07.2021.352.369

Author(s):

Hudhaifa Hamzah^†,‡*, Laith M. Jasim^‡†, Ali Alkhabbaz^‡‡, Besir Sahin^†

Affiliation(s):

^† Dept. of Mechanical Eng., College of Eng., Cukurova University, Adana 01330, TURKEY;

^‡ Dept. of Mechanical Eng., College of Eng., University of Mosul, Mosul 41002, IRAQ;

^‡† Dept. of Mechatronics Eng., College of Eng., University of Mosul, Mosul 41002, IRAQ;

^‡‡ Dept. of Mechanical Eng., College of Eng., Korea Maritime and Ocean University, Busan 49112, SOUTH KOREA.

Corresponding Author Email: [email protected]

This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

In the present study, a numerical analysis of the laminar incompressible flow through an open subsonic wind tunnel is conducted in order to determine the flow quality within the test section. The unsteady two-dimensional governing equations of stream function, 𝜓 and vorticity, ω transport in an orthogonal curvilinear coordinate are solved using the finite difference method (FDM). Flow inside the honeycomb regions within the settling chamber is characterized by using Brinkman–Forchheimer–extended Darcy model with specific properties. The main objective of this study is to select a convenient design of honeycomb structure depending on its porosity, β, and thickness, T_(ho ), that ensures a maximum effective area of the test section with minimum overall power losses through the wind tunnel. The effect of Reynolds number (500 ≤Re≤ 2000), honeycomb porosity (0.85 ≤β≤ 0.9825), honeycomb thickness with respect to the settling chamber length (0.25 ≤Tho≤1) and various inlet velocity profile on the flow uniformity of the test section and the considerations of power losses are investigated. The findings of this investigation affirmed that the honeycomb porosity has a direct impact on the flow quality testing and power losses throughout the considered wind tunnel.