Chapter 26: Postprocessing

This tutorial is divided into the following sections:

26.1. Introduction
26.2. Prerequisites
26.3. Problem Description
26.4. Setup and Solution
26.5. Summary

26.1. Introduction
This tutorial demonstrates the postprocessing capabilities of ANSYS Fluent using a 3D model of a flat
circuit board with a heat generating electronic chip mounted on it. The flow over the chip is laminar
and involves conjugate heat transfer.

The heat transfer involves conduction in the chip and conduction and convection in the surrounding
fluid. The physics of conjugate heat transfer such as this, is common in many engineering applications,
including the design and cooling of electronic components.

In this tutorial, you will read the case and data files (without doing the calculation) and perform a
number of postprocessing exercises.

This tutorial demonstrates how to do the following:

• Add lights to the display at multiple locations.

• Create surfaces for the display of 3D data.

• Display filled contours of temperature on several surfaces.

• Display velocity vectors.

• Mirror a display about a symmetry plane.

• Create animations.

• Display results on successive slices of the domain.

• Display pathlines.

• Plot quantitative results.

• Overlay and “explode” a display.

• Annotate the display.

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26.2. Prerequisites
This tutorial is written with the assumption that you have completed one or more of the introductory
tutorials found in this manual:

• Introduction to Using ANSYS Fluent in ANSYS Workbench: Fluid Flow and Heat Transfer in a Mixing
Elbow (p. 1)

• Parametric Analysis in ANSYS Workbench Using ANSYS Fluent (p. 73)

• Introduction to Using ANSYS Fluent: Fluid Flow and Heat Transfer in a Mixing Elbow (p. 123)

and that you are familiar with the ANSYS Fluent navigation pane and menu structure. Some steps in
the setup and solution procedure will not be shown explicitly.

26.3. Problem Description

The problem considered is shown schematically in Figure 26.1: Problem Specification (p. 1076). The con-
figuration consists of a series of side-by-side electronic chips, or modules, mounted on a circuit board.
Air flow, confined between the circuit board and an upper wall, cools the modules. To take advantage
of the symmetry present in the problem, the model will extend from the middle of one module to the
plane of symmetry between it and the next module.

As shown in the figure, each half-module is assumed to generate 2.0 Watts and to have a bulk conduct-
ivity of 1.0 -K. The circuit board conductivity is assumed to be one order of magnitude lower:


0.1 -K. The air flow enters the system at 298 K with a velocity of 1 m/s. The Reynolds number
of the flow, based on the module height, is about 600. The flow is therefore treated as laminar.

Figure 26.1: Problem Specification

26.4. Setup and Solution

The following sections describe the setup and solution steps for this tutorial:
26.4.1. Preparation
26.4.2. Reading the Mesh
26.4.3. Manipulating the Mesh in the Viewer

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26.4.4. Adding Lights

26.4.5. Creating Isosurfaces
26.4.6. Generating Contours
26.4.7. Generating Velocity Vectors
26.4.8. Creating Animation
26.4.9. Displaying Pathlines
26.4.10. Overlaying Velocity Vectors on the Pathline Display
26.4.11. Creating Exploded Views
26.4.12. Animating the Display of Results in Successive Streamwise Planes
26.4.13. Generating XY Plots
26.4.14. Creating Annotation
26.4.15. Saving Hardcopy Files
26.4.16. Generating Volume Integral Reports

26.4.1. Preparation
To prepare for running this tutorial:

1. Set up a working folder on the computer you will be using.

2. Go to the ANSYS Customer Portal, https://support.ansys.com/training.

Note

If you do not have a login, you can request one by clicking Customer Registration on
the log in page.

3. Enter the name of this tutorial into the search bar.

4. Narrow the results by using the filter on the left side of the page.

a. Click ANSYS Fluent under Product.

b. Click 15.0 under Version.

5. Select this tutorial from the list.

6. Click Files to download the input and solution files.

7. Unzip the postprocess_R150.zip file you downloaded to your working folder.

The files chip.cas.gz and chip.dat.gz can be found in the postprocess folder created after
unzipping the file.

8. Use Fluent Launcher to start the 3D version of ANSYS Fluent.

Fluent Launcher displays your Display Options preferences from the previous session.

For more information about Fluent Launcher, see Starting ANSYS Fluent Using Fluent Launcher in
the Fluent Getting Started Guide.

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9. Ensure that the Display Mesh After Reading, Embed Graphics Windows, and Workbench Color
Scheme options are enabled.

10. Ensure that the Serial processing option is selected.

11. Ensure that the Double Precision option is disabled.

26.4.2. Reading the Mesh

1. Read in the case and data files chip.cas.gz and chip.dat.gz.

File → Read → Case & Data...

When you select the case file, ANSYS Fluent will read the data file automatically.

26.4.3. Manipulating the Mesh in the Viewer

1. Display the mesh surfaces board-top and chip.

General → Display...

a. Retain the default selection of Edges in the Options group box.

b. Deselect all surfaces and select board-top and chip from the Surfaces selection list.

To deselect all surfaces click the far-right unshaded button at the top of the Surfaces selection list,
and then select the desired surfaces from the Surfaces selection list.

c. Click the Colors... button to open the Mesh Colors dialog box.

i. Select Color by ID in the Options group box.

ii. Click Reset Colors to reset the mesh colors to the default settings and close the Mesh Colors
dialog box.

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 Setup and Solution

d. Click Display.

2. Rotate and zoom the view.

Use the left mouse button to rotate the view. Use the middle mouse button to zoom the view until you
obtain an enlarged display of the circuit board in the region of the chip, as shown in Figure 26.2: Mesh
Display of the Chip and Board Surfaces (p. 1079).

Figure 26.2: Mesh Display of the Chip and Board Surfaces

Extra

You can click the right mouse button on one of the mesh boundaries displayed in the
graphics window and its zone number, name, and type will be printed in the console.
This feature is especially useful when you have several zones of the same type and you
want to distinguish between them.

3. Display the mesh faces.

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General → Display...

a. Disable Edges and enable Faces in the Options group box.

b. Click Display and close the Mesh Display dialog box.

The surfaces run together with no shading to separate the chip from the board.

26.4.4. Adding Lights

1. Add lighting effects.

Graphics and Animations → Options...

The default light settings add a white light at the position (1,1,1). The default light is defined in the Lights
dialog box by the Light ID 0 with Direction vectors (X, Y, Z) as (1, 1, 1).

a. Disable Double Buffering in the Rendering group box.

b. Enable Lights On in the Lighting Attributes group box.

c. Select Gouraud from the Lighting drop-down list.

Flat is the most basic lighting whereas Gouraud gives better color gradiation.

d. Click Apply and close the Display Options dialog box.

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Shading will be added to the surface mesh display (Figure 26.3: Graphics Display with Default Light-
ing (p. 1081)).

Figure 26.3: Graphics Display with Default Lighting

2. Add lights in two directions, (-1, 1, 1) and (-1, 1, -1).

Graphics and Animations → Lights...

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You can also open the Lights dialog box by clicking the Lights... button in the Display Options dialog
box.

a. Set Light ID to 1.

b. Enable Light On.

c. Enter -1, 1, and 1 for X, Y, and Z respectively in the Direction group box.

d. Retain the selection of Gouraud in the Lighting Method drop-down list.

e. Enable Headlight On.

The Headlight On option provides constant lighting effect from a light source directly in front of the
model, in the direction of the view. You can turn off the headlight by disabling the Headlight On
option (Figure 26.4: Display with Additional Lighting: - Headlight Off (p. 1083)).

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Figure 26.4: Display with Additional Lighting: - Headlight Off

f. Click Apply.

g. Similarly, add a second light (Light ID= 2) at (-1, 1, -1).

The result will be more softly shaded display (Figure 26.5: Display with Additional Lighting (p. 1084)).

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Figure 26.5: Display with Additional Lighting

h. Close the Lights dialog box.

Extra

You can use the left mouse button to rotate the ball in the Active Lights window to gain a
perspective view on the relative locations of the lights that are currently active, and see the
shading effect on the ball at the center.

You can also change the color of one or more of the lights by selecting the color from the
Color drop-down list or by moving the Red, Green, and Blue sliders.

26.4.5. Creating Isosurfaces

To display results in a 3D model, you will need surfaces on which the data can be displayed. ANSYS Fluent
creates surfaces for all boundary zones automatically. Several surfaces have been renamed after reading the

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 Setup and Solution

case file. Examples are board-sym and board-ends, which correspond to the side and end faces of the circuit
board.

You can define additional surfaces for viewing the results, for example, a plane in Cartesian space. In this
exercise, you will create a horizontal plane cutting through the middle of the module with a value of 0.25
inches. You can use this surface to display the temperature and velocity fields.

1. Create a surface of constant
coordinate.

Surface → Iso-Surface...

a. Select Mesh... and Y-Coordinate from the Surface of Constant drop-down lists.

b. Click Compute.

The Min and Max fields display the  extents of the domain.

c. Enter 0.25 for Iso-Values.

d. Enter y=0.25in for New Surface Name.

e. Click Create and close the Iso-Surface dialog box.

2. Create a clipped surface for the X-coordinate of the fluid (fluid-sym).

Surface → Iso-Clip...

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a. Select Mesh... and X-Coordinate from the Clip to Values of drop-down lists.

b. Select fluid-sym from the Clip Surface selection list.

c. Click Compute.

The Min and Max fields display the x extents of the domain.

d. Enter 1.9 and 3.9 for Min and Max respectively.

This will isolate the area around the chip.

e. Enter fluid-sym-x-clip for New Surface Name.

f. Click Clip.

3. Create a clipped surface for the Y-coordinate of the fluid (fluid-sym).

Surface → Iso-Clip...

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a. Select Mesh... and Y-Coordinate from the Clip to Values of drop-down lists.

b. Retain the selection of fluid-sym from the Clip Surface selection list.

c. Click Compute.

The Min and Max fields display the extents of the domain.

d. Enter 0.1 and 0.5 for Min and Max respectively.

Note

This will isolate the area around the chip.

e. Enter fluid-sym-y-clip for New Surface Name.

f. Click Clip and close the Iso-Clip dialog box.

26.4.6. Generating Contours

1. Display filled contours of temperature on the symmetry plane (Figure 26.6: Filled Contours of Temperature
on the Symmetry Surfaces (p. 1089)).

Graphics and Animations → Contours → Set Up...

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a. Retain the default settings in the Options group box.

b. Select Temperature... and Static Temperature from the Contours of drop-down lists.

c. Select board-sym, chip-sym, and fluid-sym from the Surfaces selection list.

d. Click Display.

e. Rotate and zoom the display using the left and middle mouse buttons, respectively, to obtain the
view as shown in Figure 26.6: Filled Contours of Temperature on the Symmetry Surfaces (p. 1089).

Tip

If the model disappears from the graphics window at any time, or if you are having
difficulty manipulating it with the mouse, do one of the following:

• Click the Fit to Window button in the graphics toolbar.

• Open the Views dialog box by clicking the Views... button in Graphics and An-
imations task page and use the Default button to reset the view.

• Press the Ctrl + L to revert to a previous graphics display.

The peak temperatures in the chip appear where the heat is generated, along with the higher temperatures
in the wake where the flow is recirculating.

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Figure 26.6: Filled Contours of Temperature on the Symmetry Surfaces

2. Display filled contours of temperature for the clipped surface (Figure 26.7: Filled Contours of Temperature
on the Clipped Surface (p. 1090)).

Graphics and Animations → Contours → Set Up...

a. Deselect all surfaces from the Surfaces selection list and then select fluid-sym-x-clip and fluid-sym-
y-clip.

b. Click Display.

A clipped surface appears, colored by temperature.

c. Orient the view to obtain the display as shown in Figure 26.7: Filled Contours of Temperature on the
Clipped Surface (p. 1090).

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Figure 26.7: Filled Contours of Temperature on the Clipped Surface

3. Display filled contours of temperature on the plane, y=0.25in (Figure 26.8: Temperature Contours on the
Surface, y = 0.25 in. (p. 1092)).

Graphics and Animations → Contours → Set Up...

a. Deselect all surfaces from the Surfaces selection list and then select y=0.25in.

b. Click Display and close the Contours dialog box.

The filled temperature contours will be displayed on the y=0.25in plane.

4. Change the location of the colormap in the graphics display window.

Graphics and Animations → Options...

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a. Disable Axes in the Layout group box.

b. Select Bottom from the Colormap Alignment drop-down list.

c. Click Apply and close the Display Options dialog box.

5. Change the display of the colormap labels.

Graphics and Animations → Colormap...

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a. Ensure that Show All is disabled.

b. Set Skip to 4.

If the contour labels displayed next to the colormap are crowding the graphics window, you can use
the skip-label function to control the number of labels displayed.

c. Click Apply and close the Colormap dialog box.

d. Zoom the display using the middle mouse button to obtain the view as shown in Figure 26.8: Tem-
perature Contours on the Surface, y = 0.25 in. (p. 1092).

Figure 26.8: Temperature Contours on the Surface, y = 0.25 in.

In Figure 26.8: Temperature Contours on the Surface, y = 0.25 in. (p. 1092), the high temperatures in
the wake of the module are clearly visible. You can also display other quantities such as velocity
magnitude or pressure using the Contours dialog box.

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26.4.7. Generating Velocity Vectors

Velocity vectors provide an excellent visualization of the flow around the module, depicting details of the
wake structure.

1. Display velocity vectors on the symmetry plane through the module centerline (Figure 26.9: Velocity
Vectors in the Module Symmetry Plane (p. 1095)).

Graphics and Animations → Vectors → Set Up...

a. Enter 1.9 for Scale.

b. Deselect all surfaces from the Surfaces selection list and then select fluid-sym.

c. Click Display and close the Vectors dialog box.

Extra

You can display velocity vectors for the clipped surfaces.

Graphics and Animations → Vectors → Set Up...

a. Deselect all surfaces from the Surfaces selection list and then select fluid-sym-x-clip and
fluid-sym-y-clip.

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b. Click Display.

2. Change the colormap layout.

Graphics and Animations → Options...

a. Enable Axes in the Layout group box.

b. Select Left from the Colormap Alignment drop-down list.

c. Click Apply and close the Display Options dialog box.

d. Rotate and zoom the display to observe the vortex near the stagnation point and in the wake of the
module (Figure 26.9: Velocity Vectors in the Module Symmetry Plane (p. 1095)).

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Figure 26.9: Velocity Vectors in the Module Symmetry Plane

Note

The vectors in Figure 26.9: Velocity Vectors in the Module Symmetry Plane (p. 1095) are
shown without arrowheads. You can modify the arrow style in the Vectors dialog box
by selecting a different option from the Style drop-down list.

Extra

If you want to decrease the number of vectors displayed, then increase the Skip factor
to a non-zero value.

3. Plot velocity vectors in the horizontal plane intersecting the module (Figure 26.10: Velocity Vectors Inter-
secting the Surface (p. 1097)).

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Graphics and Animations → Vectors → Set Up...

After plotting the vectors, you will enhance the view by mirroring the model about the module centerline
and displaying the module surfaces.

a. Enable Draw Mesh in the Options group box to open the Mesh Display dialog box.

i. Ensure that Faces is enabled in the Options group box.

ii. Retain the selection of board-top and chip from the Surfaces selection list.

iii. Click the Colors... button to open the MeshColors dialog box.

A. Select Color by Type in the Options group box.

B. Select wall from the Types selection list.

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C. Select light blue from the Colors selection list and close the Mesh Colors dialog box.

iv. Click Display and close the Mesh Display dialog box.

b. Enter 3.8 for Scale.

c. Deselect all surfaces by clicking the unshaded icon to the right of the Surfaces selection list.

d. Select y=0.25in from the Surfaces selection list.

e. Click Display and close the Vectors dialog box.

f. Rotate the model with the mouse to obtain the view as shown in Figure 26.10: Velocity Vectors Inter-
secting the Surface (p. 1097).

Figure 26.10: Velocity Vectors Intersecting the Surface

4. Mirror the image about the chip symmetry plane (Figure 26.11: Velocity Vectors After Mirroring (p. 1099)).

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Graphics and Animations → Views...

a. Select symmetry-18 from the Mirror Planes selection list.

Note

This zone is the centerline plane of the module and its selection will create a mirror
of the entire display about the centerline plane.

b. Click Apply and close the Views dialog box.

The display will be updated in the graphics window (Figure 26.11: Velocity Vectors After Mirror-
ing (p. 1099)).

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Figure 26.11: Velocity Vectors After Mirroring

26.4.8. Creating Animation

Using ANSYS Fluent, you can animate the solution and also a scene. For information on animating the
solution, see Using Dynamic Meshes (p. 631), Step 10. In this tutorial, you will animate a scene between two
static views of the graphics display.

You will display the surface temperature distribution on the module and the circuit board by selecting the
corresponding boundaries. You will also create the key frames and view the transition between the key
frames, dynamically, using the animation feature.

1. Display filled contours of surface temperature on the board-top and chip surfaces. (Figure 26.12: Filled
Temperature Contours on the Chip and Board Top Surfaces (p. 1101)).

Graphics and Animations → Contours → Set Up...

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a. Ensure that Filled is enabled in the Options group box.

b. Retain the selection of Temperature... and Static Temperature from the Contours of drop-down
lists.

c. Deselect all surfaces by clicking the unshaded icon to the right of Surfaces.

d. Select board-top and chip from the Surfaces selection list.

e. Click Display and close the Contours dialog box.

f. Zoom the display as needed to obtain the view shown in Figure 26.12: Filled Temperature Contours
on the Chip and Board Top Surfaces (p. 1101).

Figure 26.12: Filled Temperature Contours on the Chip and Board Top Surfaces (p. 1101) shows the high
temperatures on the downstream portions of the module and relatively localized heating of the circuit
board around the module.

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Figure 26.12: Filled Temperature Contours on the Chip and Board Top Surfaces

2. Create the key frames by changing the point of view.

Graphics and Animations → Scene Animation → Set Up...

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You will use the current display (Figure 26.12: Filled Temperature Contours on the Chip and Board Top
Surfaces (p. 1101)) as the starting view for the animation (Frame = ).

a. Click Add in the Key Frames group box to create the first frame for your animation.

This will store the current display as Key-1.

b. Zoom the view to focus on the module region.

c. Enter 100 for Frame in the Key Frames group box.

d. Click Add to create the tenth frame for your animation.

This will store the new display as Key-100.

The zoomed view will be the one-hundredth key frame of the animation, with intermediate displays
(2 through 99) to be filled in during the animation.

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e. Rotate the view and zoom out the display so that the downstream side of the module is in the fore-
ground (Figure 26.13: Filled Temperature Contours on the Chip and Board Top Surfaces (p. 1103)).

Figure 26.13: Filled Temperature Contours on the Chip and Board Top Surfaces

f. Enter 200 for Frame.

g. Click Add to create the two-hundredth frame for your animation.

This will store the new display as Key-200.

Note

You can check the display view of any of your saved key frames by selecting it in the
Keys list.

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3. View the scene animation by clicking on the “play” button ( ) in the Playback group box.

Note

If your computer is having difficulty displaying the animation with 200 frames, you can
increase the increment to 10.

While effective animation is best conducted on “high-end” graphics workstations, you can view scene
animations on any workstation. If the graphics display speed is slow, the animation playback will take
some time and will appear choppy, with the redrawing very obvious. On fast graphics workstations, the
animation will appear smooth and continuous and will provide an excellent visualization of the display
from a variety of spatial orientations. On many machines, you can improve the smoothness of the anim-
ation by enabling the Double Buffering option in the Display Options dialog box.

To produce a slower animation, increase the number of frames between the key frames. The more sparsely
you place your key frames, the more transition frames ANSYS Fluent creates between the key frames and
thus stretching out your animation.

Note

You can also make use of animation tools of ANSYS Fluent for transient cases as
demonstrated in Modeling Transient Compressible Flow (p. 257).

Extra

You can change the Playback mode if you want to “auto repeat” or “auto reverse” the
animation. When you are in either of these Playback modes, you can click the “stop”

button ( ) to stop the continuous animation.

4. Close the Animate dialog box.

26.4.9. Displaying Pathlines

Pathlines are the lines traveled by neutrally buoyant particles in equilibrium with the fluid motion. Pathlines
are an excellent tool for visualization of complex three-dimensional flows. In this example, you will use
pathlines to examine the flow around and in the wake of the module.

1. Create a rake from which the pathlines will emanate.

Surface → Line/Rake...

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a. Select Rake from the Type drop-down list.

A rake surface consists of a specified number of points equally spaced between two specified endpoints.
A line surface (the other option in the Type drop-down list) is a line that includes the specified end-
points and extends through the domain; data points on a line surface will not be equally spaced.

b. Retain the default value of 10 for Number of Points.

This will generate 10 pathlines.

c. Enter a starting coordinate of (1.0, 0.105, 0.07) and an ending coordinate of (1.0, 0.25,
0.07) in the End Points group box.

This will define a vertical line in front of the module, about halfway between the centerline and edge.

d. Enter pathline-rake for New Surface Name.

You will refer to the rake by this name when you plot the pathlines.

e. Click Create and close the Line/Rake Surface dialog box.

2. Draw the pathlines (Figure 26.14: Pathlines Display (p. 1107)).

Graphics and Animations → Pathlines → Set Up...

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a. Enable Draw Mesh in the Options group box to open the Mesh Display dialog box.

i. Ensure that Faces is enabled in the Options group box.

ii. Retain the selection of board-top and chip from the Surfaces selection list.

These surfaces should already be selected from the earlier exercise where the mesh was displayed
with velocity vectors, Step 6: Velocity Vectors.

iii. Close the Mesh Display dialog box.

b. Enter 0.001 inch for Step Size.

c. Enter 6000 for Steps.

Note

A simple rule of thumb to follow when you are setting these two parameters is that
if you want the particles to advance through a domain of length , the Step Size
times the number of Steps should be approximately equal to
.

d. Set Path Coarsen to 5.

Coarsening the pathline simplifies the plot and reduces the plotting time. The coarsening factor spe-
cified for Path Coarsen indicates the interval at which the points are plotted for a given pathline in
any cell.

e. Select pathline-rake from the Release from Surfaces selection list.

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f. Click Display.

The pathlines will be drawn on the surface.

g. Rotate the model so that the flow field is in front and the wake of the chip is visible as shown in
Figure 26.14: Pathlines Display (p. 1107).

Figure 26.14: Pathlines Display

3. Write the pathlines to a file.

a. Enable Write to File in the Options group box.

The Display button changes to a Write... button.

b. Select Fieldview from the Type drop-down list.

c. Click the Write... button to open the Select File dialog box.

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i. Enter chip-pathline for Fieldview File.

ii. Click OK to close the Select File dialog box.

ANSYS Fluent will save the file in Fieldview format.fvp extension.

4. Display pathlines as spheres.

Graphics and Animations → Pathlines → Set Up...

a. Disable Write to File in the Options group box.

b. Select sphere from the Style drop-down list.

c. Click the Attributes... button to open the Path Style Attributes dialog box.

i. Enter 0.0005 for Diameter.

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ii. Click OK to close the Path Style Attributes dialog box.

d. Enter 1 inch for Step Size and 1000 for Steps respectively.

e. Set Path Skip to 2 and Path Coarsen to 1.

f. Retain the selection of pathline-rake in the Release from Surfaces selection list.

g. Click Display.

The spherical pathlines will be drawn along the surface.

h. Rotate the model so that the flow field is in front and the wake of the chip is visible as shown in
Figure 26.15: Sphere Pathlines Display (p. 1109).

Figure 26.15: Sphere Pathlines Display

i. Select Surface ID from the lower Color by drop-down list.

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j. Click Display and close the Pathlines dialog box.

This will color the pathlines by the surface they are released from (Figure 26.16: Sphere Pathlines
Colored by Surface ID (p. 1110)).

Figure 26.16: Sphere Pathlines Colored by Surface ID

Note

As an optional exercise, you can create solution animations for pathlines using Animation
Sequence dialog box.

Calculation Activities (Solution Animations) → Create/Edit...

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26.4.10. Overlaying Velocity Vectors on the Pathline Display

The overlay capability, provided in the Scene Description dialog box, allows you to display multiple results
on a single plot. You can exercise this capability by adding a velocity vector display to the pathlines just
plotted.

1. Enable the overlays feature.

Graphics and Animations → Scene...

a. Enable Overlays in the Scene Composition group box.

b. Click Apply and close the Scene Description dialog box.

2. Add a plot of vectors on the chip centerline plane.

Graphics and Animations → Vectors → Set Up...

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a. Disable Draw Mesh in the Options group box.

b. Retain the value of 3.8 for Scale.

c. Deselect all surfaces by clicking the unshaded icon to the right of Surfaces.

d. Select fluid-sym from the Surfaces selection list.

Because the mesh surfaces are already displayed and overlaying is active, there is no need to redisplay
the mesh surfaces.

e. Click Display and close the Vectors dialog box.

f. Use the mouse to obtain the view that is shown in Figure 26.17: Overlay of Velocity Vectors and
Pathlines Display (p. 1113).

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Figure 26.17: Overlay of Velocity Vectors and Pathlines Display

Note

The final display (Figure 26.17: Overlay of Velocity Vectors and Pathlines Display (p. 1113)) does
not require mirroring about the symmetry plane because the vectors obscure the mirrored
image. You may disable the mirroring option in the Views dialog box at any stage during
this exercise.

26.4.11. Creating Exploded Views

The Scene Description dialog box stores each display that you request and allows you to manipulate the
displayed items individually. This capability can be used to generate “exploded” views, in which results are
translated or rotated out of the physical domain for enhanced display. As shown in the Scene Description
dialog box, you can experiment with this capability by displaying “side-by-side” velocity vectors and temper-
ature contours on a streamwise plane in the module wake.

1. Delete the velocity vectors and pathlines from the current display.

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Graphics and Animations → Scene...

a. Select the pathlines path-8-surface-id and the velocity vectors vv-0-velocity-magnitude from the
Names selection list.

b. Click Delete Geometry.

c. Click Apply and close the Scene Description dialog box.

The Names selection list of the Scene Description dialog box should then contain only the two mesh
surfaces (board-top and chip).

2. Create a plotting surface at =3 inches (named x=3.0in), just downstream of the trailing edge of the
module.

Surface → Iso-Surface...

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Tip

For details on creating an isosurface, see Step 4: Creating Isosurfaces.

3. Add the display of filled temperature contours on the x=3.0in surface.

Graphics and Animations → Contours → Set Up...

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a. Ensure that Draw Mesh is disabled in the Options group box.

b. Deselect all surfaces by clicking on the unshaded icon to the right of Surfaces.

c. Select x=3.0in from the Surfaces selection list.

d. Click Display and close the Contours dialog box.

The filled temperature contours will be displayed on the x=3.0in surface.

4. Add the velocity vectors on the x=3.0in plotting surface.

Graphics and Animations → Vectors → Set Up...

a. Enable the Draw Mesh option in the Options group box to open the Mesh Display dialog box.

i. Retain the default settings.

ii. Close the Mesh Display dialog box.

b. Enter 1.9 for Scale.

c. Set Skip to 2.

d. Deselect all surfaces by clicking on the unshaded icon to the right of Surfaces.

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e. Select x=3.0in from the Surfaces selection list.

f. Click Display and close the Vectors dialog box.

The display will show the vectors superimposed on the contours of temperature at =3.0 in.

5. Create the exploded view by translating the contour display, placing it above the vectors (Figure 26.18: Ex-
ploded Scene Display of Temperature and Velocity (p. 1118)).

Graphics and Animations → Scene...

a. Select contour-9-temperature from the Names selection list.

b. Click the Transform... button to open the Transformations dialog box.

i. Enter 1 inch for Y in the Translate group box.

ii. Click Apply and close the Transformations dialog box.

The exploded view allows you to see the contours and vectors as distinct displays in the final scene
(Figure 26.18: Exploded Scene Display of Temperature and Velocity (p. 1118)).

c. Deselect Overlays.

d. Click Apply and close the Scene Description dialog box.

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Figure 26.18: Exploded Scene Display of Temperature and Velocity

26.4.12. Animating the Display of Results in Successive Streamwise Planes

You may want to march through the flow domain, displaying a particular variable on successive slices of
the domain. While this task could be accomplished manually, plotting each plane in turn, or using the Scene
Description and Animate dialog boxes, here you will use the Sweep Surface dialog box to facilitate the
process. To illustrate the display of results on successive slices of the domain, you will plot contours of velocity
magnitude on planes along the axis.

1. Delete the vectors and temperature contours from the display.

Graphics and Animations → Scene...

a. Select contour-9-temperature and vv-9-velocity-magnitude from the Names selection list.

b. Click Delete Geometry.

c. Click Apply and close the Scene Description dialog box.

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 Setup and Solution

The dialog box and display window will be updated to contain only the mesh surfaces.

2. Use the mouse to zoom out the view in the graphics window so that the entire board surface is visible.

3. Generate contours of velocity magnitude and sweep them through the domain along the axis.

Graphics and Animations → Sweep Surface → Set Up...

a. Retain the default settings in the Sweep Axis group box.

b. Retain the default value of 0 m for Initial Value in the Animation group box.

c. Retain 0.1651 m for Final Value.

Warning

The units for the initial and final values are in meters, regardless of the length
units being used in the model. Here, the initial and final values are set to the
Min Value and Max Value, to generate an animation through the entire domain.

d. Enter 20 for Frames.

e. Select Contours in the Display Type list to open the Contours dialog box.

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i. Select Velocity... and Velocity Magnitude from the Contours of drop-down lists.

ii. Click OK to close the Contours dialog box.

f. Click Animate and close the Sweep Surface dialog box.

You will see the velocity contour plot displayed at 20 successive streamwise planes. ANSYS Fluent will
automatically interpolate the contoured data on the streamwise planes between the specified end points.
Especially on high-end graphics workstations, this can be an effective way to study how a flow variable
changes throughout the domain.

Note

You can also make use of animation tools of ANSYS Fluent for transient cases as demonstrated
in Modeling Transient Compressible Flow (p. 257).

26.4.13. Generating XY Plots

XY plotting can be used to display quantitative results of your CFD simulations. Here, you will complete the
review of the module cooling simulation by plotting the temperature distribution along the top centerline
of the module.

1. Define the line along which to plot results.

Surface → Line/Rake...

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a. Select Line from the Type drop-down list.

b. Enter the coordinates of the line using a starting coordinate of (2.0, 0.4, 0.01) and an ending co-
ordinate of (2.75, 0.4, 0.01) in the End Points group box.

These coordinates define the top centerline of the module.

c. Enter top-center-line for New Surface Name.

d. Click Create and close the Line/Rake Surface dialog box.

2. Plot the temperature distribution along the top centerline of the module (Figure 26.19: Temperature
Along the Top Centerline of the Module (p. 1123)).

Plots → XY Plot → Set Up...

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a. Retain the default Plot Direction of X.

b. Select Temperature... and Static Temperature from the Y Axis Function drop-down lists.

c. Select top-center-line from the Surfaces selection list.

This will plot temperature vs the coordinate along the selected line (top-center-line).

d. Click the Axes... button to open the Axes - Solution XY Plot dialog box.

i. Retain the selection of X in the Axis list.

ii. Disable Auto Range in the Options group box.

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 Setup and Solution

iii. Enter 2.0 for Minimum and 2.75 for Maximum in the Range group box.

iv. Click Apply and close the Axes - Solution XY Plot dialog box.

e. Click Plot and close the Solution XY Plot dialog box.

The temperature distribution (Figure 26.19: Temperature Along the Top Centerline of the Module (p. 1123))
shows the temperature increase across the module surface as the thermal boundary layer develops
in the cooling air flow.

Figure 26.19: Temperature Along the Top Centerline of the Module

26.4.14. Creating Annotation

Graphics and Animations → Annotate...

You can annotate the display with the text of your choice.

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1. Enter the text describing the plot (for example, Temperature Along the Top Centerline), in
the Annotation Text field.

2. Select 20 from the Size drop-down list in the Font Specification group box.

3. Click Add.

A Working dialog box will appear telling you to select the desired location of the text using the mouse-
probe button.

4. Click the right mouse button in the graphics display window where you want the text to appear, and
you will see the text displayed at the selected location (Figure 26.20: Temperature Along the Top
Centerline of the Module (p. 1125)).

Extra

If you want to move the text to a new location on the screen, select the text in the Names
selection list, click Delete Text, and click Add once again, defining a new position with
the mouse.

Note

Depending on the size of the graphics window and the hardcopy file format you choose,
the font size of the annotation text you see on the screen may be different from the font
size in a hardcopy file of that graphics window. The annotation text font size is absolute,
while the rest of the items in the graphics window are scaled to the proportions of the
hardcopy.

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 Setup and Solution

Figure 26.20: Temperature Along the Top Centerline of the Module

26.4.15. Saving Hardcopy Files

File → Save Picture...

You can save hardcopy files of the graphics display in many different formats, including PostScript, encapsu-
lated PostScript, TIFF, PNG, PPM, JPEG, VRML and window dumps. Here, the procedure for saving a color
PostScript file is shown.

1. Select PostScript in the Format group box.

2. Select Color in the Coloring group box.

3. Select Vector in the File Type group box.

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4. Click the Save... button to open the Select File dialog box.

a. Enter a name for Hardcopy File.

b. Click OK to close the Select File dialog box.

5. Close the Save Picture dialog box.

26.4.16. Generating Volume Integral Reports

Reports → Volume Integrals → Set Up...

Reports of Volume Integral can be used to determine the Volume of a particular fluid region (that is, fluid
zone), the sum of quantities or the maximum and minimum values of particular variables. Here we will use
the Volume Integral reports to determine the maximum and minimum temperature in the chip, board, and
the airflow.

1. Select Maximum in the Report Type group box.

2. Select Temperature... and Static Temperature from the Field Variable drop-down lists.

3. Select solid-1 from the Cell Zones selection list.

4. Click Compute to calculate the maximum temperature.

The maximum temperature in the solid-1 cell zone (the chip) is displayed.

5. Select Minimum in the Report Type group box and click Compute.

The minimum temperature in the solid-1 cell zone (the chip) is displayed.

6. Repeat the operations to determine the maximum and minimum temperatures in the solid-2 and fluid-
8 cell zones, corresponding to the board and fluid volume, respectively.

26.5. Summary
This tutorial demonstrated the use of many of the extensive postprocessing features available in ANSYS
Fluent.

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For more information on these and related features, see Reporting Alphanumeric Data or Displaying
Graphics in User's Guide.

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