AN EXPERIMENTAL INVESTIGATION OF CONVECTIVE HEAT-TRANSFER FROM THE HEATED FLOOR OF A RECTANGULAR DUCT TO A LOW-FREQUENCY, LARGE TIDAL DISPLACEMENT OSCILLATORY FLOW

This research experimentally investigates convective heat transfer from a heated floor section of a rectangular duct to a low frequency, large tidal displacement, oscillatory flow. Phase correlated oscillatory flow velocity and temperature profiles are presented. Favorable pressure gradients, with respect to time, are shown to stabilize the flow while adverse pressure gradients are shown to sustain velocity fluctuations. Higher heat transfer rates are obtained for smaller duct heights, higher oscillation frequencies, and larger tidal displacements. A nondimensional correlation based on a new correlation parameter has been obtained for the oscillatory-flow Nusselt number.