Meshing techniques in Abaqus

This package starts with general capabilities of the Abaqus Mesh Module, which include its ability to generate structured and unstructured meshes, capability to import CAD models directly, and a variety of meshing algorithms. Unstructured meshes are further classified into bottom-up and top-down techniques, where the former is an automated technique that generates mesh from scratch based on user-defined element size and controls. The latter, top-down technique, starts from an existing mesh and optimizes the mesh until it reaches the level of refinement required for the simulation.

The next section explores structured meshing, which is a type of meshing that uses a structured grid consisting of quadrilateral or hexahedral elements. It will be explained how structured meshes are easy to create, and how they can be used for simulations requiring high levels of accuracy, such as those with complex material properties and/or complex boundary conditions. Various tips and strategies for creating structured meshes are also discussed in this section, including avoiding concavities along sides and edges and partitioning models to eliminate angles greater than 150°.

The section on advanced mesh editing tools explains how orphan meshes can be created from a native mesh, and how a closed shell of linear triangles can be filled with “tets”. Moreover, it explores the process of merging unconnected nodes within a part, and how the process of mesh editing can be used to effectively transform a solid mesh to a shell mesh. Additionally, it will be explained how mesh editing tools can be used to subdivide element layers and smoothly refine the mesh, achieving the desired accuracy level required for the simulation.

The final section of this package discusses simulation and provides examples of how to apply different meshing techniques for different applications. The section explains how changing the element shape from Hex to Tet can change an unmeshable geometry to a meshable one. Through this example, the PDF highlights the fact that meshing techniques in Abaqus are flexible and powerful, and that it is essential to understand which techniques are efficient and produce accurate results for each application. In conclusion, it provides a comprehensive description of meshing techniques in Abaqus, how the tools work and the optimal strategies for using them. It explains that different meshing techniques may be more appropriate for different applications, and there are many tips and strategies to use when meshing with Abaqus.