An arbitrary Lagrangian–Eulerian finite element method for interactions of airflow and a moving AGV in a cleanroom

Abstract

The motions of the airflow induced by the movement of an automatic guided vehicle (AGV) in a cleanroom are numerically studied. This subject is an important issue of microcontamination control for the semiconductor process. The characteristics of the airflow induced by the movement of the AGV are dynamic and are classified as a type of moving boundary problems. An arbitrary Lagrangian–Eulerian finite element method with moving meshes is adopted to analyze this problem. Two different moving velocities of the AGV and two different positions of the wafer cassette under Reynolds number Re=500 are considered in details. The results show that the recirculation zones, which inhibit removing microcontaminants, are observed around the AGV and wafer cassette, and the formations of recirculation zones are remarkably dependent upon the moving velocity of the AGV and the position of the wafer cassette. These phenomena are remarkably different from those of a moving AGV regarded as a stationary one.