• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.54 no.9
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• pp.3540-3550
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• 2022

The supercritical carbon dioxide (S-CO₂) Brayton cycle is an important energy conversion technology for the fourth generation of nuclear energy. Since the printed circuit heat exchanger (PCHE) used in the S-CO₂ Brayton cycle has narrow channels, Rayleigh-Bénard (RB) convection is likely to exist in the tiny channels. However, there are very few studies on RB convection in supercritical fluids. Current research on RB convection mainly focuses on conventional fluids such as water and air that meet the Boussinesq assumption. It is necessary to study non-Boussinesq fluids. PRB convection refers to RB convection that is affected by horizontal incoming flow. In this paper, the computational fluid dynamics simulation method is used to study the PRB convection phenomenon of non-Boussinesq fluid-supercritical carbon dioxide. The result shows that the inlet Reynolds number (Re) of the horizontal incoming flow significantly affects the PRB convection. When the inlet Re remains unchanged, with the increase of Rayleigh number (Ra), the steady-state convective pattern of the fluid layer is shown in order: horizontal flow, local traveling wave, traveling wave convection. If Ra remains unchanged, as the inlet Re increases, three convection patterns of traveling wave convection, local traveling wave, and horizontal flow will appear in sequence. To characterize the relationship between traveling wave convection and horizontal incoming flow, this paper proposes the relationship between critical Reynolds number and relative Rayleigh number (r).

• Journal of computational fluids engineering
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• v.21 no.3
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• pp.64-70
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• 2016

Multiple solutions in natural convection of water with Pr=7 between two horizontal plates with small magnitude non-uniform temperature distribution in the upper plate is numerically investigated. The dimensionless temperature of upper plate is ${\theta}={\epsilon}sinkx$. Two upright cells are formed over one wave length in the conduction-dominated regime of small Rayleigh number. However, multicellular convection occurs above a critical Rayleigh number for small wave number. When k = 1.5, dual solutions are found and a transition of $6{\rightarrow}4$ eddy flow occurs with decrease of Rayleigh number. When k = 0.75, two, three, four and five multiple solutions are observed. Transitions of $14{\rightarrow}12$, $12{\rightarrow}10$, $10{\rightarrow}8$ and $6{\rightarrow}8$ eddy flow occur with decrease of Rayleigh number.

• Transactions of the Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers B
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• v.28 no.11
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• pp.1440-1448
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• 2004

Multiple solutions in natural convection of air (Pr=0.7) between two horizontal walls with mean temperature difference and the same periodic nob-uniformities are investigated. An analytical solution is found for small Rayleigh number, and the general solution is investigated by using a numerical method. In the conduction-dominated regime, two upright cells are formed between two walls over one wave length. When the wave number is small, the flow becomes unstable with increase of the Rayleigh number, and multicellular convection occurs above a critical Rayleigh number. The multicellular flows at high Rayleigh numbers consist of approximately square-shape cells. And several kinds of multiple flows classified by the number of cells are found.

• Journal of Power System Engineering
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• v.11 no.4
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• pp.56-64
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• 2007

A numerical simulation is carried out mixed convection in horizontal channel with a heat source from below of rectangular cavity. Finite volume method was employed for the discretization and PISO algorithm was used for calculating pressure term. The parameters governing the problem are the Reynolds number ($10^{-2}{\leq}Re{\leq}50$), the Rayleigh number ($10^3{\leq}Ra{\leq}2.06{\times}10^5$), the Prandtl number ($0.72{\leq}Pr{\leq}909$), the aspect ratio ($0.5{\leq}AR=W/H{\leq}2$) and the angle of inclination ($0^{\circ}{\theta}60^{\circ}$). Mean Nusselt number distributions were obtained and effect of Reynolds number, Rayleigh number and Prandtl number on mixed convection in the horizontal channel with rectangular cavity were investigated.

• International Journal of Automotive Technology
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• v.8 no.6
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• pp.705-711
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• 2007

A rectangular fin with a fluid in the inside wall is analyzed and optimized using a two-dimensional analytical method. The influence of the fluid convection characteristic number in the inside wall and the fin base thickness on the fin base temperature is listed. For the fixed fin volumes, the maximum heat loss and the corresponding optimum fin effectiveness and dimensions as a function of the fin base thickness, convection characteristic numbers ratio, convection characteristic number over the fin, fluid convection characteristic number in the inside wall, and the fin volume are represented. One of the results shows that both the optimum heat loss and the corresponding fin effectiveness increase as the fin base thickness decreases.

• Transactions of the Korean Society of Automotive Engineers
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• v.16 no.6
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• pp.81-87
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• 2008

A geometrically asymmetric trapezoidal fin with variable fin base thickness and height is optimized based on the fixed fin base height using a one-dimensional analytic method. The temperature profile along the normalized X position in the fin is presented. For the fixed fin base height, the optimum heat loss, fin length and efficiency as a function of inside fluid convection characteristic number, fin base thickness and height, fin shape factor, convection characteristic numbers ratio and ambient convection characteristic number are represented. One of the results shows that the effect of fin base height and ambient convection characteristic number on the optimum values is remarkable.

• Transactions of the Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers B
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• v.24 no.9
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• pp.1210-1218
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• 2000

Thermal convection in a horizontal annulus is considered, and the bifurcation phenomena of flows from time-periodic to chaotic convection are numerically investigated. The unsteady two-dimensional streamfunction-vorticity equation is solved with finite difference method. As Rayleigh number is increased, the steady flow bifurcates to a time-periodic flow with a fundamental frequency, and afterwards a period-tripling bifurcation occurs with further increase of the Rayleigh number. Chaotic convection is established after a period-doubling bifurcation. A periodic convection with period 4 appears after the first chaotic convection. At still higher Rayleigh numbers, chaotic flows reappear.

• Journal of computational fluids engineering
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• v.9 no.4
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• pp.1-6
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• 2004

This study investigates the transition of flows in a natural convection problem with periodic wall temperatures of the form, T/sub L/=T₁＋δ Tsinκχ and T/sub L/=T₂＋δ Tsinκχ .The fluid considered is air with P/sub γ/=0.7. In the conduction-dominated regime with a small Rayleigh number, two large cells are formed over one wave length, for all wave numbers. When k≤1.8, the flow becomes unstable with increase of the Rayleigh number, and multicellular convection occurs above a critical Rayleigh number. The flow patterns are classified by the number of eddies over one wave length, and several kinds of transition phenomena, such as 2→3→4, 4→3→2, and 2→4 eddy flow, occur with increase( or decrease) of the Rayleigh number. Dual solutions are found above a critical Rayleigh number, and an anomalous bifurcation is observed.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Marine Engineers Conference
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• 2005.06a
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• pp.210-215
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• 2005

A three-dimensional numerical simulation is performed to investigate on a low Reynolds number mixed convection in a horizontal rectangular channel with the upper part cooled and the lower part heated uniformly. The three-dimensional governing equations are solved using a finite volume method. For convective term, the central differencing scheme is used and for the pressure correction, the PISO algorithm is used. Solutions are obtained for A=4, Pr=0.72, 10, 909, the Reynolds number ranging from $2.1{\times}10^{-2}$ to $1.2{\times}10^{-1}$, the Rayleigh number is $3.5{\times}10^4$. It is found that vortex roll structures of mixed convection in horizontal rectangular channel can be classified into three roll structures which affected by Prandtl number and Reynolds number.

• Transactions of the Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers
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• v.11 no.2
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• pp.345-353
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• 1987

An analysis is performed to study flow and heat transfer characteristics of mixed free and forced convection about a sphere. Nonsimilar boundary layer equations which are valid over the entire regime of mixed convection are derived in terms of the mixed convection parameter, Gr/Re$^{2}$, through a dimensional analysis. The transformed conservation equations are solved by a finite difference method for the whole range of mixed convection regime. Numerical results for fluids having the Prandtl number 0.7 and 7 are presented. As the mixed convection parameter increases, the local friction coefficient and local heat transfer coefficient increases as well. For small Prandtl number, the friction coefficient is larger, while for large Prandtl number, the heat transfer coefficient is larger. Natural convection effect on the forced flow is more sensitive for small Prandtl number fluid. Flow separation migrates rearward as an increase in the mixed convection parameter. For small Prandtl number, the buoyancy effect is relatively small so that the flow separation occurs earlier.