Limitations of Commercial FEA Software
While commercial proprietary finite element analysis (FEA) software like Ansys, MSC Patran & Nastran, Abaqus, Altair remains a staple in many engineering environments, its high costs and restrictive licensing models pose significant barriers for many users, particularly small and medium businesses that hinder its widespread adoption. Leading commercial software packages often come with hefty license price tags that can amount to thousands of USD or even tens of thousand of USD for a one-year lease or maintenance.The reliance on commercial FEA software also raises concerns about long-term sustainability. As companies invest heavily in these tools, they may find themselves locked into expensive contracts or reliant on specific vendors for updates and support. This situation can stifle innovation and limit the ability to adapt to new methodologies or technologies that emerge in the field.
Google Trends web search popularity compared: Open-source CFD FEA (OpenFOAM) vs. commericial CFD FEA systems from Ansys, Dassault Systèmes, Hexagon and Altair (Ansys Fluent, PowerFLOW, Cradle CFD and Altair CFD)
While universities may offer student licenses or discounted academic versions of commercial FEA software packages, these solutions do not fully address the broader challenges faced by users. Academic licenses often have restrictions on usage that prevent students from applying their skills in real-world scenarios or limit the scope of projects they can undertake. Furthermore, these licenses typically expire after a set period, necessitating ongoing costs for continued access to the software once students transition into professional roles. This cycle can create a disconnect between academic training and industry requirements, leaving graduates ill-prepared to handle the sophisticated demands of modern engineering tasks.
In contrast, open-source FEA software often provides robust capabilities without prohibitive license costs and allows users to perform complex simulations while maintaining full control over their projects. The flexibility of open-source solutions also fosters a collaborative environment where users can contribute to and enhance the software's capabilities. As more engineers and researchers recognize these benefits, the shift towards open-source solutions could redefine how FEA is utilized across industries, making advanced simulation accessible to a broader audience.
Open Source FEA Sofware Packages Compared
Here are the most popular open-source FEA software packages, along with their capabilities, developers, and industries they serve:
Elmer
Elmer is a multiphysics solver developed by the Finnish Ministry of Education. It supports various types of analysis, including fluid dynamics, structural mechanics, electromagnetics, and heat transfer. Elmer features its own graphical user interface for model setup and postprocessing.
It is widely used in academic research and engineering applications across various industries such as automotive and aerospace - for simulations that require coupling between different physical phenomena.
FreeFEM
FreeFEM is developed by Sorbonne University and the Jacques-Louis Lions Laboratory in France and designed for multiphysics simulations, including fluid dynamics, elasticity, and thermodynamics. This software allows users to define problems using its own scripting language, making it flexible for various applications, and widely used in research and educational institutions for complex simulations in physics and engineering.
CalculiX
CalculiX provides capabilities for both static and dynamic analysis and uses a partially compatible ABAQUS file format. It is capable of handling structural mechanics problems, including thermal analysis. It is often used in civil engineering, mechanical engineering, and structural analysis applications.
FEniCS Project
FEniCS Project was initiated in 2003 as a research collaboration between the University of Chicago and Chalmers University of Technology in Sweden. It supports various types of analyses, including structural mechanics and heat transfer. It is particularly popular in academic research due to its ability to facilitate complex simulations with minimal coding effort and is widely used in industries such as civil engineering and materials science for research purposes.
OpenFOAM focuses primarily on fluid dynamics and supports FEA through its extensive library of solvers. It handles complex simulations involving heat transfer, chemical reactions, and fluid-structure interactions. OpenFOAM is widely adopted in industries such as automotive, aerospace, and energy for simulating fluid flow and heat transfer processes.
EDF's Software - Code_Aster, Code_Saturne, Salome
EDF's (Électricité de France) software and calculation codes developed to predict complex phenomena that affect the lifespan of nuclear plants.
Code_Aster focuses on solid mechanics and supports both linear and nonlinear mechanics with capabilities for thermal analysis, it is used in civil engineering and energy sectors. EDF also develops such open-source systems as Code_Saturne (for CFD, including heat transfer and turbulence) and Salome (for pre- and postprocessing).
MOOSE
MOOSE (Multiphysics Object-Oriented Simulation Environment) is developed by the Idaho National Laboratory (U. S. Department of Energy) and allows to perform multiphysics simulations including thermal, mechanical, and chemical analyses. It finds applications in nuclear engineering, geosciences, and materials science.
FreeCAD's FEM Workbench
FreeCAD's FEM Workbench - part of the FreeCAD project, widely used in product design, architecture, and education, that allows users to perform finite element analysis using external solvers like CalculiX and Elmer, supports static, dynamic, and thermal analyses.FEBio
FEBio was developed by the University of Utah and Columbia University and provides analysis of multiphysics models, including solid mechanics that can undergo large deformations, fluid mechanics, and fluid-solid interaction. It specializes in biomechanics simulations, particularly in medical device development and biological systems analysis.
Z88
Z88 was developed at the University of Bayreuth in Germany, offers static strength and nature frequency analysis capabilities along with thermal analysis.Goma
Goma was developed by Sandia National Laboratories (U. S. Department of Energy), it focuses on computational fluid dynamics with evolving geometries, primarily used in energy-related simulations.
MoFEM JosePH
MoFEM JosePH was developed at the University of Glasgow in the UK, this code specializes in multiphysics analysis with arbitrary levels of approximation and different levels of mesh refinement.
CAELinux
CAELinux is a Linux distribution that includes a range of preinstalled open-source software for CAD/CAM, FEA, CFD, and multiphysics simulation (not updated since 2020). The distribution includes many tools mentioned such as Salome, Code-Aster, Code-Saturne, OpenFOAM, Elmer, and CalculiX. The software comes pre-installed, resolving library issues that can occur when installing open-source software independently.
Non-FEA CAE Systems
The clear, step-by-step nature of analytical approaches allows engineers to readily follow the logic, assumptions, and formulas used, making it simpler to identify potential errors or inconsistencies and verify by other specialists compared to FEA calculations. This inherent transparency fosters confidence in the results and facilitates collaborative review processes.
One of the successful examples of the implementation of such systems is Boeing. Such a system (not FEA-based, combining analytical and empirical methods) was successfully implemented at Boeing in the early 2000s, and in the mid-2000s, the vast majority of strength calculations were performed in this system: Design-Analysis Associativity Technology for PSI - Boeing & Georgia Tech (see also the links at the bottom of that page)
Perhaps, in some engineering environments, it would be reasonable to switch to such an approach, with the emphasis not only on finding more accessible open-source FEA systems but also on automating a significant part of structural analysis without FEA, focusing on already existing and proven analytical and empirical methods. That is why I included this material, not directly related to FEA, here - this approach, like open-source FEA solutions, in many cases also helps to solve the problems associated with the high cost of commercial FEA systems - but in a different way.
© Oleg Sergeykin, PhD - 2025
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