Experiments in a boundary layer subjected to free stream turbulence. Part 1. Boundary layer structure and receptivity

1994 ◽  
Vol 281 ◽  
pp. 193-218 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. J. A. Westin ◽  
A. V. Boiko ◽  
B. G. B. Klingmann ◽  
V. V. Kozlov ◽  
P. H. Alfredsson
Keyword(s):  
Boundary Layer ◽  
Free Stream ◽  
Layer Structure ◽  
Present Report ◽  
Plate Boundary ◽  
Transition Process ◽  
Wave Instability ◽  
Free Stream Turbulence ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Tollmien Schlichting

The modification of the mean and fluctuating characteristics of a flat-plate boundary layer subjected to nearly isotropic free stream turbulence (FST) is studied experimentally using hot-wire anemometry. The study is focussed on the region upstream of the transition onset, where the fluctuations inside the boundary layer are dominated by elongated flow structures which grow downstream both in amplitude and length. Their downstream development and scaling are investigated and the results are compared with those obtained by previous authors. This allows some conclusions about the parameters which are relevant for the modelling of the transition process. The mechanisms underlying the transition process and the relative importance of the Tollmien–Schlichting wave instability in this flow are treated in an accompanying paper (part 2 of the present report).

Transition of streamwise streaks in zero-pressure-gradient boundary layers

2002 ◽  
Vol 472 ◽  
pp. 229-261 ◽  
Author(s):  
LUCA BRANDT ◽  
DAN S. HENNINGSON
Keyword(s):  
Boundary Layer ◽  
Pressure Gradient ◽  
High Speed ◽  
Plate Boundary ◽  
Transition Process ◽  
Free Stream Turbulence ◽  
Tollmien Schlichting ◽  
Streamwise Streaks ◽  
The Stability ◽  
Optimal Disturbances

A transition scenario initiated by streamwise low- and high-speed streaks in a flat-plate boundary layer is studied. In many shear flows, the perturbations that show the highest potential for transient energy amplification consist of streamwise-aligned vortices. Due to the lift-up mechanism these optimal disturbances lead to elongated streamwise streaks downstream, with significant spanwise modulation. In a previous investigation (Andersson et al. 2001), the stability of these streaks in a zero-pressure-gradient boundary layer was studied by means of Floquet theory and numerical simulations. The sinuous instability mode was found to be the most dangerous disturbance. We present here the first simulation of the breakdown to turbulence originating from the sinuous instability of streamwise streaks. The main structures observed during the transition process consist of elongated quasi-streamwise vortices located on the flanks of the low-speed streak. Vortices of alternating sign are overlapping in the streamwise direction in a staggered pattern. The present scenario is compared with transition initiated by Tollmien–Schlichting waves and their secondary instability and by-pass transition initiated by a pair of oblique waves. The relevance of this scenario to transition induced by free-stream turbulence is also discussed.

Experiments in a boundary layer subjected to free stream turbulence. Part 2. The role of TS-waves in the transition process

1994 ◽  
Vol 281 ◽  
pp. 219-245 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. V. Boiko ◽  
K. J. A. Westin ◽  
B. G. B. Klingmann ◽  
V. V. Kozlov ◽  
P. H. Alfredsson
Keyword(s):  
Boundary Layer ◽  
Boundary Layers ◽  
Small Amplitude ◽  
Free Stream ◽  
Transition Process ◽  
Natural Occurrence ◽  
Free Stream Turbulence ◽  
Onset Of Turbulence ◽  
Tollmien Schlichting

The natural occurrence of Tollmien-Schlichting (TS) waves has so far only been observed in boundary layers subjected to moderate levels of free stream turbulence (Tu < 1%), owing to the difficulty in detecting small-amplitude waves in highly perturbed boundary layers. By introducing controlled oscillations with a vibrating ribbon, it is possible to study small-amplitude waves using phase-selective filtering techniques. In the present work, the effect of TS-waves on the transition is studied at Tu = 1.5%. It is demonstrated that TS-waves can exist and develop in a similar way as in an undisturbed boundary layer. It is also found that TS-waves with quite small amplitudes are involved in nonlinear interactions which lead to a regeneration of TS-waves in the whole unstable frequency band. This results in a significant increase in the number of turbulent spots, which promote the onset of turbulence.

Effects of Weak Free Stream Nonuniformity on Boundary Layer Transition (Keynote Paper)

2003 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jonathan H. Watmuff
Keyword(s):  
Boundary Layer ◽  
Free Stream ◽  
Leading Edge ◽  
Boundary Layer Transition ◽  
Mean Flow ◽  
Layer Transition ◽  
Free Stream Turbulence ◽  
Tollmien Schlichting ◽  
Distorted Waves ◽  
Thickness Variations

Experiments are described in which well-defined FSN (Free Stream Nonuniformity) distributions are introduced by placing fine wires upstream of the leading edge of a flat plate. Large amplitude spanwise thickness variations are present in the downstream boundary layer resulting from the interaction of the laminar wakes with the leading edge. Regions of elevated background unsteadiness appear on either side of the peak layer thickness, which share many of the characteristics of Klebanoff modes, observed at elevated Free Stream Turbulence (FST) levels. However, for the low background disturbance level of the free stream, the layer remains laminar to the end of the test section (Rx ≈ l.4×106) and there is no evidence of bursting or other phenomena associated with breakdown to turbulence. A vibrating ribbon apparatus is used to demonstrate that the deformation of the mean flow is responsible for substantial phase and amplitude distortion of Tollmien-Schlichting (TS) waves. Pseudo-flow visualization of hot-wire data shows that the breakdown of the distorted waves is more complex and occurs at a lower Reynolds number than the breakdown of the K-type secondary instability observed when the FSN is not present.

The reduction and elimination of a closed separation region by free-stream turbulence

2001 ◽  
Vol 446 ◽  
pp. 271-308 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. KALTER ◽  
H. H. FERNHOLZ
Keyword(s):  
Boundary Layer ◽  
Pressure Gradient ◽  
Free Stream ◽  
Reverse Flow ◽  
Flow Region ◽  
Adverse Pressure Gradient ◽  
Turbulence Structure ◽  
Hot Wire ◽  
Free Stream Turbulence ◽  
The Mean

This paper is an extension of an experimental investigation by Alving & Fernholz (1996). In the present experiments the effects of free-stream turbulence were investigated on a boundary layer with an adverse pressure gradient and a closed reverse-flow region. By adding free-stream turbulence the mean reverse-flow region was shortened or completely eliminated and this was used to control the size of the separation bubble. The turbulence intensity was varied between 0.2% and 6% using upstream grids while the turbulence length scale was on the order of the boundary layer thickness. Mean and fluctuating velocities as well as spectra were measured by means of hot-wire and laser-Doppler anemometry and wall shear stress by wall pulsed-wire and wall hot-wire probes.Free-stream turbulence had a small effect on the boundary layer in the mild adverse-pressure-gradient region but in the vicinity of separation and along the reverse-flow region mean velocity profiles, skin friction and turbulence structure were strongly affected. Downstream of the mean or instantaneous reverse-flow regions highly disturbed boundary layers developed in a nominally zero pressure gradient and converged to a similar turbulence structure in all three cases at the end of the test section. This state was, however, still very different from that in a canonical boundary layer.

Measurements in a Transitional Boundary Layer With Görtler Vortices

1996 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ralph J. Volino ◽  
Terrence W. Simon
Keyword(s):  
Boundary Layer ◽  
Turbulence Intensity ◽  
Free Stream ◽  
Streamwise Velocity ◽  
Mean Velocity ◽  
Free Stream Turbulence ◽  
Görtler Vortices ◽  
Concave Wall ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Gortler Vortices

The laminar-turbulent transition process has been documented in a concave-wall boundary layer subject to low (0.6%) free-stream turbulence intensity. Transition began at a Reynolds number, Rex (based on distance from the leading edge of the test wall), of 3.5×105 and was completed by 4.7×105. The transition was strongly influenced by the presence of stationary, streamwise, Görtler vortices. Transition under similar conditions has been documented in previous studies, but because concave-wall transition tends to be rapid, measurements within the transition zone were sparse. In this study, emphasis is on measurements within the zone of intermittent flow. Twenty-five profiles of mean streamwise velocity, fluctuating streamwise velocity, and intermittency have been acquired at five values of Rex, and five spanwise locations relative to a Görtler vortex. The mean velocity profiles acquired near the vortex downwash sites exhibit inflection points and local minima. These minima, located in the outer part of the boundary layer, provide evidence of a “tilting” of the vortices in the spanwise direction. Profiles of fluctuating velocity and intermittency exhibit peaks near the locations of the minima in the mean velocity profiles. These peaks indicate that turbulence is generated in regions of high shear, which are relatively far from the wall. The transition mechanism in this flow is different from that on flat walls, where turbulence is produced in the near-wall region. The peak intermittency values in the profiles increase with Rex, but do not follow the “universal” distribution observed in most flat-wall, transitional boundary layers. The results have applications whenever strong concave curvature may result in the formation of Görtler vortices in otherwise 2-D flows. Because these cases were run with a low value of free-stream turbulence intensity, the flow is not a replication of a gas turbine flow. However, the results do provide a base case for further work on transition on the pressure side of gas turbine airfoils, where concave curvature effects are combined with the effects of high free-stream turbulence and strong streamwise pressure gradients, for they show the effects of embedded streamwise vorticity in a flow that is free of high-turbulence effects.

scholarly journals Boundary layer stabilization using free-stream vortices

2014 ◽  
Vol 764 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. Siconolfi ◽  
S. Camarri ◽  
J. H. M. Fransson
Keyword(s):  
Boundary Layer ◽  
Free Stream ◽  
Control Method ◽  
Experimental Studies ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Transition To Turbulence ◽  
Free Stream Turbulence ◽  
Passive Flow Control ◽  
Tollmien Schlichting ◽  
Transition Delay

AbstractIn this numerical investigation we explore the possibility of applying free-stream vortices as a passive flow control method for delaying the transition to turbulence. The work is motivated by previous experimental studies demonstrating that stable streamwise boundary layer (BL) streaks can attenuate both two- and three-dimensional disturbances inside the BL, leading to transition delay, with the implication of reducing skin-friction drag. To date, successful control has been obtained using physical BL modulators mounted on the surface in order to generate stable streaks. However, surface mounted BL modulators are doomed to failure when the BL is subject to free-stream turbulence (FST), since a destructive interaction between the two is inevitable. In order to tackle free-stream disturbances, such as FST, a smooth surface is desired, which has motivated us to seek new methods to induce streamwise streaks inside the BL. A first step, in a systematic order, is taken in the present paper to prove the control idea of generating free-stream vortices for the attenuation of ordinary Tollmien–Schlichting waves inside the BL. In this proof-of-concept study we show that, by applying a spanwise array of counter-rotating free-stream vortices, inducing streamwise BL streaks further downstream, it is possible to alter the BL stability characteristics to such a degree that transition delay may be accomplished. For the demonstration we use direct numerical simulations along with stability analysis.

Development and use of a vane device for boundary-layer measurements

1959 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 97-112 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. G. Burns ◽  
W. H. J. Childs ◽  
A. A. Nicol ◽  
M. A. S. Ross
Keyword(s):  
Boundary Layer ◽  
Wind Tunnel ◽  
Boundary Layers ◽  
Free Stream ◽  
Neutral Curve ◽  
Approximate Theory ◽  
Electrical System ◽  
Natural Oscillations ◽  
Free Stream Turbulence ◽  
Tollmien Schlichting

A hinged vane and a sensitive electrical system for recording the motion of the vane have been developed for the observation of fluctuating y-components of velocity in boundary layers. An approximate theory of the natural oscillations of such vanes is presented and experimentally verified. Using vanes as resonant detectors, meassurements have been made of oscillations injected into the laminar boundary layer on a flat plate in a wind tunnel with 0·3% free-stream turbulence. Points on the neutral Tollmien-Schlichting curve have thereby been obtained which lie close to the theoretical neutral curve.

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