Turbulent Flow Around a Bluff Rectangular Plate. Part II: Numerical Predictions

Abstract

This paper presents calculations of the time-averaged separated-reattaching flow around a bluff rectangular plate, using a finite difference procedure and the k-ε turbulence model. Two discretization methods are used: the hybrid differencing scheme, and the bounded skew hybrid differencing scheme. The latter, although superior to the former for all grid distributions, results in a reattachment length about 30 percent shorter than the measured value. When a modification which takes into account streamline curvature is incorporated into the k-ε model, a marked improvement in the predictions is obtained. A reattachment length of 4.3 plate thicknesses (D), compared to an experimental value of 4.7D, is obtained, and the predicted mean flow field, turbulent kinetic energy and pressure distributions within the separation bubble are found to be in good agreement with experiments.