Thermal Developing Flow in a Curved Duct with an Elliptic Cross Section

Abstract

In this paper, laminar flow and heat transfer are investigated in the thermal entrance region of a curved elliptic duct. The elliptic duct is subjected to constant wall temperature. The solutions are numerically obtained by employing the control volume based, finite difference method via generation of a boundary-fitted coordinate system. The curvature ratio effect is also included in the formulation of the governing equations. Temperature distribution and local Nusselt numbers are obtained and presented graphically for various Prandtl numbers. Dean numbers, and minor- to major-axis ratios. It is observed that one-eyed isotherms appear in the process of temperature development. Effects of the Dean number and the Prandtl number on heat transfer are discussed in detail. Finally, the asymptotic Nusselt numbers art obtained. Furthermore, accuracy of the present calculations is validated by comparison with some published data available in the open literature. Excellent agreement has been obtained for all cases.