A benchmark numerical solution involving steady, spatially-periodic, fully developed laminar flow and heat transfer

A benchmark numerical solution for steady, two-dimensional, spatially-periodic, fully developed laminar flow and heat transfer is presented. The geometry of interest consists of an array of interrupted plates, in a staggered arrangement, aligned parallel with the main flow direction. Such a configuration can be regarded as a two-dimensional idealization of the cores of some offset-fin compact heat exchangers. The calculations were performed with six different uniform grids. The results obtained were used in a Richardson-type extrapolation procedure to obtain essentially grid-independent results. Details of this extrapolation procedure, its implications, and the results are presented and discussed.