Flow of a low concentration polyacrylamide fluid solution in a channel with a flat plate obstruction at the entry

Flow in a channel with an obstruction at the entry can be reverse, stagnant or forward depending on the position of the obstruction. These flow phenomena have potential applications in the control of energy and various flows in process engineering. Parameters that affect this flow inside and around the test channel are the gap (g) between the obstruction geometry and the test channel, the Reynolds number (Re) and the length (L) of the test channel. The influence of these parameters on the flow behavior was investigated using a flat plate obstruction at the entry of the channel. A low concentration polyacrylamide solution (0.018% by weight) showing a powerlaw fluid behavior was used as the fluid in this investigation. The flow phenomena were investigated by the velocity measurement and the flow visualization and their results were compared with numerical simulation. These results of low concentration polyacrylamide solution are also compared with the results of water published elsewhere (Kabir et al., 2003). The maximum reverse flow inside the test channel observed was 20% - 30% of the outside test channel velocity at a g/w (gap to width) ratio of 1 for Reynolds numbers of 1000 to 3500. The influence of the test channel length (L) and the Reynolds number (Re) on the velocity ratio ($V_i$/$V_o$: inside velocity/outside velocity in the test channel) are also presented and discussed here.