Passive Bristling of Shark Skin Scales at the Micro-Level: A Fundamental Viscous Flow Study to Understand the Separation Control Mechanism

In this paper, we use a CFD analysis of a simplified, 2D geometry to study the ability of mako shark denticles to mitigate flow separation. We represent the viscous sublayer below a turbulent boundary layer streak as a Couette flow. Incipient separation is simulated by balancing upper wall velocity and adverse pressure gradient to achieve zero net mass flow, and we add various denticle geometries to study their effects. Each modeled denticle protrudes at an angle from 15° to 85° and sublayer blockage ratio from 0.05 to 0.85. Through variation of fluid properties and boundary conditions, we show that the anti-flow-reversal abilities of a single, bristled shark denticle are independent of Reynolds number, and we investigate the effect of the denticle at cases other than zero net mass flux. Based on these results, we create a new relationship to predict separation inhibition. These conclusions are highly generalizable and represent previously undiscovered universal behavior.

Incipient Separation Near Corners

Chapter 4 analyses the transition from an attached flow to a flow with local recirculation region near a corner point of a body contour. It considers both subsonic and supersonic flow regimes, and shows that the flow near a corner can be studied in the framework of the triple-deck theory. It assumes that the body surface deflection angle is small, and formulates the linearized viscous-inviscid interaction problem. Its solution is found in an analytic form. It also presents the results of the numerical solution of the full nonlinear problem. It shows how, and when, the separation region forms in the boundary layer. In conclusion, it suggests that in the subsonic flow past a concave corner, the solution is not unique.