Magnetohydrodynamic generator insulated wall boundary layer modeling

Approximate methods of modeling boundary layer behavior on the insulated sidewalls of a magnetohydrodynamic power generator are investigated, with the intention of revising the University of Tennessee Space Institute's Two-Dimensional MHD Generator Code to account for nonuniformities which appear in the cross plane, but not the vertical plane. The code presently calculates the assumed 2-D flowfield between the electrodes and averages the results for an approximation to the insulated wall parameters. This approximation's accuracy decreases with increasing MHD interaction. Several methods were considered, including empirically derived corrections to the sidewall displacement thickness, polynomial and other function fits to the velocity profile, approximate algebraic solution of the equations of motion, and reorientation of the 2-D program's solution scheme to address the transverse plane directly. Very limited success was achieved with each of the first three methods. In fact, all except for the first became much more computationally intense than initially expected due to a lack of a priori knowledge of certain flowfield characteristics. For this reason it was recomended that the modification to the 2-D code, as described above be undertaken as a follow-on to this project. Also it was felt that this follow-on effort would produce empiricisms useful in describing the flowfield, and assumptions made during this (present) study could be validated or invalidated. The proposed modification is outlined herein.