Numerical study of laminar forced convection fluid flow and heat transfer from a triangular cylinder placed in a channel

Computational study of two-dimensional laminar flow and heat transfer past a triangular cylinder placed in a horizontal channel is presented for the range 80 <= Re <= 200 and blockage ratio 1/12 < beta <= 1/3. A second-order accurate finite volume code with nonstaggered arrangement of variables is developed employing momentum interpolation for the pressure-velocity coupling. Global mode of cross-stream velocity oscillations predict the first bifurcation point increases linearly with blockage ratio with no second bifurcation found in the range of Re studied. The Strouhal number and rms of lift coefficient increase significantly with blockage ratio and Reynolds number while overall Nusselt number remains almost unchanged for different blockage ratios. At lower blockage ratios, flow is found to be similar to the unconfined flow and is more prone to wake instability. Instantaneous streak lines provide an excellent means of visualizing the von Karman vortex street.