Hydrodynamic study of a rotating MHD flow in a cylindrical cavity by ultrasound Doppler shift method

An experimental study of a steady laminar magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) flow driven by a rotating disk at the top of a cylindrical cavity filled with water or mercury is presented. The velocity distributions were analysed using the ultrasound velocity (UVP) measuring technique. The uniform and constant applied magnetic field is directed along the axis of the cavity. The measurements were compared with results obtained from a numerical model based on a finite volume computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model. The effects of the magnetic field, the fluid and wall electrical conductivities, and the wall thickness are investigated through the conductance ratio k which characterises the influence of the wall on the closure of the electric current distribution. The other relevant parameters are the Hartmann number M, and the Reynolds number Re. The study was performed essentially for different values of Re ⩽ 30,000 and M ⩽ 260. There were close agreement between numerical results, the present ultrasonic measurements and other reported experimental and numerical works. The experiments have revealed something that has not been predicted numerically, the sidewall layer is unstable for special conditions of Hartmann and Reynolds numbers.