Abstract
This study investigates the influence of varying surface temperature on the critical Reynolds number to understand the onset of turbulence in the boundary layer of a flat plate. Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulations in ANSYS Fluent have been utilized for the purpose of this study. The study systematically varies surface temperature to measure its impact on flow stability. The research demonstrates that an increase in surface temperature results in a lower critical Reynolds number (leading to an earlier transition from laminar to turbulent flow) by modeling air as the working fluid and applying the k-ω SST turbulence model. The results align with theoretical predictions which highlight the destabilizing effect of temperature-induced viscosity changes. This finding has practical implications for aerospace engineering, HVAC systems, and environmental modeling where controlling turbulence can optimize performance and energy efficiency. The study acknowledges limitations due to the use of a 2D model and suggests future work using 3D simulations and other flow conditions to expand the applicability of the findings.
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