SIMULATION OF NATURAL-CONVECTION IN A VERTICAL ENCLOSURE BY USING A NEW INCOMPRESSIBLE-FLOW FORMULATION - PSEUDOVORTICITY-VELOCITY FORMULATION

Numerical simulations incorporating a new incompressible viscous flow formulation, the pseudovorticity-velocity formulation, are carried out for two- or three-dimensional flow and temperature fields of natural convection in an air-filled vertical enclosure. The enclosure is subje cted to differential heating at two vertical sidewalls. The other side walls of the enclosure are thermally insulated. The numerical techniqu e employed involves finite difference in the direction normal to the d ifferentially heated walks and pseudospectral approximation in the oth er two directions normal to the adiabatic walls of the enclosure. The numerical features of the present simulations have been validated by c omparing with corresponding results in the literature. The present for mulation has been demonstrated to be capable of yielding effectively a divergence-free two- or three-dimensional buoyancy driven velocity fi eld in the enclosure.