METHOD FOR SIMULATING COMBUSTION IN DIGITAL IMAGERY WITH REAL OR ARTIST-SPECIFIED COMPONENTS

A combustion simulation system is provided. The system receives data representing a fluid flow. The data includes a plurality of combustion precursors, including at least one arbitrary combustion precursor that may not correspond to a physically realizable material. The system simulates a chemical combustion reaction involving the plurality of combustion precursors and generating combustion byproducts. The system determines a change in temperature and a molar mass of the combustion byproducts due to the chemical reaction, and determines a divergence of the combustion byproducts based on a combination of the change in the temperature and the change in molar mass. The system then generates one or more data structures of the simulated combustion based on at least a portion of the fluid flow.