Computational fluid dynamics application tools

There are several means to predict fluid flows including mathematical modeling, numerical methods, and software tools. This paper reports a comparative study of computational fluid mechanics software tools. A set of evaluation criteria are developed to compare various computational fluid mechanics software tools. The evaluation criteria include: Pre-processing ability, governing equations, post processing strength, meshing capability, customization, available documentation, solver capabilities, precision, adaptive grid refinement, scalability, saved models, convergence acceleration, advance meshing, coupling of modules, and support of different flows. Different computational fluid mechanics software tools have been considered including OpenFOAM, SU², PyFR, Code_Saturn, and Palabos. Each tool is examined with respect to the evaluation criteria. With respect to the evaluation criteria, OpenFOAM seems to be superior to the others with PyFR scoring the least. SU², Code_Saturn, and Palabos scores are comparable.