Solidity has a unique approach for dealing with heat transfer contact interactions. The approach is based on mesh penetration techniques which allows two meshes of two different solids to experience a small overlap. From this overlap, the contact force is drawn. When there is overlap, the surface of contact can be computed numerically.
Schematic representation of the mesh to mesh penetration for contacting solids
Mesh penetration between two different solid meshes
Contact surface reconstruction
This allows for contact heat flux and heat conduction inside and between solid bodies to be linked. Contact heat transfer problems can be solved implicitly by inserting contact heat transfer interaction terms into the matrix system. Therefore, heat transfer in large particle systems can be handled.
Contact heat transfer simulation for 2,000 metal nuts
References
- Joulin C, Xiang J, Latham J-P, Pain Cet al., 2017, A New Finite Discrete Element Approach for Heat Transfer in Complex Shaped Multi Bodied Contact Problems, 7th International Conference on Discrete Element Methods (DEM), Publisher: SPRINGER-VERLAG SINGAPORE PTE LTD, Pages: 311-327, ISSN: 0930-8989 https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007%2F978-981-10-1926-5_34
- Joulin C, Thermo-Hydro-Mechanical Coupling within a Geomechanical Multiphase Model Framework with special reference to Fractured Rock Masses in the Vicinity of a Geological Disposal Facility for Radioactive Waste. PhD thesis, Imperial College London.