Data file size: binary SZPLT and PLT have 70% and 50% compression ratios respectively over the ASCII file format.

In a simple test of placing a single slice in the volume of a 7.1 million element case, you can see how each data file format performs. These techniques make the SZL format the most efficient and significantly faster than the traditional PLT format. This format subdivides and catalogs volume zones so that when working with the data set, it will only load data from the needed areas. SZPLT: The third data format is SZL or Sub-Zone Load-on-demand (*. PLT format is significantly more efficient than the plain text ASCII format. This format is Tecplot’s traditional format and is commonly exported by solvers. PLT: The second data type is the Tecplot PLT binary format (*. However, when data sets become large, the inefficiency of ASCII data storage quickly becomes apparent and a binary format should be considered. This is a simple human-readable or -writeable format and is perfect for smaller data sets when working between multiple applications. In this video, the uses and differences between Tecplot 360’s three different native data file types are described.ĭAT: The first and most basic data type is the ASCII DAT data format (*. This video describes the differences between Tecplot native file types: DAT, PLT and SZPLT, and when using each type is the most beneficial.

Tecplot data format example