Water-Tank Experiment on the Thermal Circulation Induced by the Bottom Heating in an Asymmetric Valley

Water tank experiments were carried out to investigate the thermal convection due to the bottom heating in an asymmetrical valley under neutral and stably stratified approach flows with the Particle Image Velometry (PIV) visualization technique. In the neutral stratification approach flow, the ascending draft induced by bottom heating is mainly located in the center of the valley in calm ambient wind. However, with ambient wind flow, the thermal convection is shifted leeward, and the descending draft is located on the leeward side of the valley, while the ascending draft is located on the windward side. The descending draft is minorly turbulent and organized, while the ascending draft is highly turbulent. With the increase of the towing speed, the descending and ascending drafts induced by the mechanical elevation begin to play a more dominant role in the valley flow, while the role of the thermal convection in the valley airflow becomes limited. In the stable stratification approach flow, the thermal convection is limited by the stable stratification and no distinct circulation is formed in calm ambient wind. With ambient wind, agravity wave appears in the upper layer in the valley. With the increase of the ambient wind speed, a gravity wave plays an important role in the valley flow, and the location and intensity of the thermal convection are also modulated by the gravity internal waves. The thermal convection has difficulty penetrating the upper stable layer. Its exchange is limited between the air in the upper layer and that in the lower layer in the valley, and it is adverse to the diffusion of pollutants in the valley.

Numerical and Experimental Studies on Flow and Pollutant Dispersion in Urban Street Canyons

In this study numerical simulations and water tank experiments were used to investigate the flow and pollutant dispersion in an urban street canyon. Two types of canyon geometry were tested. The studies indicate that in a step-up notch canyon （higher buildings on the downstream side of the canyon）, the height and shape of the upstream lower buildings plays an important role in flow pattern and pollutant dispersion, while in a step-down notch canyon （lower buildings on the downstream side）, the downstream lower buildings have little influence. The studies also show that the substitution of tall towers for parailelepiped buildings on one side of the canyon may enhance the street ventilation and decrease the pollutant concentration emitted by motor vehicles.

The effect of free surface on cloud cavitating flow around a blunt body

In this study, the effect of the free surface on the cloud cavitating flow around a blunt body is investigated based on the water tank experiment and the CFD method. Numerical results are in good agreement with experimental data, and the mesh independence of the methods is verified. The cavity evolution process includes the cavity growth, the re-entrant jet, the cavity shedding, and the collapse, which can all be observed from the water tank experiment. The effects of the free surface on the cavity length, the thickness, and the cavity evolution period are analyzed by comparing the difference between the cavitating flows on the upper and lower sides of the body. This study also examines the effect of the distance between the free surface and the model through a series of water tank experiments and numerical simulations. The cavity stability and asymmetry, as well as the thickness and the velocity of the re-entrant jet inside the cavity, which varies with the submerged depth, are discussed with consideration of the effect of the free surface. The effect of the free surface on the cavitating flow around the blunt body is enhanced with the decrease of the submerged depth.