On the Lower Critical Reynolds Number for Flow in a Circular Pipe

Flow in a circular pipe is investigated experimentally at Reynolds numbers higher than that at which the resistance coefficients calculated from the Blasius formula for laminar flow and from the Prandtl formula for turbulent flow are equal. The corresponding Reynolds number based on the mean-flow velocity and the pipe diameter is about 1000. The experiments were performed at a high level of inlet pulsations produced by feeding gas into the pipe through a hole with a diameter several times smaller than the pipe diameter. In our experiments the critical Reynolds number was determined as the value, independent of the distance from the inlet, at which the ratio of the axial to the mean-flow velocity as a function of the Reynolds number deviated from 2. At the maximum ratio of the pipe cross-sectional area to the area of the hole through which the gas entered the pipe, equal to 26, the critical Reynolds number was about 2300. After a fivefold increase in the hole area the critical Reynolds number increased by approximately 4%.At Reynolds numbers below 2000, after at a high level of the inlet pulsations an almost laminar flow had developed in the pipe, a perturbation was introduced by inserting a diametrically oriented cylindrical rod with a diameter 10–20 times smaller than the pipe diameter. In these experiments, at Reynolds numbers higher than 1000, at a distance from the rod equal to 50 pipe diameters the axial to mean-flow velocity ratio was less than 2, approaching this value again at large distances from the rod. The insertion of the rod led to a decrease in the critical Reynolds number by approximately 12%.     

Heat transfer characteristics of pulsated turbulent pipe flow

Heat Transfer characteristics of pulsated turbulent pipe flow under different conditions of pulsation frequency, amplitude and Reynolds number were experimentally investigated. The pipe wall was kept at uniform heat flux. Reynolds number was varied from 5000 to 29 000 while frequency of pulsation ranged from 1 to 8 Hz. The results show an enhancement in the local Nusselt number at the entrance region. The rate of enhancement decreased as Re increased. Reduction of heat transfer coefficient was observed at higher frequencies and the effect of pulsation is found to be significant at high Reynolds number. It can be concluded that the effect of pulsation on the mean Nusselt numbers is insignificant at low values of Reynolds number. Received on 29 June 1998     

An experimental investigation of heat transfer to pulsating pipe air flow with different amplitudes

Heat transfer characteristics to both laminar and turbulent pulsating pipe flows under different conditions of Reynolds number, pulsation frequency, pulsator location and tube diameter were experimentally investigated. The tube wall of uniform heat flux condition was considered for both cases. Reynolds number varied from 750 to 12,320 while the frequency of pulsation ranged from 1 to 10 Hz. With locating the pulsator upstream of the inlet of the test section tube, results showed an increase in heat transfer rate due to pulsation by as much as 30% with flow Reynolds number of 1,643 and pulsation frequency of 1 Hz, depending on the upstream location of the pulsator valve. Closer the valve to the tested section inlet, the better improvement in the heat transfer coefficient is achieved. Upon comparing the heat transfer results of the upstream and the downstream pulsation, at Reynolds number of 1,366 and 1,643, low values of the relative mean Nusselt number were obtained with the upstream pulsation. Comparing the heat transfer results of the two studied test sections tubes for Reynolds number range from 8,000 to 12,000 and pulsation frequency range from 1.0 to 10 Hz showed that more improvement in heat transfer rate was observed with a larger tube diameter. For Reynolds number ranging from 8,000 to 12,000 and pulsation frequency of 10 Hz, an improvement in the relative mean Nusselt number of about 50% was obtained at Reynolds number of 8,000 for the large test section diameter of 50 mm. While, for the small test section diameter of 15 mm, at same conditions of Reynolds number and frequency, a reduction in the relative mean Nusselt number of up to 10% was obtained.     

Simultaneous measurements of velocity and deformation in flows through compliant diaphragms

Flow through a circular orifice in a deformable diaphragm mounted in a pipe was studied experimentally as a simple yet suitable case for validating numerical fluid/structure interaction (FSI) codes including structures with significant deformation and strain. The flow was characterized using pressure taps, particle image velocimetry (PIV), and hot-film anemometry while deformation of the compliant diaphragm was determined directly from PIV images. The diaphragm material properties were measured independently by a uniaxial tensile testing machine. The diaphragm material modulus, orifice diameter, and pipe Reynolds number were varied over ranges appropriate for simulations of flows through heart valves. Pipe Reynolds numbers ranged from 600 (laminar upstream condition) to 8800 (turbulent upstream condition). The pressure drop across the diaphragm resulted in a concave deformation for all cases studied. For the range of Reynolds number tested, the Euler number decreased with increasing Reynolds number as a result of orifice expansion. The flow immediately downstream of compliant diaphragms was jet-like with strong inward radial velocity components and vena contracta. Laminar low Reynolds number flow (Re=600) through both rigid and compliant diaphragms yielded early and regular roll up of coherent vortex rings at a fixed frequency in contrast to turbulent higher Reynolds number flow (Re=3900), which yielded a broad range of vortex passage frequencies. Expansion of the compliant orifice for Re=3900 resulted in an initially broader slower jet with delayed shear layer development compared with the equivalent rigid case.     

The influence of an abrupt convergence on heat transfer in circular ducts

The effect of an abrupt convergence on the local heat transfer coefficient at the entrance of a uniformly heated straight pipe has been investigated. Experiments were carried out with water for Reynolds numbers from 200 to 2000, and for Prandtl numbers 4 and 6. The experimental values of the local Nusselt number are considerably lower than expected and strongly Reynolds number dependent in the region near the inlet, whereas they become comparatively high further downstream. This behaviour is discussed in connection with the hypothesis of the occurrence of a separated flow at the inlet section of the pipe. These and several previous experiments, covering turbulent and transitional flows, have been considered and summarised to obtain a general view of the effect of this geometrical configuration on heat transfer     

Results of direct numerical simulation of turbulent flow in a pipe of elliptical cross-section

Within the framework of the complete Navier-Stokes equations the turbulent flow in a pipe of elliptical cross-section with semiaxis ratio b/a = 0.5 is directly calculated for the Reynolds number Re = 6000 determined from the mean-flow velocity and the hydraulic diameter. The distribution of the average and pulsatory flow characteristics over the pipe cross-section are obtained. In particular, the secondary flow in the cross-section plane, typical of turbulent flows in noncircular pipes, is calculated. The equation for the longitudinal vorticity which determines the shape and intensity of the secondary flow is analyzed. In the balance equation for the pulsation kinetic energy the behavior of all the terms that characterize energy production, dissipation and redistribution over the pipe cross-section is described.     

Laser-Doppler measurements of laminar and turbulent flow in a pipe bend

Laser-Doppler measurements are reported for laminar and turbulent flow through a 90° bend of circular cross-section with mean radius of curvature equal to 2.8 times the diameter. The measurements were made in cross-stream planes 0.58 diameters upstream of the bend inlet plane, in 30, 60 and 75° planes in the bend and in planes one and six diameters downstream of the exit plane. Three sets of data were obtained: for laminar flow at Reynolds numbers of 500 and 1093 and for turbulent flow at the maximum obtainable Reynolds number of 43 000. The results show the development of strong pressure-driven secondary flows in the form of a pair of counter-rotating vortices in the streamwise direction. The strength and character of the secondary flows were found to depend on the thickness and nature of the inlet boundary layers, inlet conditions which could not be varied independently of Reynolds number. The quantitative anemometer measurements are supported by flow visualization studies. Refractive index matching at the fluid-wall interface was not used; the measurements consist, therefore, of streamwise components of mean and fluctuating velocities only, supplemented by wall pressure measurements for the turbulent flow. The displacement of the laser measurement volume due to refraction is allowed for in simple geometrical calculations. The results are intenden for use as benchmark data for calibrating flow calculation methods.     

Calculation of the stability of the flow in a circular pipe with injection

An experimental investigation of the transition of a laminar flow regime into a turbulent one has been carried out in [1] for a flow in a circular pipe which is organized due to injection through the porous lateral surface with a jammed leading end of the pipe. It was established as a result that injection leads to an increase in stability of the laminar flow regime and increases the Reynolds number of the transition to 10,000 instead of the value 2300 which is characteristic of flow in a circular pipe with impenetrable walls. A similar effect was discovered in [2], in which it was also obtained that the Reynolds number of stability loss under the action of injection can take values significantly larger than in pipes with impenetrable walls. The phenomenon of relaminarization of a turbulent flow in the initial section of a circular pipe under the action of injection has been experimentally detected at the entrance for relatively low Reynolds numbers in [3, 4]. Theoretical investigations of stability of flow with injection have been performed only for a plane channel [5, 6]. A calculation is made in this paper of the stability of a hydrodynamically developed flow in a circular pipe with injection through a porous lateral surface.Translated from Zhurnal Prikladnoi Mekhaniki i Tekhnicheskoi Fiziki, No. 3, pp. 82–86, May–June, 1984.     

Heat transfer characteristics and Nusselt number correlation of turbulent pulsating pipe air flows

Heat transfer characteristics to turbulent pulsating pipe flows under a wide range of Reynolds number and pulsation frequency were experimentally investigated under uniform heat flux condition. Reynolds number was varied from 8462 to 48540 while the frequency of pulsation ranged from 1 to 29.5 Hz. The results showed that the relative mean Nusselt number is strongly affected by both pulsation frequency and Reynolds number. Enhancements in mean Nusselt number of up to 50% were obtained at medium pulsation frequency between 4.1 and 13.9 Hz for Reynolds number range of 8462 to 14581. An enhancement of up to 50% in mean Nusselt number was obtained at high pulsation frequency range between 13.9 and 29.5 Hz, specially as Reynolds number is close to 15000, while a reduction was observed at higher Reynolds number more than 21200. This reduction, at high Reynolds number, increased as pulsation frequency increased. Also, there was a reduction in mean Nusselt number of up to 20% that obtained at low pulsation frequency range between 1 and 4.1 Hz for Reynolds number range of 8462 to 48543. A significant reduction in mean Nusselt number of up to 40% was obtained at medium pulsation frequency between 4.1 and 13.9 Hz for Reynolds number range of 21208 to 48543. Empirical equations have been developed for the relative mean Nusselt number that related to Reynolds number and dimensionless frequency with about uncertainty of 10% rms.The support of both King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals and Cairo University for this research is acknowledged.     

流体黏性对输流管道运动方程及临界流速的影响

考虑实际流体黏性引起的管内流速非均匀分布,针对层流和两种不同的湍流流态,对理想流体情况下输流管道运动方程中的离心力项进行了修正,得到的修正系数分别为1.333(圆管层流)、1.020(光滑管壁圆管湍流)和1.037～1.055(粗糙管壁圆管湍流).根据修正后的运动方程得到的上述3种情况下的发散失稳临界流速比理想流体流动情况下依次分别低13.4%,1.0%和1.8%～2.6%.流体黏性对输流管道运动方程及临界流速的影响只与流态有关,雷诺数决定流态,而黏性系数通过雷诺数间接起作用.     

Solution of general dynamic equation for nanoparticles in turbulent flow considering fluctuating coagulation

A new averaged general dynamic equation (GDE) for nanoparticles in the turbulent flow is derived by considering the combined effect of convection, Brownian diffusion, turbulent diffusion, turbulent coagulation, and fluctuating coagulation. The equation is solved with the Taylor-series expansion moment method in a turbulent pipe flow. The experiments are performed. The numerical results of particle size distribution correlate well with the experimental data. The results show that, for a turbulent nanoparticulate flow, a fluctuating coagulation term should be included in the averaged particle GDE. The larger the Schmidt number is and the lower the Reynolds number is, the smaller the value of ratio of particle diameter at the outlet to that at the inlet is. At the outlet, the particle number concentration increases from the near-wall region to the near-center region. The larger the Schmidt number is and the higher the Reynolds number is, the larger the difference in particle number concentration between the near-wall region and near-center region is. Particle polydispersity increases from the near-center region to the near-wall region. The particles with a smaller Schmidt number and the flow with a higher Reynolds number show a higher polydispersity. The degree of particle polydispersity is higher considering fluctuating coagulation than that without considering fluctuating coagulation.     

Characteristic Regimes of Transitional Separation Bubbles in Unsteady Flow

This experimental investigation deals with transition phenomena of a separated boundary layer under unsteady inlet flow conditions. The main purpose of this investigation is to understand the influence of the rotor-stator interaction in turbomachinery on the subsequent, highly loaded boundary layer. The research project is divided into two phases. In the first phase, which has been completed recently, only the variation of mean velocity caused by upstream blades was simulated in the experiments while the free-stream turbulence intensity was retained at a constant low level. The experiments are carried out in an Eifel-type wind tunnel to investigate the laminar separated boundary layer of a flat plate under oscillating inlet conditions. The adverse pressure gradient, similar to that of turbomachines, is generated by the contoured upper wall. The unsteadiness is produced by a rotating flap located downstream of the test section. The reduced frequency, the amplitude and the mean Reynolds number are varied to simulate the conditions prevailing in turbomachines. In addition to the Kelvin–Helmholtz instability of the separated shear layer, a lower frequency instability was observed. This is frequently referred to as `free shear layer flapping' and results in two distinctly different ways of re-attachment, depending primarily on the Reynolds number. For low momentum thickness Reynolds numbers at the separation point, large-scale vortices locked to the frequency of the unsteady main flow are identified. They originate nearly at the top of the separation bubble and are ejected downstream. A fully turbulent boundary layer develops after these vortices mix out. For higher Reynolds numbers, transition is completed within a short length of the free shear layer and there-attachment region. The characteristic momentum thickness Reynolds number separating these two regimes in unsteady flow is about 125. The Strouhal number (reduced frequency) does not appear to have any significant effect. Based on the experimental results, this behaviour is discussed in some detail. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Flow visualization and LDV measurements of laminar flow in a helical square duct with finite pitch

Flow visualization and LDV measurements are performed on laminar flow in a helical square duct with finite pitch. The experimental observations are compared to results of numerical calculations employing the finite-volume method and assuming a fully developed flow. Good agreement is found between measured and computed velocity profiles. This suggests that the physical velocity components used in the numerical calculations are suitable to describe the flow. It is further demonstrated that the contravariant velocity components employed by some authors may lead to results that are difficult to interpret. Two stable solution branches are detected in the numerical calculations. For Reynolds numbers between the stable branches, unsteady and fully developed computations predict an oscillating flow between a two-vortex and a four-vortex structure. In the experiments, the flow normally retained a stable two-vortex structure in the numerically predicted unstable regime. However, by disturbing the flow at the duct inlet, a four-vortex flow that showed similarities to the computed flow could occasionally be obtained. For Reynolds numbers above 600, unsteady flow behavior was observed both experimentally and numerically, which might be an early sign of transition. In the experiments, Gdrtler-like extra vortices emerged spontaneously from the outer wall without disturbing the flow at the inlet. The same phenomenon was observed in the numerical calculations, assuming an unsteady and fully developed flow, but the extra vortices appeared with a lower frequency than in the experiments.     

Turbulent flow in a circular separationless diffuser at Reynolds numbers smaller than 2000

The results of experimental and numerical investigation of flow in a circular conical diffuser with a small conicity angle ensuring separationless flow are presented. The measurements are carried out in an air flow with the Reynolds number Re₂ in the diffuser exit section ranging from 600 to 3000. A considerable effect of the channel expansion on the flow pattern is found to exist. It is shown that, as distinct from a tube, in which only laminar flow can be realized as steady for Re < 2000, in the exit section of a diffuser with the generator slope of 0.3° and a length equal to 70 entry diameters a developed turbulent flow is formed for Re₂ > 1000. For Re₂ > 1300 this flow is steady, that is, almost independent of the turbulence level at the entry, and is determined by the Reynolds number Re₂ in the exit section. For Re₂ ≈ 1000 the turbulent flow continuously goes over into a laminar flow. The flow parameters measured at the diffuser exit correspond to calculations in accordance with the threeequation turbulence model.     

Evolution of turbulence characteristics from straight to curved pipes

Fully developed, statistically steady turbulent flow in straight and curved pipes at moderate Reynolds numbers is studied in detail using direct numerical simulations (DNS) based on a spectral element discretisation. After the validation of data and setup against existing DNS results, a comparative study of turbulent characteristics at different bulk Reynolds numbers Re_b = 5300 and 11,700, and various curvature parameters κ = 0, 0.01, 0.1 is presented. In particular, complete Reynolds-stress budgets are reported for the first time. Instantaneous visualisations reveal partial relaminarisation along the inner surface of the curved pipe at the highest curvature, whereas developed turbulence is always maintained at the outer side. The mean flow shows asymmetry in the axial velocity profile and distinct Dean vortices as secondary motions. For strong curvature a distinct bulge appears close to the pipe centre, which has previously been observed in laminar and transitional curved pipes at lower Re_b only. On the other hand, mild curvature allows the interesting observation of a friction factor which is lower than in a straight pipe for the same flow rate.All statistical data, including mean profile, fluctuations and the Reynolds-stress budgets, is available for development and validation of turbulence models in curved geometries.     

Direct numerical simulation of the flow in the intake pipe of an internal combustion engine

The incompressible flow in the intake pipe of a laboratory-scale internal combustion engine at Reynolds numbers corresponding to realistic operating conditions was studied with the help of direct numerical simulations. The mass flow through the curved pipe remained constant and the valve was held fixed at its halfway-open position, as is typically done in steady flow engine test bench experiments for the optimization of the intake manifold. The flow features were identified as the flow evolves in the curved intake pipe and interacts with the cylindrical valve stem. The sensitivity of the flow development on the velocity profile imposed at the inflow boundary was assessed. It was found that the flow can become turbulent very quickly depending on the inflow profile imposed at the pipe inlet, even though no additional noise was added to mimic turbulent velocity fluctuations. The transition to turbulence results from competing and interacting instability mechanisms both at the inner curved part of the intake pipe and at the valve stem wake. Azimuthal variations in the local mass flow exiting the intake pipe were identified, in agreement with previously reported measurement results, which are known to play an important role in the charging motion inside the cylinder of an internal combustion engine.     

圆柱绕流流场结构的大涡模拟研究

为进一步揭示绕流现象的形成机理,本文分别对处于层流稳态区、尾流过渡区、剪切层转换区Re分别为26、200、1.4×105的三种典型流态下的单圆柱绕流进行了二维数值模拟研究。Re为26时应用层流模型直接求解N-S方程,而Re分别为200、1.4×105时使用大涡模拟的方法进行计算。数值模拟很好地再现了稳定的涡旋结构、周期性交替脱落的卡门涡街结构、不规则的涡旋结构,在此基础上分析了尾流结构的基本特征及其压强分布规律、平均的流场特性、积分参数(如升力系数、阻力系数、斯特劳哈尔等),并与有关研究成果进行了对比。研究发现,采用不同流动介质时流场特性有所差异,空气为介质时的计算结果更符合实验的成果,而水为介质时计算结果偏差较大,这主要是由尾流涡旋产生的不合理负压造成的。     

垂直湍流液-固流中大颗粒的相对速度

通过量纲分析和实验测量,对于垂直、局部均匀的湍流稀态液一固流中,大颗粒的相对速度,建立了无量纲参数表达式．用分析和实验相结合的方法,确定了表达式中无量纲参数的幂次及有关系数．实验中用激光多普勒分相测量技术,分别测出流体和颗粒的时均速度结果表明,大颗粒相对速度强烈依赖于流体雷诺数,当流体雷诺数较高时,其幂次渐近于1.5。     

Unsteady Laminar to Turbulent Flow in a Spacer-Filled Channel

A combined numerical and experimental investigation has been carried out to study the flow behaviour in a spacer-filled channel, representative of those used in spiral-wound membrane modules. Direct numerical simulation and particle image velocimetry were used to investigate the fluid flow characteristics inside a 2 × 2 cell at Reynolds numbers that range between 100 and 1000. It was found that the flow in this geometry moves parallel to and also rotates between the spacer filaments and that the rate of rotation increases with Reynolds number. The flow mechanisms, transition process and onset of turbulence in a spacer-filled channel are investigated including the use of the velocity spectra at different Reynolds numbers. It is found that the flow is steady for Re < 200 and oscillatory at Re ～ 250 and increasingly unsteady with further increases in Re before the onset of turbulent flow at Re ～ 1000.     

Flow fields in a simulated axisymmetric terminal aneurysm with symmetric and asymmetric outflows

Laser-Doppler velocimetric measurements and flow visualization were performed in a glass axisymmetric aneurysm model with symmetric and asymmetric outflows through the branches. The bifurcation angle was fixed at 140°, and the Reynolds number based on the steady bulk average velocity and diameter of the affarent conduit was 500. The flow characteristics such as flow separation in the afferent conduit and flow activity inside the aneurysm for the symmetric and asymmetric outflow cases were compared in detail, and the case that is susceptible to thrombosis was identified. In addition, the onset of transition from laminar to turbulent flow inside the aneurysm was evidenced by the presence of vortex breakdown and the steep increase in the fluctuation level. Finally, the effect of pulsation on the flow pattern in the aneurysm was examined.