FAQ
About the Tool
Does it tell me what vent area I need?
No. It evaluates a valve you propose and reports the peak pressure that results. Relief valves are selected from a catalogue rather than machined to a computed area, so the useful question is whether a given part passes. See Choosing a Valve.
Can it size the breathing membrane?
No. Matching a valve’s everyday permeability to your temperature and altitude duty cycle is a separate calculation, and nothing on this site performs it. PRV-Sizing covers the thermal runaway relief case only.
Does it model the fire or explosion risk outside the pack?
No. The model stops at the valve outlet. Dispersion, accumulation, and ignition are out of scope. See Further Reading for work that covers them.
Will it tell me whether my cells will go into thermal runaway?
No. The venting curve is an input. The tool assumes the event and computes its pressure consequence.
How accurate is it?
The model is a lumped, single volume, ideal gas treatment, and every simplification is listed in Assumptions and Limits. In practice the input data, particularly the venting curve and the assumed gas temperature, dominates the uncertainty rather than the model. Use it to screen candidates and to find what your design is sensitive to, and test before you certify.
Why is the same case slightly faster or slower each time?
Solve time and returned point count are diagnostics about the run, not about your design. They vary. The engineering numbers do not.
Data and Privacy
Are my simulation inputs stored anywhere?
No. Not on any plan. Inputs and results live in your browser tab, and saving means downloading a file to your own machine. We store account and subscription data, and nothing about your simulations. See the security page.
Can you recover a case I lost?
No, because we never had it. Use Save / Load → Save Configuration for anything worth keeping. See Saving and Loading a Setup.
Is there really no exception?
One, and it requires your explicit consent each time. If a solve or export fails, the error dialog offers to send us the setup that failed so we can reproduce it. Nothing is sent unless you click send.
Does my data go to the AI provider?
If you use the AI assistant, what you type and the simulation context it needs are sent to a third-party model provider in order to generate a reply. The in-app disclosure and the Privacy Policy cover the details. If you do not use the assistant, nothing goes there.
Using It
Can I run it offline, or on our own servers?
Not today. The solver runs on our infrastructure and the interface runs in your browser.
Can I batch a hundred cases, or drive it from a script?
Not through the interface. The AI assistant is the closest thing available: it can run a sweep across several values in one conversation. If you have a genuine batch requirement, write to support@thermosketch.com and describe it.
Are results reproducible?
Yes. The same inputs produce the same numbers. A saved configuration file reproduces a case exactly, which is why it is the right thing to attach to a report or a support request.
Why does the CSV have more rows than the chart has points?
Charts are drawn from a reduced set of points chosen to preserve the shape of the curve, so the browser stays responsive. The CSV is always full resolution. Reported peak values come from the full resolution result.
Why is flow in m³/s in the CSV but L/min on the charts?
The charts use the unit valve datasheets are written in. The CSV keeps SI. Multiply by 60000 to convert.
Can I use the built-in cell and valve entries for a real design?
No. They are fabricated sample data, provided so you can learn the workflow. Every response from the tool says so. Use your own measured data for design work. See Input Data Sources.
Can I mix built-in data on one side and my own on the other?
Yes. The cell and valve data sources are independent. A common pattern early on is your own venting curve against a sample valve, or the reverse.
What if I only have a single flow figure for my valve, not a curve?
You need at least two points, and two points will not describe the shape that sets your peak pressure. Ask your supplier for measured curves across the pressure range your case reaches, for both the closed and open states. See Valve Characteristic.
My gas data is a rate, not a cumulative total.
Integrate it before uploading. The tool expects the running total, and the curve should never decrease.
Plans
What counts as one use?
Each Run, each PDF, and each CSV, counted separately. Editing parameters, uploading files, and saving configurations are free. See Plans and Usage Limits.
Do failed runs count against me?
No.
When does my allowance reset?
Monthly, on your own billing or signup date, not on the first of the calendar month.
Do I need a paid plan to evaluate the tool properly?
No. The free plan is sized to reach a real conclusion on your own data. A full valve screen is a dozen or so runs, so heavy screening work is where a paid plan starts to pay.