Digital methods of coupled fluid/structure calculation

Phenomena linked to fluid/structure mechanical coupling occur, to varying degrees of importance, in any structure in contact with a fluid. This type of multiphysical coupling is encountered in many industrial situations, and the influence it can have on the dynamic behavior of mechanical systems is often significant. Taking into account the effects of fluid/structure coupling therefore becomes a key issue in structural design, particularly in view of the safety requirements associated with their design. The ongoing development of numerical computation techniques and the ever-increasing computing capacity of machines make it possible to implement complex numerical simulations, involving a wide range of couplings. The aim of this article is to provide an introduction to the general numerical methods available to engineers for simulating fluid/structure coupling problems. The variety of physical situations and problems posed by fluid/structure coupling is such that it is difficult to establish a general classification of numerical methods. In this presentation, however, a distinction is made between two broad classes of coupled problems, depending on whether the fluid is stagnant or flowing. The case of stagnant fluid is dealt with in [BM 5 200] ("Numerical methods for coupled fluid/structure calculations – Case of stagnant fluid: introduction"); the present paper focuses on the case of flowing fluid, putting coupled calculation techniques in the context of their industrial use. The references given in this article can be found in the "To find out more" section of the [BM 5 200] file.