Abstract
Temperature and velocity fields in a heating unit for automobiles are measured through a model experiment in water tunnel using flow visualizations and image analysis to investigate the mixing mechanism of the flow that has passed through the heater and not passed through it inside the unit. The temperature fields are measured by the liquid crystal visualization technique combined with the field calibration using full color spline fitting technique, and the velocity fields are evaluated by a particle imaging technique with a cross-correlation algorithm. These results indicate an enhanced flow mixing at larger mix-door angles, which results in a shorter mixing distance of temperature and velocity downstream of the mix door. The enhanced flow mixing is caused by the high velocity fluctuations created by the flow separation over the mix door.
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Author Profile Nobuyuki Fujisawa: He was educated at Tohoku University (M.E. 1979, D.E. 1983) in Japan. He joined Gunma University in 1983 and worked as a research associate in the field of turbomachinery and turbulence measurement. He was promoted to an associate professor in 1991 and extended his research field to flow visualization, measurement and control of turbulent flow. Since 1997, he has been a professor of Niigata University and continuing the research on simultaneous measurement of scalar and vector field of thermal flow, quantitative flow visualization and active control of flow and noise.
Hiroshi Ikeda: He was educated at Niigata University (B.E. 2000). He is now studying at the Graduate School of Niigata University and continuing a research on thermal flow.
Ryushi Saito: He was educated at Niigata University (B.E. 1998). He has been working at Takasago Corporation since 1999 as an engineer.
Masaji Yokota: He was educated at Akita University (B.E. 1965) in Japan. He has been working at Calsonic Corporation as an engineer of experimental section. He received D.E. degree in 1998 from Ibaraki University in the field of tribology. He is interested in control of vibration, tribology and thermal flow analysis in complex flow.
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Fujisawa, N., Ikeda, H., Saito, R. et al. Measurement of temperature and velocity fields in a heater unit by liquid crystal thermometry and particle image velocimetry. J Vis 3, 267–274 (2000). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03181849
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03181849