Heat transfer and fluid dynamics of a single jet impingement - An experimental and numerical approach

Jet impingement is a complex flow governed by several variables; therefore, it is important to perform an indepth study to understand their influence on heat transfer efficiency. This work uses a Particle Image Velocimetry technique and a heat flux sensor to study the flow field of a jet impinging a flat plate. To provide more data that complement the experimental approach, a numerical model of an air jet is performed using ANSYS FLUENT software. The study focuses on a single air jet impinging a flat plate in a confined space considering two different case studies - an isothermal and non -isothermal jet to analyze the effect of plate temperature on the flow development and two different jet velocities to determine the effect of flow velocity in laminar (Re = 400) and in transition (Re = 1000) regimes on heat transfer. This work provides relevant insights regarding jets with a low Reynolds number, which is slightly explores in the literature. The results show that the flow structure and heat transfer profile is well predicted by the numerical tool, showing a good compromise between the accuracy of the numerical results and reduced computational costs. The data provided by the numerical model offers more information that is not possible to obtain experimentally due to instrumental and physical limitations, highlighting the potential of ANSYS FLUENT to model impinging jets.