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OpenFOAM VS SimulationX

Compare OpenFOAM VS SimulationX and see what are their differences

OpenFOAM logo OpenFOAM

OpenFOAM® - Official home of The Open Source Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) Toolbox.

SimulationX logo SimulationX

SimulationX is a system simulation solution provided by ESI ITI. The company has been operating for over 25 years. The SimulationX software was introduced in 2015. Read more about SimulationX.
  • OpenFOAM Landing page
    Landing page //
    2021-08-02
  • SimulationX Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-06-15

OpenFOAM features and specs

  • Open Source
    OpenFOAM is free to use and its source code is openly available under the GPL license, allowing for extensive customization and transparency in computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations.
  • Extensibility
    Users can extend and modify the functionality of OpenFOAM to suit specific needs or integrate new algorithms, making it highly adaptable to various projects and research requirements.
  • Community and Support
    A robust community of users and developers contributes to forums, documentation, and collaboration, providing substantial peer support and shared knowledge.
  • Versatility
    OpenFOAM supports a wide range of physical models and simulation types, from simple incompressible flow to complex multiphase flows and chemical reactions, making it suitable for diverse applications.
  • Parallel Computing
    Optimized for parallel processing, OpenFOAM can run efficiently on high-performance computing systems, thereby handling large-scale simulations effectively.

Possible disadvantages of OpenFOAM

  • Steep Learning Curve
    OpenFOAM requires a significant investment of time to learn and master, as it involves understanding complex physics, programming concepts, and software-specific syntaxes.
  • Limited GUI
    Unlike some commercial CFD software, OpenFOAM lacks a sophisticated graphical user interface (GUI), necessitating users to rely on command-line input and scripting for setup and execution of simulations.
  • Documentation Quality
    Although community-driven, the documentation can sometimes be incomplete or outdated, making it challenging for new users to find reliable and up-to-date instructions and tutorials.
  • Performance Variation
    Performance and stability can vary depending on the specific simulation setup and hardware used, which may require users to conduct extensive testing and optimization.
  • Dependency Management
    Installing and maintaining OpenFOAM and its dependencies can be complex, often requiring specific versions of libraries and compilers to ensure compatibility and optimal performance.

SimulationX features and specs

  • Comprehensive Simulation Capabilities
    SimulationX offers a wide range of simulation capabilities, covering multiple physical domains such as mechanics, electronics, hydraulics, thermodynamics, and more. This makes it suitable for complex systems modeling.
  • User-Friendly Interface
    The software provides an intuitive and user-friendly interface that allows users to easily create, simulate, and analyze models without extensive training.
  • Support for Modelica
    SimulationX supports the Modelica language, enabling users to create custom models and components with a well-established and versatile modeling language.
  • Extensive Component Libraries
    The software includes a rich set of pre-built component libraries, allowing users to quickly and efficiently build models using existing components that represent real-world systems.
  • Integration and Co-Simulation
    SimulationX supports integration with other tools and systems through co-simulation and various import/export options, facilitating its use in multi-tool workflows and large-scale projects.

Possible disadvantages of SimulationX

  • Cost
    The pricing of SimulationX can be a barrier for small businesses or individual users as it may be more expensive compared to other simulation software options.
  • Complexity for Beginners
    While SimulationX is powerful, its extensive features and capabilities may be overwhelming for beginners or users without prior simulation experience.
  • Resource Intensive
    Running complex simulations on SimulationX may require significant computational resources, which could be a limitation for users with less powerful hardware.
  • Limited Online Community
    Compared to some other simulation tools, SimulationX has a smaller online community, which might limit the amount of readily available user-generated resources, forums, and shared knowledge.

OpenFOAM videos

What is OpenFoam? | Skill-Lync

More videos:

  • Tutorial - How to run your first simulation in OpenFOAM® - Part 1 - tutorial
  • Tutorial - CFD tutorial for beginners | What is OpenFOAM? | SKILL-LYNC

SimulationX videos

SimulationX General Introduction

More videos:

  • Review - SimulationX Hybrid Powertrains library

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to OpenFOAM and SimulationX)
Technical Computing
71 71%
29% 29
Numerical Computation
76 76%
24% 24
Simulation Software
60 60%
40% 40
CFD
100 100%
0% 0

User comments

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Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, OpenFOAM seems to be more popular. It has been mentiond 19 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

OpenFOAM mentions (19)

  • OpenFOAM on Debian 12
    In openfoam.org, there is not compiled binaries for Debian (any version). So one should install it using docker (I prefer to do not use it) or by compiling the code from the source. I consider compiling from source, but I do prefer binaries. Source: almost 2 years ago
  • Please help me get running OpenFOAM
    Hello I am a mechanical engineering student in my last year. So I made the wisest decision to learn OpenFOAM. But there is the catch. I have no idea how to use Linux or how to emulate Linux on Windows 10. I found a lot of videos on Youtube how to download an start OpenFOAM but every one of them was using different methods each time so I got confused. Can anyone please help or direct me? Thank you for your answers... Source: about 2 years ago
  • Step by Step (Written not Video) Tutorial for FEM with Air
    As far as air flow simulation, I got slightly farther with Open Foam than I did in FreeCAD directly. Still, I got in way over my skill level and stopped before getting anything useful. Source: about 2 years ago
  • Open source FEA tools instead of ANSYS Workbench and APDL
    There are two versions of openfoam, one closed source (which is the one I linked to in my original comment, my apologies about that) and the open source version. But what you're describing makes it sound like fenics might be your best option. Source: over 2 years ago
  • command not found and looping
    I suggest you install per the instructions at openfoam.com or openfoam.org instead of using apt. Source: over 2 years ago
View more

SimulationX mentions (0)

We have not tracked any mentions of SimulationX yet. Tracking of SimulationX recommendations started around Mar 2021.

What are some alternatives?

When comparing OpenFOAM and SimulationX, you can also consider the following products

ANSYS Fluent - ANSYS engineering simulation and 3D design software delivers product modeling solutions with unmatched scalability and a comprehensive multiphysics foundation.

StochSD - StochSD (Stochastic System Dynamics) is a Continuous System Simulation extension that is built with the capabilities to help you simulate continuous flows between compartments and, most importantly, also has the power to manage discrete transitions …

MATLAB - A high-level language and interactive environment for numerical computation, visualization, and programming

Wolfram Mathematica - Mathematica has characterized the cutting edge in specialized processing—and gave the chief calculation environment to a large number of pioneers, instructors, understudies, and others around the globe.

EMSO simulator - EMSO simulator is an equation-oriented process simulator with a graphical interface for modeling...

COMSOL Multiphysics - COMSOL is the developer of COMSOL Multiphysics software, an interactive environment for modeling and simulating scientific and engineering problems.