Protective layer in finite element method
When a model with a protective layer is solved using the finite element method, the thermal solver creates 3D elements on top of the selected elements, using defined thickness.
The thickness can vary per element. You can specify the number of sublayers per protective layer adding calculation points to the layer to capture more accurately the temperature gradients in the layer's through-plane direction. The thermal solver applies the radiation and convective boundary on top of the created 3D elements.