Title: Numerical analysis on the effect of embedding detached short splitter-plates in the downstream of a circular cylinder

Authors: Behzad Ghadiri Dehkordi, Hamed Houri Jafari

Addresses: Department of Mechanical Engineering, School of Engineering, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran 14115-143, Iran. ' Department of Mechanical Engineering, School of Engineering, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran 14115-143, Iran

Abstract: In this paper, flow over a circular cylinder with detached short splitter-plates is numerically simulated so as to assess the flow behaviour and its characteristics. A finite-volume solver based on the Cartesian-staggered grid is implemented. Furthermore, the ghost-cell method in conjunction with Great-Source-Term technique is employed to enforce directly the no-slip condition on the cylinder boundary. The accuracy of the solver is validated by simulation of the flow around a single circular cylinder. The results are completely compatible with the experimental data. Eventually, the flow over a circular cylinder with splitter-plate in its downstream in Re = 40, 100 and 150, 0 ≤ G/D ≤ 10, and 0 ≤ Z/D ≤ 1.25 (where D is the cylinder diameter, G and Z are the horizontal and vertical distances between leading edge of the splitter-plate and the cylinder base, respectively) are simulated and analysed. For these configurations that are being studied, the drag and lift coefficients, the Strouhal number and the flow visualising parameters are obtained. The same simulations are also performed for the cases where dual splitter-plates are in a parallel arrangement embedded in the downstream of the cylinder. These compounds can be applied in many mechanical types of equipment to minimise flow-induced forces and suppress periodic vortex shedding.

Keywords: circular cylinders; splitter plates; vortex shedding; finite volume method; Cartesian-staggered grid; flow behaviour; simulation; drag coefficient; lift coefficient; Strouhal number; flow visualisation.

DOI: 10.1504/PCFD.2011.037568

Progress in Computational Fluid Dynamics, An International Journal, 2011 Vol.11 No.1, pp.6 - 17

Published online: 19 Dec 2010 *

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