Smoothed Particle Hydrodynamics
Smoothed Particle Hydrodynamics (SPH) is a mesh-free Lagrangian computational method used for simulating fluid dynamics and other continuum mechanics problems. It represents a fluid as a set of discrete particles, each carrying properties like mass, density, and velocity, with interactions smoothed using kernel functions. SPH is particularly effective for handling complex free-surface flows, large deformations, and multi-phase phenomena where traditional grid-based methods struggle.
Developers should learn SPH when working on simulations involving fluids, astrophysics, or materials science, such as in video games, visual effects, or engineering analysis. It is especially useful for scenarios with free surfaces, splashing, or fragmentation, like ocean waves, explosions, or lava flows, where its particle-based approach avoids mesh tangling issues. SPH also finds applications in computer graphics for realistic fluid rendering and in scientific research for modeling astrophysical events like star formation.