Fluid-structure interactions Mathematical modelling and numerical methods

Fluid-Structure Interaction (FSI) is encountered in many situations in different industrial sectors (aerospace, automotive, shipbuilding, civil engineering and nuclear). Knowledge of the load imposed by a fluid on a structure in contact with it is often decisive in designing an installation or product, ensuring optimum performance and analyzing operating risks.

Today's numerical simulation techniques make it possible to model fluid-structure interaction in real-world geometrical configurations, and to represent a large number of its manifestations. Developed over several decades, these computational techniques are available to industrial engineers, both in general-purpose commercial simulation tools and in open-source codes.

This dossier provides an introduction to the mathematical modeling and numerical simulation of fluid-structure interactions, and to a series of articles devoted to this subject in the Techniques de l'Ingénieur documentary database. It is aimed primarily at students of mechanical engineering and, more generally, at scientific computing engineers and plant designers concerned by this issue.

After outlining various industrial situations in which IFS plays an important role, the article briefly discusses the main models for fluid loading and structural response (static, temporal or frequency representation and analysis). The most commonly used calculation strategies, whether based on empirical or analytical models, or on simulations, are then reviewed. The article concludes with a classification of these methods and a presentation of some of their applications – each of which is the subject of a specific article in the Techniques de l'Ingénieur database.

Readers will find these references in the documentation section of this article. An additional bibliography and links to websites provide useful resources for furthering knowledge on the subject.

At the end of the article, you'll find a glossary of important terms, as well as a table of acronyms, notations and symbols used throughout the article.