Specific aspects of turbulent flow in rectangular ducts

Abstract

The essential ideas of investigations of turbulent flow in a straight rectangular duct are chronologically presented. Fundamentally significant experimental and theoretical studies for mathematical modeling and numerical computations of this flow configuration are analyzed. An important physical aspect of this type of flow is presence of secondary motion in the plane perpendicular to the streamwise direction, which is of interest from both the engineering and the scientific viewpoints. The key facts for a task of turbulence modeling and optimal choice of the turbulence model are obtained through careful examination of physical mechanisms that generate secondary flows.