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Tutorials
Tutorials show you how to use Simcenter STAR-CCM+ for various applications in a step-by-step format with recommendations for setup, initialization and steps of the solution process specific to the application. Macro and simulation files are available for download for a large proportion of cases.
Motion
The tutorials in this set illustrate various STAR-CCM+ features for simulating problems with moving geometries and meshes, dynamic fluid body interaction, and rigid body motion:
Blade Element Method: Helicopter Rotor-Fuselage Interaction
The rotating main rotor blades of a helicopter generate a complex flow field that leads to periodic aerodynamic loads on the airframe. Because of these aerodynamic loads, the passenger cabin can be subject to noise and vibration. These aerodynamic interactions affect the performance of helicopters and they can cause structural damage. Simcenter STAR-CCM+ provides a method for simulating the flow generated by rotor blades that does not require you to mesh the blades individually. This method allows you to predict the complex flow field around a helicopter taking into account the fuselage and rotor flow field interaction.
Visualizing the Results
You can follow the progress of the solution using each of the plots and scenes that you created previously.

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Tutorials
Tutorials show you how to use Simcenter STAR-CCM+ for various applications in a step-by-step format with recommendations for setup, initialization and steps of the solution process specific to the application. Macro and simulation files are available for download for a large proportion of cases.
- Using Tutorial Macros and Files
  Macros, input files, and final simulation files for a range of tutorials are provided as an optional download package on the Support Center website. These macros and final simulation files are provided as an aid to the written tutorials, so that you can check your final results against the downloaded files, or against a simulation that is built and run using the macros.
- Introduction
  Welcome to the Simcenter STAR-CCM+ introductory tutorial. In this tutorial, you explore the important concepts and workflow. Complete this tutorial before attempting any others.
- Foundation Tutorials
  The foundation tutorials showcase the major features of Simcenter STAR-CCM+ in a series of short tutorials.
- Geometry
  The tutorials in this set illustrate various Simcenter STAR-CCM+ features for creating and working with parts and 3D-CAD.
- Mesh
  The tutorials in this set illustrate various STAR-CCM+ features for building CFD meshes.
- Incompressible Flow
  The tutorials in this set illustrate various Simcenter STAR-CCM+ features for incompressible fluid flows as well as porosity and solution recording
- Compressible Flow
  The tutorials in this set illustrate various Simcenter STAR-CCM+ features for compressible fluid flows as well as harmonic balance.
- Heat Transfer and Radiation
  The tutorials in this set illustrate various Simcenter STAR-CCM+ features for heat transfer, radiation, and thermal comfort.
- Multiphase Flow
  The tutorials in this set illustrate various Simcenter STAR-CCM+ features for simulating multiphase fluid flow problems
- Discrete Element Method
  The tutorials in this set illustrate various Simcenter STAR-CCM+ features for simulating Discrete Element Method problems
- Motion
  The tutorials in this set illustrate various STAR-CCM+ features for simulating problems with moving geometries and meshes, dynamic fluid body interaction, and rigid body motion:
  - Moving Reference Frames: Rotating Fan
    This tutorial outlines the steps that are required to set up and run a rotating radial fan analysis. It uses the Moving Reference Frame model, a steady-state approach that involves two or more frames of reference that can be stationary or moving relative to each other.
  - Rigid Body Motion: Rotating Fan
    This tutorial models the same radial fan problem as the Moving Reference Frames: Rotating Fan tutorial. However, instead of using the steady-state moving reference frame model, this tutorial uses the transient Rigid Body Motion model with actual mesh rotation.
  - DFBI: Lifeboat with Overset Mesh
    This tutorial demonstrates use of the Overset Mesh feature with free surface flow and DFBI to model the motion of a lifeboat falling into water. Simcenter STAR-CCM+ automates the grid overlapping process.
  - DFBI and AMR: Boat In Parameterized Waves
    In Dynamic Fluid-Body Interaction (DFBI) simulations, you can use Adaptive Mesh Refinement (AMR) to dynamically refine the mesh around a moving 6-DOF body based on the computed flow solution.
  - Marine Resistance Prediction: KCS Hull with a Rudder
    This tutorial demonstrates the workflow for setting up a resistance prediction simulation for a marine application.
  - Moving Reference Frames: Marine Propeller in Open Water
    This tutorial demonstrates the workflow for setting up an open water simulation for a marine propeller.
  - Body Force Propeller Method: Marine Self-Propulsion
    One of the challenges in marine engineering is to predict the speed with which a ship hull moves through water in response to the thrust supplied by a spinning propeller. Simcenter STAR-CCM+ provides a methodology by which you can predict this speed.
  - Blade Element Method: Helicopter Rotor-Fuselage Interaction
    The rotating main rotor blades of a helicopter generate a complex flow field that leads to periodic aerodynamic loads on the airframe. Because of these aerodynamic loads, the passenger cabin can be subject to noise and vibration. These aerodynamic interactions affect the performance of helicopters and they can cause structural damage. Simcenter STAR-CCM+ provides a method for simulating the flow generated by rotor blades that does not require you to mesh the blades individually. This method allows you to predict the complex flow field around a helicopter taking into account the fuselage and rotor flow field interaction.
    - Prerequisites
      The instructions in the blade element method tutorial assume that you are already familiar with certain techniques in Simcenter STAR-CCM+.
    - Loading the Initial Simulation File
      For this tutorial, you are provided with a simulation file that contains pre-defined objects and settings.
    - Defining the Operating Condition Using Field Functions
      Several variables define the operating condition that applies to the helicopter in the virtual wind tunnel. Defining these variables as field functions allows you to change the operating condition for further analyses.
    - Selecting the Physics Models
      You compute a steady compressible flow of air. To model the turbulent flow, you use the $k - ω$ turbulence model. For modeling the rotor, you select the virtual disk model.
    - Modeling the Rotor by Using the Virtual Disk Model
      For this simulation, you model the effects of the rotor on the helicopter fuselage using the blade element method. This method belongs to the virtual disk model.
    - Creating the Virtual Disk Mesh Refinement
      To obtain a good resolution of the flow field around the virtual disk, you are advised to create a cylindrical volumetric refinement. You create the refinement using part shapes and mesh custom controls.
    - Generating the Volume Mesh
      You can proceed to generate the volume mesh. For aerodynamics simulations, you typically use a trimmed cell mesh with refinements near the body and with embedded refinements for the near-field, the far-field, and the wake of the body.
    - Setting up Boundary Conditions
      The boundary types are already set up in the starting simulation file that you imported at the beginning of the simulation. Here, you associate the inflow boundary condition with a corresponding field function.
    - Monitoring and Plotting Virtual Disk Thrust
      The blade element method provides an algorithm that adjusts the initially specified collective pitch angle in order to reach the specified target thrust. This process is called trimming. Here, thrust trimming is activated in which only the collective pitch angle is adjusted. To follow this trimming process, you can plot the virtual disk thrust and the collective pitch angle as functions of iteration.
    - Visualizing the Velocity Field
      You create a velocity contour plot on a section at the centerline of the helicopter.
    - Visualizing the Pressure on the Fuselage
      To analyze the influence of the rotor on the helicopter fuselage, you plot the pressure contours on the helicopter surface.
    - Running the Simulation
      You are advised to run this tutorial on a multi-core machine with four cores or more.
    - Visualizing the Results
      You can follow the progress of the solution using each of the plots and scenes that you created previously.
    - Summary
    - Bibliography
  - Morphing: Cylinder with Boundary Motion
    Simcenter STAR-CCM+ contains a Morphing Motion Model that enables you to define motion on boundary surfaces using several methods.
  - Overset Mesh Small Gap Modeling: Lobe Blower
    Rotary lobe blowers are valveless positive-displacement units. Fluid is pumped by two counter-rotating lobes that are mounted on parallel shafts. Fluid enters through the expanding volume at the suction side of the pump. As the lobes continue to rotate, the fluid is compressed between the lobes and the pump casing and hence transported towards the discharge.
  - Trajectory Motion: Paint Dipping of a Chassis on a Fixed Skid
    Paint dipping is a process by which a component is coated with paint in a dipping tank. Simcenter STAR-CCM+ allows you to simulate this process and therefore study the effects of different trajectories and component speeds.
  - General Remesh: Gerotor Pump with Small Gap
    A Gerotor pump is a unit with an inner and an outer rotor that have different rotational speeds related to their tooth numbers. The dynamically changing volume between the rotors transports the liquid from inlet to outlet.
- Reacting Flow
  The tutorials in this set illustrate various Simcenter STAR-CCM+ features for simulating reacting flows such as combustion.
- Solid Stress
  The tutorials in this set illustrate various Simcenter STAR-CCM+ features for computing deformation, strain, and stresses in solid regions. They also show how such computations can be coupled to the fluid behavior in an analysis of fluid-structure interaction.
- Aeroacoustics
  The tutorials in this set illustrate various Simcenter STAR-CCM+ features for solving aeroacoustic simulations.
- Electromagnetism
  The following tutorials illustrate features for solving problems that involve electromagnetic fields.
- Electrochemistry
  The following tutorial demonstrates chemical reactions induced by an electrical current.
- Battery
  The tutorials in this set illustrate various Simcenter STAR-CCM+ features for setting up a battery model:
- Automation
  The tutorials in this set illustrate various Simcenter STAR-CCM+ automation and macro features.
- Design Exploration
  The tutorials in this set illustrate various features for running design exploration studies in Design Manager.
- Coupling with CAE Codes
  The tutorials in this set illustrate various Simcenter STAR-CCM+ features for coupling with CAE codes:
- Analysis Methods
  The tutorials in this set illustrate various Simcenter STAR-CCM+ features for analysing and visualizing simulation data.
- Simcenter STAR-CCM+ In-cylinder
  The tutorials in this set illustrate features for simulating internal combustion engines in Simcenter STAR-CCM+ using the dedicated add-on Simcenter STAR-CCM+ In-cylinder.

Visualizing the Results

You can follow the progress of the solution using each of the plots and scenes that you created previously.

In the following screenshot, you see a graph of the thrust created by the virtual disk as a function of iteration.

Here, you see the corresponding graph of the collective pitch angle as a function of iteration.

Using these two graphs, you can monitor the trimming process, that is, you can follow the change in collective pitch angle and its corresponding change of thrust. For the first 100 iterations, the rotation rate is ramped linearly from 1 to the specified value of 2000 rpm. During this period, the collective pitch angle remains constant at the specified value of 7.7°. After 100 iterations, Simcenter STAR-CCM+ activates the trimming algorithm. You can see that the collective pitch angle increases non-linearly to reach a constant value after approximately 500 iterations as the run converges. When the trimming algorithm is active, the thrust is computed using the varying collective pitch angle. The collective pitch angle is adjusted until the specified target thrust is reached.

The following screenshot shows you a close-up of the velocity contours around the helicopter fuselage.

Next, you can see the pressure contours on the helicopter fuselage.

This plot allows you to analyse the aerodynamic loads on the helicopter body. You can also export this data to an external program for further structural analysis.