scholarly journals Control of the abyssal ocean overturning circulation by mixing-driven bottom boundary layers

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Henri F. Drake
Keyword(s):  
Boundary Layer ◽  
Boundary Layers ◽  
Mixing Layers ◽  
Overturning Circulation ◽  
Bottom Boundary ◽  
Brazil Basin ◽  
Basin Scale ◽  
Non Linear ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Abyssal Mixing

An emerging paradigm posits that the abyssal overturning circulation is driven by bottom-enhanced mixing, which results in vigorous upwelling in the bottom boundary layer (BBL) along the sloping seafloor and downwelling in the stratified mixing layer (SML) above; their residual is the overturning circulation. This boundary-controlled circulation fundamentally alters abyssal tracer distributions, with implications for global climate. Chapter 1 describes how a basin-scale overturning circulation arises from the coupling between the ocean interior and mixing-driven boundary layers over rough topography, such as the sloping flanks of mid-ocean ridges. BBL upwelling is well predicted by boundary layer theory, whereas the compensation by SML downwelling is weakened by the upward increase of the basin-wide stratification, which supports a finite net overturning. These simulated watermass transformations are comparable to best-estimate diagnostics but are sustained by a crude parameterization of boundary layer restratification processes. In Chapter 2, I run a realistic simulation of a fracture zone canyon in the Brazil Basin to decipher the non-linear dynamics of abyssal mixing layers and their interactions with rough topography. Using a hierarchy of progressively idealized simulations, I identify three physical processes that set the stratification of abyssal mixing layers (in addition to the weak buoyancy-driven cross-slope circulation): submesoscale baroclinic eddies on the ridge flanks, enhanced up-canyon flow due to inhibition of the cross-canyon thermal wind, and homogenization of canyon troughs below the level of blocking sills. Combined, these processes maintain a sufficiently large near-boundary stratification for mixing to drive globally significant BBL upwelling. In Chapter 3, simulated Tracer Release Experiments illustrate how passive tracers are mixed, stirred, and advected in abyssal mixing layers. Exact diagnostics reveal that while a tracer’s diapycnal motion is directly proportional to the mean divergence of mixing rates, its diapycnal spreading depends on both the mean mixing rate and an additional non-linear stretching term. These simulations suggest that the theorized boundary-layer control on the abyssal circulation is falsifiable: downwelling in the SML has already been confirmed by the Brazil Basin Tracer Release Experiment, while an upcoming experiment in the Rockall Trough will confirm or deny the existence of upwelling in the BBL.

scholarly journals NUMERICAL MODELING OF A TURBULENT BOTTOM BOUNDARY LAYER UNDER SOLITARY WAVES ON A SMOOTH SURFACE

2018 ◽  
pp. 26
Author(s):  
Ahmad Sana ◽  
Hitoshi Tanaka
Keyword(s):  
Boundary Layer ◽  
Boundary Layers ◽  
Solitary Waves ◽  
Bottom Boundary Layer ◽  
Stream Velocity ◽  
Bottom Boundary ◽  
Sediment Movement ◽  
Bottom Boundary Layers ◽  
Turbulent Models

A number of studies on bottom boundary layers under sinusoidal and cnoidal waves were carried out in the past owing to the role of bottom shear stress on coastal sediment movement. In recent years, the bottom boundary layers under long waves have attracted considerable attention due to the occurrence of huge tsunamis and corresponding sediment movement. In the present study two-equation turbulent models proposed by Menter(1994) have been applied to a bottom boundary layer under solitary waves. A comparison has been made for cross-stream velocity profile and other turbulence properties in x-direction.

Response of supersonic turbulent boundary layers to local and global mechanical distortions

2009 ◽  
Vol 630 ◽  
pp. 225-265 ◽  
Author(s):  
ISAAC W. EKOTO ◽  
RODNEY D. W. BOWERSOX ◽  
THOMAS BEUTNER ◽  
LARRY GOSS
Keyword(s):  
Boundary Layer ◽  
Turbulent Flow ◽  
Boundary Layers ◽  
Flow Structure ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Pressure Gradients ◽  
Local Surface ◽  
Turbulence Flow ◽  
Turbulent Flow Structure ◽  
The Mean

The response of the mean and turbulent flow structure of a supersonic high-Reynolds-number turbulent boundary layer flow subjected to local and global mechanical distortions was experimentally examined. Local disturbances were introduced via small-scale wall patterns, and global distortions were induced through streamline curvature-driven pressure gradients. Local surface topologies included k-type diamond and d-type square elements; a smooth wall was examined for comparison purposes. Three global distortions were studied with each of the three surface topologies. Measurements included planar contours of the mean and fluctuating velocity via particle image velocimetry, Pitot pressure profiles, pressure sensitive paint and Schlieren photography. The velocity data were acquired with sufficient resolution to characterize the mean and turbulent flow structure and to examine interactions between the local surface roughness distortions and the imposed pressure gradients on the turbulence production. A strong response to both the local and global distortions was observed with the diamond elements, where the effect of the elements extended into the outer regions of the boundary layer. It was shown that the primary cause for the observed response was the result of local shock and expansion waves modifying the turbulence structure and production. By contrast, the square elements showed a less pronounced response to local flow distortions as the waves were significantly weaker. However, the frictional losses were higher for the blunter square roughness elements. Detailed quantitative characterizations of the turbulence flow structure and the associated production mechanisms are described herein. These experiments demonstrate fundamental differences between supersonic and subsonic rough-wall flows, and the new understanding of the underlying mechanisms provides a scientific basis to systematically modify the mean and turbulence flow structure all the way across supersonic boundary layers.

Evolution of zero-pressure-gradient boundary layers from different tripping conditions

2015 ◽  
Vol 783 ◽  
pp. 379-411 ◽  
Author(s):  
I. Marusic ◽  
K. A. Chauhan ◽  
V. Kulandaivelu ◽  
N. Hutchins
Keyword(s):  
Boundary Layer ◽  
Reynolds Number ◽  
Boundary Layers ◽  
Initial Conditions ◽  
Reynolds Numbers ◽  
Streamwise Velocity ◽  
Mean Flow ◽  
Flow Parameters ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Inflow Conditions

In this paper we study the spatial evolution of zero-pressure-gradient (ZPG) turbulent boundary layers from their origin to a canonical high-Reynolds-number state. A prime motivation is to better understand under what conditions reliable scaling behaviour comparisons can be made between different experimental studies at matched local Reynolds numbers. This is achieved here through detailed streamwise velocity measurements using hot wires in the large University of Melbourne wind tunnel. By keeping the unit Reynolds number constant, the flow conditioning, contraction and trip can be considered unaltered for a given boundary layer’s development and hence its evolution can be studied in isolation from the influence of inflow conditions by moving to different streamwise locations. Careful attention was given to the experimental design in order to make comparisons between flows with three different trips while keeping all other parameters nominally constant, including keeping the measurement sensor size nominally fixed in viscous wall units. The three trips consist of a standard trip and two deliberately ‘over-tripped’ cases, where the initial boundary layers are over-stimulated with additional large-scale energy. Comparisons of the mean flow, normal Reynolds stress, spectra and higher-order turbulence statistics reveal that the effects of the trip are seen to be significant, with the remnants of the ‘over-tripped’ conditions persisting at least until streamwise stations corresponding to $Re_{x}=1.7\times 10^{7}$ and $x=O(2000)$ trip heights are reached (which is specific to the trips used here), at which position the non-canonical boundary layers exhibit a weak memory of their initial conditions at the largest scales $O(10{\it\delta})$, where ${\it\delta}$ is the boundary layer thickness. At closer streamwise stations, no one-to-one correspondence is observed between the local Reynolds numbers ($Re_{{\it\tau}}$, $Re_{{\it\theta}}$ or $Re_{x}$ etc.), and these differences are likely to be the cause of disparities between previous studies where a given Reynolds number is matched but without account of the trip conditions and the actual evolution of the boundary layer. In previous literature such variations have commonly been referred to as low-Reynolds-number effects, while here we show that it is more likely that these differences are due to an evolution effect resulting from the initial conditions set up by the trip and/or the initial inflow conditions. Generally, the mean velocity profiles were found to approach a constant wake parameter ${\it\Pi}$ as the three boundary layers developed along the test section, and agreement of the mean flow parameters was found to coincide with the location where other statistics also converged, including higher-order moments up to tenth order. This result therefore implies that it may be sufficient to document the mean flow parameters alone in order to ascertain whether the ZPG flow, as described by the streamwise velocity statistics, has reached a canonical state, and a computational approach is outlined to do this. The computational scheme is shown to agree well with available experimental data.

Scaling of Favorable Pressure Gradient Turbulent Boundary Layers With Eventual Relaminarization

2005 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rau´l Bayoa´n Cal ◽  
Xia Wang ◽  
Luciano Castillo
Keyword(s):  
Boundary Layer ◽  
Pressure Gradient ◽  
Boundary Layers ◽  
Reynolds Shear Stress ◽  
Velocity Profiles ◽  
Turbulent Boundary Layers ◽  
Reynolds Stresses ◽  
Mean Velocity ◽  
Favorable Pressure Gradient ◽  
The Mean

Applying similarity analysis to the RANS equations of motion for a pressure gradient turbulent boundary layer, Castillo and George [1] obtained the scalings for the mean deficit velocity and the Reynolds stresses. Following this analysis, Castillo and George studied favorable pressure gradient (FPG) turbulent boundary layers. They were able to obtain a single curve for FPG flows when scaling the mean deficit velocity profiles. In this study, FPG turbulent boundary layers are analyzed as well as relaminarized boundary layers subjected to an even stronger FPG. It is found that the mean deficit velocity profiles diminish when scaled using the Castillo and George [1] scaling, U∞, and the Zagarola and Smits [2] scaling, U∞δ*/δ. In addition, Reynolds stress data has been analyzed and it is found that the relaminarized boundary layer data decreases drastically in all components of the Reynolds stresses. Furthermore, it will be shown that the shape of the profile for the wall-normal and Reynolds shear stress components change drastically given the relaminarized state. Therefore, the mean velocity deficit profiles as well as Reynolds stresses are found to be necessary in order to understand not only FPG flows, but also relaminarized boundary layers.

scholarly journals Tracer Transport within Abyssal Mixing Layers

2019 ◽  
Vol 49 (10) ◽  
pp. 2669-2695 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. M. Holmes ◽  
Casimir de Lavergne ◽  
Trevor J. McDougall
Keyword(s):  
Boundary Layer ◽  
Critical Role ◽  
Mixing Layer ◽  
Spreading Rate ◽  
Tracer Diffusion ◽  
Mixing Layers ◽  
Tracer Transport ◽  
Bottom Boundary ◽  
Bulk Diffusivity ◽  
Rate Of Increase

AbstractMixing layers near sloped topography in the abyss are thought to play a critical role in the global overturning circulation. Yet the behavior of passive tracers within sloping boundary layer systems has received little attention, despite the extensive use of tracer observations to understand abyssal circulation. Here, we investigate the behavior of a passive tracer released near a sloping boundary within a flow governed by one-dimensional boundary layer theory. The spreading rate of the tracer across isopycnals is influenced by factors such as the bottom-intensification of mixing, the dipole of upwelling (in the boundary layer) and downwelling (in the outer mixing layer), and along-isopycnal diffusion. For isolated near-boundary tracer releases, the bulk diffusivity, proportional to the rate of increase of the variance of the tracer distribution in buoyancy space, is much less than what would be expected from averaging the diapycnal diffusivity over the tracer patch. This stems from the presence of the bottom boundary that prevents tracer diffusion through it. Furthermore, when along-isopycnal diffusion is weak, the boundary tends to drive the tracer up the slope toward less dense fluid on average due to asymmetries between boundary layer and interior flows. With strong along-isopycnal diffusion this upslope movement is reduced, while at the same time the average diapycnal spreading rate is increased due to a reduced influence of the bottom boundary. These results have implications for what can be learned about the characteristics of mixing near sloping boundaries from past and future tracer-release experiments.

scholarly journals Turbulent boundary layers and channels at moderate Reynolds numbers

2010 ◽  
Vol 657 ◽  
pp. 335-360 ◽  
Author(s):  
JAVIER JIMÉNEZ ◽  
SERGIO HOYAS ◽  
MARK P. SIMENS ◽  
YOSHINORI MIZUNO
Keyword(s):  
Boundary Layer ◽  
Boundary Layers ◽  
Turbulent Flows ◽  
Pressure Fluctuations ◽  
Reynolds Numbers ◽  
Streamwise Velocity ◽  
Rotational Flow ◽  
Mean Velocity ◽  
The Mean ◽  
External Flows

The behaviour of the velocity and pressure fluctuations in the outer layers of wall-bounded turbulent flows is analysed by comparing a new simulation of the zero-pressure-gradient boundary layer with older simulations of channels. The 99 % boundary-layer thickness is used as a reasonable analogue of the channel half-width, but the two flows are found to be too different for the analogy to be complete. In agreement with previous results, it is found that the fluctuations of the transverse velocities and of the pressure are stronger in the boundary layer, and this is traced to the pressure fluctuations induced in the outer intermittent layer by the differences between the potential and rotational flow regions. The same effect is also shown to be responsible for the stronger wake component of the mean velocity profile in external flows, whose increased energy production is the ultimate reason for the stronger fluctuations. Contrary to some previous results by our group, and by others, the streamwise velocity fluctuations are also found to be higher in boundary layers, although the effect is weaker. Within the limitations of the non-parallel nature of the boundary layer, the wall-parallel scales of all the fluctuations are similar in both the flows, suggesting that the scale-selection mechanism resides just below the intermittent region, y/δ = 0.3–0.5. This is also the location of the largest differences in the intensities, although the limited Reynolds number of the boundary-layer simulation (Reθ ≈ 2000) prevents firm conclusions on the scaling of this location. The statistics of the new boundary layer are available from http://torroja.dmt.upm.es/ftp/blayers/.

scholarly journals Restratification of Abyssal Mixing Layers by Submesoscale Baroclinic Eddies

2018 ◽  
Vol 48 (9) ◽  
pp. 1995-2010 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jörn Callies
Keyword(s):  
Large Scale ◽  
Water Mass ◽  
Mixing Layer ◽  
Mixing Layers ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Surface Mixed Layer ◽  
Overturning Circulation ◽  
Topographic Slope ◽  
Abyssal Mixing ◽  
Water Mass Transformation

AbstractFor small-scale turbulence to achieve water mass transformation and thus affect the large-scale overturning circulation, it must occur in stratified water. Observations show that abyssal turbulence is strongly enhanced in the bottom few hundred meters in regions with rough topography, and it is thought that these abyssal mixing layers are crucial for closing and shaping the overturning circulation. If it were left unopposed, however, bottom-intensified turbulence would mix away the observed mixing-layer stratification over the course of a few years. It is proposed here that the homogenizing tendency of mixing may be balanced by baroclinic restratification. It is shown that bottom-intensified mixing, if it occurs on a large-scale topographic slope such as a midocean ridge flank, not only erodes stratification but also tilts isopycnals in the bottom few hundred meters. This tilting of isopycnals generates a reservoir of potential energy that can be tapped into by submesoscale baroclinic eddies. The eddies slide dense water under light water and thus restratify the mixing layer, similar to what happens in the surface mixed layer. This restratification is shown to be effective enough to balance the homogenizing tendency of mixing and to maintain the observed mixing-layer stratification. This suggests that submesoscale baroclinic eddies may play a crucial role in providing the stratification mixing can act on, thus allowing sustained water mass transformation. Through their restratification of abyssal mixing layers, submesoscale eddies may therefore directly affect the strength and structure of the abyssal overturning circulation.

On turbulent boundary layers in oscillatory flow

1977 ◽  
Vol 353 (1672) ◽  
pp. 121-144 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Boundary Layer ◽  
Turbulent Boundary Layer ◽  
Boundary Layers ◽  
Travelling Wave ◽  
Convection Velocity ◽  
Mean Flow ◽  
Mean Velocity ◽  
Flow Measurements ◽  
Freestream Velocity ◽  
The Mean

An experimental investigation has been made of turbulent boundary layer response to harmonic oscillations associated with a travelling wave imposed on an otherwise constant freestream velocity and convected in the freestream direction. The tests covered oscillation frequencies of 4-12 Hz for freestream amplitudes of up to 11% of the mean velocity. Additional steady flow measurements were used to infer the quasi-steady response to freestream oscillations. The results show a welcome insensitivity of the mean flow and turbulent intensity distributions to the freestream oscillations tested. An approximate analysis based on these results has been developed. It is probably of limited validity but it does provide a useful guide to the physical processes involved. The effects on boundary layer response of varying the travelling wave convection velocity and frequency of oscillation are illustrated by the analysis and show a behaviour broadly similar to that of laminar boundary layers. The travelling wave convection velocity exhibits a dominant influence on the turbulent boundary layer response to freestream oscillations.

scholarly journals Turning Ocean Mixing Upside Down

2016 ◽  
Vol 46 (7) ◽  
pp. 2239-2261 ◽  
Author(s):  
Raffaele Ferrari ◽  
Ali Mashayek ◽  
Trevor J. McDougall ◽  
Maxim Nikurashin ◽  
Jean-Michael Campin
Keyword(s):  
Boundary Layers ◽  
Numerical Models ◽  
Meridional Overturning Circulation ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Ocean Bottom ◽  
Overturning Circulation ◽  
Bottom Boundary ◽  
Bottom Boundary Layers ◽  
Meridional Overturning ◽  
Stratified Ocean

AbstractIt is generally understood that small-scale mixing, such as is caused by breaking internal waves, drives upwelling of the densest ocean waters that sink to the ocean bottom at high latitudes. However, the observational evidence that the strong turbulent fluxes generated by small-scale mixing in the stratified ocean interior are more vigorous close to the ocean bottom boundary than above implies that small-scale mixing converts light waters into denser ones, thus driving a net sinking of abyssal waters. Using a combination of theoretical ideas and numerical models, it is argued that abyssal waters upwell along weakly stratified boundary layers, where small-scale mixing of density decreases to zero to satisfy the no density flux condition at the ocean bottom. The abyssal ocean meridional overturning circulation is the small residual of a large net sinking of waters, driven by small-scale mixing in the stratified interior above the bottom boundary layers, and a slightly larger net upwelling, driven by the decay of small-scale mixing in the boundary layers. The crucial importance of upwelling along boundary layers in closing the abyssal overturning circulation is the main finding of this work.

Response of a turbulent boundary layer to sinusoidal free-stream unsteadiness

1990 ◽  
Vol 221 ◽  
pp. 131-159 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. J. Brereton ◽  
W. C. Reynolds ◽  
R. Jayaraman
Keyword(s):  
Boundary Layer ◽  
Turbulent Boundary Layer ◽  
Steady Flow ◽  
Boundary Layers ◽  
Free Stream ◽  
Constant Pressure ◽  
External Conditions ◽  
Mean Structure ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Turbulence Production

In this paper, selected findings of a detailed experimental investigation are reported concerning the effects of forced free-stream unsteadiness on a turbulent boundary layer. The forced unsteadiness was sinusoidal and was superimposed locally on an otherwise-steady mainstream, beyond a turbulent boundary layer which had developed under constant-pressure conditions. Within the region over which free-stream unsteadiness was induced, the sinusoidal variation in pressure gradient was between extremes of zero and a positive value, with a positive average level. The local response of the boundary layer to these free-stream effects was studied through simultaneous measurements of the u- and v-components of the velocity fieldAlthough extensive studies of unsteady, turbulent, fully-developed pipe and channel flow have been carried out, the problem of a developing turbulent boundary layer and its response to forced free-stream unsteadiness has received comparatively little attention. The present study is intended to redress this imbalance and, when contrasted with other studies of unsteady turbulent boundary layers, is unique in that: (i) it features an appreciable amplitude of mainstream modulation at a large number of frequencies of forced unsteadiness, (ii) its measurements are both detailed and of high spatial resolution, so that the near-wall behaviour of the flow can be discerned, and (iii) it allows local modulation of the mainstream beyond a turbulent boundary layer which has developed under the well-known conditions of steady, two-dimensional, constant-pressure flowResults are reported which allow comparison of the behaviour of boundary layers under the same mean external conditions, but with different time dependence in their free-stream velocities. These time dependences correspond to: (i) steady flow, (ii) quasi-steadily varying flow, and (iii) unsteady flow at different frequencies of mainstream unsteadiness. Experimental results focus upon the time-averaged nature of the flow; they indicate that the mean structure of the turbulent boundary layer is sufficiently robust that the imposition of free-stream unsteadiness results only in minor differences relative to the mean character of the steady flow, even at frequencies for which the momentary condition of the flow departs substantially from its quasi-steady state. Mean levels of turbulence production are likewise unaffected by free-stream unsteadiness and temporal production of turbulence appears to result only from modulation of the motions which contribute to turbulence production as a time-averaged measure.

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