Inlet conditions effects on vertical wall jets in forced and mixed convection regimes

Abstract

In this paper a numerical investigation of a laminar isothermal or nonisothermal two dimensional plane wall jet is carried out. Special attention has been paid to the effect of the inlet conditions at the nozzle exit on the hydrodynamic and thermal characteristics of the flow, in both convection regimes: forced and mixed. Two velocities profiles at the nozzle exit are used: uniform profile and parabolic profile. The Prandtl number effect on the jet flow characteristics is also analyzed in the case of forced convection regime. The system of governing equations is solved with an implicit finite difference scheme. For numerical stability we use a staggered non-uniform grid. The obtained results show, for the two convection modes, that the inlet conditions affect the flow in the immediate neighbourhood of the nozzle (core region) in which the flow is governed mainly by the inertia forces. In the established region the results become independent of the flow inlet conditions. Secondly, the effect of the Prandtl number is significant in the plume region in which the jet flow is governed by buoyant forces.