code_saturne

code_saturne

code_saturne, developed by EDF's R&D department, is an open-source fluid mechanics simulation software program.

About code_saturne:

code_saturne is a free and open-source computational fluid dynamics (CFD) solver developed by the research and development division of Électricité de France (EDF).

Released under the GNU General Public License (GPL) since 2007, it is built on a robust, co-located finite volume method and is designed for the simulation of complex industrial and research-scale flow problems.

High-Performance Open-Source CFD Software

code_saturne is designed for massively parallel simulations on modern HPC systems. It relies on distributed-memory parallelism (MPI), with optional shared-memory support (OpenMP), ensuring scalability from engineering workstations to large supercomputers.

Its domain-decomposition strategy, based on advanced mesh partitioning (ParMETIS, PT-SCOTCH) and ghost-cell communication, provides efficient and robust parallel performance.

code_saturne is routinely used for:

  • 10–50 million cell industrial simulations
  • Large-scale production cases exceeding 200 million cells
  • Runs above 1 billion cells on thousands of MPI ranks

Recognized as part of the European UEABS benchmark suite, code_saturne has demonstrated strong scalability on major HPC infrastructures.

GPU acceleration support is currently under active development, aiming to extend performance to heterogeneous computing architectures.

Advanced Flow Physics and Modeling Capabilities

Designed for demanding industrial applications as well as academic research, code_saturne enables the simulation of complex flows in 2D, 2D axisymmetric, and 3D configurations. code_saturne solves the Navier–Stokes equations with scalar transport for flows that are:

  • Steady or unsteady
  • Laminar or turbulent
  • Incompressible or weakly compressible
  • Isothermal or thermally coupled

Its flexible architecture allows users to address a wide range of multiphysics problems within a unified framework.

Turbulence Modeling

A comprehensive range of turbulence models is available, including:

  • RANS (Reynolds-Averaged Navier–Stokes) models
  • LES (Large Eddy Simulation) models This versatility makes code_saturne suitable for both industrial design studies and high-fidelity research simulations.

Dedicated Multiphysics Modules

code_saturne includes specialized modules designed for advanced industrial applications:

  • Combustion: Gas, pulverized coal, heavy fuel oil, and biomass combustion modeling.
  • Radiative Heat Transfer: Semi-transparent radiative transfer modeling for high-temperature systems.
  • Atmospheric Flows: Dry and humid air modeling, including atmospheric microphysics and microchemistry, suitable for environmental and urban CFD studies.
  • Joule Effect and Electric Arcs: Modeling of three-phase alternating current, electromagnetic forces, and unsteady arc dynamics for electrical and aerospace applications.
  • Rotor/Stator Interaction: Dedicated tools for hydraulic machinery and rotating equipment simulations.
  • Weakly Compressible Flows: Efficient treatment of low-Mach-number flow regimes.
  • Magnetohydrodynamics: Coupled electromagnetic and fluid flow simulations.
  • Particle Tracking: Lagrangian modeling of polydispersed particles including evaporation, heat transfer, deposition, and impact phenomena.

Its numerical framework supports fully unstructured meshes and is optimized for large-scale parallel computing, making it suitable for both engineering design studies and high-fidelity scientific simulations.

With its open architecture and extensible multiphysics capabilities, code_saturne provides a transparent, scalable, and industrial-grade CFD platform for energy, environmental, aerospace, and manufacturing applications.

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