Some aspects of turbulence measurement in liquid mercury using cylindrical quartz-insulated hot-film sensors

Abstract

This investigation demonstrates the measurement of low turbulence intensities in a flow of mercury using the constant-temperature hot-film technique. A simple equation for the determination of turbulence intensity is derived on the basis of observed calibration data for short, cylindrical, quartz-insulated, platinum hot-film sensors. This equation has the advantage of being independent of the changeable effects at the sensor-fluid interface and of the usually troublesome drift in anemometer output signal. The flow speeds considered are low, so that the Péclet number based on the outside diameter of the insulated sensor is less than unity. Various problems associated with the application of hot-film anemometry to mercury flows are discussed.