CFD With OpenFOAM: Lid-Driven Cavity Flow Simulation

Master one of the most fundamental CFD benchmark problems – the Lid-Driven Cavity Flow – using OpenFOAM!

This course takes you step by step through the complete workflow of setting up, running, and analyzing the lid-driven cavity flow simulation in OpenFOAM. With its simple geometry but rich flow physics, the cavity problem is a perfect starting point to understand how CFD solvers handle boundary conditions, vortex formation, and Reynolds number effects.

You will begin by learning the physics behind the problem and how to set up the case files in OpenFOAM, including geometry, mesh, and boundary conditions. Then, you’ll run simulations at different Reynolds numbers, explore convergence and solver behavior, and finally post-process results using ParaView to extract velocity profiles and visualize vortices.

By the end of this course, you will have both theoretical understanding and practical CFD skills to confidently simulate canonical problems in OpenFOAM and extend your learning to more complex fluid flow cases.

What you’ll learn:

1: Understand the physics of lid-driven cavity flow and why it’s a CFD benchmark

2: Create geometry and mesh for the cavity using blockMesh

3: Define appropriate boundary conditions for velocity and pressure

4: Run simulations using icoFoam solver for laminar flow

5: Post-process simulation results in ParaView (contours, streamlines, animations)

6: Extract velocity profiles and compare results at different Reynolds numbers