Thermal analysis is an engineering simulation that examines how a structure or system behaves under the effects of temperature, analyzing temperature distribution, heat transfer, and mechanical effects (such as expansion and stress) caused by these changes.
It calculates how heat propagates through conduction, convection, and radiation.
Usage Areas by Industry:
| Industry | Application Area |
|---|---|
| Automotive | Engine cooling systems, exhaust pipes, brake system heating analysis |
| Aerospace | Rocket engines, heat shields, thermal stress on aircraft wings |
| Electronics | Chip, PCB, battery cooling, thermal management of electronic boards |
| Energy | Heat transfer in turbines, nuclear reactors, solar panel performance |
| Construction | Building insulation, fire resistance analysis |
| Defense Industry | Thermal deformation in weapon systems, thermal loads on missile shields |
| Medical | Thermal management of laser devices, MRI machines, implants |
| Manufacturing | Molding machines, heat treatment furnaces, welding processes |
Understand temperature distribution: Identify areas of overheating.
Predict material behavior: Expansion, contraction, risk of cracking.
Design cooling systems: Optimize fan placement, radiator design.
Prevent fatigue and damage: Minimize failures due to thermal cycles.
Increase energy efficiency: Reduce heat losses.
Ensure safety: Minimize risks of fire and thermal damage.
You can perform thermal analysis in Ansys using different modules:
| Ansys Module | Description |
|---|---|
| Ansys Mechanical | Performs conduction, convection, and radiation thermal analysis in structural models. Supports static and transient analyses. |
| Ansys Fluent | Simulates temperature distribution and heat transfer in fluids (CFD + thermal analysis). Example: air-water interaction in a heat exchanger. |
| Ansys CFX | Like Fluent, used especially for turbomachinery heat transfer simulations. |
| Ansys Icepak | Specialized for electronics cooling systems. Used for PCBs, chips, server enclosures. |
| Ansys Discovery | For quick and interactive thermal simulations during early design stages. |
| Ansys Thermal Desktop (Requires specific license) | Used for detailed thermal modeling of large systems like satellites. |
| Ansys Workbench Platform | Integrates all modules, allowing coupled thermal-structural simulations. |
Steady-State Thermal Analysis: Temperature distribution does not change over time.
Transient Thermal Analysis: Temperature changes over time.
Coupled Thermal-Structural Analysis: Calculates mechanical effects caused by thermal loads.
Thermal Contact Analysis: Models heat transfer between contacting surfaces.
Radiation Modeling: Models heat transfer by radiation between surfaces.
Automotive: Temperature and expansion stress analysis in exhaust manifolds.
Aerospace: Thermal load analysis on spacecraft during atmospheric re-entry.
Electronics: Designing fan cooling systems to prevent CPU overheating.
Construction: Testing column strength under fire scenarios.
🔹 Thermal analysis is essential in any sector where temperature changes occur.
🔹 In Ansys, it can be performed with Mechanical, Fluent, Icepak, and other modules.
🔹 It can work standalone or coupled with structural or fluid analyses.
🔹 If done correctly, it prevents costly damages and improves safety.