scholarly journals Effect of Fluid Viscoelasticity on Turbulence and Large-Scale Vortices behind Wall-Mounted Plates

2014 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
pp. 823138
Author(s):  
Takahiro Tsukahara ◽  
Masaaki Tanabe ◽  
Yasuo Kawaguchi

Direct numerical simulations of turbulent viscoelastic fluid flows in a channel with wall-mounted plates were performed to investigate the influence of viscoelasticity on turbulent structures and the mean flow around the plate. The constitutive equation follows the Giesekus model, valid for polymer or surfactant solutions, which are generally capable of reducing the turbulent frictional drag in a smooth channel. We found that turbulent eddies just behind the plates in viscoelastic fluid decreased in number and in magnitude, but their size increased. Three pairs of organized longitudinal vortices were observed downstream of the plates in both Newtonian and viscoelastic fluids: two vortex pairs were behind the plates and the other one with the longest length was in a plate-free area. In the viscoelastic fluid, the latter vortex pair in the plate-free area was maintained and reached the downstream rib, but its swirling strength was weakened and the local skin-friction drag near the vortex was much weaker than those in the Newtonian flow. The mean flow and small spanwise eddies were influenced by the additional fluid force due to the viscoelasticity and, moreover, the spanwise component of the fluid elastic force may also play a role in the suppression of fluid vortical motions behind the plates.

2019 ◽  
Vol 104 (2-3) ◽  
pp. 533-552
Author(s):  
J. Casacuberta ◽  
K. J. Groot ◽  
Q. Ye ◽  
S. Hickel

AbstractMicro-ramps are popular passive flow control devices which can delay flow separation by re-energising the lower portion of the boundary layer. We compute the laminar base flow, the instantaneous transitional flow, and the mean flow around a micro-ramp immersed in a quasi-incompressible boundary layer at supercritical roughness Reynolds number. Results of our Direct Numerical Simulations (DNS) are compared with results of BiLocal stability analysis on the DNS base flow and independent tomographic Particle Image Velocimetry (tomo-PIV) experiments. We analyse relevant flow structures developing in the micro-ramp wake and assess their role in the micro-ramp functionality, i.e., in increasing the near-wall momentum. The main flow feature of the base flow is a pair of streamwise counter-rotating vortices induced by the micro-ramp, the so-called primary vortex pair. In the instantaneous transitional flow, the primary vortex pair breaks up into large-scale hairpin vortices, which arise due to linear varicose instability of the base flow, and unsteady secondary vortices develop. Instantaneous vortical structures obtained by DNS and experiments are in good agreement. Matching linear disturbance growth rates from DNS and linear stability analysis are obtained until eight micro-ramp heights downstream of the micro-ramp. For the setup considered in this article, we show that the working principle of the micro-ramp is different from that of classical vortex generators; we find that transitional perturbations are more efficient in increasing the near-wall momentum in the mean flow than the laminar primary vortices in the base flow.


2011 ◽  
Vol 689 ◽  
pp. 97-128 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. Gudmundsson ◽  
Tim Colonius

AbstractPrevious work has shown that aspects of the evolution of large-scale structures, particularly in forced and transitional mixing layers and jets, can be described by linear and nonlinear stability theories. However, questions persist as to the choice of the basic (steady) flow field to perturb, and the extent to which disturbances in natural (unforced), initially turbulent jets may be modelled with the theory. For unforced jets, identification is made difficult by the lack of a phase reference that would permit a portion of the signal associated with the instability wave to be isolated from other, uncorrelated fluctuations. In this paper, we investigate the extent to which pressure and velocity fluctuations in subsonic, turbulent round jets can be described aslinearperturbations to the mean flow field. The disturbances are expanded about the experimentally measured jet mean flow field, and evolved using linear parabolized stability equations (PSE) that account, in an approximate way, for the weakly non-parallel jet mean flow field. We utilize data from an extensive microphone array that measures pressure fluctuations just outside the jet shear layer to show that, up to an unknown initial disturbance spectrum, the phase, wavelength, and amplitude envelope of convecting wavepackets agree well with PSE solutions at frequencies and azimuthal wavenumbers that can be accurately measured with the array. We next apply the proper orthogonal decomposition to near-field velocity fluctuations measured with particle image velocimetry, and show that the structure of the most energetic modes is also similar to eigenfunctions from the linear theory. Importantly, the amplitudes of the modes inferred from the velocity fluctuations are in reasonable agreement with those identified from the microphone array. The results therefore suggest that, to predict, with reasonable accuracy, the evolution of the largest-scale structures that comprise the most energetic portion of the turbulent spectrum of natural jets, nonlinear effects need only be indirectly accounted for by considering perturbations to the mean turbulent flow field, while neglecting any non-zero frequency disturbance interactions.


2021 ◽  
Vol 929 ◽  
Author(s):  
N. Agastya Balantrapu ◽  
Christopher Hickling ◽  
W. Nathan Alexander ◽  
William Devenport

Experiments were performed over a body of revolution at a length-based Reynolds number of 1.9 million. While the lateral curvature parameters are moderate ( $\delta /r_s < 2, r_s^+>500$ , where $\delta$ is the boundary layer thickness and r s is the radius of curvature), the pressure gradient is increasingly adverse ( $\beta _{C} \in [5 \text {--} 18]$ where $\beta_{C}$ is Clauser’s pressure gradient parameter), representative of vehicle-relevant conditions. The mean flow in the outer regions of this fully attached boundary layer displays some properties of a free-shear layer, with the mean-velocity and turbulence intensity profiles attaining self-similarity with the ‘embedded shear layer’ scaling (Schatzman & Thomas, J. Fluid Mech., vol. 815, 2017, pp. 592–642). Spectral analysis of the streamwise turbulence revealed that, as the mean flow decelerates, the large-scale motions energize across the boundary layer, growing proportionally with the boundary layer thickness. When scaled with the shear layer parameters, the distribution of the energy in the low-frequency region is approximately self-similar, emphasizing the role of the embedded shear layer in the large-scale motions. The correlation structure of the boundary layer is discussed at length to supply information towards the development of turbulence and aeroacoustic models. One major finding is that the estimation of integral turbulence length scales from single-point measurements, via Taylor's hypothesis, requires significant corrections to the convection velocity in the inner 50 % of the boundary layer. The apparent convection velocity (estimated from the ratio of integral length scale to the time scale), is approximately 40 % greater than the local mean velocity, suggesting the turbulence is convected much faster than previously thought. Closer to the wall even higher corrections are required.


Author(s):  
Huixuan Wu ◽  
Rinaldo L. Miorini ◽  
Joseph Katz

A series of high resolution planar particle image velocimetry measurements performed in a waterjet pump rotor reveal the inner structure of the tip leakage vortex (TLV) which dominates the entire flow field in the tip region. Turbulence generated by interactions among the TLV, the shear layer that develops as the backward leakage flow emerges from the tip clearance as a “wall jet”, the passage flow, and the endwall is highly inhomogeneous and anisotropic. We examine this turbulence in both RANS and LES modelling contexts. Spatially non-uniform distributions of Reynolds stress components are explained in terms of the local mean strain field and associated turbulence production. Characteristic length scales are also inferred from spectral analysis. Spatial filtering of instantaneous data enables the calculation of subgrid scale (SGS) stresses, along with the SGS energy flux (dissipation). The data show that the SGS energy flux differs from the turbulence production rate both in trends and magnitude. The latter is dominated by energy flux from the mean flow to the large scale turbulence, which is resolved in LES, whereas the former is dominated by energy flux from the mean flow to the SGS turbulence. The SGS dissipation rate is also used for calculating the static and dynamic Smagorinsky coefficients, the latter involving filtering at multiple scales; both vary substantially in the tip region, and neither is equal to values obtained in isotropic turbulence.


1999 ◽  
Vol 390 ◽  
pp. 325-348 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. NAZARENKO ◽  
N. K.-R. KEVLAHAN ◽  
B. DUBRULLE

A WKB method is used to extend RDT (rapid distortion theory) to initially inhomogeneous turbulence and unsteady mean flows. The WKB equations describe turbulence wavepackets which are transported by the mean velocity and have wavenumbers which evolve due to the mean strain. The turbulence also modifies the mean flow and generates large-scale vorticity via the averaged Reynolds stress tensor. The theory is applied to Taylor's four-roller flow in order to explain the experimentally observed reduction in the mean strain. The strain reduction occurs due to the formation of a large-scale vortex quadrupole structure from the turbulent spot confined by the four rollers. Both turbulence inhomogeneity and three-dimensionality are shown to be important for this effect. If the initially isotropic turbulence is either homogeneous in space or two-dimensional, it has no effect on the large-scale strain. Furthermore, the turbulent kinetic energy is conserved in the two-dimensional case, which has important consequences for the theory of two-dimensional turbulence. The analytical and numerical results presented here are in good qualitative agreement with experiment.


2017 ◽  
Vol 813 ◽  
pp. 110-126 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adam C. DeVoria ◽  
Kamran Mohseni

High-incidence lift generation via flow reattachment is studied. Different reattachment mechanisms are distinguished, with dynamic manoeuvres and tip vortex downwash being separate mechanisms. We focus on the latter mechanism, which is strictly available to finite wings, and isolate it by considering steadily translating wings. The tip vortex downwash provides a smoother merging of the flow at the trailing edge, thus assisting in establishing a Kutta condition there. This decreases the strength/amount of vorticity shed from the trailing edge, and in turn maintains an effective bound circulation resulting in continued lift generation at high angles of attack. Just below the static lift-stall angle of attack, strong vorticity is shed at the trailing edge indicating an increasingly intermittent reattachment/detachment of the instantaneous flow at mid-span. Above this incidence, the trailing-edge shear layer increases in strength/size representing a negative contribution to the lift and leads to stall. Lastly, we show that the mean-flow topology is equivalent to a vortex pair regardless of the particular physical flow configuration.


Author(s):  
Caleb Stanley ◽  
Georgios Etsias ◽  
Steven Dabelow ◽  
Dimitrios Dermisis ◽  
Ning Zhang

Submerged breakwaters are favored for their design simplicity in projects intended to dissipate wave energy and reduce erosion on coastlines. Despite their popularity, the effects that submerged breakwaters exhibit on the surrounding hydrodynamics are not clearly understood, mainly due to the flow complexity generated from 3-dimensional turbulent structures in the vicinity of the breakwaters that affect the mean flow characteristics and the transport of sediment. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects that various geometric designs of submerged permeable breakwaters have on the turbulent flow characteristics. To meet the objective of this study, laboratory experiments were performed in a water-recirculating flume, in which the 3-dimensional velocity field was recorded in the vicinity of scaled breakwater models. Breakwaters that were tested include non-permeable, three-hole, and ten-hole models. The experimental data obtained was compared to results obtained from numerical simulations. Results demonstrated that permeable breakwaters exhibit more vertical turbulent strength than their non-permeable counterparts. It was also discovered that three-hole breakwater models produce higher turbulent fluctuations than that of the ten-hole breakwaters. The results from this study will be used eventually to enhance the performance of restoration projects in coastal areas in Louisiana.


2019 ◽  
Vol 865 ◽  
pp. 1085-1109 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yutaro Motoori ◽  
Susumu Goto

To understand the generation mechanism of a hierarchy of multiscale vortices in a high-Reynolds-number turbulent boundary layer, we conduct direct numerical simulations and educe the hierarchy of vortices by applying a coarse-graining method to the simulated turbulent velocity field. When the Reynolds number is high enough for the premultiplied energy spectrum of the streamwise velocity component to show the second peak and for the energy spectrum to obey the$-5/3$power law, small-scale vortices, that is, vortices sufficiently smaller than the height from the wall, in the log layer are generated predominantly by the stretching in strain-rate fields at larger scales rather than by the mean-flow stretching. In such a case, the twice-larger scale contributes most to the stretching of smaller-scale vortices. This generation mechanism of small-scale vortices is similar to the one observed in fully developed turbulence in a periodic cube and consistent with the picture of the energy cascade. On the other hand, large-scale vortices, that is, vortices as large as the height, are stretched and amplified directly by the mean flow. We show quantitative evidence of these scale-dependent generation mechanisms of vortices on the basis of numerical analyses of the scale-dependent enstrophy production rate. We also demonstrate concrete examples of the generation process of the hierarchy of multiscale vortices.


2012 ◽  
Vol 699 ◽  
pp. 320-351 ◽  
Author(s):  
Johan Malm ◽  
Philipp Schlatter ◽  
Dan S. Henningson

AbstractDominant frequencies and coherent structures are investigated in a turbulent, three-dimensional and separated diffuser flow at $\mathit{Re}= 10\hspace{0.167em} 000$ (based on bulk velocity and inflow-duct height), where mean flow characteristics were first studied experimentally by Cherry, Elkins and Eaton (Intl J. Heat Fluid Flow, vol. 29, 2008, pp. 803–811) and later numerically by Ohlsson et al. (J. Fluid Mech., vol. 650, 2010, pp. 307–318). Coherent structures are educed by proper orthogonal decomposition (POD) of the flow, which together with time probes located in the flow domain are used to extract frequency information. The present study shows that the flow contains multiple phenomena, well separated in frequency space. Dominant large-scale frequencies in a narrow band $\mathit{St}\equiv fh/ {u}_{b} \in [0. 0092, 0. 014] $ (where $h$ is the inflow-duct height and ${u}_{b} $ is the bulk velocity), yielding time periods ${T}^{\ensuremath{\ast} } = T{u}_{b} / h\in [70, 110] $, are deduced from the time signal probes in the upper separated part of the diffuser. The associated structures identified by the POD are large streaks arising from a sinusoidal oscillating motion in the diffuser. Their individual contributions to the total kinetic energy, dominated by the mean flow, are, however, small. The reason for the oscillating movement in this low-frequency range is concluded to be the confinement of the flow in this particular geometric set-up in combination with the high Reynolds number and the large separated zone on the top diffuser wall. Based on this analysis, it is shown that the bulk of the streamwise root mean square (r.m.s.) value arises due to large-scale motion, which in turn can explain the appearance of two or more peaks in the streamwise r.m.s. value. The weak secondary flow present in the inflow duct is shown to survive into the diffuser, where it experiences an imbalance with respect to the upper expanding corners, thereby giving rise to the asymmetry of the mean separated region in the diffuser.


2015 ◽  
Vol 45 (8) ◽  
pp. 2095-2113 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ru Chen ◽  
Glenn R. Flierl

AbstractLow-frequency oceanic motions have banded structures termed “striations.” Since these striations embedded in large-scale gyre flows can have large amplitudes, the authors investigated the effect of mean flow on their directions as well as their contribution to energetics and mixing using a β-plane, barotropic, quasigeostrophic ocean model. In spite of the model simplicity, striations are always found to exist regardless of the imposed barotropic mean flow. However, their properties are sensitive to the mean flow. Rhines jets move with the mean flow and are not necessarily striations. If the meridional component of the mean flow is large, Rhines jets become high-frequency motions; low-frequency striations still exist, but they are nonzonal, have small magnitudes, and contribute little to energetics and mixing. Otherwise, striations are zonal, dominated by Rhines jets, and contribute significantly to energetics and mixing. This study extends the theory of β-plane, barotropic turbulence, driven by white noise forcing at small scales, to include the effect of a constant mean flow. Theories developed in this study, based upon the Galilean invariance property, illustrate that the barotropic mean flow has no effect on total mixing rates, but does affect the energy cascades in the frequency domain. Diagnostic frameworks developed here can be useful to quantify the striations’ contribution to energetics and mixing in the ocean and more realistic models. A novel diagnostic formula is applied to estimating eddy diffusivities.


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