SU2 and OpenFOAM CFD solver buttons disabled/inactivated

<On Fri, Apr 17, 2020 at 8:26 PM R V Ramamohan wrote>

I am facing some teething troubles setting up the system again on a new desktop.

This time, both SU2 and OpenFOAM solvers do not appear activated on my FEATool. Pl see the screenshot. If I understand the documentation correctly, SU2 comes with FEATool and no need to do anything additionally for installation / activation. For OpenFOAM, I downloaded & installed the BlueCFD core and followed the instructions there after. I am puzzled, please help me out.

Please check and verify the following:

1) Select "System Info" from the "Help" menu in the FEATool GUI and verify that the SU2 and OpenFOAM solver binaires have been found and identified correcly. They should for example be listed as

    ...
    OpenFOAM: C:\Program Files\blueCFD-Core-2017
    SU2 Binary: C:\featool\lib\su2\SU2_CFD.exe
    SU2 Version: v7.0.3 "Blackbird"

2) Select and run the "Turbulent Flow Over a Backwards Facing Step" CFD tutorial model from the "Model Examples and Tutorials..." > "Fluid Dynamics" in the "File" menu. Verify that runs correctly and prints "Model validation passed." in the lower right output window when the example is done.

3) Note that even if they are installed the CFD solvers OpenFOAM and SU2 will only be available to be selected if you have set up and defined a simulation problem that they can solve (currently only available for problems with a single "Navier-Stokes" or "Compressible Euler" physics mode). If you have set up a non-supported problem the corresponding solver GUI buttons will be disabled.

thanks for this advise.

1. I think the 'System Info' from Help menu is in order as far as openFOAM is concerned. Here is the output: System_info_result.PNG

2. The Turbulent flow over backwards... tutorial model runs correctly and prints 'model validation passed', which means that openFOAM does work correctly

3. I defined the problem with single Navier-Stokes physics mode only. I found out that since I selected 'second order discretization', both openFOAM and SU2 got disabled. When I select 'first order discretization', both got activated. openFOAM works perfectly on my problem too. But, I get an error message for all the three solver options (laminar, Spalart-Allmaras and K-Omega (SST)) of SU2. Here is the error screenshot: SU2_error_in_FEATool.PNG.

I doubt whether my SU2 is properly installed, as the 'System Info..' result says that the version of SU2 is 'unknown'.

Please suggest a solution.

I just realized that this error messages of SU2 have something to do with the pressure inlet boundary condition settings. Please link this discussion to my other post at:
http://forum.featool.com/Setting-a-inlet-pressure-boundary-condition-tp299p320.html.

rvrmohan wrote

I defined the problem with single Navier-Stokes physics mode only. I found out that since I selected 'second order discretization', both openFOAM and SU2 got disabled. When I select 'first order discretization', both got activated. openFOAM works perfectly on my problem too.

Yes, this is expected. Unlike the built-in and FEniCS finite element (FEA) solvers, SU2 and OpenFOAM use a finite volume method discretization for which "higher order elements" does not exist.

rvrmohan wrote

But, I get an error message for all the three solver options (laminar, Spalart-Allmaras and K-Omega (SST)) of SU2.

Not all turbulence models are implemented and defined in all solvers.

rvrmohan wrote

I doubt whether my SU2 is properly installed, as the 'System Info..' result says that the version of SU2 is 'unknown'.

This is indeed strange. Can you verify that SU2 works for a basic lamiar flow problem by first running the "Laminar Channel Flow" tutorial model from the "Model Examples and Tutorials..." > "Fluid Dynamics" in the "File" menu. And after it has finished switch back to "Solve" mode and select the "SU2" CFD solver to solve the model.