Latest Posts
Simulating an Engine Governor, the Spring Loaded Centrifugal Governor
We’ve probably all seen centrifugal force in action in one way or another, whether it be riding on a merry-go-round as a child, spinning a bucket of water upside and observing as the contents hug the insides of the bucket, or watching mud spinning off of a turning tire. In addition to making dizzying carnival rides, this force can be used in the design of many mechanical applications, where it is harnessed to control a variety of effects. One such […]
Keynote Speaker from Philips to Talk about Pulmonary Drug Delivery
Philips Research Laboratories, located in Eindhoven, is often considered to be an incubator of ideas. The prestigious institute has traditionally been the core of all new product developments at Philips, and many of their forefront discoveries were made here. In October, Senior Scientist Alwin Verschueren of Philips Research Laboratories will hold a keynote talk on pulmonary drug delivery at the COMSOL Conference Rotterdam 2013.
Aircraft Landing Gear Mechanism Analysis
Aircraft rely on landing gear in order to taxi, take off, and land. The landing gear of your average commercial airplane consists of a shock-absorber cylinder and piston, and a pair of tires. Intuitively, the shock-absorber experiences stresses as the landing gear touches the ground — but how much? In order to design a landing gear mechanism that can withstand many landings, and to determine when it’s time to swap out an old one, we can perform a multibody dynamics […]
The Physics of Sailing, a CFD Analysis
Of all boats, I find sailboats to be the most fascinating, especially when sails are their only means of propulsion. Kinetic energy is transferred from the wind to the sails, which results in a lift force that balances drag forces and allows the sailboat to move through the water. We are all familiar with the parts of a boat above the waterline: deck, spars, sails, and the rudder used to turn the boat (figure 1c). Not everyone pays attention to […]
A Lithium-ion Battery Analysis at INES-CEA
During my time as a PhD student, a blue “Chemical Landmark” plaque was fitted to the building a couple of hundred yards down the road from my lab. The plaque commemorates the achievements of the researchers who made the lithium-ion (Li-ion) battery viable. Whether or not you know about the electrochemistry of rechargeable lithium-ion batteries, you probably rely on one. We carry them around in our phones and laptops, and ride in cars and planes that use them for power. […]
Simulating Plate Heat Exchangers
It’s not always obvious what a major role temperature control plays in modern technology, as the interchange happens in the background. Plate heat exchangers, made up of successions of metal plates and various coiled pipes, regulate and manipulate temperature, and they get the job done quickly — thanks to an active surface that is large with respect to their volume.
How to 3D Print COMSOL Models
Quite often we get asked the question “can I 3D print my COMSOL model?” Well, as of version 4.3b, the answer is “yes!” This is because it is now possible to export geometries and meshes as STL files, which is one of the standard file formats for 3D printing. This allows for rapid prototyping of designs; there is no need to outsource parts to machine shops. It is quite remarkable that you could conceive, simulate, optimize, and prototype a design […]
A Multidisciplinary Approach to Electronics Design
Sharp is a powerhouse in the electronics industry, involved in televisions, liquid crystal displays, LED lighting systems, solar cells, multi-function business machines, and many other electronics-based products. One of a global network of Sharp R&D laboratories, Sharp Laboratories of Europe (located in Oxford, England), has been busy researching and developing LED lighting, display technology, microfluidic lab-on-a-chip, and energy systems for incorporation into Sharp’s products.
Quick Intro to Permanent Magnet Modeling
I’ve written several blog entries involving permanent magnets, in one way or another. Reading those may have raised the question “what about a more simple introduction to permanent magnet simulations?” Fair enough, here’s how to model a permanent magnet and its surrounding magnetic field.
Modeling of Coplanar Waveguides
The Coplanar Waveguide (CPW) is commonly used in microwave circuits. COMSOL Multiphysics, with the RF Module, makes it easy to compute the impedance, fields, losses, and other operating parameters needed when designing a CPW.
Thermal Analysis Measures Blistering Heat
If you roast a turkey for dinner and you need to check the temperature, the technology exists to find it. But what happens if the temperature is so hot that a consumer-grade thermometer, or any man-made device, really, would instantly melt and be destroyed? This might not be a common occurrence in your kitchen, but it is a real concern in blast furnaces, where temperatures can reach close to 1,500°C. Simply guessing is far from safe. Luckily, by simulating with […]
CFD Applied to Two-Phase Flow, an Italian Dressing Simulation
The fact that oil and water don’t mix is something that you are probably all familiar with. At one point or another, you’ve most likely noticed what happens when you shake a bottle of say, Italian salad dressing, and the liquids mix momentarily, only to become separated again within seconds as oil bubbles rise to the surface. Creating a simulation describing how these two immiscible fluids interact is a great way to introduce computational fluid dynamics (CFD) applied to two-phase […]
Modeling a Helicopter Swashplate Mechanism
A swashplate mechanism, used in a helicopter to control the pitch of the rotor blades, can be easily simulated using the Multibody Dynamics Module available in COMSOL Multiphysics. This module enables simulation of an assembly of flexible and rigid bodies, together with physical phenomena from fluid, heat, and electrical applications, among others. Here, we will show you a model to convey how a swashplate mechanism works and at the same time analyze the stresses and deformation in the flexible rotor […]
Combining COMSOL Multiphysics® and MATLAB®
Did you know that you can combine the strengths of COMSOL Multiphysics® and MATLAB® in real time to solve engineering simulations? To me, that sounds like getting the best of both worlds. Let me explain.
Electrochemistry, from Electroanalysis to Industrial Electrolysis
My colleague, Edmund Dickinson, recently blogged about cyclic voltammetry, and how this can be modeled. It was a fantastic blog entry, as it really described the application, and how to implement such models in COMSOL Multiphysics. While Edmund has a background in electroanalysis, where cyclic voltammetry, potentiometry, and electrochemical impedance are important tools, I had a different but similar life before COMSOL, working within industrial electrolysis. For both of us, the new Electrochemistry Module would have been the perfect tool […]
Video: 2D Models from Cross Sections of 3D Geometries
A while back, I blogged about a new feature made available in COMSOL Multiphysics 4.3b, the ability to create 2D models from the cross sections of 3D geometries. We are so excited for this new feature that we decided to make a video showing you how easy it is to use.
A Recipe for Induction Stove Design Using Multiphysics Simulation
When I was little, I used to love spending the night at my grandparents’ house, where I was allowed to watch TV, stay up late, and in the morning, help my grandmother make pancakes. The hardest part was always waiting for her old, slow electric burner to heat up — to my six-year-old self, it seemed to take hours for the burner to become hot enough after we’d finished mixing the batter. Luckily for me, and for other impatient chefs […]
Food Science Leverages Simulations
As computer hardware becomes more powerful and affordable, simulations are becoming commonplace in new disciplines of science and engineering. Food science engineering is one such area, and there is no shortfall of publications using COMSOL Multiphysics for food-related simulations. Such kinds of analyses pretty much always require several types of physics to be practically relevant.
Learn How to Model Electrochemistry with an Orange Battery Tutorial
Did your chemistry teacher use an orange or lemon to demonstrate the concept of a battery, back in the day? You might remember how she magically produced electricity by sticking a couple of metal nails into the citrus fruit, as the whole class watched in awe. What if we now used simulation tools to demonstrate how an orange battery works, and then use that as an intro to electrochemistry modeling?
3D Printed Cloaking Device in a Matter of Hours
It’s been almost a year since we declared 3D printing the hottest topic in manufacturing, and it hasn’t cooled off yet. If anything, 3D printing has seen a recent surge in popularity. By now you’ve heard a lot about the technology and what you can print with it, but did you know you could print invisibility cloaks this way, too?
Random Load Fatigue
In many applications, loads applied to structures are random in nature. The sampling results of the structural response will differ depending on the data collection time. Although the stress experienced is not always high, the repeated loading and unloading can lead to fatigue. The engineering challenges in these types of applications are defining the stress response to the random load history in the critical points, and predicting fatigue damage. This is simulated with the Cumulative Damage feature in the Fatigue […]
Using Curvilinear Coordinates
Curvilinear coordinates are a coordinate system where the coordinate lines may be curved. The new user interface for automatic computation of curvilinear coordinates is a very practical addition to version 4.3b for those working with anisotropic materials in free-form CAD designs. If you have a generic bent shape and try to apply the usual coordinate systems like Cartesian, cylindrical, or spherical, you are out of luck. Curvilinear coordinates are needed to smoothly follow the design, which typically has no mathematical […]
Modeling Electroanalysis: Cyclic Voltammetry
If you’re not an electrochemist, chances are you’ve never come across cyclic voltammetry. But look at any electrochemical journal, conference proceedings, or company website for manufacturers of electrochemical sensors. Somewhere near the front, you’ll see a distinctive “double-peaked” graph.
Mesh Refinement for Wave Problems
This week we are happy to have Kyle Koppenhoefer of AltaSim Technologies as a guest blogger. As COMSOL Certified Consultants, AltaSim can share valuable insights into using the software — today on the topic of meshing wave problems. As part of our efforts to assist COMSOL users in performing high-quality analysis, we recently used our bi-monthly email to remind users to include twelve degrees of freedom per wavelength when meshing wave problems. This article builds on our previous advice. Wave-type […]