You can use CONVERGE's multiple reference frame (MRF) approach to set up steady-state pump simulations that converge quickly. This is an ideal solution for efficiently creating pump curves or performance maps. You can use these pump curves to give yourself a good idea of how the pump will perform under different operating conditions and to find the peak efficiency.

Sometimes, however, a steady-state answer is simply not good enough. CONVERGE also offers transient simulations, which can provide valuable information about the flow characteristics of a pump. For example, pressure pulsations, impeller wear, and undesirable valve dynamics are all design issues best analyzed using transient flow simulations. Monitoring how the pressure imbalances change as the parts move in the pump is crucial to discovering necessary design improvements. CONVERGE's transient flow analysis also offers you the ability to monitor the potential for cavitation and the effect of dissolved gas and fluid compressibility on pump performance.

The setup process for a transient simulation is just as straightforward as it is for an MRF steady-state simulation, and CONVERGE's Cartesian cut-cell meshing method means there's no need to manually manipulate the mesh to accommodate how the boundary motion will stretch, deform, or overlap the stationary mesh.

The ability to quickly set up and run transient pump simulations is also useful for understanding the motion of flow-driven valves using CONVERGE's fluid-structure interaction model. Even near moving parts with unprescribed motion, CONVERGE automatically generates the mesh at each time-step to capture any arbitrary motion of flow-driven solids.