Accurate modeling of heat transfer and fluid behavior at the system level has become a critical factor in modern engineering design. In industries such as space, aerospace, electronics, and renewable energy, reliable thermo-fluid simulations are no longer optional — they are essential for achieving performance, safety, and efficiency targets.
Thermal Desktop software enables fast, integrated system-level modeling of transient thermal and fluid processes, bridging the gap between early-stage design and detailed component analysis. With the release of Thermal Desktop 2025 R2, engineers can now simulate complete thermal-fluid networks with greater efficiency, accuracy, and flexibility than ever before.
Thermal Desktop is a comprehensive simulation environment that combines radiation, conduction, and fluid modeling within a single platform. This unified approach allows engineers to evaluate entire thermal systems holistically, from concept development to detailed engineering validation, while significantly reducing modeling time and complexity.
One of the most significant enhancements in the 2025 R2 release is the ability to model fluid flow through solid structures without the need to mesh pipe geometries.
This capability is particularly beneficial for applications such as:
Compact cooling channels
Integrated heat exchanger designs
Structures with complex internal flow paths
By eliminating detailed pipe meshing, engineers can streamline workflows, reduce computational costs, and accelerate simulation setup.
Thermal Desktop 2025 R2 introduces second-order (quadratic) thermal elements, enabling more accurate temperature distributions across models. These elements are especially valuable for:
Coarse mesh models
Regions with steep temperature gradients
As a result, engineers can achieve higher solution fidelity without increasing mesh density.
Thermal Desktop is now fully integrated with optiSLang software, allowing seamless inclusion in optimization workflows. The Thermal Desktop node is fully exposed within optiSLang, enabling:
Multidisciplinary design optimization
Parametric studies
System-level performance improvement
In addition, new solver output parameters (referred to as symbols in Thermal Desktop) provide greater flexibility for optimization and automation tasks.
Introduced as a preview feature, TD Designer represents the next generation of geometry and meshing tools for Thermal Desktop. Built on the Ansys Discovery platform, TD Designer offers:
Enhanced geometry modeling capabilities
Support for thermal data tagging
Seamless two-way integration with Thermal Desktop
This new environment is designed to improve usability and modeling efficiency while maintaining robust simulation accuracy.
For new users, Thermal Desktop 2025 R2 lowers the barrier to entry through intuitive workflows, AI-assisted guidance, and prebuilt training resources that accelerate learning and adoption.
For experienced users, performance improvements, new physics capabilities, and advanced optimization integration unlock simulations that were previously impractical or impossible at the system level.
Across industries ranging from aerospace and energy to electronics and semiconductors, Ansys Fluids solutions help engineers predict real-world performance with confidence. As a key component of this ecosystem, Thermal Desktop 2025 R2 sets a new standard for system-level thermo-fluid simulation.