LAUSR

Abstract Free convection studies in a section-triangular prismatic enclosure with different aspect ratios (depth-width ratios, A) is conducted using three-dimensional numerical modeling approach. The Rayleigh number (Ra) covers a broad range from 100 to 107. Transient free convection is characterized under top cooled and bottom heated boundary conditions. The flow structure of transverse rolls and longitudinal rolls is described. The critical Rayleigh numbers for the transition of the flow from driven by the baroclinic to Rayleigh-Benard instability and from a steady to an unsteady state have been obtained for different aspect ratios. Free convection in the section-triangular prismatic enclosure could be divided into three regimes, which are presented in a Ra-A space. The quantitative relationship between heat transfer and the aspect ratio as well as the Rayleigh number has been obtained numerically.