Pipes are usually not needed — most pressure losses are in valves & devices, not pipes
Pumps/fans & valves’ conductance can include nearby ducting, filters
Most conductive links can also do forced convection (you’ll see related config data) so you don’t always need dedicated links for HX, coldplates — sometimes you can borrow the nearby valves, etc.
Minimize fluid types
Add utility spotters:
A GunnsFluidIslandAnalyzer if you’re using islands
Add spare links
I like to add 2 spare GunnsFluidSource and 2 GunnsFluidPotential.
They can be used for tuning, creating flows due to flow source, potential source or conductance as needed.
Use capacitances on nodes to help conserve mass & energy
Tanks & accums are obvious but line/duct volumes? These can be significant and not modeling any of it can cause errors.
Use separate nodes for gas & liquid phases
Use sensor links to get data for sensors
Provide flex volume for liquids (accum)
Orient conductors in (arrow) direction of normal flow
Keep all conductor’s mMaxConductivity term within 10 orders of magnitude of each other to reduce truncation & rounding errors when they combine in the network solution.
Tune network before interfacing
Dont’s:
Mix phase in a node
Use basic links (electric or thermal stencil)
Use fluid source with nowhere to go
Use liquids without flex volume
Add heat sources without flow
Put more than one capacitive link on a node
Interface sim bus or displays directly to nodes, go thru links or spotters instead