An experimental and numerical study on the effect of the wall in a thermocline-type cylindrical enclosure—II Numerical model

Abstract Natural convection in cylindrical enclosures finds many applications in solor energy problems. An integral method to solve these internal flow problems is presented. The cases of a thermocline-type enclosure and a cylindrical enclosure subject to constant elevated wall temperatures are solved as examples. Correlations of the Nusselt number for various Rayleigh numbers and wall materials are presented for the laminar regime. The mixing rate of the fluid is estimated for various boundary conditions. Results computed with this method are in good agreement with the finite difference solution and the experimental data presented in Part I.