--- type: concept title: "Abaqus Multiphysics Coupling and Co-simulation" complexity: advanced domain: computational-mechanics created: 2026-05-29 updated: 2026-06-01 address: c-000089 aliases: - Abaqus co-simulation - Abaqus sequential coupling - Abaqus multiphysics coupling tags: - concept - finite-element-method - abaqus - multiphysics - co-simulation status: current related: - "[[Abaqus-Analysis-User-s-Guide-Volume-II|Abaqus Analysis User's Guide Volume II]]" - "[[Abaqus-Analysis-User-s-Guide-Volume-III|Abaqus Analysis User's Guide Volume III]]" - "[[Abaqus-Analysis-User-s-Guide-Volume-IV|Abaqus Analysis User's Guide Volume IV]]" - "[[Abaqus-Analysis-User-s-Guide-Volume-V|Abaqus Analysis User's Guide Volume V]]" - "[[Finite Element Heat Transfer and Field Problems]]" - "[[Abaqus Output Database and Results Files]]" - "[[Abaqus Job Execution Workflow]]" - "[[Abaqus User Subroutines and Utility Routines]]" - "[[Abaqus Transport Acoustic and Electromagnetic Materials]]" - "[[Abaqus Porous Media and Pore Fluid Materials]]" - "[[Abaqus Fluid Acoustic Eulerian and Particle Elements]]" - "[[Abaqus Loads and Predefined Fields]]" - "[[Abaqus Contact Property Models]]" - "[[Abaqus Cavity Radiation Interactions]]" sources: - "[[Abaqus-Analysis-User-s-Guide-Volume-II|Abaqus Analysis User's Guide Volume II]]" - "[[Abaqus-Analysis-User-s-Guide-Volume-III|Abaqus Analysis User's Guide Volume III]]" - "[[Abaqus-Analysis-User-s-Guide-Volume-IV|Abaqus Analysis User's Guide Volume IV]]" - "[[Abaqus-Analysis-User-s-Guide-Volume-V|Abaqus Analysis User's Guide Volume V]]" source_refs: - source: "[[Abaqus-Analysis-User-s-Guide-Volume-II|Abaqus Analysis User's Guide Volume II]]" raw_path: ".raw/AbaqusAnalysisUserGuide2/" raw_files: - "AbaqusAnalysisUserGuide2_138.md" - "AbaqusAnalysisUserGuide2_140.md" - "AbaqusAnalysisUserGuide2_142.md" - "AbaqusAnalysisUserGuide2_141.md" md_indices: - 138 - 140 - 142 - 141 match: "heuristic-heading-keyword" confidence: high - source: "[[Abaqus-Analysis-User-s-Guide-Volume-III|Abaqus Analysis User's Guide Volume III]]" raw_path: ".raw/AbaqusAnalysisUserGuide3/" raw_files: - "AbaqusAnalysisUserGuide3_002.md" md_indices: - 2 match: "heuristic-heading-keyword" confidence: high - source: "[[Abaqus-Analysis-User-s-Guide-Volume-IV|Abaqus Analysis User's Guide Volume IV]]" raw_path: ".raw/AbaqusAnalysisUserGuide4/" raw_files: - "AbaqusAnalysisUserGuide4_002.md" - "AbaqusAnalysisUserGuide4_082.md" - "AbaqusAnalysisUserGuide4_083.md" md_indices: - 2 - 82 - 83 match: "heuristic-heading-keyword" confidence: high - source: "[[Abaqus-Analysis-User-s-Guide-Volume-V|Abaqus Analysis User's Guide Volume V]]" raw_path: ".raw/AbaqusAnalysisUserGuide5/" raw_files: - "AbaqusAnalysisUserGuide5_034.md" - "AbaqusAnalysisUserGuide5_033.md" - "AbaqusAnalysisUserGuide5_002.md" - "AbaqusAnalysisUserGuide5_036.md" md_indices: - 34 - 33 - 2 - 36 match: "heuristic-heading-keyword" confidence: high --- # Abaqus Multiphysics Coupling and Co-simulation ## Definition Abaqus multiphysics coupling and co-simulation are workflows for coupling structural, thermal, fluid, electromagnetic, acoustic, logical, and other analysis domains either within Abaqus procedures or at run time with other solvers. ## How It Works Sequential coupling uses results from one analysis as predefined fields or loads in a later analysis. Common fields include temperature, normalized concentration, and electric potential. A common workflow is uncoupled heat transfer followed by thermal-stress analysis, where temperature history is read from the output database or results file and interpolated into the stress analysis. Co-simulation performs run-time coupling between Abaqus and another Abaqus analysis or a third-party program. The coupled domains exchange data over a common interface in a synchronized way. Examples include fluid-structure interaction, conjugate heat transfer, electromagnetic-thermal coupling, electromagnetic-mechanical coupling, Standard/Explicit structural partitioning, and structural-logical coupling with system-level models. [[Abaqus-Analysis-User-s-Guide-Volume-III|Volume III]] adds the material definitions that make many coupled procedures meaningful: conductivity and specific heat for thermal coupling, diffusivity and solubility for mass diffusion, piezoelectric and electromagnetic properties for electromechanical coupling, and permeability/sorption/swelling data for pore-fluid stress coupling. [[Abaqus-Analysis-User-s-Guide-Volume-IV|Volume IV]] adds the element families that carry many coupled fields: thermally coupled solid and shell variants, pore-pressure elements, acoustic elements, fluid continuum elements, fluid pipe and fluid pipe connector elements, and Eulerian elements. [[Abaqus-Analysis-User-s-Guide-Volume-V|Volume V]] adds the boundary and interaction side of coupling: predefined fields carry sequentially coupled results, contact properties can include thermal, electrical, and pore-fluid transfer, and cavity radiation defines radiative thermal interaction among surfaces. ## Why It Matters Coupled physics can be too expensive, too specialized, or too weakly coupled to solve with one monolithic procedure. Sequential coupling and co-simulation let analysts choose the coupling strength and solver boundary deliberately. ## Connections - [[Finite Element Heat Transfer and Field Problems]] gives the broader field-problem and multiphysics context. - [[Abaqus Output Database and Results Files]] provides the stored field histories used in sequential coupling. - [[Abaqus User Subroutines and Utility Routines]] provides lower-level extension paths for custom staggered or external data exchange. - [[Abaqus Transport Acoustic and Electromagnetic Materials]] supplies material properties for field and electromagnetic coupling. - [[Abaqus Porous Media and Pore Fluid Materials]] supplies material properties for coupled pore-pressure and deformation workflows. - [[Abaqus Fluid Acoustic Eulerian and Particle Elements]] supplies the element-family side of acoustic, fluid, Eulerian, and pipe-flow workflows. - [[Abaqus Loads and Predefined Fields]] supplies the field-transfer side of sequential workflows. - [[Abaqus Contact Property Models]] and [[Abaqus Cavity Radiation Interactions]] supply surface-interaction coupling mechanisms. ## Sources - [[Abaqus-Analysis-User-s-Guide-Volume-II|Abaqus Analysis User's Guide Volume II]] - [[Abaqus-Analysis-User-s-Guide-Volume-III|Abaqus Analysis User's Guide Volume III]] - [[Abaqus-Analysis-User-s-Guide-Volume-IV|Abaqus Analysis User's Guide Volume IV]] - [[Abaqus-Analysis-User-s-Guide-Volume-V|Abaqus Analysis User's Guide Volume V]]