GiD forum

Dear Sir,
I am using GiD 11 version. how come I can mesh with structured hexahedral elements for the two adjacent volumes of a common surface. but one volume is formed by six surfaces and the other with 10 surfaces. but structured mesh can be taken for six-sided volume only. if am trying to give unstructured mesh for non-six sided volume, then showing some incompatibility. but with structured mesh node number is less which is an advantage for complicated models.

so how to give the structured mesh for non-six-sided volume?????????

Regards
Sree Latha

Structured mesh is too restrictive as you point.
GiD could only mesh structured volumes of 6 faces (topologically the volume must be like an hexahedron)
You must edit the geometry, and split all in volumes of 6 faces, if possible. It could be a hard work.

There is also a second possibility a little less restrictive: semi-structured meshes.
The volume must be topologically like a extruded surface: both taps must be 'equivalent', with the same amount of sides, and joined by 4-sided surfaces. (the shape could be deformed in the space, but with the related topology)
Then you could set the volume to be meshed semi-structuredly, specifying the number of divisions in the extruded direction, and you could set to be meshed with hexahedra, and the surfaces with quadrilateral (the tops will be meshed with unstructured quadrilaterals)

Off courses unstructured meshes of tetrahedra are much more flexible than structured meshes of hexahedra, and not necessarily require more elements, because they could be concentrated in the important parts.