Radial source flow between parallel disks

Abstract

The vorticity transport equation is solved for radial incompressible flow between disks by a finite-difference method with discretization based on the method of Allen & Southwell. The solution permits detailed characterization of the flow for the Reynolds number range investigated, 1 ≤ Re ≤ 300. Above Re = 60 separation is observed with the bubble size increasing rapidly with Re. The streamwise and transverse pressure and velocity gradients are examined to interpret the observed phenomena.