Boltzmann solution and traditional codes. The PowerFLOW 5.0 Suite, the first production release based on the PowerFLOW 5 platform, is available immediately. It has been extensively validated against a large suite of industrial cases.
"I believe PowerFLOW 5 is a breakthrough in physics simulation," commented Hudong Chen, Exa's Chief Scientist and Vice President of Physics. "Not only have we implemented a unique lattice Boltzmann-based thermal solver, but the overall level of accuracy and numerical robustness we now achieve will allow us to push the technology into realms many thought would not be possible. I'm pleased with the success we are seeing in new developments based on the PowerFLOW 5 platform, especially simulation of transonic and high Mach flow." These have been some of the key open challenges in the fluids physics community. "I'm thrilled to be working with leading adopters in the aerospace and ground transportation industries to deliver industrial solutions to these problems," he continued.
These and other ground-breaking capabilities will be made available on top of the PowerFLOW 5 platform as a series of Capability Preview releases. Exa will partner with a selected set of customers to provide access to new capabilities that have been thoroughly tested by Exa and together we will ensure they satisfy our customers' industrial use cases and meet their high standards of quality and accuracy prior to incorporation into a production release of PowerFLOW.
Exa's President and CEO, Stephen Remondi, remarked, "PowerFLOW 5 will benefit both our existing customers and customers in new markets. It strengthens and widens our range of solutions and will allow us to address new industries, especially the aerospace sector. I'm proud of the role Exa continues to play in developing break-through science that solves real world engineering problems."
PowerFLOW 5.0 Production Release
The PowerFLOW 5.0 Suite includes many other exciting new capabilities:
- Unique, patent-pending technology for enhanced simulation of acoustic absorption in porous materials
- Extended-precision option for accurate prediction of low-amplitude acoustics
- Improved user productivity and turn-around time with further automation of the PowerCASE™ setup process
- More accurate simulation of very long thermal transient, required for cabin comfort, key-off, soak, defrost, & demist applications
- More accurate heat transfer prediction in regions of rotating geometry, particularly important for brake systems
- Major improvements in PowerTHERM® simulation performance, improving conduction, convection, and radiation solver performance by up to 1000%
- Battery and human thermal analysis improvements in PowerTHERM
"In addition to other flow-induced HVAC system noise contributions, PowerFLOW 5.0 now provides the ability to predict low frequency blower noise," remarked Kang-Duck Ih, Ph.D., Technical Fellow, Hyundai Motor Company. "By identifying noise sources early in the design process, we can eliminate one of the top customer complaints. PowerFLOW continues to be our preferred solution for aeroacoustics applications."