code_saturne - Users meeting in Manchester

The recent UK code_saturne users meeting, marked a significant milestone in EDF's commitment to advancing computational fluid dynamics (CFD)/thermal hydraulics research in the UK academic and industrial sectors.

code_saturne is software developed primarily by EDF R&D in France for computational fluid dynamics (CFD) applications. The event, held at the University of Manchester, was jointly organised by EDF UK R&D's Advanced Reactors and Structural Integrity team, the University of Manchester and the Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC). The two-day event attracted 39 participants and included demonstrations of code_saturne’s latest developments and gave an opportunity to interact with users of all levels of experience. 

Fostering innovation and knowledge sharing

The strong attendance demonstrates the impact of EDF's decision to distribute code_saturne as an open-source CFD tool in the UK. By making this industrial-grade software freely available, EDF has enabled British institutions to access sophisticated CFD capabilities that were previously only available within major industrial organisations. This approach has fostered innovation and knowledge transfer between industry and academia.

Facilitating dialogue

UK R&D hosted members of Department MFEE of EDF R&D and the code_saturne development team. This facilitated direct dialogue between the software creators and its growing user base, allowing UK users to influence the future development of the software while making sure it continues to meet both academic research needs and industrial applications.

Successful partnerships

The collaboration demonstrates the successful partnership between industry and academic institutions and reinforces EDF's position as a key contributor to the UK's engineering and scientific community. 

Next steps

The meeting was well received, with EDF R&D France noting the sophisticated level of work with the software across UK institutions. It was agreed this should be an annual UK event to complement the main meeting held in France, so English-speaking users have a dedicated forum for knowledge exchange.