Experimental and Numerical Investigation of Steady Fluid Forces in Axial Flow on a Cylinder Confined in a Cylinder Array

The goal of the paper is to investigate experimentally and numerically the Taylor-Lighthill-Paidoussis (TLP) model of fluid forces in axial flow, in the case of a flexible cylinder confined in a cylinder array. This model assumes that the local fluid forces depend only on the local angle, curvature, velocity and acceleration of the structure. The experimental setup consists of a wind tunnel with a test section of length 2m and of width 24cm, surrounding a square array of 3x3 cylinders with pitch-to-diameter ratio 1.33. The Reynolds number is about 100000. The central cylinder can be statically rotated or translated. The steady resultant fluid forces exerted on it are recorded using a 6-axis load cell. Experimental and numerical results are in good agreement. The TLP model performs well at predicting some of the forces measured. However, further investigation on the space distribution of these forces is needed to fully assess the performance of that model.