Numerical study of laminar fluid flow and heat transfer in the entrance region of a circular pipe

Abstract EN

This research represents a theoretical study which deals with the developing steady, laminar, Newtonian and incompressible fluid flow and heat transfer through circular tube .The effects of heat conduction, body force, free convection, heat generation and viscous dissipation within the fluid are neglected.

A computer program was built by using Gaussian elimination method to perform the numerical marching technique solution with finite difference method for two case of heating ,constant wall temperature and constant wall heat flux boundary conditions for different values of Reynolds number(500, 1000, 2000)and Prandtl number (1, 2.5, 5). This approach provides a picture of the variation of the velocity and temperature profiles through the tube.

The computational algorithm is able to calculate all the hydrodynamic properties such as velocities and pressure drop .

Also it is able to predict all the thermal properties such as the temperature, bulk temperature, and local Nusselt number.

The velocity profile becomes fully developed at approximately le / 2a = 0.05Re, and the temperature distribution becomes fully developed at approximately let / 2a = 0.05Re.

Pr, as expected.