The effect of a radial magnetic field on the stability of Couette flow

1994 ◽  
Vol 72 (5-6) ◽  
pp. 258-265 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. A. Ali

The effect of a radial magnetic field on the stability of an electrically conducting incompressible fluid between two concentric rotating cylinders is considered. The eigenvalue problem for determining the critical Taylor number TC and the corresponding wave number aC is solved numerically for different values of ±μ(= Ω2/Ω1), (where Ω1, and Ω2 are me angular velocities of the inner and outer cylinders, respectively) and for different gap sizes. It is observed that the radial magnetic field stabilizes the flow. This effect is more pronounced for cylinders that are corotating as compared with counter-rotating cylinders or the situation where only the inner one is rotating.

The theory developed in an earlier paper (Chandrasekhar 1953) is extended to allow for counter-rotation of the two cylinders. Explicit results are given for the case when the two cylinders rotate in opposite directions with equal angular velocities.


1964 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
pp. 95-101 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. L. Harris ◽  
W. H. Reid

A simple numerical method is presented for solving the eigenvalue problem which governs the stability of Couette flow. The method is particularly useful in obtaining the eigenfunctions associated with the various modes of instability. When the cylinders rotate in opposite directions, these eigenfunctions exhibit an exponentially damped oscillatory behaviour for sufficiently large values of − μ, where μ = Ω2/Ω1. In terms of the stream function which describes the motion in planes through the axis of the cylinders, this means that weak, viscously driven cells appear in the outer layes of the fluid which, according to Rayleigh's criterion, are dynamically stable. For μ = − 3, for example, four cells are present, the amplitudes of which are in the ratios 1·0:0·0172:0·013:0·00125.


2004 ◽  
Vol 02 (02) ◽  
pp. 145-159 ◽  
Author(s):  
ISOM H. HERRON

The stability of viscous flow between rotating cylinders in the presence of a constant axial magnetic field is considered. The boundary conditions for general conductivities are examined. It is proved that the Principle of Exchange of Stabilities holds at zero magnetic Prandtl number, for all Chandrasekhar numbers, when the cylinders rotate in the same direction, the circulation decreases outwards, and the cylinders have insulating walls. The result holds for both the finite gap and the narrow gap approximation.


1998 ◽  
Vol 76 (12) ◽  
pp. 937-947
Author(s):  
M Takashima

The stability of combined plane Poiseuille and Couette flow of an electricallyconducting fluid under a transverse magnetic field is investigated using linear stability theory.In deriving the equations governing the stability, the so-called magnetic Stokes approximationis made using the fact that the magnetic Prandtl number Prm for most electrically conductingfluids is extremely small. The Chebyshev collocation method is adopted to obtain theeigenvalue equation, which is then solved numerically. The critical Reynolds number Rec,the critical wave number αc, and the critical wave speed cc are obtained for wide ranges ofthe Hartmann number Ha and the parameter k = U0 / (U0 + nu0), where U0 is the maximumvelocity of pure Couette flow and nu0 is the maximum velocity of pure Poiseuille flow. It isfound that a transverse magnetic field has both stabilizing and destabilizing effects on theflow depending on the value of k.PACS Nos. 47.20


Linearized equations are derived which govern the stability of a viscous, electrically conducting fluid in motion between two parallel planes in the presence of a co-planar magnetic field. With one suitable approximation, which restricts the valid range of Reynolds number of the theory, the problem of stability is reduced to the solution of a fourth-order ordinary differential equation. The disturbances considered are neither amplified nor damped, but are neutral. Curves of wave number against Reynolds number for neutral stability are calculated for a range of values of a certain parameter, q , which represents the magnetic effects. For given physical and geometrical properties, the critical Reynolds number above which the flow is unstable rises with the strength of the magnetic field. These results are completely within the range of the approximation mentioned. In addition, an energy relation is derived which illustrates the balance between energy transferred from the basic flow to the disturbances, and that dissipated by viscosity and by the magnetic field perturbations.


Author(s):  
P. H. Roberts

AbstractThe theoretical studies of Chandrasekhar on the stability of Couette flow in a viscous, electrically conducting, fluid in the presence of a uniform axial magnetic field are extended to include cases of finite gap width between the cylinders, and cases in which the conductivity of the walls of the containing cylinders is finite. In addition, the non-axisymmetric modes of instability are discussed, and the results of numerical computations are presented.


The stability under small disturbances is investigated of the two-dimensional laminar motion of an electrically conducting fluid under a transverse magnetic field. It is found that the dominating factor is the change in shape of the undisturbed velocity profile caused by the magnetic field, which depends only on the Hartmann number M . Curves of wave number against Reynolds number for neutral stability are calculated for a range of values of M ; for large values of M the calculations are similar to those which determine the stability of ordinary boundary-layer flow. The critical Reynolds number is found to rise very rapidly with increasing M , so that a transverse magnetic field has a powerful stabilizing influence on this type of flow.


2005 ◽  
Vol 2005 (23) ◽  
pp. 3727-3737 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jitender Singh ◽  
Renu Bajaj

Effect of an axially applied magnetic field on the stability of a ferrofluid flow in an annular space between two coaxially rotating cylinders with nonaxisymmetric disturbances has been investigated numerically. The critical value of the ratioΩ∗of angular speeds of the two cylinders, at the onset of the first nonaxisymmetric mode of disturbance, has been observed to be affected by the applied magnetic field.


1962 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 21-32 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. F. Hughes ◽  
R. A. Elco

The motion of an electrically conducting, incompressible, viscous fluid in the presence of a magnetic field is analyzed for flow between two parallel disks, one of which rotates at a constant angular velocity. The specific application to liquid metal lubrication in thrust bearings is considered. The two field configurations discussed are: an axial magnetic field with a radial current and a radial magnetic field with an axial current. It is shown that the load capacity of the bearing is dependent on the MHD interactions in the fluid and that the frictional torque on the rotor can be made zero for both field configurations by supplying electrical energy through the electrodes to the fluid.


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