NUMERICAL COMPUTATION OF CONVECTIVE DISPERSION IN TURBULENT BUOYANT JETS

Numerical predictions of mean and turbulent characteristics of the axisymmetric vertical jet and plume are reported. An algebraic stress and flux model is used to close the time-averaged Navier-Stokes and energy equations. Special attention was given to the numerical model, which is based on a finite-volume discretization of the elliptic form of flow equations. A special procedure is used to treat free boundaries and to compute the flow up to the similarity regime. The model was applied to the prediction of the flow for the momentum-dominated (jet) and buoyancy-dominated (plume) regime. The results show that the essential characteristics of the flows, especially for the plume, are correctly reproduced. However, some discrepancies arise from the comparison of predicted and experimental levels.