Airflow characteristics within a slot-ventilated enclosure

Abstract

The objective of this study is to numerically and experimentally investigate velocity characteristics throughout a long slot-ventilated enclosure as a function of inlet flow arrangement located on the same side of the exit section. This study focused on the effect of the enclosure’s confinement on the airflow pattern and more particularly on the wall jet characteristics concerning its decay and its stabilisation. An original approach is also proposed to evaluate the local effect of airflow pattern on ventilation efficiency. To improve the performance and the uniformity of ventilation in the enclosure, a new configuration with a lateral air inlet section was studied. The results concerning airflow characteristics and air-ventilation efficiency were compared and contrasted with the more common case with a central inlet section. A numerical approach based on computational fluid dynamics (CFD) Fluent code was used to test various turbulence closure models including the high and low Reynolds number form of the two-equation k– ε model and the more advanced Reynolds stress model (RSM). Comparisons with experimental data obtained on a scale model under isothermal conditions allow a critical evaluation of the performance of these models in internal flows.