Magnetic field simulations using explicit time integration with higher order schemes

Purpose A transient magneto-quasistatic vector potential formulation involving nonlinear material is spatially discretized using the finite element method of first and second polynomial order. By applying a generalized Schur complement the resulting system of differential algebraic equations is reformulated into a system of ordinary differential equations (ODE). The ODE system is integrated in time by using explicit time integration schemes. The purpose of this paper is to investigate explicit time integration for eddy current problems with respect to the performance of the first-order explicit Euler scheme and the Runge-Kutta-Chebyshev (RKC) method of higher order. Design/methodology/approach The ODE system is integrated in time using the explicit Euler scheme, which is conditionally stable by a maximum time step size. To overcome this limit, an explicit multistage RKC time integration method of higher order is used to enlarge the maximum stable time step size. Both time integration methods are compared regarding the overall computational effort. Findings The numerical simulations show that a finer spatial discretization forces smaller time step sizes. In comparison to the explicit Euler time integration scheme, the multistage RKC method provides larger stable time step sizes to diminish the overall computation time. Originality/value The explicit time integration of the Schur complement vector potential formulation of eddy current problems is accelerated by a multistage RKC method.

Impact of difference between explicit and implicit second-order time integration schemes on isotropic/anisotropic steady incompressible turbulence field

This study presents the impact of the difference between the implicit and explicit time integration methods on a steady turbulent flow field. In contrast to the explicit time integration method, the implicit time integration method may produce significant kinetic energy conservation error because the widely used spatial difference method for discretizing the governing equations is explicit with respect to time. In this study, the second-order Crank-Nicolson method is used as the implicit time integration method, and the fourth-order Runge-Kutta, second-order Runge-Kutta and second-order Adams-Bashforth methods are used as explicit time integration methods. In the present study, both isotropic and anisotropic steady turbulent fields are analyzed with two values of the Reynolds number. The turbulent kinetic energy in the steady turbulent field is hardly affected by the kinetic energy conservation error. The rms values of static pressure fluctuation are significantly sensitive to the kinetic energy conservation error. These results are examined by varying the time increment value. These results are also discussed by visualizing the large scale turbulent vortex structure.

Implicit or explicit time integration schemes in the PFEM modeling of metal cutting processes

This work presents the development of an explicit/implicit particle finite element method (PFEM) for the 2D modeling of metal cutting processes. The purpose is to study the efficiency of implicit and explicit time integration schemes in terms of precision, accuracy and computing time. The formulation for implicit and explicit time marching schemes is developed, and a detailed study on the explicit solution steps is presented. The PFEM remeshing procedures for insertion and removal of particles have been improved to model the multiple scales of time and/or space of the solution. The detection and treatment of the rigid tool contact are presented for both, implicit and explicit schemes. The performance of explicit/implicit integration is studied with a set of different two-dimensional orthogonal cutting tests of AISI 4340 steel at cutting speeds ranging from 1 m/s up to 30 m/s. It was shown that if the correct selection of the time integration scheme is made, the computing time can decrease up to 40 times. It allows us to affirm that the computing time of the PFEM simulations can be excessive due to the used time marching scheme independently of the meshing process. As a practical result, a set of recommendations to select the time integration schemes for a given cutting speed are given. This is intended to minimize one of the negative constraints pointed out by the industry when using metal cutting simulators.