Materials

This section contains the following topics:

When you create a geometry or import one without a material definition in the CAD model, Discovery automatically assigns structural steel as the default material. Then, if a fluid condition is applied, Discovery applies the default fluid material of water.

Note: You can select your material library and default solid and fluid materials in File menu > Settings > Physics, under Material Defaults. You must restart Discovery or create a new simulation for the new defaults to take effect. Furthermore, you can access additional materials from the Granta MI materials databases under Granta MI Materials (a restart is required).

You can assign different materials to your model by selecting specific bodies and then choosing the material. The Materials dropdown menu in the Simulation tab, or the Assign dropdown menu from the Materials group in the Prepare tab show the materials already contained in the model or recently used materials.

Note: The Materials dropdown menu in the Simulation tab is not available if a Modeling License is used.

You can select Other to search the full list of materials. You can also add materials to your favorites by clicking the star next to each one. Your favorite materials are placed at the top where they are easy to find. To remove a material from your favorites, click the star next to it again.

You can also change the assigned material by selecting the material from the Physics tree and double-clicking it to edit it in the HUD. If you select specific bodies within a material assignment, and then make changes to the selected material, assembled temperature, or edit the material properties, a new material assignment will be automatically created. A single material assignment will be used to reference all bodies with that material and, in the case of solid materials in structural simulations, the same assembled temperature. Any assignments of the same material and assembled temperature will be combined into a single assignment automatically.

You can filter materials based on physics compatibility or the selected library. Note that the Local library is where any edited materials that are saved are stored, so if this is disabled you will not see any user saved materials. If you are accessing additional materials using the Granta Selector or EduPack and exporting them to your local or shared library locations, a separate license is required.

Once you have selected a material, you can modify the properties or Appearance for that material. You can also obtain a detailed description under the Information section of the material options.