Abstract
The influence of free tip shape and aspect ratio (AR) on the flow past a finite circular cylinder with two free tips is experimentally and numerically investigated over a range of Reynolds numbers (Re) from 0.69×104 to 6.16×104. Cylinders with two flat, radiused, hemispherical, and conical tips are considered, with AR ranging from 10 to 30. Laboratory experiments are performed in a closed-return wind tunnel. Numerical simulations are conducted using the Shear-Stress Transport Scale-Adaptive Simulation (SST-SAS) model. It is found that the drag coefficient of the flat tip, and the lift coefficient of the hemispherical tip, are the largest. Both lift and drag coefficients increase with AR, while the influence of free tip shape gradually decreases with AR. Results suggest that vortex structure and flow pattern change very significantly with AR, and are related to the free tip shape, especially near the free tips. The influence of free tip shape on the pressure coefficient is concentrated within a range of 3D from the tips, where D is the cylinder diameter. As the distance from the free tip increases, the difference in the pressure coefficients of the cylinder with different ARs first decreases and then increases, experiencing a minimum when the distance from the tip is 3D.
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