Fully developed turbulent flow in rectangular interrupted-plate ducts

Experimental and numerical investigations of turbulent spatially-periodic fully developed flows in straight ducts of rectangular cross section, with interrupted-plate inserts, are presented in this thesis. A computer code, based on a finite volume method and incorporating a low-Reynolds-number k-$ epsilon$ turbulence model, for the simulation of two-dimensional, steady, spatially-periodic fully developed flows in interrupted-plate channels was developed, tested, and used in the numerical investigation. The experimental work was complementary to the numerical work. It was aimed at obtaining accurate and complete data that would allow fair evaluation of the numerical model and lead to an enhanced understanding of spatially-periodic fully developed turbulent flows.Turbulent spatially-periodic fully developed flows in three different interrupted-plate ducts, each having different plate thicknesses, were investigated, with module Reynolds numbers in the range 5 $ times$ 10$ sp3$ $ le$ Re$ sb{ rm m} le$ 33.5 $ times$ 10$ sp3$. The results presented include (i) module friction factor versus Reynolds number plots; (ii) plots of intramodular time-mean wall static pressure distributions; (iii) plate surface streamline photographs; and (iv) a variety of numerical results, including plots of streamlines, and distributions of plate shear stress, wall shear stress, axial momentum flux, axial velocities, mean turbulence kinetic energy and turbulence Reynolds numbers. The details and implications of these results are discussed in this thesis