The prediction of laminarization with a two-equation model of turbulence

Abstract The paper presents a new model of turbulence in which the local turbulent viscosity is determined from the solution of transport equations for the turbulence kinetic energy and the energy dissipation rate. The major component of this work has been the provision of a suitable form of the model for regions where the turbulence Reynolds number is low. The model has been applied to the prediction of wall boundary-layer flows in which streamwise accelerations are so severe that the boundary layer reverts partially towards laminar. In all cases, the predicted hydrodynamic and heat-transfer development of the boundary layers is in close agreement with the measured behaviour.