Simultaneous measurement of temperature and velocity fields in convective air flows

Abstract

Thermal convective air flows are of great relevance in fundamental studies and technical applications such as heat exchangers or indoor ventilation. Since these kinds of flow are driven by temperature gradients, simultaneous measurements of instantaneous velocity and temperature fields are highly desirable. A possible solution is the combination of particle image velocimetry (PIV) and particle image thermography (PIT) using thermochromic liquid crystals (TLCs) as tracer particles. While combined PIV and PIT is already state of the art for measurements in liquids, this is not yet the case for gas flows. In this study we address the adaptation of the measuring technique to gaseous fluids with respect to the generation of the tracer particles, the particle illumination and the image filtering process. Results of the simultaneous PIV/PIT stemming from application to a fluid system with continuous air exchange are presented. The measurements were conducted in a cuboidal convection sample with air in- and outlet at a Rayleigh number Ra ≈ 9.0 × 107. They prove the feasibility of the method by providing absolute and relative temperature accuracies of σT = 0.19 K and σΔT = 0.06 K, respectively. Further open issues that have to be addressed in order to mature the technique are identified.