VMFL002

VMFL002
Laminar Flow Through a Pipe with Uniform Heat Flux

Overview

Reference
F.M. White. Fluid Mechanics . 3rd Edition. McGraw-Hill Book Co., New York, NY. 1994.
F.P. Incropera and D.P. DeWitt. Fundamentals of Heat Transfer. John Wiley & Sons. 1981.
SolverAnsys Fluent, Ansys CFX
Physics/ModelsLaminar flow with heat transfer
Input File
laminar-pipe-hotflow.cas for Ansys Fluent
VMFL002B_VV002CFX.def for Ansys CFX
Project FilesLink to Project Files Download Page

Test Case

Laminar flow of Mercury through a circular pipe is modeled, with uniform heat flux across the wall. A fully developed laminar velocity profile is prescribed at the inlet. The resulting pressure drop and exit temperature are compared with analytical calculations for Laminar flow. Only half of the 2–D domain is modeled due to symmetry.

Figure 2: Flow Domain

Flow Domain

Material PropertiesGeometry Boundary Conditions

Fluid: Mercury

Density = 13529 kg/m3

Viscosity = 0.001523 kg/m-s

Specific Heat = 139.3 J/kg-K

Thermal Conductivity = 8.54 W/m-K

Length of the pipe = 0.1 m

Radius of the pipe = 0.0025 m

Fully developed velocity profile at inlet.

Inlet temperature = 300 K

Heat Flux across wall = 5000 W/m2

Analysis Assumptions and Modeling Notes

The flow is steady and incompressible. Pressure drop can be calculated from the theoretical expression for laminar flow given in Ref. 1. Correlations for temperature calculations are given in Ref. 2.

Results Comparison for Ansys Fluent

Table 3: Comparison of Pressure Drop and Outlet Temperature

 TargetAnsys FluentRatio
Pressure Drop, Pa1.0000.9990.999
Centerline Temperature at the Outlet, K341.00340.500.999

Results Comparison for Ansys CFX

Table 4: Comparison of Pressure Drop and Outlet Temperature

 TargetAnsys CFXRatio
Pressure Drop, Pa1.0001.0191.019
Centerline Temperature at the Outlet, K341.00340.80.9994