{"id":22243,"date":"2019-10-16T12:26:29","date_gmt":"2019-10-16T12:26:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.simscale.com\/?page_id=22243"},"modified":"2026-02-26T13:59:30","modified_gmt":"2026-02-26T13:59:30","slug":"standard","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.simscale.com\/docs\/simulation-setup\/meshing\/standard\/","title":{"rendered":"Standard Mesher"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The Standard mesher<\/strong> operation type uses a finite-volume mesher. This tool generates a three-dimensional unstructured mesh using tetrahedral or hexahedral elements.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Shown below are the default settings that the mesh will contain:<\/p>\n\n\n

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Figure 1: Mesh settings panel showing all setup options for a standard mesh.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Default Settings<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Sizing and Fineness<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The Sizing<\/em> defines how coarse or fine the discretization of the input geometry will be. The sizing control can be set to automatic<\/strong>, where local properties are adjusted automatically based on geometrical estimations. Manual <\/strong>sizing can also be applied where a minimum and a maximum edge length can be defined.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Automatic Sizing<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

For the automatic <\/strong>sizing, only a global mesh fineness<\/em> needs to be defined and all additional parameters will be set automatically according to the geometry features and the chosen fineness. Its value defines the characteristic element size for each solid, ranging from 1 – very coarse<\/em> to 10 – very fine<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A fine mesh will result in a better resolution of small geometric features, but will also increase the computation time and memory demand of the simulation. The standard setting of 5 (moderate)<\/em> will usually provide a good compromise between accuracy and resource consumption and is recommended for a first trial.
For mesh independence or convergence studies the sizing can be refined.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Manual Sizing<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Manual sizing<\/em> gives you the freedom to define the maximum edge length<\/em> and the minimum edge length<\/em> of the cells. The intermediate cell size is adjusted accordingly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Curvature<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This feature allows the user to specify the mesh refinement on curved features. By default, this is Automatic. <\/em>Alternatively, it is possible to specify the curvature in terms of the <\/em>number of mesh nodes in a circle using the Relative<\/em> option. Curvature refinement is not supported with geometry primitives but can be used with surface and volume custom refinements.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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<\/i>Mesh Order for Structural Simulations<\/p>\n <\/div>\n

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For Structural simulations (solid mechanics) the mechanical and thermal order of the mesh, i.e., first or second order, can be defined under the Element technology<\/em><\/a> item in the simulation tree. \r\n<\/p>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Automatic Boundary Layers<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

This feature, when enabled, builds layered mesh cells next to only those surfaces of the CAD model which are assigned a wall boundary condition<\/a>. The settings and their functions are the same as described for inflate boundary layer<\/a> feature below.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Physics-Based Meshing<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

This feature, when enabled, builds the mesh taking into account the information entered as a part of the simulation setup. This important information ranges from the material properties, boundary conditions, additional source terms (e.g., momentum<\/a> and power<\/a> sources), etc. Essentially, the physics involved in the fluid simulation is given priority while sizing the mesh elements.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The following adaptations are primarily observed when Physics-based meshing<\/em> is toggled on:<\/p>\n\n\n\n