Engineering guide
Analytical screening versus CFD for gas-bearing design
Use this guide to place analytical models and CFD in the same workflow without forcing them to answer the same question.
They answer different questions
Analytical screening is best used to search and rank candidate states quickly across geometry, load, clearance, supply and envelope constraints. CFD is better used when a selected geometry requires higher-fidelity inspection of the local field, pressure distribution or flow details.
Treating one as a replacement for the other usually wastes time. The methods are strongest when they are sequenced.
Why screening comes first
Before detailed CAD and meshing, the design space is often too wide for high-fidelity iteration to be economical. Analytical work can reduce that space and identify whether the concept is likely to be feasible at all.
That early screen is especially valuable when the machine decision depends on support architecture, shaft layout or rotor consequence—not on one final geometry already chosen.
What CFD should verify
Once a candidate state has been selected, CFD can inspect the local pressure and flow structure on the actual geometry. It is well suited for verification questions such as pressure-field shape, local velocity features or comparison across a small number of strong candidates.
It is less efficient as the first tool for broad concept search.
Decision chain, not tool rivalry
A rational workflow is requirement → analytical candidate generation or direct calculation → selected support state → machine consequence → CFD or supplier/test verification as needed.
That is the logic behind AURA’s positioning: resolve the bearing and rotor direction before committing weeks of detailed CAD/CFD iteration.
What the client receives
The practical output of screening is not just a statement of feasibility. It is a defined candidate, its predicted bearing state, the first machine consequence and the declared next proof step.
That package makes later CFD more focused and easier to interpret, because the question to be verified is already defined.
Apply the guide to one real machine question.
Start with loads, speed, envelope, gas supply and the decision you need.