Numerical Investigation of Newtonian Fluid Flow around Sharp & Rounded Corner Rectangular Obstruction

Abstract

In the present study, very stable and converging Least Square finite element method (LSFEM) is employed to calculate the approximate solution of steady state Navier – Stokes equation, consisting continuity and momentum equations in two dimensions. The 2D rectangular domain is considered to study the behavior of linear fluid passing two parallel rectangular obstructions in an open channel. The current numerical analysis is based on two instances, in the first one two rectangular obstructions possesses sharp corners set to face the entering flow while in the other case, obstructions having round corners are analyzed concerning to examine the enhancement in the size of vortex formed due to the flow blockage, intensity of vortex and the recirculation flow rate in the dead zone for Reynolds number from 250 to 2000. The stream line patterns are also presented to monitor the changes appears in the shape of vortex for different Re. The information gather through the analysis suggests the cutoff corner obstruction is congenial in restricting the vortex length and favorable for slow down the flow circulation rate in the lower stream of the channel. The acquired results are compared with established data in past literature which turn out to be in good agreement.