Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) is the collective term used to describe analysis techniques that simulate gas and liquid (fluid) flows.

Airflow Around a Car in Caedium

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CFD

The Navier-Stokes equations that govern fluid flow are nearly impossible to solve analytically and thus numerical algorithms are our only recourse. By making various assumptions and modeling decisions (such as our Panel Flow and RANS Flow add-ons) it is possible to approximate real world fluid flow around and through complex shapes such as aircraft and cars. All numerical methods that approximate the Navier-Stokes equations fall within CFD.

Typical techniques, such as panel methods and Reynolds-Averaged Navier-Stokes, require that the original geometry is broken up into discrete cells called a mesh. At each cell, equations are solved (usually iteratively) to produce quantities of interest such as velocity and pressure.