Numerical Analysis of Thermal and Aerodynamic Fields in a Channel with Cascaded Baffles

Abstract

A computational fluid dynamic analysis of thermal and aerodynamic fields for an incompressible steady-state flow of a Newtonian fluid through a two-dimensional horizontal rectangular section channel with upper and lower wall-attached, vertical, staggered, transverse, cascaded rectangular-triangular (CRT), solid-type baffles is carried out in the present paper using the Commercial, Computational Fluid Dynamics, software FLUENT. The flow model is governed by the Reynolds averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) equations with the SST k-ω turbulence model and the energy equation. The finite volume method (FVM) with the SIMPLE-discretization algorithm is applied for the solution of the problem. The computations are carried out in the turbulent regime for different Reynolds numbers. In this study, thermo-aeraulic fields, dimensionless axial profiles of velocity, skin friction coefficients, local and average heat transfer coefficients, and thermal enhancement factor were investigated, at constant surface temperature condition along the heated upper wall of the channel, for all the geometry under investigation and chosen for various stations. The impact of the cascaded rectangular-triangular geometry of the baffle on the thermal and dynamic behavior of air is shown and this in comparing the data of this obstacle type with those of the simple flat rectangular-shaped baffle. This CFD analysis can be a real application in the field of heat exchangers, solar air collectors, and electronic equipments.