Interferometric measurement of fully turbulent free convective heat transfer coefficients

Abstract
A Mach‐Zehnder interferometer provides information about the local temperature surrounding a heated body. When using this type of interferometer, the measurement of turbulentheat transfer coefficients is often difficult to achieve, and as a result most interferometric studies of heat transfer rates have been limited to laminar flow. A differential interferometer, on the other hand, provides a measure of the temperature gradient and this type of interferometer produces fringe patterns that are an excellent means of observing the flow structure within a turbulent free convection boundary layer. Parallel fringe patterns can easily be converted to local heat transfer coefficients. Heat transfer coefficients measured in air above an isothermal inclined flat plate are presented. These are in excellent agreement with previously published results.

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