Turbulent wake behind side-by-side flat plates: computational study of interference effects

2018 ◽  
Vol 855 ◽  
pp. 1040-1073 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fatemeh H. Dadmarzi ◽  
Vagesh D. Narasimhamurthy ◽  
Helge I. Andersson ◽  
Bjørnar Pettersen
Keyword(s):  
Shear Layer ◽  
Computational Study ◽  
Mixing Layer ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Flat Plates ◽  
Layer Transition ◽  
Initial Flow ◽  
Plane Mixing Layer ◽  
Gap Flow ◽  
Dimensional Instability

The complex wake behind two side-by-side flat plates placed normal to the inflow direction has been explored in a direct numerical simulation study. Two gaps, $g=0.5d$ and $1.0d$ , were considered, both at a Reynolds number of 1000 based on the plate width $d$ and the inflow velocity. For gap ratio $g/d=0.5$ , the biased gap flow resulted in an asymmetric flow configuration consisting of a narrow wake with strong vortex shedding and a wide wake with no periodic near-wake shedding. Shear-layer transition vortices were observed in the wide wake, with characteristic frequency 0.6. For $g/d=1.0$ , two simulations were performed, started from a symmetric and an asymmetric initial flow field. A symmetric configuration of Kármán vortices resulted from the first simulation. Surprisingly, however, two different three-dimensional instability features were observed simultaneously along the span of the upper and lower plates. The spanwise wavelengths of these secondary streamwise vortices, formed in the braid regions of the primary Kármán vortices, were approximately $1d$ and $2d$ , respectively. The wake bursts into turbulence some $5d$ – $10d$ downstream. The second simulation resulted in an asymmetric wake configuration similar to the asymmetric wake found for the narrow gap $0.5d$ , with the appearance of shear-layer instabilities in the wide wake. The analogy between a plane mixing layer and the separated shear layer in the wide wake was examined. The shear-layer frequencies obtained were in close agreement with the frequency of the most amplified wave based on linear stability analysis of a plane mixing layer.

Large-eddy simulation of boundary-layer separation and transition at a change of surface curvature

2001 ◽  
Vol 439 ◽  
pp. 305-333 ◽  
Author(s):  
ZHIYIN YANG ◽  
PETER R. VOKE
Keyword(s):  
Boundary Layer ◽  
Shear Layer ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Leading Edge ◽  
Boundary Layer Transition ◽  
Two Dimensional ◽  
Layer Transition ◽  
Transition Mechanism ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Dimensional Instability

Transition arising from a separated region of flow is quite common and plays an important role in engineering. It is difficult to predict using conventional models and the transition mechanism is still not fully understood. We report the results of a numerical simulation to study the physics of separated boundary-layer transition induced by a change of curvature of the surface. The geometry is a flat plate with a semicircular leading edge. The Reynolds number based on the uniform inlet velocity and the leading-edge diameter is 3450. The simulated mean and turbulence quantities compare well with the available experimental data.The numerical data have been comprehensively analysed to elucidate the entire transition process leading to breakdown to turbulence. It is evident from the simulation that the primary two-dimensional instability originates from the free shear in the bubble as the free shear layer is inviscidly unstable via the Kelvin–Helmholtz mechanism. These initial two-dimensional instability waves grow downstream with a amplification rate usually larger than that of Tollmien–Schlichting waves. Three-dimensional motions start to develop slowly under any small spanwise disturbance via a secondary instability mechanism associated with distortion of two-dimensional spanwise vortices and the formation of a spanwise peak–valley wave structure. Further downstream the distorted spanwise two-dimensional vortices roll up, leading to streamwise vorticity formation. Significant growth of three-dimensional motions occurs at about half the mean bubble length with hairpin vortices appearing at this stage, leading eventually to full breakdown to turbulence around the mean reattachment point. Vortex shedding from the separated shear layer is also observed and the ‘instantaneous reattachment’ position moves over a distance up to 50% of the mean reattachment length. Following reattachment, a turbulent boundary layer is established very quickly, but it is different from an equilibrium boundary layer.

Three-dimensional instabilities in the boundary-layer flow over a long rectangular plate

2011 ◽  
Vol 681 ◽  
pp. 411-433 ◽  
Author(s):  
HEMANT K. CHAURASIA ◽  
MARK C. THOMPSON
Keyword(s):  
Reynolds Number ◽  
Shear Layer ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Reynolds Numbers ◽  
Vortical Flow ◽  
Forced Flow ◽  
Recirculation Region ◽  
Two Dimensional ◽  
Optimal Perturbation ◽  
Dimensional Instability

A detailed numerical study of the separating and reattaching flow over a square leading-edge plate is presented, examining the instability modes governing transition from two- to three-dimensional flow. Under the influence of background noise, experiments show that the transition scenario typically is incompletely described by either global stability analysis or the transient growth of dominant optimal perturbation modes. Instead two-dimensional transition effectively can be triggered by the convective Kelvin–Helmholtz (KH) shear-layer instability; although it may be possible that this could be described alternatively in terms of higher-order optimal perturbation modes. At least in some experiments, observed transition occurs by either: (i) KH vortices shedding downstream directly and then almost immediately undergoing three-dimensional transition or (ii) at higher Reynolds numbers, larger vortical structures are shed that are also three-dimensionally unstable. These two paths lead to distinctly different three-dimensional arrangements of vortical flow structures. This paper focuses on the mechanisms underlying these three-dimensional transitions. Floquet analysis of weakly periodically forced flow, mimicking the observed two-dimensional quasi-periodic base flow, indicates that the two-dimensional vortex rollers shed from the recirculation region become globally three-dimensionally unstable at a Reynolds number of approximately 380. This transition Reynolds number and the predicted wavelength and flow symmetries match well with those of the experiments. The instability appears to be elliptical in nature with the perturbation field mainly restricted to the cores of the shed rollers and showing the spatial vorticity distribution expected for that instability type. Indeed an estimate of the theoretical predicted wavelength is also a good match to the prediction from Floquet analysis and theoretical estimates indicate the growth rate is positive. Fully three-dimensional simulations are also undertaken to explore the nonlinear development of the three-dimensional instability. These show the development of the characteristic upright hairpins observed in the experimental dye visualisations. The three-dimensional instability that manifests at lower Reynolds numbers is shown to be consistent with an elliptic instability of the KH shear-layer vortices in both symmetry and spanwise wavelength.

Transient growth in strongly stratified shear layers

2014 ◽  
Vol 758 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. K. Kaminski ◽  
C. P. Caulfield ◽  
J. R. Taylor
Keyword(s):  
Shear Layer ◽  
Normal Mode ◽  
Richardson Number ◽  
Mixing Layer ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Buoyancy Frequency ◽  
Transient Growth ◽  
Time Intervals ◽  
Optimal Perturbation ◽  
Target Time

AbstractWe investigate numerically transient linear growth of three-dimensional perturbations in a stratified shear layer to determine which perturbations optimize the growth of the total kinetic and potential energy over a range of finite target time intervals. The stratified shear layer has an initial parallel hyperbolic tangent velocity distribution with Reynolds number $\def \xmlpi #1{}\def \mathsfbi #1{\boldsymbol {\mathsf {#1}}}\let \le =\leqslant \let \leq =\leqslant \let \ge =\geqslant \let \geq =\geqslant \def \Pr {\mathit {Pr}}\def \Fr {\mathit {Fr}}\def \Rey {\mathit {Re}}\mathit{Re}=U_0 h/\nu =1000$ and Prandtl number $\nu /\kappa =1$, where $\nu $ is the kinematic viscosity of the fluid and $\kappa $ is the diffusivity of the density. The initial stable buoyancy distribution has constant buoyancy frequency $N_0$, and we consider a range of flows with different bulk Richardson number ${\mathit{Ri}}_b=N_0^2h^2/U_0^2$, which also corresponds to the minimum gradient Richardson number ${\mathit{Ri}}_g(z)=N_0^2/(\mathrm{d}U/\mathrm{d} z)^2$ at the midpoint of the shear layer. For short target times, the optimal perturbations are inherently three-dimensional, while for sufficiently long target times and small ${\mathit{Ri}}_b$ the optimal perturbations are closely related to the normal-mode ‘Kelvin–Helmholtz’ (KH) instability, consistent with analogous calculations in an unstratified mixing layer recently reported by Arratia et al. (J. Fluid Mech., vol. 717, 2013, pp. 90–133). However, we demonstrate that non-trivial transient growth occurs even when the Richardson number is sufficiently high to stabilize all normal-mode instabilities, with the optimal perturbation exciting internal waves at some distance from the midpoint of the shear layer.

Evolution of stream wise vortices and generation of small-scale motion in a plane mixing layer

1991 ◽  
Vol 231 ◽  
pp. 257-301 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. J. Nygaard ◽  
A. Glezer
Keyword(s):  
Surface Film ◽  
Mixing Layer ◽  
Excitation Frequency ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Streamwise Velocity ◽  
Base Flow ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Streamwise Vortices ◽  
Plane Mixing Layer ◽  
Scale Motion

The evolution of streamwise vortices in a plane mixing layer and their role in the generation of small-scale three-dimensional motion are studied in a closed-return water facility. Spanwise-periodic streamwise vortices are excited by a time-harmonic wavetrain with span wise-periodic amplitude variations synthesized by a mosaic of 32 surface film heaters flush-mounted on the flow partition. For a given excitation frequency, virtually any span wise wavelength synthesizable by the heating mosaic can be excited and can lead to the formation of streamwise vortices before the rollup of the primary vortices is completed. The onset of streamwise vortices is accompanied by significant distortion in the transverse distribution of the streamwise velocity component. The presence of inflexion points, absent in corresponding velocity distributions of the unforced flow, suggests the formation of locally unstable regions of large shear in which broadband perturbations already present in the base flow undergo rapid amplification, followed by breakdown to small-scale motion. Furthermore, as a result of spanwise-non-uniform excitation the cores of the primary vortices are significantly altered. The three-dimensional features of the streamwise vortices and their interaction with the base flow are inferred from surfaces of r.m.s. velocity fluctuations and an approximation to cross-stream vorticity using three-dimensional single component velocity data. The striking enhancement of small-scale motion and the spatial modification of its distribution, both induced by the streamwise vortices, can be related to the onset of the mixing transition.

Experimental and computational study of laminar cavity flows at hypersonic speeds

2001 ◽  
Vol 427 ◽  
pp. 329-358 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. P. JACKSON ◽  
R. HILLIER ◽  
S. SOLTANI
Keyword(s):  
Shear Layer ◽  
Cavity Length ◽  
Computational Study ◽  
Vortex Formation ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Cavity Flows ◽  
Free Shear Layer ◽  
Closed Cavity ◽  
Turbulent Transition ◽  
Hypersonic Speeds

This paper presents a combined experimental/computational study of a surface cavity in a low Reynolds number Mach 9 flow. The geometry is based on a body of revolution, which produces highly two-dimensional time-averaged flow for all experimental test cases. A range of cavity length-to-depth ratios, up to a maximum of 8, is investigated. These correspond to ‘closed’ cavity flows, with the free shear layer bridging the entire cavity. For most cases the free shear layer is laminar. However, there is evidence of three-dimensional unsteadiness which is believed to be the consequence of Taylor–Görtler-type vortex formation. The effect of this is first detected on the cavity floor but progressively spreads as the cavity length is increased. For the longest cavities the flow is also influenced by the early stages of laminar–turbulent transition in the free shear layer.

Three-dimensional destabilization of Stuart vortices: the influence of rotation and ellipticity

1999 ◽  
Vol 387 ◽  
pp. 205-226 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. G. POTYLITSIN ◽  
W. R. PELTIER
Keyword(s):  
Cross Sections ◽  
Mixing Layer ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Steady State Solution ◽  
Vorticity Distribution ◽  
Columnar Vortex ◽  
Elliptical Instability ◽  
The Stability ◽  
Dimensional Instability ◽  
Stuart Vortices

We investigate the influence of the ellipticity of a columnar vortex in a rotating environment on its linear stability to three-dimensional perturbations. As a model of the basic-state vorticity distribution, we employ the Stuart steady-state solution of the Euler equations. In the presence of background rotation, an anticyclonic vortex column is shown to be strongly destabilized to three-dimensional perturbations when background rotation is weak, while rapid rotation strongly stabilizes both anticyclonic and cyclonic columns, as might be expected on the basis of the Taylor–Proudman theorem. We demonstrate that there exist three distinct forms of three-dimensional instability to which strong anticyclonic vortices are subject. One form consists of a Coriolis force modified form of the ‘elliptical’ instability, which is dominant for vortex columns whose cross-sections are strongly elliptical. This mode was recently discussed by Potylitsin & Peltier (1998) and Leblanc & Cambon (1998). The second form of instability may be understood to constitute a three-dimensional inertial (centrifugal) mode, which becomes the dominant mechanism of instability as the ellipticity of the vortex column decreases. Also evident in the Stuart model of the vorticity distribution is a third ‘hyperbolic’ mode of instability that is focused on the stagnation point that exists between adjacent vortex cores. Although this short-wavelength cross-stream mode is much less important in the spectrum of the Stuart model than it is in the case of a true homogeneous mixing layer, it nevertheless does exist even though its presence has remained undetected in most previous analyses of the stability of the Stuart solution.

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