Numerical study of laminar fluid flow in a curved elliptic duct with internal fins

The fully developed laminar incompressible flow inside a curved duct of elliptical cross-section with four thin, internal longitudinal fins is studied using the improved CVP method. We present numerical results for the friction factor and an investigation of the effect of the fin height and the Dean number on the flow. It is found that the friction factor increases for large fins and for high Dean numbers and that in some cases, it has a strong dependence on the cross-sectional aspect ratio. The thermal results show that the heat transfer rate is enhanced by the internal fins and that it depends on the aspect ratio.