How to Navigate around the Knowledge Base

How to access content within the Knowledge Base

The ERCOFTAC Qnet Knowledge Base (KB) Wiki is the World's foremost repository of structured knowledge and advice designed to underpin quality and trust in the industrial application of CFD. It an interactive site aimed to guide and advice users through trusted test cases whilst encouraging and welcoming all comments and contributions.

The knowledge base is partitioned into Gold and Silver Domains. The Gold Domain is the repository for content that has been carefully checked and therefore satisfies high quality standards, available to ERCOFTAC members only. The Silver Domain is the repository for less mature content which is still under discussion and open for improvement by the public. Parts of the Silver Domain are marked as Silver . This is reserved for content which has matured to levels of quality and significance approaching Gold standard, and made public to serve as examples of the high quality found in the Gold domain. In some cases it will act to invite the addition of new CFD results obtained with alternative models.

Both Gold and Silver Domains are application centred, facilitating the identification of appropriate knowledge and advice for specific industrial purposes. They are organised around:

Application Areas

Application Areas are categories of articles of specific interest to particular sector disciplines. There are currently 6 Application Areas in the KB: External Aerodynamics, Combustion, Chemical & Process, Thermal Hydraulics & Nuclear Safety, Civil Construction & HVAC, Environmental Flows and Turbomachinary Internal Flows.

Each Application Area is comprised of Application Challenges (AC) which are realistic industrial test cases used to judge the competency and limitations of CFD for a given Application Area.

The content of each Application Challenge (AC) test case within the Knowledge Base consists of an:

• Abstract - Summary of content
• Description - Introduction to the test case and physical phenomena
• Test Data - Description of test case experiments and provision of data for the AC
• CFD Simulation - Description of CFD Simulations and provision of results for the AC
• Evaluation - Comparison of CFD results and test case experiments evaluation.
• Quality Review
• Best Practice Advice

Underlying Flow Regimes

These are generic, well studied test cases capturing important elements of the key flow physics encountered across the Application Areas. There are currently 4 Underlying Flow Regimes in the KB: Free Flows, Flows around Bodies, Semi-confined Flows and Confined Flows.

The content of each Underlying Flow Regimes (UFR) test case within the Knowledge Base consists of an:

• Abstract - Summary of content
• Description - Introduction to the test case and physical phenomena, practical importance and parameters of interest for the UFR
• Test Case - Description of test case experiments
• Evaluation - Comparison of CFD calculations with test case experiments
• Quality Review
• Best Practice Advice

The contents of each AC and UFR test case article are presented in the top navigational strip (see picture below). Simply click on each tab heading to view and move between the various documents. Note that the heading turns "yellow" once selected, illustrated in this example by the "Evaluation" tab heading.

You will also find the exact same navigational strip at the bottom of each AC and UFR test case article to prevent having to keep scrolling up the page to go to the next document in the particular AC or UFR.

All sections of the Knowledge Base can be accessed by clicking on the left hand navigational drop down menu (see picture below).

By pointing the cursor at the links, a roll out drop down menu will appear where there is further pages relating to the chosen topic, illustrated by hovering on "About" . If a drop down menu does not appear, simply click on the link and you will go directly to that page.

Users are free to view any of the Silver content at their own leisure, however, to comment on, exchange views and opinions in the User Feedback Page you must register first by clicking on "Create an account" at the top of any page. By doing this you automatically agree to the terms and conditions given in the Terms and Conditions Page.

Users will not be able to directly edit or change a Silver document, but they are highly encouraged to provide new content, either by suggesting modifications/extensions to existing content or indeed by adding new contributions. In order to do this the user must gain access to the Library by emailing the ERCOFTAC Editorial Board with a request (ERCOFTAC Editorial Board).

The Help folder contains useful information when using the Knowledge Base. There is an extensive Glossary describing all acronyms based in the Knowledge Base and Links section containing relevant and insightful CFD websites. For further assistance please make use of our FAQ and Contact Us page where we will be more than happy to answer any questions or queries you may have and help with any problems.