HPC OpenFOAM

Follow a progressive loading workflow.

Start

1. Read references/case-setup.md before creating or editing any OpenFOAM case.
2. Read references/solver-selection.md when selecting a solver family or pressure convention.
3. Read references/boundary-condition-playbook.md when mapping physical boundaries to field files.
4. Read references/turbulence-bc-recipes.md when selecting turbulence models, wall treatment, or near-wall fields.
5. Read references/turbulence-and-numerics.md when choosing schemes, algorithm controls, turbulence models, or decomposition.
6. Read references/case-recipes.md when assembling a canonical internal-flow, external-aero, or free-surface case.
7. Read references/function-object-recipes.md when instrumenting a case with forces, probes, or solver diagnostics.
8. Read references/validation-parallel-and-observability.md when validating, instrumenting, or post-processing a case.
9. Read references/cluster-execution-playbook.md when staging an OpenFOAM case for scheduler-backed cluster execution.
10. Read references/error-recovery.md when a log contains crashes, divergence, or bounded-field warnings.

Work sequence

1. Classify the case first: steady or transient, incompressible or compressible, single-phase or multiphase, laminar or turbulent.
2. Generate the minimum consistent file set across 0/, constant/, and system/. Do not edit one layer in isolation if it changes the required fields elsewhere.
3. Match solver family and fields:
• simpleFoam: steady incompressible RANS; expect U, p, and turbulence fields if RAS.
• pimpleFoam: transient incompressible; review timestep control and outer correctors.
• interFoam: multiphase; control both maxCo and maxAlphaCo.
4. Validate mesh and numerics before a long run:
• run blockMesh or the mesh generator
• run checkMesh
• refuse to keep orthogonal-only schemes on poor-quality meshes
5. Keep parallel settings aligned:
• make numberOfSubdomains match the intended MPI rank count
• prefer scotch for complex geometries unless the user requests a manual layout

Guardrails

• Do not invent dictionary keys, patch types, or solver names.
• Do not use turbulence fields that do not match the chosen model family.
• Do not keep aggressive second-order convection schemes during first-pass stabilization on a fragile case.
• Do not treat checkMesh warnings as optional if the log is already diverging.

Additional References

Load these on demand:

• references/mesh-and-blockmeshdict-manual.md for mesh generation, vertex ordering, and mesh-quality workflow
• references/heat-transfer-and-compressible-cases.md for thermophysical, buoyant, and compressible setups
• references/fvsolution-and-residual-control.md for algorithm loops, solver blocks, and case termination logic
• references/field-and-dictionary-matrix.md for solver-to-field and file-to-parameter matrices
• references/cluster-execution-playbook.md for decomposition, solver launch, reconstruction, and restart sequencing on clusters

Reusable Templates

Use assets/templates/ when a concrete case skeleton is needed, especially:

• simplefoam-minimal/ for a minimal steady incompressible case
• interfoam-minimal/ for a minimal two-phase transient case
• openfoam-parallel-slurm.sh for a minimal scheduled parallel run scaffold

Outputs

Produce a short case summary that states:

• solver and physics family
• required fields and dictionaries touched
• validation commands run or still needed
• stability risks and the next recovery step if the case is failing