Altair AcuSolve 2020.1 Release Notes

New Features

GPU Acceleration on Windows
AcuSolve GPU acceleration is now available on CUDA-enabled Windows machines by including the -gpu command option. Windows GPU requires a Nvidia card with minimum Compute Capability of 3.0 and minimum driver version of 396.26. Linux GPU requires a NVidia card with minimum Compute Capability of 3.0 and minimum driver version of 418.39.
EDEM 1-way Coupling
The influence of a flow field on particle motion can now be simulated with AcuSolve and EDEM. The flow field from an AcuSolve simulation can be imported into an EDEM simulation to perform a one-way, sequential coupling simulation.

Enhancements

Heat Exchanger Component Upstream Temperature
You can now output the value of temperature used by the HEAT_EXCHANGER_COMPONENT at a distance from the inlet surface specified by upstream_distance. This value is referred to as Tupstream in the HEAT_EXCHANGER_COMPONENT documentation.
Cylindrical Anisotropic Conductivity
Material conductivity may now be defined in a cylindrical coordinate system. You provide the center, axis, and coefficients of the anisotropic conductivity.
Specify Species Names
User-provided names are now allowed for individual species.
Element Statistics Output
Element-based statistical values of min, max, standard deviation, and uniformity are now available on element sets and can be output through acuTrans with the .oes file extension.
Log File Output Improvements
You are now notified in the .log file when reversed flow exists at flow boundaries. The .log file also now includes statistical values of min, max, and average variable quantities at the end of each run. Pressure and temperature offsets used during the simulation are recorded in the .log file and a banner is added at the head of the .log file indicating the version and build of the solver as well as information about the platform used.
New UDF Variables
Density and viscosity are now available in User-Defined Functions (UDFs) from the udfGetElmData() function call. The data names are UDF_ELM_DENSITY and UDF_ELM_VISCOSITY, respectively.
Tutorial links to SimLab Learning Center
SimLab video-based AcuSolve tutorials from the SimLab Learning Center are now accessible directly from links within the AcuSolve tutorial documentation pages.
Tutorial Additions
Twenty-four (24) brand new tutorials have been added based on the SimLab interface and all of the current SimLab tutorials for AcuSolve have been recreated in a new user-friendly video format. Two (2) new tutorials have been added for the HwCFD interface, and five (5) tutorials have been converted from HM to the HwCFD interface.

Resolved Issues

  • Chaco is no longer available as an option in AcuPrep for domain decomposition.
  • AcuPrep will now ignore the initialize_stokes parameter when certain variable density types are used.
  • An issue loading only a .Log file into AcuProbe when no results directory was present has been fixed.
  • An issue with writing dew point temperature through element output has been fixed.
  • An issue related to using a combination of species and turbulence with a multiphase fluid has been fixed.
  • A few issues related to AcuTrans export of AcuFieldView and CGNS formats have been fixed.
  • An issue with full restart when using auto_wall has been fixed.
  • Core_friction_exponent was added to the documentation under HEAT_EXCHANGER_COMPONENT.
  • Various typos have been corrected in the documentation under HEAT_EXCHANGER_COMPONENT.
  • Pressure_precedence_factor was added to the documentation under LINEAR_SOLVER_PARAMETERS.
  • Density_type has been added to the documentation under MULTI_FIELD_MODEL.
  • The documentation under MULTI_FIELD_MODEL for field_interaction_models has been corrected to not limit the number of field interaction models to one.
  • Turbulence_damping_levelset has been added to the documentation under FIELD_INTERACTION_MODEL.
  • Specular_ordinate_averaging has been added to the documentation under RADIATION_SURFACE.
  • Radiation_interface_type has been added to the documentation under RADIATION_SURFACE.
  • Temperature_type of none has been added to the documentation under SIMPLE_BOUNDARY_CONDITION.
  • MOMENTUM_SOURCE has been added to the documentation under BODY_SOURCE.
  • A correction has been made in the example text under HEAT_SOURCE.
  • An image in ACU-T: 1000 now shows the correct boundary conditions.
  • Corrections to radiation coefficients have been made to ACU-T: 3201.
  • Tutorials ACU-T: 3202 and ACU-T: 3203 (participating media radiation) have been made more consistent.
  • Settings for Auto Solution Strategy in ACU-T: 5403 have been made consistent between the image and steps.