Effect of surface radiation on natural convection in a square enclosure

Results of an experimental study of heat transfer by natural convection and surface radiation in an air-filled square enclosure using a differential interferometer are reported. The enclosure comprises two differentially heated vertical walls and two horizontal adiabatic walls. The suppression of natural convection in the presence of surface radiation has been demonstrated experimentally. For the case of an enclosure with highly emissive walls, mean Nusselt number correlations for convection and radiation, as well as combined convection and radiation, are also presented in terms of Grashof number in the laminar range.