Experimental Study of Near Wake Flow Behind a Rectangular Cylinder

The turbulence characteristics of the near wake flow behind a rectangular cylinder is investigated in a two-dimensional analysis using a hot-wire anemometer. The time-averaged and fluctuating components of the velocity are measured for a cylinder having various width-to-height (b h^-1) ratios. The measurements are carried out in a low-speed wind tunnel. Data from hot-wire anemometer is collected by a data acquisition system. The results show that the turbulence intensity in the flow wake decreases as the width-to-height ratio of the cylinder increases. In addition, the characteristics of the flow field in a few sections are evaluated. Spectral analysis of the velocity signals is carried out for two different Reynolds numbers. The spectral analysis shows that Strouhal number remains nearly constant in high Reynolds numbers. The results of present experiments are in close agreement with the most widely accepted results in the literature.