A Numerical Study of Laminar and Turbulent Mixed Convective Flow Over a Vertical Isothermal Plate

Author(s):  
Patrick H. Oosthuizen

Mixed (or combined) convective flow is flow with heat transfer in which there is a forced flow but in which the buoyancy forces that arise due to temperature variations in the flow have a significant effect on the flow and therefore on the heat transfer rate. In such flows the buoyancy forces can also have a very significant influence on the conditions under which transition from laminar to turbulent flow occurs. In the present study this effect of the buoyancy forces on the conditions under which transition occurs have been studied for the particular case of flow in the vertically upward direction over a heated vertical flat plane surface that is maintained at a uniform temperature that is higher than the temperature of the undisturbed fluid flow, i.e., attention has been restricted to assisting (or aiding) mixed convective flow. The flow has been assumed to be steady and it has also been assumed that the fluid properties are constant except for the density change with temperature which gives rise to the buoyancy forces, this having been treated by using the Boussinesq approach. The solution has been obtained by numerically solving the governing equations subject to the boundary conditions using the commercial cfd solver, FLUENT. The k-epsilon turbulence model with full account being taken of the buoyancy forces has been used in obtaining the solutions. The mean heat transfer rate from the surface expressed in terms of the mean Nusselt number depends on the Reynolds number based on the free-stream forced velocity and the length of the heated surface, on the Rayleigh number based on the length of the heated surface and the overall surface to free-stream temperature difference, and on the Prandtl number. Results have only been obtained for a Prandtl number of 0.74. Solutions have been obtained for a series of increasing Rayleigh numbers between 105 and 1012 for a series of Reynolds numbers between approximately 1 and 107.

2001 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patrick H. Oosthuizen ◽  
Matt Garrett

Abstract Natural convective heat transfer from a wide isothermal plate which has a “wavy” surface, i.e., has a surface which periodically rises and falls, has been numerically studied. The surface waves run parallel to the direction of flow over the surface and have a relatively small amplitude. Two types of wavy surface have been considered here — saw-tooth and sinusoidal. Surfaces of the type considered are approximate models of situations that occur in certain window covering applications, for example, and are also sometimes used to try to enhance the heat transfer rate from the surface. The flow has been assumed to be laminar. Because the surface waves are parallel to the direction of flow, the flow over the surface will be three-dimensional. Fluid properties have been assumed constant except for the density change with temperature that gives rise to the buoyancy forces, this being treated by means of the Boussinesq type approximation. The governing equations have been written in dimensionless form, the height of the surface being used as the characteristic length scale and the temperature difference between the surface temperature and the temperature of the fluid far from the plate being used as the characteristic temperature. The dimensionless equations have been solved using a finite-element method. Although the flow is three-dimensional because the surface waves are all assumed to have the same shape, the flow over each surface thus being the same, and it was only necessary to solve for the flow over one of the surface waves. The solution has the following parameters: the Grashof number based on the height, the Prandtl number, the dimensionless amplitude of the surface waviness, the dimensionless pitch of the surface waviness, and the form of the surface waviness (saw-tooth or sinusoidal). Results have been obtained for a Prandtl number of 0.7 for Grashof numbers up to 106. The effects of Grashof number, dimensionless amplitude and dimensionless pitch on the mean heat transfer rate have been studied. It is convenient to introduce two mean heat transfer rates, one based on the total surface area and the other based on the projected frontal area of the surface. A comparison of the values of these quantities gives a measure of the effectiveness of the surface waviness in increasing the mean heat transfer rate. The results show that while surface waviness increases the heat transfer rate based on the frontal area, the modifications of the flow produced by the surface waves are such that the increase in heat transfer rate is less than the increase in surface area.


Author(s):  
Patrick H. Oosthuizen

Natural convective flow through a vertical plane channel has been considered. The walls of the lower portion of the channel are heated to a uniform temperature, both of the heated walls being at the same temperature. The walls of the upper part of the channel are unheated, i.e., are adiabatic. The reason for undertaking the study arose from the fact that using an adiabatic upper wall section can, through the so-called chimney effect, increase the flow rate through the channel and therefore increase the heat transfer rate from the lower heated wall section. However if the upper adiabatic wall section is too long the increased pressure drop due to viscous effects can lead to a reduced flow rate through the channel and to a reduced heat transfer rate. Therefore a need existed to examine in more detail the effect that the height of the upper adiabatic wall section has on the heat transfer rate. The flow has been assumed to be steady and the Boussinesq approximation has been adopted. The solutions have been obtained using the commercial CFD code FLUENT©. The solution has the Rayleigh number, the Prandtl number, the ratio of the channel width to the height of the heated channel wall section, and the ratio of the height of the adiabatic channel wall section to the height of the heated wall section as parameters. Results have only been obtained for a Prandtl number of 0.74 (the value for air at temperatures near ambient temperature). Results have been obtained for a wide range of values of the remaining parameters and the effects of these parameters on the mean Nusselt number have been studied.


Author(s):  
Patrick H. Oosthuizen ◽  
Abdulrahim Kalendar

Natural convective heat transfer from the top and bottom surfaces of a thin circular isothermal horizontal plate which, in general, has a centrally placed adiabatic section has been numerically investigated. The temperature of the plate surfaces is higher than the temperature of the surrounding fluid. The range of conditions considered is such that laminar, transitional, and turbulent flow occurs over the plate. The heat transfer from the upper and lower surfaces of the plate as well as the mean heat transfer rate from the entire surface of the plate have been considered. The flow has been assumed to be axisymmetric and steady. The k-epsilon turbulence model with account being taken of buoyancy force effects has been used and the solution has been obtained using the commercial CFD solver ANSYS FLUENT©. The heat transfer rate from the heated plate has been expressed in terms of a Nusselt number based on the outside plate diameter and the difference between the plate temperature and the fluid temperature far from the plate. The mean Nusselt number is dependent on the Rayleigh number, the ratio of the diameter of the inner adiabatic section to the outer plate diameter, and the Prandtl number. Results have only been obtained for a Prandtl number of 0.74, i.e., effectively the value for air. The variations of the mean Nusselt number averaged over both the upper and lower surfaces and of the mean Nusselt numbers for the upper surface and for the lower surface with Rayleigh number for various adiabatic section diameter ratios have been studied. The use of a reference length scale to allow the correlation of these mean Nusselt number-Rayleigh number variations has been investigated.


2000 ◽  
Author(s):  
David A. Scott ◽  
P. H. Oosthuizen

Abstract Heat transfer from relatively short vertical isothermal cylinders in a horizontal forced fluid flow has been considered. The flow conditions are such that the buoyancy forces resulting from the temperature differences in the flow are in general significant despite of the presence of a horizontal forced flow of air, that is, mixed convective flow exists. Because the cylinders are short and the buoyancy forces act normal to the forced flow, three-dimensional flow exists. The experiments were performed in a low velocity, open jet wind tunnel. The study involved the experimental determination of the mean heat transfer coefficient and a comparison of the results with a previous numerical analysis. Mean heat transfer rates were determined using the ‘lumped capacity’ method. The mean Nusselt number has the Reynolds number, Grashof number and the height to diameter ratio of the cylinders as parameters. The results have been used to determine the conditions under which the flow departs from purely forced convection and enters the mixed convection regime, i.e., determining the conditions for which the buoyancy effects should be included in convective heat transfer calculations for short cylinders.


1998 ◽  
Vol 120 (2) ◽  
pp. 337-342 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. G. Bogard ◽  
D. L. Schmidt ◽  
M. Tabbita

The physical characteristics of surface roughness observed on first-stage high-pressure turbine vanes that had been in service for a long period were investigated in this study. Profilometry measurements were utilized to provide details of the surface roughness formed by deposits of foreign materials on different parts of the turbine vane. Typical measures of surface roughness such as centerline average roughness values were shown to be inadequate for characterizing roughness effects. Using a roughness shape parameter originally derived from regular roughness arrays, the turbine airfoil roughness was characterized in terms of equivalent sand-grain roughness in order to develop an appropriate simulation of the surface for laboratory experiments. Two rough surface test plates were designed and fabricated. These test plates were evaluated experimentally to quantify the heat transfer rate for flow conditions similar to that which occurs on the turbine airfoil. Although the roughness levels on the two test plates were different by a factor of two, both surfaces caused similar 50 percent increases in heat transfer rates relative to a smooth surface. The effects of high free-stream turbulence, with turbulence levels from 10 to 17 percent, were also investigated. Combined free-stream turbulence and surface roughness effects were found to be additive, resulting in as much as a 100 percent increase in heat transfer rate.


1988 ◽  
Vol 110 (2) ◽  
pp. 390-394 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. H. Oosthuizen

Two-dimensional flow over a horizontal plate in a saturated porous medium mounted near an impervious adiabatic horizontal surface and subjected to a horizontal forced flow has been numerically investigated. The plate is heated to a uniform temperature that is higher than the temperature of the flowing fluid. The conditions considered are such that the buoyancy forces have an effect on the flow and, therefore, on the heat transfer rate from the plate. The full governing equations, written in dimensionless form, have been solved for a range of values of the governing parameters using the finite element method. The heat transfer rate from the plate is influenced both by the dimensionless depth of the plate below the surface and the importance of the buoyancy forces, the latter having been characterized by a parameter which is equal to the ratio of the Darcy–Rayleigh number to Peclet number. The conditions under which these parameters have a negligible effect on the heat transfer rate are discussed.


Author(s):  
Patrick H. Oosthuizen ◽  
David Naylor

The horizontal frame members that often protrude from the inner surface of a window can significantly effect the convective heat transfer rate from this inner surface to the room. The purpose of the present numerical study was to determine how the size of a pair of horizontal frame members effect this heat transfer rate. The flow has been assumed to be steady and conditions under which laminar, transitional, and turbulent flows occur are considered. Fluid properties have been assumed constant except for the density change with temperature that gives rise to the buoyancy forces, this being dealt with using the Boussinesq approach. The governing equations have been solved using the FLUENT commercial CFD code. The k-epsilon turbulence model with standard wall functions and with buoyancy force effects fully accounted for has been used. The solution has the following parameters: the Rayleigh number, the Prandtl number, the dimensionless window recess depth, and the dimensionless width and depth of the frame members. Results have been obtained for a Prandtl number of 0.74.


Author(s):  
Patrick H. Oosthuizen

Natural convective heat transfer from a wide isothermal plate which has a wavy surface, i.e., has a surface which periodically rises and falls, has been numerically studied. The main purpose of the study was to examine the effect of the surface waviness on the conditions under which transition from laminar to turbulent flow occurred and to study the effect of the surface waviness on the heat transfer rate. The surface waves, which have a saw-tooth cross-sectional shape, are normal to the direction of flow over the surface and have a relatively small amplitude. The range of Rayleigh numbers considered in the present study extends from values that for a non-wavy plate would be associated with laminar flow to values that would be associated with fully turbulent flow. The flow has been assumed to be steady and fluid properties have been assumed constant except for the density change with temperature that gives rise to the buoyancy forces, this being treated by means of the Boussinesq type approximation. A standard k-epsilon turbulence model with full account being taken of the effects of the buoyancy forces has been used in obtaining the solution. The solution has been obtained using the commercial CFD solver FLUENT. The solution has the following parameters: the Rayleigh number based on the plate height, the Prandtl number, the dimensionless amplitude of the surface waviness, and the dimensionless pitch of the surface waviness. Results have been obtained for a Prandtl number of 0.7 and for a single dimensionless pitch value for Rayleigh numbers between approximately 106 and 1012. The effects of Rayleigh number and dimensionless amplitude on the mean heat transfer rate have been studied. It is convenient in presenting the results to introduce two mean heat transfer rates, one based on the total surface area and the other based on the projected frontal area of the surface.


Author(s):  
Uddip Kashyap ◽  
Koushik Das ◽  
Biplab Kumar Debnath

In order to cool a heated surface surrounded by fluid flow, vortex generator plays a significant role. The presence of a vortex generator in the flow creates both latitudinal and longitudinal vortices. The vortices energize the boundary layer over the heated surface and excel convective mode of heat transfer. Therefore, the strength of these vortices is directly proportional to the heat transferal rate. The present study considers a vortex generator attached to a heated base plate. The system is studied numerically and experimentally. The existing rectangular vortex generator is modified computationally with a goal to escalate the overall heat transferal rate. The role of secondary surfaces fixed over the primary surface of the rectangular vortex generator is discussed. Water flows over the surface of the base plate at a Reynolds number of 350. And the plate has a constant heat flux of 1 kW/m2. The results show that the secondary surfaces fixed parallel to the heated plate over the vortex generator significantly augment the heat transfer rate to about 13.4%. However, it enhances the drag by 5.7%. A linear regression analysis predicts the suitable placement of the secondary surface with an enhancement of heat transfer rate of about 7.6%, with a decrease in the drag by about 0.7%. In order to validate the obtained results, the best configuration is fabricated and tested experimentally. The experimental outcomes are found to complement the numerical results. In this experiment, the modification yields 25% enhancement in heat transfer rate.


CFD letters ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (7) ◽  
pp. 45-57
Author(s):  
Badr Ali Bzya Albeshri ◽  
Nazrul Islam ◽  
Ahmad Yahya Bokhary ◽  
Amjad Ali Pasha

Nanofluids occupy a large place in many fields of technology due its improved heat transfer and pressure drop characteristics. Very recently, a new type of nanofluid, known as hybrid nanofluid, which consists of a mixture of two different nanoparticles suspended in the base fluid has been found to be the most emerging heat transfer fluid. It is well also established that entrance region effect enhances heat transfer rate. The present study deals with numerical investigations of the hydrodynamic behavior of the laminar mixed convective flow of a hybrid nanofluid in the entrance region of a horizontal annulus. A thermal boundary condition of uniform heat flux at the inner wall and an adiabatic outer wall is selected. The SIMPLER numerical algorithm is adopted in the present study. The hybrid nanofluid consists of water as base fluid and Ag-TiO2 as nanoparticles. The ratio of Ag to TiO2 is maintained as 1:3. The objective of the current study is mainly to analyze the hydrodynamic behavior hybrid nanofluid in the entrance region. The investigation reveals that the effect of the secondary flow due to the buoyancy forces is more intense in the upper part of the annular cross-section. It increases throughout the cross-section until its intensity reaches a maximum and then it becomes weak far downstream. The development of axial flow and temperature field is strongly influenced by the buoyancy forces.


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