Introduction to COMSOL Software

Finite Element Analysis Lab 1

Paul Barkauski
01/21/2016
Purdue University Calumet
College of Engineering, Mathematics and Science
Department of Mechanical Engineering
Finite Element Analysis Lab ME 404

Objective
The main objective of the lab was to become familiar with the different types of analysis
available in the computer program COMSOL. The applications mainly focus on the thermal and
physical properties such as stress and temperature when acting on an imported object. It is
important to follow a good tutorial to aid in understanding the program.

Procedure
In the first part of the lab a wrench was analyzed. The wrench is premade and will be
opened through the COMSOL application. Then the type of material needs to be specified. The
global parameter that needs to be used is force. A 150N force was applied in the negative z
direction. After that the constraints need to be fixed. A fixed constraint was used on the bolt and
boundary constraint is placed on the top of the wrench. Then is important to parameterize the
mesh. The finer the mesh the longer the simulation will take. Next the simulation was ran using
the study one tab. The results of the stress analysis were then automatically put in the stress tab
of the results. An extra plot group is created to do a factor of safety test. The factor of safety that
was wanted was 3. 200 MPa was loaded on the wrench. Another result that needs to be generated
is the deformation of the stressed wrench. Lastly, a user defined mesh was created. The
simulation was rerun, giving a more accurate result of the data on the stressed wrench.
The second part analyzed in COMSOL is the busbar. This part is obtained from the
premade COMSOL library. Parameters were set up in the parameters tab of the model menu.
Next material is chosen and added to the curved bracket and the electrical nodes. Then the
physics of the problem need to be introduced, heat transfer and electrical circuits are used. The
boundary conditions were set up and a mesh was created then the study was run. This allows the
user to see the temperature of the busbar due the running circuits. Then for advanced topics,
deformation was analyzed using solid mechanic physics features of COMSOL. The tutorial
explains how to cool the busbar using air, an air box was introduced and the material air is put
inside. A mesh is created and the simulation was run. Lastly, the simulation is ran to analyze the
temperature when the busbar is half as wide.

Results

Stress on a Wrench

Temperature of a Busbar
2

Discussion
In these lab examples, both a wrench and a busbar were analyzed. The analysis of these
two parts could be done by hand although the amount of time needed to fully investigate the two
parts would be extensive. The program COMSOL provides a way to analyze the two situations
quickly and with ease. In the wrench problem it could be seen that the stress put on the neck of
the wrench was high. It is important to allow for a factor of safety in tools, thus to not injure the
user when in heavy use. The procedure suggested the factor of safety to be three. When it was
analyzed the wrench would not be able to achieve such a factor of safety. Also the deformation
of the wrench could be seen under load. The busbar tutorial was very interesting showing the
vast capabilities of COMSOL. It not only analyzed deformation, but also the temperature of the
object due to an electrical current flowing through it. Although the last tutorials were hard to
fully understand as a beginner they very thorough.

Conclusion
Engineering is everywhere, everything at some point had to be engineered. As an
engineer it is extremely important to ensure the functionality and safety of a product design.
Without programs such as COMSOL ensuring functionality as well as safety is a much harder
task. This is mainly due to the complex geometry that is used in the world today. COMSOL has a
vast amount of applications and the example tutorials shows just how diverse it can be. With the
ability to do stress analysis on a wrench all the way to finding the temperature of a busbar when
under electrical load, gives COMSOL a great flexibly. Being able to analyze all different types of
problems using the software is very important to all types of engineers. Learning the software
seems like an essential skill for all engineers to learn.
Throughout the tutorials, I learned more than I could fully comprehend at once. I went
into the lab knowing nothing whatsoever about finite element analysis programs. After the
tutorials, I feel like I have the confidence to analyze a design if I asked to. My favorite part of the
tutorials was seeing just how much the program could handle. I was also very impressed with the
wrench tutorial, the deformation aspect was very interesting to see. The second tutorial about the
busbar was more confusing to me. With more practice this could be less confusing. I feel like a
lot of information was given though the tutorials and it will take some time to fully understand
all the steps needed to analyze objects in COMSOL. The main issues I experienced were with the
air cooling section of the busbar advanced tutorial. I experienced an error that I could not figure
out due to the error code not specifying where the issue occurred. After I looked through all the
steps again, I could not locate the error. After having to reattempt the tutorial, I was able to get
the program to run. Overall these tutorials were extremely helpful, but the advanced topics were
hard to fully understand. At the end, I felt as if I was copying the steps instead of following what
each of them were trying to teach. This is mainly due to the complexity of the tutorial. Overall
the lab was extremely helpful in the process of learning COMSOL.

Appendix A
Wrench Tutorial

Appendix B
Busbar Tutorial