Numerical study of heat flow characteristics of turbulent Taylor-Couette flow in slit wall mode

Abstract

Heat transfer enhancement is by far an important component in the design of numerous industrial applications of Taylor-Couette flow including electric motors and particularly rotating machinery. To optimize the performances of these machines, superior knowledge of the fluid flow is vital to better estimate the heat transfer distribution. This study will specifically consider the effect the slit number and width possess on the distribution of turbulent Taylor-Couette flow and the resulting heat transfer correlation in the annulus of two concentric cylinders under varying conditions. A numerical simulation method is intended for the study using varying slit structure parameters of widths (2.5 ≤ w ≤ 7.5) mm and fitted with 6, 9 and 12 number of slits. The slit effect is then investigated under both isotherm and non-isotherm conditions considering the interactions between fluid flow regions in the mainstream area and the annulus. The small-scale vortex that appears in the annulus region improves the heat transferability between the fluid in the annulus and the main region as well as the heat transfer performance of the model with a gradual increase in Reynolds number.