Galindo, Sergio E.Toharia, PabloLopez-Moreno, JorgeRobles, Oscar D.Pastor, LuisMateu Sbert and Jorge Lopez-Moreno2015-07-012015-07-012015https://doi.org/10.2312/ceig.20151195We present PREFR (Particle REndering FRamework): a first approach to a general-purpose particle rendering framework on the standard OpenGL architecture, designed with the goal of being easily configured by the user without compromising efficiency. In this paper, we analyze and discuss the performance of each stage involved in particle rendering in order to improve its efficiency for future versions with additional GPGPU computation steps or multicore parallelization techniques. Finally, we show the potential of our particle engine by tackling two very different problems: The rendering of neuronal electrical impulses in physiological models of the human brain, and the visualization of emergent patterns for information analysis, specifically emphasizing structured information in a complex data set.I.3.3 [Computer Graphics]Particle systemsCG applicationsPerformance10.2312/ceig.201511959-17