scholarly journals Orographically generated nonlinear waves in rotating and non-rotating two-layer flow

Author(s):  
E.R Johnson ◽  
J.G Esler ◽  
O.J Rump ◽  
J Sommeria ◽  
G.G Vilenski

This paper reports experimental observations of finite amplitude interfacial waves forced by a surface-mounted obstacle towed through a two-layer fluid both when the fluid is otherwise at rest and when the fluid is otherwise rotating as a solid body. The experimental apparatus is sufficiently wide so that sidewall effects are negligible even in near-critical flow when the towing speed is close to the interfacial long-wave speed and the transverse extent of the forced wavefield is large. The observations are modelled by a simple forced Benjamin–Davis–Acrivos equation and comparison between integrations of both linear and nonlinear problems shows the fundamental nonlinearity of the near-critical flow patterns. In both the experiments and integrations rotation strongly confines the wavefield to extend laterally over distances only of order of the Rossby radius and also introduces finite-amplitude sharply pointed lee waves in supercritical flow.

1977 ◽  
Vol 82 (4) ◽  
pp. 725-745 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. G. Redekopp

The evolution of long, finite amplitude Rossby waves in a horizontally sheared zonal current is studied. The wave evolution is described by the Korteweg–de Vries equation or the modified Korteweg-de Vries equation depending on the atmospheric stratification. In either case, the cross-stream modal structure of these waves is given by the long-wave limit of the neutral eigensolutions of the barotropic stability equation. Both non-singular and singular eigensolutions are considered and the appropriate analysis is developed to yield a uniformly valid description of the motion in the critical-layer region where the wave speed matches the flow velocity. The analysis demonstrates that coherent, propagating, eddy structures can exist in stable shear flows and that these eddies have peculiar interaction properties quite distinct from the traditional views of turbulent motion.


2008 ◽  
Vol 616 ◽  
pp. 327-356 ◽  
Author(s):  
BRIAN L. WHITE ◽  
KARL R. HELFRICH

A steady theory is presented for gravity currents propagating with constant speed into a stratified fluid with a general density profile. Solution curves for front speed versus height have an energy-conserving upper bound (the conjugate state) and a lower bound marked by the onset of upstream influence. The conjugate state is the largest-amplitude nonlinear internal wave supported by the ambient stratification, and in the limit of weak stratification approaches Benjamin's energy-conserving gravity current solution. When the front speed becomes critical with respect to linear long waves generated above the current, steady solutions cannot be calculated, implying upstream influence. For non-uniform stratification, the critical long-wave speed exceeds the ambient long-wave speed, and the critical-Froude-number condition appropriate for uniform stratification must be generalized. The theoretical results demonstrate a clear connection between internal waves and gravity currents. The steady theory is also compared with non-hydrostatic numerical solutions of the full lock release initial-value problem. Some solutions resemble classic gravity currents with no upstream disturbance, but others show long internal waves propagating ahead of the gravity current. Wave generation generally occurs when the stratification and current speed are such that the steady gravity current theory fails. Thus the steady theory is consistent with the occurrence of either wave-generating or steady gravity solutions to the dam-break problem. When the available potential energy of the dam is large enough, the numerical simulations approach the energy-conserving conjugate state. Existing laboratory experiments for intrusions and gravity currents produced by full-depth lock exchange flows over a range of stratification profiles show excellent agreement with the conjugate state solutions.


1981 ◽  
Vol 21 (5) ◽  
pp. 602-606 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. A. Borisov ◽  
A. F. Vakhgel't ◽  
V. E. Nakoryakov

2021 ◽  
pp. 23-23
Author(s):  
Xiao-Qun Cao ◽  
Cheng-Zhuo Zhang ◽  
Shi-Cheng Hou ◽  
Ya-Nan Guo ◽  
Ke-Cheng Peng

This paper extends the (2+1)-dimensional Eckhaus-type dispersive long wave equations in continuous medium to their fractional partner, which is a model of nonlinear waves in fractal porous media. The derivation is shown briefly using He?s fractional derivative. Using the semi-inverse method, the variational principles are established for the fractional system, which up to now are not discovered. The obtained fractal variational principles are proved correct by minimizing the functionals with the calculus of variations, and might find potential applications in numerical modelling.


1995 ◽  
Vol 290 ◽  
pp. 203-212
Author(s):  
Melvin E. Stern

An inviscid laminar boundary layer flow Û(ŷ) with vertical thickness λy, and free stream velocity U is disturbed at time $\tcirc$ = 0 by a normal velocity $\vcirc$ and by a spanwise velocity ŵ([xcirc ],ŷ, $\zcirc$, 0) of finite amplitude αU, with spanwise ($\zcirc$) scale λz, and streamwise ([xcirc ]) scale λx = λz/α; the streamwise velocity û([xcirc ],ŷ,$\zcirc$,$\tcirc$) is initially undisturbed. A long wave λy/λz → 0) expansion of the Euler equations for fixed α and time scale $\tcirc$s = U−1λz/α results in a hyperbolic equation for Lagrangian displacements ŷ. Within the interval $\tcirc$ > $\tcirc$s of asymptotic validity, finite parcel displacements (O(λy)) with finite (O(U)) û fluctuations occur, independent of α no matter how small; the basic flow Û is therefore said to be unstable to streaky (λx [Gt ] λz) spanwise perturbations. The temporal development of the ('spot’) region in the (x,z) plane wherein inflected û profiles appear is computed and qualitatively related to observations of ‘breakdown’ and transition to turbulence in the flow over a flat plate. The maximum $\vcirc$([xcirc ],ŷ,$\zcirc$,$\tcirc$) increases monotonically to infinity as $\tcirc$ → $\tcirc$s.


1996 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 110-114 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. B. Zimmerman ◽  
M. G. Velarde

Abstract. The centre manifold approach is used to derive an approximate equation for nonlinear waves propagating in a sheared, stably stratified fluid layer. The evolution equation matches limiting forms derived by other methods, including the inviscid, long wave approximation leading to the Korteweg- deVries equation. The model given here allows large modulations of the height of the waveguide. This permits the crude modelling of shear layer instabilities at the upper material surface of the waveguide which excite solitary internal waves in the waveguide. An energy argument is used to support the existence of these waves.


1984 ◽  
Vol 142 ◽  
pp. 431-449 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fred J. Hickernell

The problem of a finite-amplitude free disturbance of an inviscid shear flow on the beta-plane is studied. Perturbation theory and matched asymptotics are used to derive an evolution equation for the amplitude of a singular neutral mode of the Kuo equation. The effects of time-dependence, nonlinearity and viscosity are included in the analysis of the critical-layer flow. Nonlinear effects inside the critical layer rather than outside the critical layer determine the evolution of the disturbance. The nonlinear term in the evolution equation is some type of convolution integral rather than a simple polynomial. This makes the evolution equation significantly different from those commonly encountered in fluid wave and stability problems.


1982 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 177-187 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. C. Clemmow

A perturbation method is applied to the pair of second-order, coupled, nonlinear differential equations that describe the propagation, through a cold electron plasma, of plane waves of fixed profile, with direction of propagation and electric vector perpendicular to the ambient magnetic field. The equations are expressed in terms of polar variables π, φ, and solutions are sought as power series in the small parameter n, where c/n is the wave speed. When n = 0 periodic solutions are represented in the (π,φ) plane by circles π = constant, and when n is small it is found that there are corresponding periodic solutions represented to order n2 by ellipses. It is noted that further investigation is required to relate these finite-amplitude solutions to the conventional solutions of linear theory, and to determine their behaviour in the vicinity of certain resonances that arise in the perturbation treatment.


Volume 1 ◽  
2004 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas B. Morrow

The Metering Research Facility (MRF) was commissioned in 1995/1996 at Southwest Research Institute for research on, and calibration of natural gas flow meters. A key commissioning activity was the calibration of critical flow Venturi (sonic) nozzles by a gravimetric proving process flowing nitrogen or natural gas at different pressures. This paper concerns the calibration of the four sonic nozzles installed in the MRF Low Pressure Loop (LPL). Recently, a new project prompted a review of the relations used to calculate sonic nozzle discharge coefficient in the LPL data acquisition computer code. New calibrations of the LPL sonic nozzles were performed flowing natural gas over a lower range of pressure than used in the original commissioning tests. The combination of new and old gravimetric calibration data are shown to agree well with correlations published by Arnberg and Ishibashi (2001) and by Ishibashi and Takamoto (2001) for laminar, transitional and turbulent boundary layer flow in critical flow Venturi nozzles.


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