A wind-tunnel model study of forced convective heat transfer from cylindrical grain storage bins

Abstract

Forced convective heat transfer from a series of model cylindrical grain storage bins has been modelled in a wind-tunnel experiment. Three model bins of similar geometry but different heights were placed in a simulated atmospheric boundary layer and their mean Sherwood numbers estimated by the naphthalene sublimation technique. The measured Sherwood numbers can be converted to Nusselt numbers by plausible hypotheses about the dependence of heat or mass transfer rate on molecular diffusivity. The transfer rates from the model walls are shown to be significantly higher than those from two-dimensional circular cylinders under the same conditions. A significant amount of the total mass transfer is found to occur from the conical roof.