Unlike high-end solvers (ANSYS Fluent, OpenFOAM), Flow Simulation uses a (immersed boundary method) and a k-ε turbulence model with dampening near walls. The 2012 tutorial teaches these concepts via hands-on projects, not abstract theory.
The mesh breaks your fluid and solid volumes down into small cells (hexahedrals) where the math equations are solved. A poor mesh yields incorrect results.
Choose fluids, heat conduction, gravity, etc. Fluid: Select your fluid (e.g., Water or Air). Wall Conditions: Set adiabatic or constant temperature. Initial Conditions: Set ambient pressure and temperature. 2. Prepare the Geometry
The official tutorials are designed to take you from a complete beginner to a confident user. Here is the typical path the lessons follow:
Including conduction within solids, convection, and radiation. 3. The Wizard and Project Setup solidworks flow simulation 2012 tutorial.pdf
Cut plots act as a visual cross-section slice through your model. You can display parameters like pressure gradients or velocity vectors across a 2D plane to identify stagnant zones or flow restrictions. Surface Plots
For beginners, the default settings (level 3 or 4) are sufficient to get a quick result. 6. Run the Simulation Click in the Flow Simulation toolbar. Click Run in the dialog box.
Disclaimer: SolidWorks is a registered trademark of Dassault Systèmes. This article is for educational purposes regarding legacy software support.
Because version 2012 is considered "obsolete" (End of Life), you cannot find it on the official SolidWorks Support portal (which requires an active subscription for 2023+ versions). However, here are the legitimate and practical sources to locate this historical document: A poor mesh yields incorrect results
Check the boxes next to to enable it for the current session and startup.
Select Internal and ensure "Exclude cavities without flow conditions" is checked.
Use the Create Lids tool to cap any openings (inlets/outlets).
Handles both liquids (like water or oil) and gases at high speeds (like supersonic airflow). Wall Conditions: Set adiabatic or constant temperature
Average pressure or temperature across the whole model. Surface Goals: Pressure drop across a specific valve face. Point Goals: Temperature at a specific sensor location. Meshing and Solving
Tip: Check "Exclude cavities without flow" to save solve time.
SolidWorks Flow Simulation 2012 is a powerful Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) tool embedded directly within the SolidWorks 3D CAD environment . It allows engineers to analyze fluid flow, heat transfer, and related forces on their designs without needing specialized CFD expertise. Getting Started: Enabling the Add-In