Solid meshing (Tetra FEM) of the intake manifold of an IC Engine using ANSA.

Objective:

Perform CAD model check and implement solid meshing according to the required quality criteria.

S.No	Quality Criteria	Value
1	Target/Average length	3
2	Minimum Length	1
3	Maximum Length	5
4	Tetcollapse	0.2

Procedure:

1. Import the CAD model of a intake manifold into ANSA interface.

2. Perform an initial geometry check and fix the errors if any.

3. Visually check the orientation and rectify if any discrepancies arise.

4. A mesh with tria elements is generated on the surface of the model according to the quality criteria.

Mesh cleanup is done using the combination of following commands as and when required:

1. Reconstruct

2. Delete nodes

3. Cut

4. Smooth

5. Split

5. Tria mesh elements generated need to be extuded in order to form tetra solids. This is done by defining the meshed part as a "PSOLID" in volume mesh generation.

Since, tetra mesh generation is an unstructured mesh, it can be confirmed visually that the mesh does not follow any particular order as we go deep inside a part. Solid mesh is generated at a growth rate of 1.2 as specified by default in the tetra FEM algorithm.

Quality check for the intake manifold:

Conclusion:

Since solid mesh was generated for the intake manifold, no thickness need to be assigned for the new solid PID.

Hot points were added, removed and moved as required to obtain uniform mesh as much as possible. Final mesh obtained was error free and satisfies all the required quality criteria.

Therefore, the model of a intake manifold is ready for further analysis.

Time taken for meshing the model was 1 hours 45 minutes.