Direct numerical simulation of heat transfer in a spatially developing turbulent boundary layer

Direct numerical simulation has been performed to investigate heat transfer in a zero-pressure-gradient spatially developing turbulent boundary layer with realistic thermal inflow boundary conditions. The temperature is considered as a passive scalar and the molecular Prandtl number is set to be 0.71. The turbulence statistics for both the velocity and temperature fields show good agreement with previous numerical and experimental data in the literature. The present study provides a valuable database for the spatially developing turbulent thermal boundary layer over a wide range of Reynolds numbers from Re-theta = 1100 to 1940. The simulation results indicate that both the peak value and peak location of the streamwise velocity fluctuation grow slightly with increasing Reynolds number, same as those of the temperature fluctuation. The relationship between the streamwise velocity and temperature fluctuations has been examined and a strong correlation is observed in the vicinity of the wall. With increasing distance from the wall, however, the degree of correlation significantly decreases. In addition, the difference between the turbulent velocity and temperature fields is also analysed by investigating the mechanisms of heat and momentum transport in boundary layer flow. Published by AIP Publishing.