Abstract
Fully developed turbulent flow in a pipe was studied by considering experimental and computational methods. The aim of this work was to build on the legacy of the University of Manchester, which is widely regarded as the birthplace of turbulence due to the pioneering work of the prominent academic Professor Osborne Reynolds (1842–1912), by capturing the evolution of fluid turbulence analysis tools over the last 100 years. A classical experimental apparatus was used to measure the mean velocity field and wall shear stress through four historical techniques: static pressure drop; mean square signals measured from a hot-wire; Preston tube; and Clauser plot. Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) was used to simulate the pipe flow, utilizing the Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes (RANS) method with different two-equation turbulence models. The performance of each approach was assessed to compare the experimental and computational methods. This comparison revealed that the numerical results produced a close agreement with the experiments. The finding shows that, in some cases, CFD simulations could be used as alternative or complementary methods to experimental techniques for analyzing fully developed turbulent pipe flow.
Highlights
Turbulence appears in the majority of the fluids existent in nature and it is important for a variety of practical engineering applications, including ventilation systems and biomedical research
After more than 100 years of research, various methods for analyzing turbulent flow have been developed, but a clear understanding of their evolution has not yet emerged. The goal of this investigation was to show the evolution of fluid turbulence analysis tools by reviewing the scopes and limitations of historical techniques and by comparing common experimental and computational methods for measuring the mean velocity field and wall shear stress for turbulent flow
By comparing the experimental data against the Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) results, this study provided an assessment of the performance of historic experimental techniques with one of the most popular computational simulations, demonstrating from a practical perspective the evolution of methods available for a fluid dynamicist studying the complex phenomena involved in turbulent flows
Summary
Turbulence appears in the majority of the fluids existent in nature and it is important for a variety of practical engineering applications, including ventilation systems and biomedical research. A flow is characterized as turbulent when the Reynolds number exceeds a critical value. Many environmental and industrial applications are associated with augmented Reynolds numbers which characterize the flow regime as turbulent [1]. After more than 100 years of research, various methods for analyzing turbulent flow have been developed, but a clear understanding of their evolution has not yet emerged. The goal of this investigation was to show the evolution of fluid turbulence analysis tools by reviewing the scopes and limitations of historical techniques and by comparing common experimental and computational methods for measuring the mean velocity field and wall shear stress for turbulent flow. Considering its wide applications, this study may offer a significant starting point for analyzing fluid behavior in a vast range of contexts
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