Code_Aster, free CAE software
Code_Aster
– FEM type: Linear & non-linear static/dynamic, thermal & fluid analysis
– Licence Type: GPL
– Developer: Electricité de France (EDF)
– Operating system: Linux, Solaris and IRIX 64 bits
– Download: Code_Aster
Code_Aster is a software for finite element analysis and numerical simulation in structural mechanics and multiphysics. It was developed by the French company Électricité de France (EDF), for the study and maintenance of electrical plants and networks. It was released under the GNU General Public Licence in October 2001. Most of the available documentation is in French.
Code_Aster is the solver or processing engine, so it does not include pre-processing and post-processing, i.e. object meshing and presentation of study solutions.
Its application covers multiple disciplines: mainly three-dimensional mechanical and thermal analysis, hydrodynamics, metallurgy, hydration, drying... whether under steady-state or transient conditions, and in both linear and non-linear processes. It also has specific tools for fatigue, deformation, fracture, contact, geotechnics, porous materials, etc. Furthermore, the combination of these features with specific pre-processing and post-processing programmes, such as SALOME-MECA, provide you with comprehensive functionality for conducting multidisciplinary studies.
Code_Aster contains 1,500,000 lines of source code, mostly in Fortran and Python, and is constantly being developed, updated, and improved with new models. The quality standards required by the nuclear industry have resulted in software that achieves the highest levels of functionality and accuracy in numerical results, which have been validated through independent comparisons with analytical or experimental results, as well as the use of benchmarks against other codes. The software is provided with nearly 2,000 tests, which are dedicated to elementary qualification and are useful as examples. Code_Aster documentation includes more than 14,000 pages and covers user manuals, theory manuals that include a compilation of EDF's technical knowledge in mechanics, example problems and verification manuals. The vast majority of the documentation is still only available in French.