<     > 

Defining the Fluid Particle Type

Once you have created the fluid simulation, you can set up the particle type. The main properties for fluid are on the Fluid page in the Particle Type’s property editor. However, you can also set other properties you wish to assign the particle type (such as color, size, and mass) on the General, Color, and Envir. pages. See Defining a Particle Type for more information.

To set up the fluid particle type

1. From the Emission page’s Par Type controls, select the particle type whose particles you wish to use in the fluid simulation and click the Edit button. You can also create a new particle type by clicking the New button.

2. Click the Particle Type tab to modify the particle type’s parameters. Then click the Fluid tab to display controls for setting the particle type’s fluid attributes, as follows:

Viscosity

Viscosity sets the level of resistance to flow in a fluid. Lower values, such as 0.07, simulate the flow of a watery liquid. For a more syrupy fluid, increase this value to 1 (maximum).

Heavier fluids also depend on gravity to define their behavior. By decreasing the gravity, you slow down the fluid dynamic (the result is similar to increasing the Viscosity), and vice-versa.

The particle type’s Mass also makes a difference in the viscosity of the fluid—make sure to set this to an appropriate level for the right effect. A larger Mass value makes for more viscose results. Click the General tab to set this—see Setting the Particle’s Mass and Size.

Surface Tension

Surface Tension sets the degree of liquid tension on the particles’ surface. Due to surface tension, particles that simulate liquid in the shape of a cube, for example, tend to transform into a spherical shape as they fall to the ground. A low level of surface tension makes the particles hold their original cube shape longer.

Coriolis Force

Coriolis sets the angular speed of a Coriolis force, which is the rotational motion of fluid, such as that of water emptying down a drain. The higher the value, the stronger the Coriolis force acts on the liquid simulation.

Compressibility

Compressibility sets the degree to which the simulated fluid can be compressed. Setting a low value reduces the amount of bounce behavior in the fluid.

SOFTIMAGE|XSI v.6.01     <     >