Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-gbm5v Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-17T12:17:22.904Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Source–sink flow inside a rotating cylindrical cavity

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 April 2006

J. M. Owen
Affiliation:
School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, University of Sussex
J. R. Pincombe
Affiliation:
School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, University of Sussex
R. H. Rogers
Affiliation:
School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, University of Sussex

Abstract

The axisymmetric flow inside a rotating cavity with radial outflow or inflow of fluid is discussed. The basic theoretical model of Hide (1968) is extended, using the integralmomentum techniques of von Kármán (1921), to include laminar and turbulent flows; both linear and nonlinear equations are considered. The size of the source region is estimated using a ‘free disk’ model for the outflow case and a free vortex for the inflow case. In both cases, the estimates are in good agreement with available experimental data. Theoretical values of the tangential component of the velocity outside the Ekman layers on the disks, obtained from solutions of the laminar and turbulent integral equations, are compared with experimental values. The experiments were conducted in a number of rotating-cavity rigs, with a radial outflow or inflow of air, and laser-Doppler anemometry was used to measure the velocity in the ‘interior core’ between the Ekman layers. The measurements provide good support for the theoretical models over a wide range of flow rates, rotational speeds and radial locations. Although only isothermal flow is considered in this paper, the methods can be readily extended to non-isothermal flow and heat transfer.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
© 1985 Cambridge University Press

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Barcilon, V. 1970 Some inertial modifications of the linear viscous theory of steady rotating fluid flows. Phys. Fluids 13, 537.Google Scholar
Bayley, F. J. & Owen, J. M. 1970 The fluid dynamics of a shrouded disk system with a radial outflow of coolant. J. Engng Power 92, 335.Google Scholar
Bennetts, D. A. & Hocking, L. M. 1973 On nonlinear Ekman and Stewartson layers in a rotating fluid. Proc. R. Soc. Lond. A 333, 469.Google Scholar
Bennetts, D. A. & Jackson, W. D. N. 1974 Source-sink flow in a rotating annulus: a combined laboratory and numerical study. J. Fluid Mech. 66, 689.Google Scholar
Chew, J. W., Owen, J. M. & Pincombe, J. R. 1984 Numerical predictions for laminar source sink flow in a rotating cylindrical cavity. J. Fluid Mech. 143, 451.Google Scholar
Cochran, W. G. 1934 The flow due to a rotating disc. Proc. Camb. Phil. Soc. 30, 365.Google Scholar
Dorfman, L. A. 1963 Hydrodynamic Resistance and the Heat Loss of Rotating Solids. Edinburgh: Oliver and Boyd.
Faller, A. J. 1963 An experimental study of the instability of the laminar Ekman boundary layer. J. Fluid Mech. 15, 560.Google Scholar
Firouzian, M., Owen, J. M., Pincombe, J. R. & Rogers, R. H. 1985 Flow and heat transfer in a rotating cylindrical cavity with a radial inflow of fluid. Parts I and II. Intl J. Heat and Fluid Flow. To be published.Google Scholar
Greenspan, H. P. 1968 The Theory of Rotating Fluids. Cambridge University Press.
Hide, R. 1968 On source-sink flows in a rotating fluid. J. Fluid Mech. 32, 737.Google Scholar
von Kármán, Th. 1921 Über laminare und turbulente Reibung. Z. angew. Math. Mech. 1, 233.Google Scholar
Owen, J. M. & Bilimoria, E. D. 1977 Heat transfer in rotating cylindrical cavities. J. Mech. Engng Sci. 19, 175.Google Scholar
Owen, J. M. & Pincombe, J. R. 1980a Velocity measurements inside a rotating cylindrical cavity with a radial outflow of fluid. J. Fluid Mech. 99, 111.Google Scholar
Owen, J. M. & Pincombe, J. R. 1980b The use of optical techniques in the interpretation of heat transfer measurements. AGARD Conf. Proc. 281, 151.Google Scholar
Owen, J. M. & Rogers, R. H. 1975 Velocity biasing in laser doppler anemometers. In Proc. Intl Symposium on Laser Doppler Anemometry (LDA-75), 89.
Owen, J. M. & Rogers, R. H. 1983 Solution of the integral momentum equations for an Ekman layer in a heated rotating cavity. 1. The full equations and the linear approximation. Rep. No. 80/TFMRC/15a, School of Engng and Appl. Sciences, University of Sussex.
Phadke, U. P. & Owen, J. M. 1983 An investigation of ingress for an ‘air-cooled’ shrouded rotating disk system with radial-clearance seals. J. Engng Power 105, 178.Google Scholar
Pincombe, J. R. 1984 Optical measurements of the flow in a rotating cylinder. D.Phil. thesis, University of Sussex.
Pincombe, J. R., Owen, J. M. & Rogers, R. H. 1983 Solution of the integral momentum equations for an Ekman layer in a heated rotating cavity. 3. Comparison between theory and experiment. Rep. No. 82/TFMRC/17a, School of Engng and Appl. Sciences, University of Sussex.
Rogers, R. H. & Owen, J. M. 1983 Solution of the integral momentum equations for an Ekman layer in a heated rotating cavity. 2. The nondimensional form of the equations and the numerical solution. Rep. No. 81/TFMRC/16a, School of Engng and Appl. Sciences, University of Sussex.
Schlichting, H. 1978 Boundary-Layer Theory. New York: McGraw-Hill.
Tatro, P. R. & Mollo-Christensen, E. L. 1967 Experiments on Ekman layer stability. J. Fluid Mech. 28, 531.Google Scholar