Research Article Open Access

Development of an Axisymmetric Thermal Plume between Vertical Plates

Jamil Zinoubi1, Adel Gammoudi2, Taoufik Naffouti2, Rejeb Ben Maad2 and Ali Belghith2
  • 1 Preparatory Institute of the Engineers Studies of Nabeul, Academic Campus El Merazka, 8000 Nabeul, Tunisia
  • 2 Faculty of Sciences of Tunis, Department of Physics Laboratory of Energizing and Thermal and Mass Transfers, El Manar 2092, Tunis, Tunisia

Abstract

This investigation analyses the turbulent structure of a thermal plume created by a heated disk, evolving between vertical plates. The objective of the study was to understand the development mechanisms of this buoyancy driven flow. The analysis of the average and the fluctuating fields of the temperature as well as the flow visualisation show the existence of three different zones. The first zone of the plume air feeding was characterized by the thermal profiles in three extrema structures. These extrema disappear in the second zone where the profiles present on maximum. In the last zone, the profiles are flattened and self-similar. Thus, the turbulence was fully developed. A flow visualisation show that the vertical channel around the hot disk affects the flow structure plume and causes the appearance of a new zone at the system entrance. This supplementary zone characterizes by the development of the two rotating rolls in the vicinity of the hot source. The skewness and flatness factors of the temperature fluctuations show that the latter have a nearly Gaussian distribution in the most turbulent regions of the flow (in the region where the turbulence was fully developed), but that deviates gradually from the Gaussian distribution in the other region.

American Journal of Applied Sciences
Volume 4 No. 9, 2007, 679-685

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3844/ajassp.2007.679.685

Submitted On: 19 July 2006 Published On: 30 September 2007

How to Cite: Zinoubi, J., Gammoudi, A., Naffouti, T., Maad, R. B. & Belghith, A. (2007). Development of an Axisymmetric Thermal Plume between Vertical Plates. American Journal of Applied Sciences, 4(9), 679-685. https://doi.org/10.3844/ajassp.2007.679.685

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Keywords

  • Turbulent flow
  • thermal plume
  • visualization
  • skewness and flatness factors
  • spectral density
  • cascade concept of Kolmogorov