STAR-CCM+ Tutorial | 3D Cylinder Flow | Part 8 – Mesh Optimization | Advanced

In this STAR-CCM+ tutorial, we walk through "3D cylinder flow simulation" step by step. By the end of this video, you will be able to "set up geometry, mesh, and solver to visualize vortex shedding".

🔹 What you’ll learn:
Intro
Geometry setup
Mesh generation
Physics models & boundary conditions
Running the simulation
Post-processing & result visualization

📂 Files & resources:
– STAR-CCM+
– Geometry type: [3D, cylinder]

🎓 About this series
This video is part of my STAR-CCM+ Advanced series on Abecator CFD.
We focus on practical CFD examples so you can follow along and build real simulation skills.

👍 If this tutorial helped you, please:
– Like the video
– Subscribe to *Abecator CFD* for more STAR-CCM+ and CFD tutorials
– Comment what you want to see next (more heat transfer, aerodynamics, meshing, etc.)

#️⃣ Hashtags
#STARCCM #CFD #AbecatorCFD #CFDtutorial #Engineering #Simulation #HeatTransfer #Aerodynamics

Text:
Here’s the clean English narration for Chap 5-8, keeping all the technical details and steps:

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In this stage of our simulation, we want to *improve the mesh quality in the wake region behind the cylinder* so we can capture the vortex shedding more accurately.

We’ll do this in two ways:

1. By adjusting some of the **global mesh parameters**, and
2. By adding a *custom volumetric refinement control* in the wake region.

---

First, one option is to modify the **mesh growth settings**.

For example, we can reduce the **volume growth rate**.
Instead of allowing cells to grow too quickly as we move away from the cylinder, we lower this value so that:

The cells stay *smaller for longer* in the region behind the cylinder,
The mesh around the cylinder and immediately downstream becomes **denser and more refined**,
Which improves the resolution of the vortices forming in the wake.

When we decrease the volume growth rate, you’ll notice that the *cells behind the cylinder become smaller* compared to the previous mesh.

However, even after this change, you might see that **in the core vortex-shedding region**, the mesh is still not fine enough to capture all the details of the flow.

That’s where *custom controls* become very useful.

---

So, let’s define a *refinement block* in the wake region.

I go to the *Parts* node, right-click, and select:

*New → Shape Part*

From the available shapes, I choose a **Block**.

By default, the software fits this block to the size of the largest existing part, so it initially covers the entire domain.

I then *scale and move this block* so that it only covers the **region of interest**, mainly **behind the cylinder**.

You can rotate the view to get a better perspective and position the block more accurately:

The *upstream region* (the inlet side) is not very critical for refinement here,
The *downstream region* where vortex shedding occurs is what really matters.

The exact dimensions of the block don’t have to be perfectly precise.
It’s enough that the block covers:

The area immediately behind the cylinder, and
A reasonable distance downstream where the vortices are developing.

Once I’m satisfied with the size and position, I click **Create**, then **Close**.

This gives me a second block in the tree.
I rename it to something meaningful, for example: **Block_Refinement**.

---

Now we connect this block to a **custom volumetric control**.

I go to **Custom Controls**, right-click, and select:

*New → Volumetric Control*

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