Preliminary Evaluation of Turbulence Level Influence in Heat Transfer Measurements

Heat transfer coefficients have often been experimentally measured, taking into account Nusselt number as a function of Reynolds and Prandtl number. Most experimenters spend their effort to control turbulence level, set it to different values, or keep it unchanged during the tests, as it’s not easy to predict how its initial level may change final results. The aim of this work is to add some comprehension on how different turbulence incoming levels may affect heat transfer measurements, and when it’s possible or not to neglect such effects. Experimental setup features different duct geometries, and thermocromic liquid crystals coupled with hot-wire anemometers are used as main measurement techniques. Tests were performed for Reynolds number from 10000 to 50000 and turbulence level from 3% to 12%. Several turbulence manipulators were adopted, including aluminum foams and multi-perforated plates, and results show some interesting dependences of heat transfer from both turbulence level and grid features.