I am just about to enter my final year at university where i am hoping to do my final year project on compressor cascade testing. I have never used cfd before but am very willing to learn. I think my university has 'phonic', with this in mind is there a shareware version of this i can use at home, also are there any books anyone can recommend to teach me from the very start? thank you for your time. dean

(1). First of all, running a code is not doing CFD. So, get the thinking right is very important. (2). Compressor cascade testing is thought to be 2-D, but the flow is still 3-D. It becomes quite involved to do 3-D CFD even for the simple passage flow through a cascade. (3). In stead of doing 3-D calculation, you might want to do journal search in ASME/Journal of Turbomachinery and try to read "results of CFD simulation" already published. (4). You may want to look at the potential flow solutions, which might be easier to do consistent with your background. (5). If you still are interested in running a cfd code, then you can find a tutorial sample and follow it through. It is not difficult at all. To run a code, you need the step-by-step instruction, you "don't need any help" at all.

The best source for a newbie like yourself is John Anderson's CFD book. However you might want to consult with a Professor who can give you some good tips. Make sure to get the experimental experience. Not a lot of undergraduates get good experimental experience so you're probably lucky.