Effect of Uneven Wall Temperature on Local Heat Transfer in a Rotating Square Channel With Smooth Walls and Radial Outward Flow

Abstract

The influence of uneven wall temperature on the local heat transfer coefficient in a rotating square channel with smooth walls and radial outward flow was investigated for Reynolds numbers from 2500 to 25,000 and rotation numbers from 0 to 0.352. The square channel, composed of six isolated copper sections, has a length-to-hydraulic diameter ratio of 12. The mean rotating radius to the channel hydraulic diameter ratio is kept at a constant value of 30. Three cases of thermal boundary conditions were studied: (A) four walls uniform temperature, (B) four walls uniform heat flux, and (C) leading and trailing walls hot and two side walls cold. The results show that the heat transfer coefficients on the leading surface are much lower than that of the trailing surface due to rotation. For case A of four walls uniform temperature, the leading surface heat transfer coefficient decreases and then increases with increasing rotation numbers, and the trailing surface heat transfer coefficient increases monotonically with rotation numbers. The decreased (or increased) heat transfer coefficients on the leading (or trailing) surface are due to the cross-stream and centrifugal buoyancy-induced flows from rotations. However, the trailing surface heat transfer coefficients, as well as those for the side walls, for case B are higher than for case A and the leading surface heat transfer coefficients for cases B and C are significantly higher than for case A. The results suggest that the local uneven wall temperature creates the local buoyancy forces, which change the effect of the rotation. Therefore, the local heat transfer coefficients on the leading, trailing, and side surfaces are altered by the uneven wall temperature.