Abstract
The results are presented of an experimental investigation into the possible modes of gas-excited vibration of a single row of tubes in a heat exchanger at typical practical spacings. The vibrations discussed are vortex excited and, for damping which permits large amplitudes, occur at values of the Strouhal number 0·26 < ND/V < 0·89. The critical range of ND/V is affected by both Reynolds number and spacing. Four distinct modes of vibration are found, all consisting of motion principally transverse to the flow direction.
Preliminary studies of pairs of tubes, at varying spacing, indicate similarly large ranges of the parameter ND/V in which vibration will occur at typical practical spacings.
The types of vibration described are distinct from, and should not be confused with, either the acoustically coupled type or the equally important modes, in which the motion is principally streamwise, occurring at much lower values of ND/V.
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