Ansys Rocky 2025 R1: Transforming Particle Simulations

Discover the latest advancements in SPH, collision analysis, and simulation performance in Ansys Rocky 2025 R1.

Challenges

In today's industrial landscape, particle simulation plays a critical role in optimizing processes and ensuring efficient operations. However, the complexity of accurately modeling particle dynamics remains a significant challenge. Industries face difficulties in simulating particle behavior in dynamic environments, such as volumetric material flow, particle collisions with varied geometries and properties, and interactions with external fields like magnetism or fluid dynamics.

For example, manufacturing processes often demand precise control over particle injection rates, initial velocities, and periodic behaviors, yet existing tools struggle to accommodate these requirements without sacrificing accuracy. Additionally, industries such as mining, pharmaceuticals, and additive manufacturing encounter obstacles in understanding wear patterns or designing systems that account for fluid-particle interactions under realistic conditions.

Engineering Solutions

Emerging technologies, like the Smoothed Particle Hydrodynamics (SPH) method, promise to address the complexities of modeling incompressible flows and surface tension effects. However, incorporating these capabilities seamlessly into simulations has historically been challenging. Magnetic field effects, essential in processes like particle separation or targeted material transport, add another layer of complexity to simulations. Without advanced solutions, these challenges lead to inefficiencies, increased costs, and missed opportunities for innovation.

Methods & Results

The following are some examples of the new Features of Rocky in the release 2025 R1, the first of the year:

Advanced Particle Injection with Volumetric Inlet

Users can now define an initial constant velocity, set specific injection time intervals, and establish time-periodic injection behaviors.
These enhancements allow engineers to replicate realistic material feed conditions with greater precision, which is particularly beneficial for processes like conveyor belt loading or hopper discharge. For instance, in manufacturing, these improvements enable the accurate modeling of material flow rates and reduce the likelihood of blockages or uneven distributions.
Application example: Optimizing hopper designs in the agricultural sector to ensure consistent grain flow.

Improved Collision Statistics

Currently, Ansys Rocky has four collision statistics modules that collect and display Collision data:
1) Boundary Collision Statistics (per boundary triangle)
2) Inter-Particle Collision Statistics (for particles)
3) Intra-Particle Collision Statistics (per particle of the same group)
4) Inter-Group Collision Statistics (involving a pair of particles of different particle groups)
Accurately modeling particle collisions is crucial for applications involving wear prediction, material mixing, or energy dissipation. The new release of Ansys Rocky enhances collision statistics allowing the third module (Intra-Particle Collision Statistics) to include collision statistics between particles of different groups providing more accurate results for collisions between particles of varying geometries and properties.
Application example: Reducing wear in comminution equipment in mining operations by simulating particle impacts with varying hardness.

EMAG Coupling

A groundbreaking feature in the new release is its ability to couple results from electromagnetic (EMAG) simulations as a Beta feature.
This integration allows users to simulate particles subjected to magnetic fields, enabling innovative applications like magnetic separation, particle sorting, or targeted delivery in pharmaceutical processes. For example, engineers designing magnetic conveyors can now assess how particles respond to varying field strengths, optimizing the system for efficiency and accuracy
Application example: Designing magnetic separators in recycling facilities to efficiently sort metal particles from waste streams.

Enhancements to the SPH Method

The SPH (Smoothed Particle Hydrodynamics) method receives notable upgrades in Ansys Rocky 2025 R1, including a new solver for incompressible flows, a surface tension modeling approach (currently in beta for single-fluid systems), and the implementation of backflow control for inlets.
These enhancements open doors for simulating fluid-particle interactions with higher fidelity. For example, in applications like slurry transport or coating processes, the new SPH capabilities allow engineers to predict flow behavior and particle movement with greater confidence, ensuring product quality and process efficiency.
Application example: Simulating fluid-particle dynamics in wastewater treatment, ensuring effective sediment removal and improved system performance.

Installation and Packages

In previous releases, the Rocky installer was available for download in the Add-Ons Section whithin the Ansys Customer Portal options. Now, it is part also of the Automated Installer that contains different Ansys Tools in the same file.
For the first time the student's community is allowed to download the free version of Rocky. This package includes some Solver SDK and PrePost Scripting powerful tools also available. Visit the Ansys website for more information.

Ansys Solution Benefits

Ansys Rocky is part of the CFD tools and demostrates demonstrates its potential to simulate, analyze and optimize different systems where particle flows are relevant. For preprocessing, Ansys SpaceClaim and Discovery Modeling facilitate CAD creation and preparation, Ansys Rocky couples with FEA, CFD and EMAG packages to perform advanced simulations. Optimization techniques are also available by using Ansys OptiSlang.

The additional modules and scripts in Rocky offer a range of benefits that enhance the simulation capabilities and user experience. DEM and SPH formulations are constantly improving enabling more accurate and realistic modeling of particles. These enhancements, along with the multi-GPU processing capability, allow for large-scale simulations involving millions of particles, using real particle shapes on multiple GPUs, thus speeding up particle simulations and facilitating complex analyses

Ozen Engineering Expertise

Ozen Engineering Inc. leverages its extensive consulting expertise in CFD, FEA, optics, photonics, and electromagnetic simulations to achieve exceptional results across various engineering projects, addressing complex challenges like multiphase flows, erosion modeling, and channel flows using Ansys software.

We offer support, mentoring, and consulting services to enhance the performance and reliability of your particle flow systems. Trust our proven track record to accelerate projects, optimize performance, and deliver high-quality, cost-effective results for both new and existing water control systems. For more information, please visit https://ozeninc.com.

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Post by German Ibarra
January 15, 2025