NekMesh: An open-source high-order mesh generation framework

M. D. Green, K. S. Kirilov, M. Turner, J. Marcon, J. Eichstädt, E. Laughton, C. D. Cantwell, S. J. Sherwin, J. Peiró, D. Moxey

Comput. Phys. Commun., pp. 109089 (2024)

@article{green-2024,
  title = {NekMesh: An open-source high-order mesh generation framework},
  author = {Green, M. D. and Kirilov, K. S. and Turner, M. and Marcon, J. and Eichst\"adt, J. and Laughton, E. and Cantwell, C. D. and Sherwin, S. J. and Peir\'o, J. and Moxey, D.},
  journal = cpc,
  year = {2024},
  number = {298},
  pages = {109089},
  doi = {10.1016/j.cpc.2024.109089},
  url = {https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0010465524000122},
  abstract = {High-order spectral element simulations are now becoming increasingly popular within the computational modelling community, as they offer the potential to deliver increased accuracy at reduced cost compared to traditional low-order codes. However, to support accurate, high-fidelity simulations in complex industrial applications, there is a need to generate curvilinear meshes which robustly and accurately conform to geometrical features. This is, at present, a key challenge within the mesh generation community, with only a few open-source tools able to generate curvilinear meshes for complex geometries.  We present NekMesh: an open-source mesh generation package which is designed to enable the generation of valid, high-quality curvilinear meshes of complex, three-dimensional geometries for performing high-order simulations. We outline the software architecture adopted in NekMesh, which uses a pipeline of processing modules to provide a flexible, CAD-independent high-order mesh processing tool, capable of both generating meshes for a wide range of use cases, as well as post-processing linear meshes from a range of input formats for use with high-order simulations. A number of examples in various application areas are presented, with a particular emphasis on challenging aeronautical and fluid dynamics test cases.}
}

High-order simulation needs curvilinear meshes that conform accurately to the geometry, and few open-source tools can produce them for complex three-dimensional shapes. This paper presents NekMesh, which uses a pipeline of processing modules to generate such meshes and to post-process linear meshes arriving in a range of input formats.