Is isotropic turbulent diffusion symmetry restoring?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Effinger, H.; Grossmann, S.

1984-07-01

The broadening of a cloud of marked particle pairs in longitudinal and transverse directions relative to the initial separation in fully developed isotropic turbulent flow is evaluated on the basis of the unified theory of turbulent relative diffusion of Grossmann and Procaccia (1984). The closure assumption of the theory is refined; its validity is confirmed by comparing experimental data; approximate analytical expressions for the traces of variance and asymmetry in the inertial subrange are obtained; and intermittency is treated using a log-normal model. The difference between the longitudinal and transverse components of the variance tensor is shown to tend to a finite nonzero limit dependent on the radial distribution of the cloud. The need for further measurements and the implications for studies of particle waste in air or water are indicated.

Helicity statistics in homogeneous and isotropic turbulence and turbulence models

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sahoo, Ganapati; De Pietro, Massimo; Biferale, Luca

2017-02-01

We study the statistical properties of helicity in direct numerical simulations of fully developed homogeneous and isotropic turbulence and in a class of turbulence shell models. We consider correlation functions based on combinations of vorticity and velocity increments that are not invariant under mirror symmetry. We also study the scaling properties of high-order structure functions based on the moments of the velocity increments projected on a subset of modes with either positive or negative helicity (chirality). We show that mirror symmetry is recovered at small scales, i.e., chiral terms are subleading and they are well captured by a dimensional argument plus anomalous corrections. These findings are also supported by a high Reynolds numbers study of helical shell models with the same chiral symmetry of Navier-Stokes equations.

On the Lighthill relationship and sound generation from isotropic turbulence

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zhou, YE; Praskovsky, Alexander; Oncley, Steven

1994-01-01

In 1952, Lighthill developed a theory for determining the sound generated by a turbulent motion of a fluid. With some statistical assumptions, Proudman applied this theory to estimate the acoustic power of isotropic turbulence. Recently, Lighthill established a simple relationship that relates the fourth-order retarded time and space covariance of his stress tensor to the corresponding second-order covariance and the turbulent flatness factor, without making statistical assumptions for a homogeneous turbulence. Lilley revisited Proudman's work and applied the Lighthill relationship to evaluate directly the radiated acoustic power from isotropic turbulence. After choosing the time separation dependence in the two-point velocity time and space covariance based on the insights gained from direct numerical simulations, Lilley concluded that the Proudman constant is determined by the turbulent flatness factor and the second-order spatial velocity covariance. In order to estimate the Proudman constant at high Reynolds numbers, we analyzed a unique data set of measurements in a large wind tunnel and atmospheric surface layer that covers a range of the Taylor microscale based on Reynolds numbers 2.0 x 10(exp 3) less than or equal to R(sub lambda) less than or equal to 12.7 x 10(exp 3). Our measurements demonstrate that the Lighthill relationship is a good approximation, providing additional support to Lilley's approach. The flatness factor is found between 2.7 - 3.3 and the second order spatial velocity covariance is obtained. Based on these experimental data, the Proudman constant is estimated to be 0.68 - 3.68.

On the dynamics of small-scale vorticity in isotropic turbulence

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jimenez, Javier; Wray, A. A.

1994-01-01

It was previously shown that the strong vorticity in isotropic turbulence is organized into tubular vortices ('worms') whose properties were characterized through the use of full numerical simulations at several Reynolds numbers. At the time most of the observations were kinematic, and several scaling laws were discovered for which there was no theoretical explanation. In the meantime, further analysis of the same fields yielded new information on the generation of the vortices, and it was realized that even if they had to be formed by stretching, they were at any given moment actually compressed at many points of their axes. This apparent contradiction was partially explained by postulating axial inertial waves induced by the nonuniformity of the vortex cores, which helped to 'spread' the axial strain and allowed the vortices to remain compact even if not uniformly stretched. The existence of such solutions was recently proved numerically. The present report discusses a set of new numerical simulations of isotropic turbulence, and a reanalysis of the old ones, in an effort to prove or disprove the presence of these waves in actual turbulent flows and to understand the dynamics, as opposed to the kinematics, of the vortices.

Computation of large-scale statistics in decaying isotropic turbulence

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chasnov, Jeffrey R.

1993-01-01

We have performed large-eddy simulations of decaying isotropic turbulence to test the prediction of self-similar decay of the energy spectrum and to compute the decay exponents of the kinetic energy. In general, good agreement between the simulation results and the assumption of self-similarity were obtained. However, the statistics of the simulations were insufficient to compute the value of gamma which corrects the decay exponent when the spectrum follows a k(exp 4) wave number behavior near k = 0. To obtain good statistics, it was found necessary to average over a large ensemble of turbulent flows.

Lagrangian Statistics of Slightly Buoyant Droplets in Isotropic Turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gopalan, Balaji; Malkiel, Edwin; Katz, Joseph

2006-11-01

This project examines the dynamics of slightly buoyant diesel droplets in isotropic turbulence using high speed in-line digital Holographic PIV. A cloud of droplets with specific gravity of 0.85 is injected into the central portion of an isotropic turbulence facility. The droplet trajectories are measured in a 50x50x50 mm̂3 sample volume using high speed in-line digital holography. An automated program has been developed to obtain accurate time history of droplet velocities. Data analysis determines the PDF of velocity and acceleration in three dimensions. The time histories enable us to calculate the three dimensional Lagrangian velocity autocorrelation function, and from them the diffusion coefficients. Due to buoyancy the vertical diffusion time scale exceeds the horizontal one by about 65% .The diffusion coefficients vary between 2.8 cm̂2/sec in the horizontal direction to 5.5 cm̂2/sec in the vertical direction. For droplets with size varying from 2 to 11 Kolmogorov scales there are no clear trends with size. The variations of diffusion rates for different turbulent intensities and the effect of finite window size are presently examined. For shorter time scales, when the diffusion need not be Fickian the three dimensional trajectories can be used to calculate the generalized dispersion tensor and measure the time elapsed for diffusion to become Fickian.

Principal curvatures and area ratio of propagating surfaces in isotropic turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zheng, Tianhang; You, Jiaping; Yang, Yue

2017-10-01

We study the statistics of principal curvatures and the surface area ratio of propagating surfaces with a constant or nonconstant propagating velocity in isotropic turbulence using direct numerical simulation. Propagating surface elements initially constitute a plane to model a planar premixed flame front. When the statistics of evolving propagating surfaces reach the stationary stage, the statistical profiles of principal curvatures scaled by the Kolmogorov length scale versus the constant displacement speed scaled by the Kolmogorov velocity scale collapse at different Reynolds numbers. The magnitude of averaged principal curvatures and the number of surviving surface elements without cusp formation decrease with increasing displacement speed. In addition, the effect of surface stretch on the nonconstant displacement speed inhibits the cusp formation on surface elements at negative Markstein numbers. In order to characterize the wrinkling process of the global propagating surface, we develop a model to demonstrate that the increase of the surface area ratio is primarily due to positive Lagrangian time integrations of the area-weighted averaged tangential strain-rate term and propagation-curvature term. The difference between the negative averaged mean curvature and the positive area-weighted averaged mean curvature characterizes the cellular geometry of the global propagating surface.

Mixing of a passive scalar in isotropic and sheared homogeneous turbulence

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Shirani, E.; Ferziger, J. H.; Reynolds, W. C.

1981-01-01

In order to calculate the velocity and scalar fields, the three dimensional, time-dependent equations of motion and the diffusion equation were solved numerically. The following cases were treated: isotropic, homogeneous turbulence with decay of a passive scalar; and homogeneous turbulent shear flow with a passive scalar whose mean varies linearly in the spanwise direction. The solutions were obtained at relatively low Reynolds numbers so that all of the turbulent scales could be resolved without modeling. Turbulent statistics such as integral length scales, Taylor microscales, Kolmogorov length scale, one- and two-point correlations of velocity-velocity and velocity-scalar, turbulent Prandtl/Schmidt number, r.m.s. values of velocities, the scalar quantity and pressure, skewness, decay rates, and decay exponents were calculated. The results are compared with the available expermental results, and good agreement is obtained.

Statistical anisotropy in free turbulence for mixing layers at high Reynolds numbers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gardner, Patrick J.; Roggemann, Michael C.; Welsh, Byron M.; Bowersox, Rodney D.; Luke, Theodore E.

1996-08-01

A lateral shearing interferometer was used to measure the slope of perturbed wave fronts after propagating through free turbulent mixing layers. Shearing interferometers provide a two-dimensional flow visualization that is nonintrusive. Slope measurements were used to reconstruct the phase of the turbulence-corrupted wave front. The random phase fluctuations induced by the mixing layer were captured in a large ensemble of wave-front measurements. Experiments were performed on an unbounded, plane shear mixing layer of helium and nitrogen gas at fixed velocities and high Reynolds numbers for six locations in the flow development. Statistical autocorrelation functions and structure functions were computed on the reconstructed phase maps. The autocorrelation function results indicated that the turbulence-induced phase fluctuations were not wide-sense stationary. The structure functions exhibited statistical homogeneity, indicating that the phase fluctuations were stationary in first increments. However, the turbulence-corrupted phase was not isotropic. A five-thirds power law is shown to fit orthogonal slices of the structure function, analogous to the Kolmogorov model for isotropic turbulence. Strehl ratios were computed from the phase structure functions and compared with classical estimates that assume isotropy. The isotropic models are shown to overestimate the optical degradation by nearly 3 orders of magnitude compared with the structure function calculations.

Chaotic Lagrangian models for turbulent relative dispersion.

PubMed

Lacorata, Guglielmo; Vulpiani, Angelo

2017-04-01

A deterministic multiscale dynamical system is introduced and discussed as a prototype model for relative dispersion in stationary, homogeneous, and isotropic turbulence. Unlike stochastic diffusion models, here trajectory transport and mixing properties are entirely controlled by Lagrangian chaos. The anomalous "sweeping effect," a known drawback common to kinematic simulations, is removed through the use of quasi-Lagrangian coordinates. Lagrangian dispersion statistics of the model are accurately analyzed by computing the finite-scale Lyapunov exponent (FSLE), which is the optimal measure of the scaling properties of dispersion. FSLE scaling exponents provide a severe test to decide whether model simulations are in agreement with theoretical expectations and/or observation. The results of our numerical experiments cover a wide range of "Reynolds numbers" and show that chaotic deterministic flows can be very efficient, and numerically low-cost, models of turbulent trajectories in stationary, homogeneous, and isotropic conditions. The mathematics of the model is relatively simple, and, in a geophysical context, potential applications may regard small-scale parametrization issues in general circulation models, mixed layer, and/or boundary layer turbulence models as well as Lagrangian predictability studies.

Chaotic Lagrangian models for turbulent relative dispersion

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lacorata, Guglielmo; Vulpiani, Angelo

2017-04-01

A deterministic multiscale dynamical system is introduced and discussed as a prototype model for relative dispersion in stationary, homogeneous, and isotropic turbulence. Unlike stochastic diffusion models, here trajectory transport and mixing properties are entirely controlled by Lagrangian chaos. The anomalous "sweeping effect," a known drawback common to kinematic simulations, is removed through the use of quasi-Lagrangian coordinates. Lagrangian dispersion statistics of the model are accurately analyzed by computing the finite-scale Lyapunov exponent (FSLE), which is the optimal measure of the scaling properties of dispersion. FSLE scaling exponents provide a severe test to decide whether model simulations are in agreement with theoretical expectations and/or observation. The results of our numerical experiments cover a wide range of "Reynolds numbers" and show that chaotic deterministic flows can be very efficient, and numerically low-cost, models of turbulent trajectories in stationary, homogeneous, and isotropic conditions. The mathematics of the model is relatively simple, and, in a geophysical context, potential applications may regard small-scale parametrization issues in general circulation models, mixed layer, and/or boundary layer turbulence models as well as Lagrangian predictability studies.

Experimental investigation of turbulent diffusion of slightly buoyant droplets in locally isotropic turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gopalan, Balaji; Malkiel, Edwin; Katz, Joseph

2008-09-01

High-speed inline digital holographic cinematography is used for studying turbulent diffusion of slightly buoyant 0.5-1.2 mm diameter diesel droplets and 50 μm diameter neutral density particles. Experiments are performed in a 50×50×70 mm3 sample volume in a controlled, nearly isotropic turbulence facility, which is characterized by two dimensional particle image velocimetry. An automated tracking program has been used for measuring velocity time history of more than 17 000 droplets and 15 000 particles. For most of the present conditions, rms values of horizontal droplet velocity exceed those of the fluid. The rms values of droplet vertical velocity are higher than those of the fluid only for the highest turbulence level. The turbulent diffusion coefficient is calculated by integration of the ensemble-averaged Lagrangian velocity autocovariance. Trends of the asymptotic droplet diffusion coefficient are examined by noting that it can be viewed as a product of a mean square velocity and a diffusion time scale. To compare the effects of turbulence and buoyancy, the turbulence intensity (ui') is scaled by the droplet quiescent rise velocity (Uq). The droplet diffusion coefficients in horizontal and vertical directions are lower than those of the fluid at low normalized turbulence intensity, but exceed it with increasing normalized turbulence intensity. For most of the present conditions the droplet horizontal diffusion coefficient is higher than the vertical diffusion coefficient, consistent with trends of the droplet velocity fluctuations and in contrast to the trends of the diffusion timescales. The droplet diffusion coefficients scaled by the product of turbulence intensity and an integral length scale are a monotonically increasing function of ui'/Uq.

Attenuation of Gas Turbulence by a Nearly Stationary Dispersion of Fine Particles

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Paris, A. D.; Eaton, J. K.; Hwang, W.

1999-01-01

particles fall through the measurement volume. Measurements will be acquired using a high resolution image velocimetry (PIV) system being developed specifically for work in particle-laden flows. The measurements will include the decay of the turbulence kinetic energy under various particle loadings. The spatial spectra of the turbulence will also be measured. In a second set of experiments, the interaction of a single eddy with a collection of nearly stationary particles will be examined. The eddy will be a vortex ring emitted by a jet pulse through an orifice. The distortion of the vortex under the influence of the particles will be examined to gain a better understanding of how fine particles can cause such large reductions in turbulence levels. This experiment could not be conducted in terrestrial gravity because the high particle velocities would overwhelm the relatively low speed motion of the vortex ring. This experimental program is just getting underway. The initial challenge is to build a closed facility containing reasonably homogeneous and isotropic turbulence with zero mean velocity. Our approach is to use a set of synthetic jets mounted on the periphery of a transparent plexiglass box to create the turbulence. A synthetic jet is a plenum chamber with an orifice open to the volume of interest. The volume of the chamber fluctuates periodically so alternately a jet is ejected from the volume or flow is drawn back in as a sink. The asymmetry of this situation results in a net transport of momentum and kinetic energy into the volume of interest. The present apparatus includes eight synthetic jets each powered independently by a six inch loudspeaker. The synthetic jets discharge through ejector tubes to increase the scale of the turbulence. Construction of the apparatus is now complete and preliminary flow visualization studies have been conducted. The PIV system is also under development. A compact dual-pulse YAG laser has been acquired as the light source and

Theories and applications of second-order correlation of longitudinal velocity increments at three points in isotropic turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wu, J. Z.; Fang, L.; Shao, L.; Lu, L. P.

2018-06-01

In order to introduce new physics to traditional two-point correlations, we define the second-order correlation of longitudinal velocity increments at three points and obtain the analytical expressions in isotropic turbulence. By introducing the Kolmogorov 4/5 law, this three-point correlation explicitly contains velocity second- and third-order moments, which correspond to energy and energy transfer respectively. The combination of them then shows additional information of non-equilibrium turbulence by comparing to two-point correlations. Moreover, this three-point correlation shows the underlying inconsistency between numerical interpolation and three-point scaling law in numerical calculations, and inspires a preliminary model to correct this problem in isotropic turbulence.

Lagrangian statistics in compressible isotropic homogeneous turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yang, Yantao; Wang, Jianchun; Shi, Yipeng; Chen, Shiyi

2011-11-01

In this work we conducted the Direct Numerical Simulation (DNS) of a forced compressible isotropic homogeneous turbulence and investigated the flow statistics from the Lagrangian point of view, namely the statistics is computed following the passive tracers trajectories. The numerical method combined the Eulerian field solver which was developed by Wang et al. (2010, J. Comp. Phys., 229, 5257-5279), and a Lagrangian module for tracking the tracers and recording the data. The Lagrangian probability density functions (p.d.f.'s) have then been calculated for both kinetic and thermodynamic quantities. In order to isolate the shearing part from the compressing part of the flow, we employed the Helmholtz decomposition to decompose the flow field (mainly the velocity field) into the solenoidal and compressive parts. The solenoidal part was compared with the incompressible case, while the compressibility effect showed up in the compressive part. The Lagrangian structure functions and cross-correlation between various quantities will also be discussed. This work was supported in part by the China's Turbulence Program under Grant No.2009CB724101.

Direct numerical simulation of droplet-laden isotropic turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dodd, Michael S.

Interaction of liquid droplets with turbulence is important in numerous applications ranging from rain formation to oil spills to spray combustion. The physical mechanisms of droplet-turbulence interaction are largely unknown, especially when compared to that of solid particles. Compared to solid particles, droplets can deform, break up, coalesce and have internal fluid circulation. The main goal of this work is to investigate using direct numerical simulation (DNS) the physical mechanisms of droplet-turbulence interaction, both for non-evaporating and evaporating droplets. To achieve this objective, we develop and couple a new pressure-correction method with the volume-of-fluid (VoF) method for simulating incompressible two-fluid flows. The method's main advantage is that the variable coefficient Poisson equation that arises in solving the incompressible Navier-Stokes equations for two-fluid flows is reduced to a constant coefficient equation. This equation can then be solved directly using, e.g., the FFT-based parallel Poisson solver. For a 10243 mesh, our new pressure-correction method using a fast Poisson solver is ten to forty times faster than the standard pressure-correction method using multigrid. Using the coupled pressure-correction and VoF method, we perform direct numerical simulations (DNS) of 3130 finite-size, non-evaporating droplets of diameter approximately equal to the Taylor lengthscale and with 5% droplet volume fraction in decaying isotropic turbulence at initial Taylor-scale Reynolds number Relambda = 83. In the droplet-laden cases, we vary one of the following three parameters: the droplet Weber number based on the r.m.s. velocity of turbulence (0.1 ≤ Werms ≤ 5), the droplet- to carrier-fluid density ratio (1 ≤ rhod/rho c ≤ 100) or the droplet- to carrier-fluid viscosity ratio (1 ≤ mud/muc ≤ 100). We derive the turbulence kinetic energy (TKE) equations for the two-fluid, carrier-fluid and droplet-fluid flow. These equations allow

Helical bottleneck effect in 3D homogeneous isotropic turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stepanov, Rodion; Golbraikh, Ephim; Frick, Peter; Shestakov, Alexander

2018-02-01

We present the results of modelling the development of homogeneous and isotropic turbulence with a large-scale source of energy and a source of helicity distributed over scales. We use the shell model for numerical simulation of the turbulence at high Reynolds number. The results show that the helicity injection leads to a significant change in the behavior of the energy and helicity spectra in scales larger and smaller than the energy injection scale. We suggest the phenomenology for direct turbulent cascades with the helicity effect, which reduces the efficiency of the spectral energy transfer. Therefore the energy is accumulated and redistributed so that non-linear interactions will be sufficient to provide a constant energy flux. It can be interpreted as the ‘helical bottleneck effect’ which, depending on the parameters of the injection helicity, reminds one of the well-known bottleneck effect at the end of inertial range. Simulations which included the infrared part of the spectrum show that the inverse cascade hardly develops under distributed helicity forcing.

Two-dimensional homogeneous isotropic fluid turbulence with polymer additives

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gupta, Anupam; Perlekar, Prasad; Pandit, Rahul

2015-03-01

We carry out an extensive and high-resolution direct numerical simulation of homogeneous, isotropic turbulence in two-dimensional fluid films with air-drag-induced friction and with polymer additives. Our study reveals that the polymers (a) reduce the total fluid energy, enstrophy, and palinstrophy; (b) modify the fluid energy spectrum in both inverse- and forward-cascade régimes; (c) reduce small-scale intermittency; (d) suppress regions of high vorticity and strain rate; and (e) stretch in strain-dominated regions. We compare our results with earlier experimental studies and propose new experiments.

The decay of isotropic magnetohydrodynamics turbulence and the effects of cross-helicity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Briard, Antoine; Gomez, Thomas

2018-02-01

Decaying homogeneous and isotropic magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) turbulence is investigated numerically at large Reynolds numbers thanks to the eddy-damped quasi-normal Markovian (EDQNM) approximation. Without any background mean magnetic field, the total energy spectrum scales as -3/2$ in the inertial range as a consequence of the modelling. Moreover, the total energy is shown, both analytically and numerically, to decay at the same rate as kinetic energy in hydrodynamic isotropic turbulence: this differs from a previous prediction, and thus physical arguments are proposed to reconcile both results. Afterwards, the MHD turbulence is made imbalanced by an initial non-zero cross-helicity. A spectral modelling is developed for the velocity-magnetic correlation in a general homogeneous framework, which reveals that cross-helicity can contain subtle anisotropic effects. In the inertial range, as the Reynolds number increases, the slope of the cross-helical spectrum becomes closer to -5/3$ than -2$ . Furthermore, the Elsässer spectra deviate from -3/2$ with cross-helicity at large Reynolds numbers. Regarding the pressure spectrum P$ , its kinetic and magnetic parts are found to scale with -2$ in the inertial range, whereas the part due to cross-helicity rather scales in -7/3$ . Finally, the two rd laws for the total energy and cross-helicity are assessed numerically at large Reynolds numbers.

Charged-Particle Transport in the Data-Driven, Non-Isotropic Turbulent Mangetic Field in the Solar Wind

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sun, P.; Jokipii, J. R.; Giacalone, J.

2016-12-01

Anisotropies in astrophysical turbulence has been proposed and observed for a long time. And recent observations adopting the multi-scale analysis techniques provided a detailed description of the scale-dependent power spectrum of the magnetic field parallel and perpendicular to the scale-dependent magnetic field line at different scales in the solar wind. In the previous work, we proposed a multi-scale method to synthesize non-isotropic turbulent magnetic field with pre-determined power spectra of the fluctuating magnetic field as a function of scales. We present the effect of test particle transport in the resulting field with a two-scale algorithm. We find that the scale-dependent turbulence anisotropy has a significant difference in the effect on charged par- ticle transport from what the isotropy or the global anisotropy has. It is important to apply this field synthesis method to the solar wind magnetic field based on spacecraft data. However, this relies on how we extract the power spectra of the turbulent magnetic field across different scales. In this study, we propose here a power spectrum synthesis method based on Fourier analysis to extract the large and small scale power spectrum from a single spacecraft observation with a long enough period and a high sampling frequency. We apply the method to the solar wind measurement by the magnetometer onboard the ACE spacecraft and regenerate the large scale isotropic 2D spectrum and the small scale anisotropic 2D spectrum. We run test particle simulations in the magnetid field generated in this way to estimate the transport coefficients and to compare with the isotropic turbulence model.

Approximate solution to the Hopf Phi equation for isotropic homogeneous fluid turbulence

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rosen, G.

1982-01-01

Consistent with the observed t to the -n decay laws for isotropic homogeneous turbulence and the form of the longitudinal correlation function f(r, t) for small r, the Hopf Phi equation is shown to be satisfied approximately by an asymptotic power series in t to the -n. This solution features a self-similar universal equilibrium functional which manifests Kolmogoroff-type scaling.

The role of bulk viscosity on the decay of compressible, homogeneous, isotropic turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Johnsen, Eric; Pan, Shaowu

2016-11-01

The practice of neglecting bulk viscosity in studies of compressible turbulence is widespread. While exact for monatomic gases and unlikely to strongly affect the dynamics of fluids whose bulk-to-shear viscosity ratio is small and/or of weakly compressible turbulence, this assumption is not justifiable for compressible, turbulent flows of gases whose bulk viscosity is orders of magnitude larger than their shear viscosities (e.g., CO2). To understand the mechanisms by which bulk viscosity and the associated phenomena affect compressible turbulence, we conduct DNS of freely decaying compressible, homogeneous, isotropic turbulence for ratios of bulk-to-shear viscosity ranging from 0-1000. Our simulations demonstrate that bulk viscosity increases the decay rate of turbulent kinetic energy; while enstrophy exhibits little sensitivity to bulk viscosity, dilatation is reduced by an order of magnitude within the two eddy turnover time. Via a Helmholtz decomposition of the flow, we determined that bulk viscosity damps the dilatational velocity and reduces dilatational-solenoidal exchanges, as well as pressure-dilatation coupling. In short, bulk viscosity renders compressible turbulence incompressible by reducing energy transfer between translational and internal modes.

Technique for forcing high Reynolds number isotropic turbulence in physical space

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Palmore, John A.; Desjardins, Olivier

2018-03-01

Many common engineering problems involve the study of turbulence interaction with other physical processes. For many such physical processes, solutions are expressed most naturally in physical space, necessitating the use of physical space solutions. For simulating isotropic turbulence in physical space, linear forcing is a commonly used strategy because it produces realistic turbulence in an easy-to-implement formulation. However, the method resolves a smaller range of scales on the same mesh than spectral forcing. We propose an alternative approach for turbulence forcing in physical space that uses the low-pass filtered velocity field as the basis of the forcing term. This method is shown to double the range of scales captured by linear forcing while maintaining the flexibility and low computational cost of the original method. This translates to a 60% increase of the Taylor microscale Reynolds number on the same mesh. An extension is made to scalar mixing wherein a scalar field is forced to have an arbitrarily chosen, constant variance. Filtered linear forcing of the scalar field allows for control over the length scale of scalar injection, which could be important when simulating scalar mixing.

Stochastic Theory for the Clustering of Rapidly Settling, Low-Inertia Particle Pairs in Isotropic Turbulence - II

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rani, Sarma; Gupta, Vijay; Koch, Donald

2017-11-01

A stochastic theory is developed to predict the Radial Distribution Function (RDF) of monodisperse, rapidly settling, low-inertia particle pairs in isotropic turbulence. In the second version of the theory (T2), the dimensionless strain-rate and rotation-rate tensors ``seen'' by the primary particle are assumed to be Gaussian distributed, where the strain-rate and rotation-rate tensors are non-dimensionlized using the instantaneous dissipation rate and enstrophy, respectively. Accordingly, closure is again derived for the drift flux driving particle clustering, in the asympotic limits of Stokes number St =τp /τη << 1 , and settling paramater Sv = gτp /uη >> 1 . Only the drift flux differs for T1 and T2, while the diffusive flux remains the same. The RDFs for rapidly settling pairs again show an inverse power dependency on pair separation r with an exponent, c1, that is proportional to St2 . However, in contrast to T1, the c1 values predicted by T2 show good qualitative and resonable quantitative agreement with the c1 values obtained from DNS of settling particles in isotropic turbulence. Further, the T2-predicted c1 values are smaller than those obtained from DNS of non-settling particles in isotropic turbulence. Funding from the CBET Division of the National Science Foundation is gratefully acknowledged.

Field Line Random Walk in Isotropic Magnetic Turbulence up to Infinite Kubo Number

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sonsrettee, W.; Wongpan, P.; Ruffolo, D. J.; Matthaeus, W. H.; Chuychai, P.; Rowlands, G.

2013-12-01

In astrophysical plasmas, the magnetic field line random walk (FLRW) plays a key role in the transport of energetic particles. In the present, we consider isotropic magnetic turbulence, which is a reasonable model for interstellar space. Theoretical conceptions of the FLRW have been strongly influenced by studies of the limit of weak fluctuations (or a strong mean field) (e.g, Isichenko 1991a, b). In this case, the behavior of FLRW can be characterized by the Kubo number R = (b/B0)(l_∥ /l_ \\bot ) , where l∥ and l_ \\bot are turbulence coherence scales parallel and perpendicular to the mean field, respectively, and b is the root mean squared fluctuation field. In the 2D limit (R ≫ 1), there has been an apparent conflict between concepts of Bohm diffusion, which is based on the Corrsin's independence hypothesis, and percolative diffusion. Here we have used three non-perturbative analytic techniques based on Corrsin's independence hypothesis for B0 = 0 (R = ∞ ): diffusive decorrelation (DD), random ballistic decorrelation (RBD) and a general ordinary differential equation (ODE), and compared them with direct computer simulations. All the analytical models and computer simulations agree that isotropic turbulence for R = ∞ has a field line diffusion coefficient that is consistent with Bohm diffusion. Partially supported by the Thailand Research Fund, NASA, and NSF.

Measurements of orientation, sedimentation, and dispersal of ramified particles in isotropic turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Voth, Greg A.; Kramel, Stefan; Menon, Udayshankar K.; Koch, Donald L.

2017-11-01

We experimentally measure the sedimentation of non-spherical particles in isotropic turbulence. We obtain time-resolved 3D orientations of the particles along with the fluid velocity field around them in a vertical water tunnel. An active jet array with 40 individually controllable jets enables us to adjust the turbulence intensity and observe the transition from strongly aligned to randomized particle orientations. We focus on the orientation statistics of ramified particles formed from several slender arms, including fibers and particles with three arms in planar symmetry (triads), which allows us to study alignment of both fibers and disk-like particles. We can predict the turbulent intensity at which the transition from aligned to randomized particle orientations occurs using a non-dimensional settling factor given by the ratio of rotation timescale of the turbulence at the scale of the particle to the rotation timescale of a particles in quiescent flow due to inertial torques. A model of ramified particle motion based on slender body theory provides accurate predictions of the vertical and horizontal particle velocities relative to the turbulent fluid. Supported by Army Research Office Grant W911NF1510205.

New developments in isotropic turbulent models for FENE-P fluids

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Resende, P. R.; Cavadas, A. S.

2018-04-01

The evolution of viscoelastic turbulent models, in the last years, has been significant due to the direct numeric simulation (DNS) advances, which allowed us to capture in detail the evolution of the viscoelastic effects and the development of viscoelastic closures. New viscoelastic closures are proposed for viscoelastic fluids described by the finitely extensible nonlinear elastic-Peterlin constitutive model. One of the viscoelastic closure developed in the context of isotropic turbulent models, consists in a modification of the turbulent viscosity to include an elastic effect, capable of predicting, with good accuracy, the behaviour for different drag reductions. Another viscoelastic closure essential to predict drag reduction relates the viscoelastic term involving velocity and the tensor conformation fluctuations. The DNS data show the high impact of this term to predict correctly the drag reduction, and for this reason is proposed a simpler closure capable of predicting the viscoelastic behaviour with good performance. In addition, a new relation is developed to predict the drag reduction, quantity based on the trace of the tensor conformation at the wall, eliminating the need of the typically parameters of Weissenberg and Reynolds numbers, which depend on the friction velocity. This allows future developments for complex geometries.

Holographic Measurements of Fuel Droplet Diffusion in Isotropic Turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gopalan, Balaji

2005-11-01

High-speed digital holographic cinematography was used to investigate the diffusion of slightly buoyant fuel droplets in locally isotropic turbulence. High turbulence levels with a weak mean velocity was generated at the center of a tank by four rotating grids. 0.3-1.5mm droplets were injected here and tracked using in-line holography. To obtain all three components of velocity, we simultaneously recorded holograms of the central 37x37x37 mm^3 volume from two perpendicular directions. These were numerically reconstructed to provide focused images of the droplets. An automated code was developed to identify the 3-D droplet trajectories from the two views, and then calculate time series of their velocity. After subtracting the local mean fluid velocity, the time series were used to obtain the 3-D Lagrangian autocorrelation function of droplet velocity. Averaging over many trajectories provided the autocorrelation functions as a function of direction and droplet sizes. As expected, the correlation was higher in the vertical direction due to the effect of gravity. Data analysis is still in progress.

Lagrangian statistics of turbulent dispersion from 81923 direct numerical simulation of isotropic turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Buaria, Dhawal; Yeung, P. K.; Sawford, B. L.

2016-11-01

An efficient massively parallel algorithm has allowed us to obtain the trajectories of 300 million fluid particles in an 81923 simulation of isotropic turbulence at Taylor-scale Reynolds number 1300. Conditional single-particle statistics are used to investigate the effect of extreme events in dissipation and enstrophy on turbulent dispersion. The statistics of pairs and tetrads, both forward and backward in time, are obtained via post-processing of single-particle trajectories. For tetrads, since memory of shape is known to be short, we focus, for convenience, on samples which are initially regular, with all sides of comparable length. The statistics of tetrad size show similar behavior as the two-particle relative dispersion, i.e., stronger backward dispersion at intermediate times with larger backward Richardson constant. In contrast, the statistics of tetrad shape show more robust inertial range scaling, in both forward and backward frames. However, the distortion of shape is stronger for backward dispersion. Our results suggest that the Reynolds number reached in this work is sufficient to settle some long-standing questions concerning Lagrangian scale similarity. Supported by NSF Grants CBET-1235906 and ACI-1036170.

Statistical assessment of optical phase fluctuations through turbulent mixing layers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gardner, Patrick J.; Roggemann, Michael C.; Welsh, Byron M.; Bowersox, Rodney D.

1995-09-01

A lateral shearing interferometer is used to measure the slope of perturbed wavefronts after propagating through turbulent shear flows. This provides a two-dimensional flow visualization technique which is nonintrusive. The slope measurements are used to reconstruct the phase of the turbulence-corrupted wave front. Experiments were performed on a plane shear mixing layer of helium and nitrogen gas at fixed velocities, for five locations in the flow development. The two gases, having a density ratio of approximately seven, provide an effective means of simulating compressible shear layers. Statistical autocorrelation functions and structure functions are computed on the reconstructed phase maps. The autocorrelation function results indicate that the turbulence-induced phase fluctuations are not wide-sense stationary. The structure functions exhibit statistical homogeneity, indicating the phase fluctuation are stationary in first increments. However, the turbulence-corrupted phase is not isotropic. A five-thirds power law is shown to fit one-dimensional, orthogonal slices of the structure function, with scaling coefficients related to the location in the flow.

Amplification and attenuation of shock wave strength caused by homogeneous isotropic turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tanaka, K.; Watanabe, T.; Nagata, K.; Sasoh, A.; Sakai, Y.; Hayase, T.

2018-03-01

We study the pressure increase across a planar shock wave with shock Mach numbers Ms of 1.1, 1.3, and 1.5 propagating through homogeneous isotropic turbulence at a low turbulent Mach number (Mt ˜ 10-4) based on direct numerical simulations (DNSs). Fluctuation in the pressure increase, Δp', on a given shock ray is induced by turbulence around the ray. A local amplification of the shock wave strength, measured with the pressure increase, is caused by the velocity fluctuation opposed to the shock wave propagating direction with a time delay, while the velocity in the opposite direction attenuates the shock wave strength. The turbulence effects on the shock wave are explained based on shock wave deformation due to turbulent shearing motions. The spatial distribution of Δp' on the shock wave has a characteristic length of the order of the integral scale of turbulence. The influence of turbulent velocity fluctuation at a given location on Δp' becomes most significant after the shock wave propagates from the location for a distance close to the integral length scale for all shock Mach numbers, demonstrating that the shock wave properties possess strong memory even during the propagation in turbulence. A lower shock Mach number Ms results in a smaller rms value of Δp', stronger influences on Δp' by turbulence far away from the shock ray, and a larger length scale in the spatial profile of Δp' on the shock wave. Relative intensity of Δp' increases with [Mt/(Ms-1 ) ] α, where DNS and experimental results yield α ≈ 0.73.

Effect of shock waves on the statistics and scaling in compressible isotropic turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Jianchun; Wan, Minping; Chen, Song; Xie, Chenyue; Chen, Shiyi

2018-04-01

The statistics and scaling of compressible isotropic turbulence in the presence of large-scale shock waves are investigated by using numerical simulations at turbulent Mach number Mt ranging from 0.30 to 0.65. The spectra of the compressible velocity component, density, pressure, and temperature exhibit a k-2 scaling at different turbulent Mach numbers. The scaling exponents for structure functions of the compressible velocity component and thermodynamic variables are close to 1 at high orders n ≥3 . The probability density functions of increments of the compressible velocity component and thermodynamic variables exhibit a power-law region with the exponent -2 . Models for the conditional average of increments of the compressible velocity component and thermodynamic variables are developed based on the ideal shock relations and are verified by numerical simulations. The overall statistics of the compressible velocity component and thermodynamic variables are similar to one another at different turbulent Mach numbers. It is shown that the effect of shock waves on the compressible velocity spectrum and kinetic energy transfer is different from that of acoustic waves.

Investigation of anomalous very fast decay regimes in homogeneous isotropic turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Meldi, Marcello; Sagaut, Pierre

2018-05-01

The emergence of anomalous fast decay regimes in homogeneous isotropic turbulence (HIT) decay is investigated via both theoretical analysis and eddy-damped quasi-normal Markovian simulations. The work provides new insight about a fundamental issue playing a role in HIT decay, namely the influence of non-standard shapes of the energy spectrum, in particular in the large energetic scale region. A detailed analysis of the kinetic energy spectrum E(k) and the non-linear energy transfer T(k) shows that anomalous decay regimes are associated with the relaxation of initial energy spectra which exhibit a bump at energetic scales. This feature induces an increase in the energy cascade rate, toward solutions with a smooth shape at the spectrum peak. Present results match observations reported in wind-tunnel experiments dealing with turbulence decay in the wake of grids and bluff bodies, including scaling laws for the dissipation parameter Cɛ. They also indicate that the ratio between the initial eddy turnover time and the advection time determines of how fast anomalous regimes relax toward classical turbulence free-decay. This parameter should be used for consistent data comparison and it opens perspectives for the control of multiscale effects in industrial applications.

Multiscale permutation entropy analysis of laser beam wandering in isotropic turbulence.

PubMed

Olivares, Felipe; Zunino, Luciano; Gulich, Damián; Pérez, Darío G; Rosso, Osvaldo A

2017-10-01

We have experimentally quantified the temporal structural diversity from the coordinate fluctuations of a laser beam propagating through isotropic optical turbulence. The main focus here is on the characterization of the long-range correlations in the wandering of a thin Gaussian laser beam over a screen after propagating through a turbulent medium. To fulfill this goal, a laboratory-controlled experiment was conducted in which coordinate fluctuations of the laser beam were recorded at a sufficiently high sampling rate for a wide range of turbulent conditions. Horizontal and vertical displacements of the laser beam centroid were subsequently analyzed by implementing the symbolic technique based on ordinal patterns to estimate the well-known permutation entropy. We show that the permutation entropy estimations at multiple time scales evidence an interplay between different dynamical behaviors. More specifically, a crossover between two different scaling regimes is observed. We confirm a transition from an integrated stochastic process contaminated with electronic noise to a fractional Brownian motion with a Hurst exponent H=5/6 as the sampling time increases. Besides, we are able to quantify, from the estimated entropy, the amount of electronic noise as a function of the turbulence strength. We have also demonstrated that these experimental observations are in very good agreement with numerical simulations of noisy fractional Brownian motions with a well-defined crossover between two different scaling regimes.

Model of non-stationary, inhomogeneous turbulence

DOE PAGES

Bragg, Andrew D.; Kurien, Susan; Clark, Timothy T.

2016-07-08

Here, we compare results from a spectral model for non-stationary, inhomogeneous turbulence (Besnard et al. in Theor Comp Fluid Dyn 8:1–35, 1996) with direct numerical simulation (DNS) data of a shear-free mixing layer (SFML) (Tordella et al. in Phys Rev E 77:016309, 2008). The SFML is used as a test case in which the efficacy of the model closure for the physical-space transport of the fluid velocity field can be tested in a flow with inhomogeneity, without the additional complexity of mean-flow coupling. The model is able to capture certain features of the SFML quite well for intermediate to longmore » times, including the evolution of the mixing-layer width and turbulent kinetic energy. At short-times, and for more sensitive statistics such as the generation of the velocity field anisotropy, the model is less accurate. We propose two possible causes for the discrepancies. The first is the local approximation to the pressure-transport and the second is the a priori spherical averaging used to reduce the dimensionality of the solution space of the model, from wavevector to wavenumber space. DNS data are then used to gauge the relative importance of both possible deficiencies in the model.« less

Experimental Investigation of Lagrangian Statistics of Motion of Diesel Oil Droplets and Fluid Particles in Isotropic Turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gopalan, Balaji; Malkiel, Edwin; Katz, Joseph

2007-11-01

Lagrangian motion in isotropic turbulence of slightly buoyant diesel oil droplets (specific gravity 0.85 and size 0.6-1.1 mm) and almost neutrally buoyant, 50 μm tracer particles are studied using high speed, in-line digital holographic cinematography. Droplets and particles are injected into a 50x50x70 mm^3 sample volume located at the center of a nearly isotropic turbulence facility, and data are obtained for Reλ of 190, 195 and 214. The turbulence is characterized by 2D PIV measurements at different planes. An automated tracking program has been used for measuring velocity time history of more than 22000 droplet tracks and 15000 particle tracks. Analysis compares probability density functions (PDF) of Lagrangian velocity and acceleration, spectra, as well as velocity and acceleration autocorrelation functions of droplets with those of particles. For most of the present conditions, rms values of horizontal droplet velocity exceed those of the fluid. The rms values of droplet vertical velocity are higher than those of the fluid only for the highest turbulence level. PDFs of droplet velocity have nearly Gaussian distributions, justifying use of Taylor's (1921) model to calculate diffusion parameters. The fluid particle diffusion coefficient exceeds that of the droplet primarily because the fluid diffusion timescale is higher than that of the droplet. For all droplet sizes and Reynolds numbers, the diffusion coefficient, calculated using Taylor's model, scaled by quiescent rise velocity and turbulence integral length scale, is a monotonically increasing function of the turbulence level normalized by droplet quiescent rise velocity.

Root mean square fluctuation of a weak magnetic field in an infinite medium of homogeneous stationary turbulence.

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Low, B.-C.

1972-01-01

The generation of a magnetic field by statistically homogeneous, stationary velocity turbulence is considered. The generation of rms magnetic fluctuation is explicitly demonstrated in the limit of short turbulence correlation time. It is shown that the fluctuation associated with a growing or stationary mean field grows with time such that the ratio of the fluctuation and the square of the mean field tends to a steady value, which is a monotonically decreasing function of the growth rate of the mean field.

PIV measurement of high-Reynolds-number homogeneous and isotropic turbulence in an enclosed flow apparatus with fan agitation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dou, Zhongwang; Pecenak, Zachary K.; Cao, Lujie; Woodward, Scott H.; Liang, Zach; Meng, Hui

2016-03-01

Enclosed flow apparatuses with negligible mean flow are emerging as alternatives to wind tunnels for laboratory studies of homogeneous and isotropic turbulence (HIT) with or without aerosol particles, especially in experimental validation of Direct Numerical Simulation (DNS). It is desired that these flow apparatuses generate HIT at high Taylor-microscale Reynolds numbers ({{R}λ} ) and enable accurate measurement of turbulence parameters including kinetic energy dissipation rate and thereby {{R}λ} . We have designed an enclosed, fan-driven, highly symmetric truncated-icosahedron ‘soccer ball’ airflow apparatus that enables particle imaging velocimetry (PIV) and other whole-field flow measurement techniques. To minimize gravity effect on inertial particles and improve isotropy, we chose fans instead of synthetic jets as flow actuators. We developed explicit relations between {{R}λ} and physical as well as operational parameters of enclosed HIT chambers. To experimentally characterize turbulence in this near-zero-mean flow chamber, we devised a new two-scale PIV approach utilizing two independent PIV systems to obtain both high resolution and large field of view. Velocity measurement results show that turbulence in the apparatus achieved high homogeneity and isotropy in a large central region (48 mm diameter) of the chamber. From PIV-measured velocity fields, we obtained turbulence dissipation rates and thereby {{R}λ} by using the second-order velocity structure function. A maximum {{R}λ} of 384 was achieved. Furthermore, experiments confirmed that the root mean square (RMS) velocity increases linearly with fan speed, and {{R}λ} increases with the square root of fan speed. Characterizing turbulence in such apparatus paves the way for further investigation of particle dynamics in particle-laden homogeneous and isotropic turbulence.

Experimental Study of Inertial Particle-Pair Relative Velocity in Isotropic Turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dou, Zhongwang

The investigation of turbulence-enhanced inertial particle collision in isotropic turbulence could improve our understanding and modeling of many particle-laden turbulent flows in engineering and nature. In this study, we investigate one of the most critical factors of particle collision - particle-pair relative velocity (RV) in three major steps. First, to generate a reliable homogeneous and isotropic turbulence (HIT) field, we have designed and implemented a high Reynolds number (R lambda), enclosed, fan-driven HIT chamber in the shape of 'soccer ball', conducive for studying inertial particle dynamics using whole-field imaging techniques. The characterization of turbulence in this near-zero-mean flow chamber was performed using a new two-scale particle imaging velocimetry (PIV) approach. The measurement results showed that turbulence in the apparatus achieved high homogeneity and isotropy in a large central region (48mm diameter) of the chamber with minimized gravity effect. A maximum Rlambda of 384 was achieved. Second, to measure particle-pair RV accurately, we have employed numerical experiments to systemically analyze the measurement error in the previous particle-pair RV measurement by holographic PIV. We found that accurate RV measurement requires high accuracy of both particle positioning and particle pairing. To meet these requirements, we have devised a novel planar 4-frame particle tracking velocimetry technique (4F-PTV) combining two PIV systems. It tracks particles in four consecutive frames in high speed to increase particle pairing accuracy. Furthermore, the particles are tracked only in a thin laser light sheet, thus negating the intrinsic position uncertainty in the depth direction in holographic PIV. In addition, we have studied the laser thickness effect on the RV measurement and attempted to use Monte Carlo analysis to correct this effect. Third, and most importantly, to better understand turbulence-enhanced inertial particle collision, we

Relationships between development/decay of a vortex and its topology in different flow scales in an isotropic homogeneous turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yamamoto, Keisuke; Nakayama, Katsuyuki

2017-11-01

Development or decay of a vortex in terms of the local flow topology has been shown to be highly correlated with its topological feature, i.e., vortical flow symmetry (skewness), in an isotropic homogeneous turbulence. Since a turbulent flow might include vortices in multi-scales, the present study investigates the characteristics of this relationships between the development or decay of a vortex and the vortical flow symmetry in several scales in an isotropic homogeneous turbulence in low Reynols number. Swirlity is a physical quantity of an intensity of swirling in terms of the geometrical average of the azimuthal flow, and represents the behavior of the development or decay of a vortex in this study. Flow scales are decomposed into three scales specified by the Fourier coefficients of the velocity applying the band-pass filter. The analysis shows that vortices in the different scales have a universal feature that the time derivative of swirlity and that of the symmetry have high correlation. Especially they have more stronger correlation at their birth and extinction.

Stochastic Theory for the Clustering of Rapidly Settling, Low-Inertia Particle Pairs in Isotropic Turbulence - I

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gupta, Vijay; Rani, Sarma; Koch, Donald

2017-11-01

A stochastic theory is developed to predict the Radial Distribution Function (RDF) of monodisperse, rapidly settling, low-inertia particle pairs in isotropic turbulence. The theory is based on approximating the turbulent flow in a reference frame following an aerosol particle as a locally linear velocity field. In the first version of the theory (referred to as T1), the fluid velocity gradient tensor ``seen'' by the primary aerosol particle is further assumed to be Gaussian. Analytical closures are then derived for the drift and diffusive fluxes controling the RDF, in the asymptotic limits of small particle Stokes number (St =τp /τη << 1), and large dimensionless settling velocity (Sv = gτp /uη >> 1). It is seen that the RDF for rapidly settling pairs has an inverse power dependency on pair separation r with an exponent, c1, that is proportional to St2 . However, the c1 predicted by T1 for Sv >> 1 particles is higher than the c1 of even non-settling (Sv = 0) particles obtained from DNS of particle-laden isotropic turbulence. Thus, the Gaussian velocity gradient in T1 leads to the unphysical effect that gravity enhances pair clustering. To address this inconsistency, a second version (T2) was developed. Funding from the CBET Division of the National Science Foundation is gratefully acknowledged.

Breaking of scale invariance in the time dependence of correlation functions in isotropic and homogeneous turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tarpin, Malo; Canet, Léonie; Wschebor, Nicolás

2018-05-01

In this paper, we present theoretical results on the statistical properties of stationary, homogeneous, and isotropic turbulence in incompressible flows in three dimensions. Within the framework of the non-perturbative renormalization group, we derive a closed renormalization flow equation for a generic n-point correlation (and response) function for large wave-numbers with respect to the inverse integral scale. The closure is obtained from a controlled expansion and relies on extended symmetries of the Navier-Stokes field theory. It yields the exact leading behavior of the flow equation at large wave-numbers |p→ i| and for arbitrary time differences ti in the stationary state. Furthermore, we obtain the form of the general solution of the corresponding fixed point equation, which yields the analytical form of the leading wave-number and time dependence of n-point correlation functions, for large wave-numbers and both for small ti and in the limit ti → ∞. At small ti, the leading contribution at large wave-numbers is logarithmically equivalent to -α (ɛL ) 2 /3|∑tip→ i|2, where α is a non-universal constant, L is the integral scale, and ɛ is the mean energy injection rate. For the 2-point function, the (tp)2 dependence is known to originate from the sweeping effect. The derived formula embodies the generalization of the effect of sweeping to n-point correlation functions. At large wave-numbers and large ti, we show that the ti2 dependence in the leading order contribution crosses over to a |ti| dependence. The expression of the correlation functions in this regime was not derived before, even for the 2-point function. Both predictions can be tested in direct numerical simulations and in experiments.

Interaction of weakly compressible isotropic turbulence with planar expansion waves: Flow anisotropy and vorticity alignment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xanthos, Savvas; Gong, Minwei; Andreopoulos, Yiannis

2010-01-01

Further analysis of the experimental data of the velocity gradient tensor first published by Xanthos et al. [J. Fluid Mech. 584, 301 (2007)] has been carried out and new results are reported here to provide additional insights on the effects of expansion waves interacting with isotropic turbulence. The flow field was generated by the reflection of an incoming shock wave at the open end of a large scale shock tube facility which interacted with the induced flow behind the incident shock wave which passed through a turbulence generating grid. In the present configuration the interaction is free from streamline curvature effects, which cause additional effects on turbulence. The strength of the applied expansive straining was 240 s-1. Rectangular pattern grids of different mesh sizes were used to generate isotropic and homogeneous turbulence with turbulent Reynolds number Reλ based on Taylor's microscale between 450 and 488. Lateral vorticity fluctuations and fluctuations of enstrophy and all stretching vector components are drastically reduced during the interaction. Residual attenuation in the postinteraction flow field was found only in the lateral vorticity fluctuations and in the longitudinal stretching term S11Ω1. Helicity and the helicity angle were computed from the data and the orientation angle of the vorticity vector in reference to the velocity vector was determined. Large fluctuations of the helicity angle were observed which extend from 0° to 180° with most probable values close to 30° and 130° and a mean value of 85°. Rotational dissipation rate was found to be high at these angles. The time-dependent signals of enstrophy, vortex stretching/tilting vector, and dissipation rate were found to exhibit a rather strong intermittent behavior which is characterized by high amplitude bursts followed by low level activities. It was found that the observed strong dissipative events are mostly associated with strong activities in the longitudinal stretching

Statistics of pressure fluctuations in decaying isotropic turbulence.

PubMed

Kalelkar, Chirag

2006-04-01

We present results from a systematic direct-numerical simulation study of pressure fluctuations in an unforced, incompressible, homogeneous, and isotropic three-dimensional turbulent fluid. At cascade completion, isosurfaces of low pressure are found to be organized as slender filaments, whereas the predominant isostructures appear sheetlike. We exhibit several results, including plots of probability distributions of the spatial pressure difference, the pressure-gradient norm, and the eigenvalues of the pressure-Hessian tensor. Plots of the temporal evolution of the mean pressure-gradient norm, and the mean eigenvalues of the pressure-Hessian tensor are also exhibited. We find the statistically preferred orientations between the eigenvectors of the pressure-Hessian tensor, the pressure gradient, the eigenvectors of the strain-rate tensor, the vorticity, and the velocity. Statistical properties of the nonlocal part of the pressure-Hessian tensor are also exhibited. We present numerical tests (in the viscous case) of some conjectures of Ohkitani [Phys. Fluids A 5, 2570 (1993)] and Ohkitani and Kishiba [Phys. Fluids 7, 411 (1995)] concerning the pressure-Hessian and the strain-rate tensors, for the unforced, incompressible, three-dimensional Euler equations.

A method for obtaining a statistically stationary turbulent free shear flow

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Timson, Stephen F.; Lele, S. K.; Moser, R. D.

1994-01-01

The long-term goal of the current research is the study of Large-Eddy Simulation (LES) as a tool for aeroacoustics. New algorithms and developments in computer hardware are making possible a new generation of tools for aeroacoustic predictions, which rely on the physics of the flow rather than empirical knowledge. LES, in conjunction with an acoustic analogy, holds the promise of predicting the statistics of noise radiated to the far-field of a turbulent flow. LES's predictive ability will be tested through extensive comparison of acoustic predictions based on a Direct Numerical Simulation (DNS) and LES of the same flow, as well as a priori testing of DNS results. The method presented here is aimed at allowing simulation of a turbulent flow field that is both simple and amenable to acoustic predictions. A free shear flow is homogeneous in both the streamwise and spanwise directions and which is statistically stationary will be simulated using equations based on the Navier-Stokes equations with a small number of added terms. Studying a free shear flow eliminates the need to consider flow-surface interactions as an acoustic source. The homogeneous directions and the flow's statistically stationary nature greatly simplify the application of an acoustic analogy.

Parametric Study of Decay of Homogeneous Isotropic Turbulence Using Large Eddy Simulation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Swanson, R. C.; Rumsey, Christopher L.; Rubinstein, Robert; Balakumar, Ponnampalam; Zang, Thomas A.

2012-01-01

Numerical simulations of decaying homogeneous isotropic turbulence are performed with both low-order and high-order spatial discretization schemes. The turbulent Mach and Reynolds numbers for the simulations are 0.2 and 250, respectively. For the low-order schemes we use either second-order central or third-order upwind biased differencing. For higher order approximations we apply weighted essentially non-oscillatory (WENO) schemes, both with linear and nonlinear weights. There are two objectives in this preliminary effort to investigate possible schemes for large eddy simulation (LES). One is to explore the capability of a widely used low-order computational fluid dynamics (CFD) code to perform LES computations. The other is to determine the effect of higher order accuracy (fifth, seventh, and ninth order) achieved with high-order upwind biased WENO-based schemes. Turbulence statistics, such as kinetic energy, dissipation, and skewness, along with the energy spectra from simulations of the decaying turbulence problem are used to assess and compare the various numerical schemes. In addition, results from the best performing schemes are compared with those from a spectral scheme. The effects of grid density, ranging from 32 cubed to 192 cubed, on the computations are also examined. The fifth-order WENO-based scheme is found to be too dissipative, especially on the coarser grids. However, with the seventh-order and ninth-order WENO-based schemes we observe a significant improvement in accuracy relative to the lower order LES schemes, as revealed by the computed peak in the energy dissipation and by the energy spectrum.

Computing Normal Shock-Isotropic Turbulence Interaction With Tetrahedral Meshes and the Space-Time CESE Method

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Venkatachari, Balaji Shankar; Chang, Chau-Lyan

2016-11-01

The focus of this study is scale-resolving simulations of the canonical normal shock- isotropic turbulence interaction using unstructured tetrahedral meshes and the space-time conservation element solution element (CESE) method. Despite decades of development in unstructured mesh methods and its potential benefits of ease of mesh generation around complex geometries and mesh adaptation, direct numerical or large-eddy simulations of turbulent flows are predominantly carried out using structured hexahedral meshes. This is due to the lack of consistent multi-dimensional numerical formulations in conventional schemes for unstructured meshes that can resolve multiple physical scales and flow discontinuities simultaneously. The CESE method - due to its Riemann-solver-free shock capturing capabilities, non-dissipative baseline schemes, and flux conservation in time as well as space - has the potential to accurately simulate turbulent flows using tetrahedral meshes. As part of the study, various regimes of the shock-turbulence interaction (wrinkled and broken shock regimes) will be investigated along with a study on how adaptive refinement of tetrahedral meshes benefits this problem. The research funding for this paper has been provided by Revolutionary Computational Aerosciences (RCA) subproject under the NASA Transformative Aeronautics Concepts Program (TACP).

Inverse energy cascade in three-dimensional isotropic turbulence.

PubMed

Biferale, Luca; Musacchio, Stefano; Toschi, Federico

2012-04-20

We study the statistical properties of homogeneous and isotropic three-dimensional (3D) turbulent flows. By introducing a novel way to make numerical investigations of Navier-Stokes equations, we show that all 3D flows in nature possess a subset of nonlinear evolution leading to a reverse energy transfer: from small to large scales. Up to now, such an inverse cascade was only observed in flows under strong rotation and in quasi-two-dimensional geometries under strong confinement. We show here that energy flux is always reversed when mirror symmetry is broken, leading to a distribution of helicity in the system with a well-defined sign at all wave numbers. Our findings broaden the range of flows where the inverse energy cascade may be detected and rationalize the role played by helicity in the energy transfer process, showing that both 2D and 3D properties naturally coexist in all flows in nature. The unconventional numerical methodology here proposed, based on a Galerkin decimation of helical Fourier modes, paves the road for future studies on the influence of helicity on small-scale intermittency and the nature of the nonlinear interaction in magnetohydrodynamics.

Interacting scales and energy transfer in isotropic turbulence

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zhou, YE

1993-01-01

The dependence of the energy transfer process on the disparity of the interacting scales is investigated in the inertial and far-dissipation ranges of isotropic turbulence. The strategy for generating the simulated flow fields and the choice of a disparity parameter to characterize the scaling of the interactions is discussed. The inertial range is found to be dominated by relatively local interactions, in agreement with the Kolmogorov assumption. The far-dissipation is found to be dominated by relatively non-local interactions, supporting the classical notion that the far-dissipation range is slaved to the Kolmogorov scales. The measured energy transfer is compared with the classical models of Heisenberg, Obukhov, and the more detailed analysis of Tennekes and Lumley. The energy transfer statistics measured in the numerically simulated flows are found to be nearly self-similar for wave numbers in the inertial range. Using the self-similar form measured within the limited scale range of the simulation, an 'ideal' energy transfer function and the corresponding energy flux rate for an inertial range of infinite extent are constructed. From this flux rate, the Kolmogorov constant is calculated to be 1.5, in excellent agreement with experiments.

Experimental Study of Homogeneous Isotropic Slowly-Decaying Turbulence in Giant Grid-Wind Tunnel Set Up

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Aliseda, Alberto; Bourgoin, Mickael; Eswirp Collaboration

2014-11-01

We present preliminary results from a recent grid turbulence experiment conducted at the ONERA wind tunnel in Modane, France. The ESWIRP Collaboration was conceived to probe the smallest scales of a canonical turbulent flow with very high Reynolds numbers. To achieve this, the largest scales of the turbulence need to be extremely big so that, even with the large separation of scales, the smallest scales would be well above the spatial and temporal resolution of the instruments. The ONERA wind tunnel in Modane (8 m -diameter test section) was chosen as a limit of the biggest large scales achievable in a laboratory setting. A giant inflatable grid (M = 0.8 m) was conceived to induce slowly-decaying homogeneous isotropic turbulence in a large region of the test section, with minimal structural risk. An international team or researchers collected hot wire anemometry, ultrasound anemometry, resonant cantilever anemometry, fast pitot tube anemometry, cold wire thermometry and high-speed particle tracking data of this canonical turbulent flow. While analysis of this large database, which will become publicly available over the next 2 years, has only started, the Taylor-scale Reynolds number is estimated to be between 400 and 800, with Kolmogorov scales as large as a few mm . The ESWIRP Collaboration is formed by an international team of scientists to investigate experimentally the smallest scales of turbulence. It was funded by the European Union to take advantage of the largest wind tunnel in Europe for fundamental research.

Boundedness of the mixed velocity-temperature derivative skewness in homogeneous isotropic turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tang, S. L.; Antonia, R. A.; Djenidi, L.; Danaila, L.; Zhou, Y.

2016-09-01

The transport equation for the mean scalar dissipation rate ɛ ¯ θ is derived by applying the limit at small separations to the generalized form of Yaglom's equation in two types of flows, those dominated mainly by a decay of energy in the streamwise direction and those which are forced, through a continuous injection of energy at large scales. In grid turbulence, the imbalance between the production of ɛ ¯ θ due to stretching of the temperature field and the destruction of ɛ ¯ θ by the thermal diffusivity is governed by the streamwise advection of ɛ ¯ θ by the mean velocity. This imbalance is intrinsically different from that in stationary forced periodic box turbulence (or SFPBT), which is virtually negligible. In essence, the different types of imbalance represent different constraints imposed by the large-scale motion on the relation between the so-called mixed velocity-temperature derivative skewness ST and the scalar enstrophy destruction coefficient Gθ in different flows, thus resulting in non-universal approaches of ST towards a constant value as Reλ increases. The data for ST collected in grid turbulence and in SFPBT indicate that the magnitude of ST is bounded, this limit being close to 0.5.

Spectral multigrid methods for the solution of homogeneous turbulence problems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Erlebacher, G.; Zang, T. A.; Hussaini, M. Y.

1987-01-01

New three-dimensional spectral multigrid algorithms are analyzed and implemented to solve the variable coefficient Helmholtz equation. Periodicity is assumed in all three directions which leads to a Fourier collocation representation. Convergence rates are theoretically predicted and confirmed through numerical tests. Residual averaging results in a spectral radius of 0.2 for the variable coefficient Poisson equation. In general, non-stationary Richardson must be used for the Helmholtz equation. The algorithms developed are applied to the large-eddy simulation of incompressible isotropic turbulence.

The Renormalization-Group Method in the Problem on Calculation of the Spectral Energy Density of Fluid Turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Teodorovich, E. V.

2018-03-01

In order to find the shape of energy spectrum within the framework of the model of stationary homogeneous isotropic turbulence, the renormalization-group equations, which reflect the Markovian nature of the mechanism of energy transfer along the wavenumber spectrum, are used in addition to the dimensional considerations and the energy balance equation. For the spectrum, the formula depends on three parameters, namely, the wavenumber, which determines the upper boundary of the range of the turbulent energy production, the spectral flux through this boundary, and the fluid kinematic viscosity.

Clustering of vertically constrained passive particles in homogeneous isotropic turbulence.

PubMed

De Pietro, Massimo; van Hinsberg, Michel A T; Biferale, Luca; Clercx, Herman J H; Perlekar, Prasad; Toschi, Federico

2015-05-01

We analyze the dynamics of small particles vertically confined, by means of a linear restoring force, to move within a horizontal fluid slab in a three-dimensional (3D) homogeneous isotropic turbulent velocity field. The model that we introduce and study is possibly the simplest description for the dynamics of small aquatic organisms that, due to swimming, active regulation of their buoyancy, or any other mechanism, maintain themselves in a shallow horizontal layer below the free surface of oceans or lakes. By varying the strength of the restoring force, we are able to control the thickness of the fluid slab in which the particles can move. This allows us to analyze the statistical features of the system over a wide range of conditions going from a fully 3D incompressible flow (corresponding to the case of no confinement) to the extremely confined case corresponding to a two-dimensional slice. The background 3D turbulent velocity field is evolved by means of fully resolved direct numerical simulations. Whenever some level of vertical confinement is present, the particle trajectories deviate from that of fluid tracers and the particles experience an effectively compressible velocity field. Here, we have quantified the compressibility, the preferential concentration of the particles, and the correlation dimension by changing the strength of the restoring force. The main result is that there exists a particular value of the force constant, corresponding to a mean slab depth approximately equal to a few times the Kolmogorov length scale η, that maximizes the clustering of the particles.

Modeling the turbulent kinetic energy equation for compressible, homogeneous turbulence

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Aupoix, B.; Blaisdell, G. A.; Reynolds, William C.; Zeman, Otto

1990-01-01

The turbulent kinetic energy transport equation, which is the basis of turbulence models, is investigated for homogeneous, compressible turbulence using direct numerical simulations performed at CTR. It is shown that the partition between dilatational and solenoidal modes is very sensitive to initial conditions for isotropic decaying turbulence but not for sheared flows. The importance of the dilatational dissipation and of the pressure-dilatation term is evidenced from simulations and a transport equation is proposed to evaluate the pressure-dilatation term evolution. This transport equation seems to work well for sheared flows but does not account for initial condition sensitivity in isotropic decay. An improved model is proposed.

Some Basic Laws of Isotropic Turbulent Flow

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Loitsianskii, L. G.

1945-01-01

An Investigation is made of the diffusion of artificially produced turbulence behind screens or other turbulence producers. The method is based on the author's concept of disturbance moment as a certain theoretically well-founded measure of turbulent disturbances.

Enhanced settling of nonheavy inertial particles in homogeneous isotropic turbulence: The role of the pressure gradient and the Basset history force.

PubMed

van Hinsberg, M A T; Clercx, H J H; Toschi, F

2017-02-01

The Stokes drag force and the gravity force are usually sufficient to describe the behavior of sub-Kolmogorov-size (or pointlike) heavy particles in turbulence, in particular when the particle-to-fluid density ratio ρ_{p}/ρ_{f}≳10^{3} (with ρ_{p} and ρ_{f} the particle and fluid density, respectively). This is, in general, not the case for smaller particle-to-fluid density ratios, in particular not for ρ_{p}/ρ_{f}≲10^{2}. In that case the pressure gradient force, added mass effects, and the Basset history force also play important roles. In this study we focus on the understanding of the role of these additional forces, all of hydrodynamic origin, in the settling of particles in turbulence. In order to qualitatively elucidate the complex dynamics of such particles in homogeneous isotropic turbulence, we first focus on the case of settling of such particles in the flow field of a single vortex. After having explored this simplified case we extend our analysis to homogeneous isotropic turbulence. In general, we found that the pressure gradient force leads to a decrease in the settling velocity. This can be qualitatively understood by the fact that this force prevents the particles from sweeping out of vortices, a mechanism known as preferential sweeping which causes enhanced settling. Additionally, we found that the Basset history force can both increase and decrease the enhanced settling, depending on the particle Stokes number. Finally, the role of the nonlinear Stokes drag has been explored, confirming that it affects settling of inertial particles in turbulence, but only in a limited way for the parameter settings used in this investigation.

Stationary and non-stationary nonlinear optical spectroscopy on surface polaritons

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ponath, H. E.

1984-01-01

A phenomenological theory is given for non-stationary electromagnetic surface waves propagating along the boundary plane between two homogeneous isotropic media. The description of nonlinear optical effects using shortened wave equations is demonstrated for spontaneous and simulated Raman scattering processes on surface polaritons.

Refinement of the probability density function model for preferential concentration of aerosol particles in isotropic turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zaichik, Leonid I.; Alipchenkov, Vladimir M.

2007-11-01

The purposes of the paper are threefold: (i) to refine the statistical model of preferential particle concentration in isotropic turbulence that was previously proposed by Zaichik and Alipchenkov [Phys. Fluids 15, 1776 (2003)], (ii) to investigate the effect of clustering of low-inertia particles using the refined model, and (iii) to advance a simple model for predicting the collision rate of aerosol particles. The model developed is based on a kinetic equation for the two-point probability density function of the relative velocity distribution of particle pairs. Improvements in predicting the preferential concentration of low-inertia particles are attained due to refining the description of the turbulent velocity field of the carrier fluid by including a difference between the time scales of the of strain and rotation rate correlations. The refined model results in a better agreement with direct numerical simulations for aerosol particles.

The structure of intense vorticity in homogeneous isotropic turbulence

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jimenez, J.; Wray, A. A.; Saffman, P. G.; Rogallo, R. S.

1992-01-01

The structure of the intense vorticity regions is studied in numerically simulated homogeneous, isotropic, equilibrium turbulent flow fields at four different Reynolds numbers in the range Re(sub lambda) = 36-171. In accordance with previous investigators, this vorticity is found to be organized in coherent, cylindrical or ribbon-like, vortices ('worms'). A statistical study suggests that they are just especially intense features of the background, O(omega'), vorticity. Their radii scale with the Kolmogorov microscale and their lengths with the integral scale of the flow. An interesting observation is that the Reynolds number based on the circulation of the intense vortices, gamma/nu, increases monotonically with Re(sub lambda), raising the question of the stability of the structures in the limit of Re(sub lambda) approaching infinity. One and two-dimensional statistics of vorticity and strain are presented; they are non-gaussian, and the behavior of their tails depends strongly on the Reynolds number. There is no evidence of convergence to a limiting distribution in our range of Re(sub lambda), even though the energy spectra and the energy dissipation rate show good asymptotic properties in the higher Reynolds number cases. Evidence is presented to show that worms are natural features of the flow and that they do not depend on the particular forcing scheme.

Large-deviation joint statistics of the finite-time Lyapunov spectrum in isotropic turbulence

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Johnson, Perry L., E-mail: pjohns86@jhu.edu; Meneveau, Charles

2015-08-15

One of the hallmarks of turbulent flows is the chaotic behavior of fluid particle paths with exponentially growing separation among them while their distance does not exceed the viscous range. The maximal (positive) Lyapunov exponent represents the average strength of the exponential growth rate, while fluctuations in the rate of growth are characterized by the finite-time Lyapunov exponents (FTLEs). In the last decade or so, the notion of Lagrangian coherent structures (which are often computed using FTLEs) has gained attention as a tool for visualizing coherent trajectory patterns in a flow and distinguishing regions of the flow with different mixingmore » properties. A quantitative statistical characterization of FTLEs can be accomplished using the statistical theory of large deviations, based on the so-called Cramér function. To obtain the Cramér function from data, we use both the method based on measuring moments and measuring histograms and introduce a finite-size correction to the histogram-based method. We generalize the existing univariate formalism to the joint distributions of the two FTLEs needed to fully specify the Lyapunov spectrum in 3D flows. The joint Cramér function of turbulence is measured from two direct numerical simulation datasets of isotropic turbulence. Results are compared with joint statistics of FTLEs computed using only the symmetric part of the velocity gradient tensor, as well as with joint statistics of instantaneous strain-rate eigenvalues. When using only the strain contribution of the velocity gradient, the maximal FTLE nearly doubles in magnitude, highlighting the role of rotation in de-correlating the fluid deformations along particle paths. We also extend the large-deviation theory to study the statistics of the ratio of FTLEs. The most likely ratio of the FTLEs λ{sub 1} : λ{sub 2} : λ{sub 3} is shown to be about 4:1:−5, compared to about 8:3:−11 when using only the strain-rate tensor for calculating fluid volume

Sedimentation of finite-size particles in quiescent and turbulent environments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brandt, Luca; Fornari, Walter; Picano, Francesco

2015-11-01

Sedimentation of a dispersed solid phase is widely encountered in applications and environmental flows. We present Direct Numerical Simulations of sedimentation in quiescent and turbulent environments using an Immersed Boundary Method to study the behavior of finite-size particles in homogeneous isotropic turbulence. The particle radius is approximately 6 Komlogorov lengthscales, the volume fraction 0.5% and 1% and the density ratio 1.02. The results show that the mean settling velocity is lower in an already turbulent flow than in a quiescent fluid. The reduction with respect to a single particle in quiescent fluid is about 12% in dilute conditions. The probability density function of the particle velocity is almost Gaussian in a turbulent flow, whereas it displays large positive tails in quiescent fluid. These tails are associated to the intermittent fast sedimentation of particle pairs in drafting-kissing-tumbling motions. Using the concept of mean relative velocity we estimate the mean drag coefficient from empirical formulas and show that non stationary effects, related to vortex shedding, explain the increased reduction in mean settling velocity in a turbulent environment. This work was supported by the European Research Council Grant No. ERC-2013- CoG-616186, TRITOS.

Geometry and scaling laws of excursion and iso-sets of enstrophy and dissipation in isotropic turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Elsas, José Hugo; Szalay, Alexander S.; Meneveau, Charles

2018-04-01

Motivated by interest in the geometry of high intensity events of turbulent flows, we examine the spatial correlation functions of sets where turbulent events are particularly intense. These sets are defined using indicator functions on excursion and iso-value sets. Their geometric scaling properties are analysed by examining possible power-law decay of their radial correlation function. We apply the analysis to enstrophy, dissipation and velocity gradient invariants Q and R and their joint spatial distributions, using data from a direct numerical simulation of isotropic turbulence at Reλ ≈ 430. While no fractal scaling is found in the inertial range using box-counting in the finite Reynolds number flow considered here, power-law scaling in the inertial range is found in the radial correlation functions. Thus, a geometric characterisation in terms of these sets' correlation dimension is possible. Strong dependence on the enstrophy and dissipation threshold is found, consistent with multifractal behaviour. Nevertheless, the lack of scaling of the box-counting analysis precludes direct quantitative comparisons with earlier work based on multifractal formalism. Surprising trends, such as a lower correlation dimension for strong dissipation events compared to strong enstrophy events, are observed and interpreted in terms of spatial coherence of vortices in the flow.

The radiated noise from isotropic turbulence revisited

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lilley, Geoffrey M.

1993-01-01

The noise radiated from isotropic turbulence at low Mach numbers and high Reynolds numbers, as derived by Proudman (1952), was the first application of Lighthill's Theory of Aerodynamic Noise to a complete flow field. The theory presented by Proudman involves the assumption of the neglect of retarded time differences and so replaces the second-order retarded-time and space covariance of Lighthill's stress tensor, Tij, and in particular its second time derivative, by the equivalent simultaneous covariance. This assumption is a valid approximation in the derivation of the second partial derivative of Tij/derivative of t exp 2 covariance at low Mach numbers, but is not justified when that covariance is reduced to the sum of products of the time derivatives of equivalent second-order velocity covariances as required when Gaussian statistics are assumed. The present paper removes these assumptions and finds that although the changes in the analysis are substantial, the change in the numerical result for the total acoustic power is small. The present paper also considers an alternative analysis which does not neglect retarded times. It makes use of the Lighthill relationship, whereby the fourth-order Tij retarded-time covariance is evaluated from the square of similar second order covariance, which is assumed known. In this derivation, no statistical assumptions are involved. This result, using distributions for the second-order space-time velocity squared covariance based on the Direct Numerical Simulation (DNS) results of both Sarkar and Hussaini(1993) and Dubois(1993), is compared with the re-evaluation of Proudman's original model. These results are then compared with the sound power derived from a phenomenological model based on simple approximations to the retarded-time/space covariance of Txx. Finally, the recent numerical solutions of Sarkar and Hussaini(1993) for the acoustic power are compared with the results obtained from the analytic solutions.

The rotation and translation of non-spherical particles in homogeneous isotropic turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Byron, Margaret

The motion of particles suspended in environmental turbulence is relevant to many scientific fields, from sediment transport to biological interactions to underwater robotics. At very small scales and simple shapes, we are able to completely mathematically describe the motion of inertial particles; however, the motion of large aspherical particles is significantly more complex, and current computational models are inadequate for large or highly-resolved domains. Therefore, we seek to experimentally investigate the coupling between freely suspended particles and ambient turbulence. A better understanding of this coupling will inform not only engineering and physics, but the interactions between small aquatic organisms and their environments. In the following pages, we explore the roles of shape and buoyancy on the motion of passive particles in turbulence, and allow these particles to serve as models for meso-scale aquatic organisms. We fabricate cylindrical and spheroidal particles and suspend them in homogeneous, isotropic turbulence that is generated via randomly-actuated jet arrays. The particles are fabricated with agarose hydrogel, which is refractive-index-matched to the surrounding fluid (water). Both the fluid and the particle are seeded with passive tracers, allowing us to perform Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) simultaneously on the particle and fluid phase. To investigate the effects of shape, particles are fabricated at varying aspect ratios; to investigate the effects of buoyancy, particles are fabricated at varying specific gravities. Each particle type is freely suspended at a volume fraction of F=0.1%, for which four-way coupling interactions are negligible. The suspended particles are imaged together with the surrounding fluid and analyzed using stereoscopic PIV, which yields three velocity components in a two-dimensional measurement plane. Using image thresholding, the results are separated into simultaneous fluid-phase and solid-phase velocity

Structure of wind-shear turbulence

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Trevino, G.; Laituri, T. R.

1989-01-01

The statistical characteristics of wind shear turbulence are modelled. Isotropic turbulence serves as the basis of comparison for the anisotropic turbulence which exists in wind shear. The question of turbulence scales in wind shear is addressed from the perspective of power spectral density.

Structure of wind-shear turbulence

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Trevino, G.; Laituri, T. R.

1988-01-01

The statistical characteristics of wind-shear turbulence are modelled. Isotropic turbulence serves as the basis of comparison for the anisotropic turbulence which exists in wind shear. The question of how turbulence scales in a wind shear is addressed from the perspective of power spectral density.

Large Eddy Simulation of turbulence induced secondary flows in stationary and rotating straight square ducts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sudjai, W.; Juntasaro, V.; Juttijudata, V.

2018-01-01

The accuracy of predicting turbulence induced secondary flows is crucially important in many industrial applications such as turbine blade internal cooling passages in a gas turbine and fuel rod bundles in a nuclear reactor. A straight square duct is popularly used to reveal the characteristic of turbulence induced secondary flows which consists of two counter rotating vortices distributed in each corner of the duct. For a rotating duct, the flow can be divided into the pressure side and the suction side. The turbulence induced secondary flows are converted to the Coriolis force driven two large circulations with a pair of additional vortices on the pressure wall due to the rotational effect. In this paper, the Large Eddy Simulation (LES) of turbulence induced secondary flows in a straight square duct is performed using the ANSYS FLUENT CFD software. A dynamic kinetic energy subgrid-scale model is used to describe the three-dimensional incompressible turbulent flows in the stationary and the rotating straight square ducts. The Reynolds number based on the friction velocity and the hydraulic diameter is 300 with the various rotation numbers for the rotating cases. The flow is assumed fully developed by imposing the constant pressure gradient in the streamwise direction. For the rotating cases, the rotational axis is placed perpendicular to the streamwise direction. The simulation results on the secondary flows and the turbulent statistics are found to be in good agreement with the available Direct Numerical Simulation (DNS) data. Finally, the details of the Coriolis effects are discussed.

Large-eddy simulations of a forced homogeneous isotropic turbulence with polymer additives

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Lu; Cai, Wei-Hua; Li, Feng-Chen

2014-03-01

Large-eddy simulations (LES) based on the temporal approximate deconvolution model were performed for a forced homogeneous isotropic turbulence (FHIT) with polymer additives at moderate Taylor Reynolds number. Finitely extensible nonlinear elastic in the Peterlin approximation model was adopted as the constitutive equation for the filtered conformation tensor of the polymer molecules. The LES results were verified through comparisons with the direct numerical simulation results. Using the LES database of the FHIT in the Newtonian fluid and the polymer solution flows, the polymer effects on some important parameters such as strain, vorticity, drag reduction, and so forth were studied. By extracting the vortex structures and exploring the flatness factor through a high-order correlation function of velocity derivative and wavelet analysis, it can be found that the small-scale vortex structures and small-scale intermittency in the FHIT are all inhibited due to the existence of the polymers. The extended self-similarity scaling law in the polymer solution flow shows no apparent difference from that in the Newtonian fluid flow at the currently simulated ranges of Reynolds and Weissenberg numbers.

Large-eddy simulation of the passage of a shock wave through homogeneous turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Braun, N. O.; Pullin, D. I.; Meiron, D. I.

2017-11-01

The passage of a nominally plane shockwave through homogeneous, compressible turbulence is a canonical problem representative of flows seen in supernovae, supersonic combustion engines, and inertial confinement fusion. The interaction of isotropic turbulence with a stationary normal shockwave is considered at inertial range Taylor Reynolds numbers, Reλ = 100 - 2500 , using Large Eddy Simulation (LES). The unresolved, subgrid terms are approximated by the stretched-vortex model (Kosovic et al., 2002), which allows self-consistent reconstruction of the subgrid contributions to the turbulent statistics of interest. The mesh is adaptively refined in the vicinity of the shock to resolve small amplitude shock oscillations, and the implications of mesh refinement on the subgrid modeling are considered. Simulations are performed at a range of shock Mach numbers, Ms = 1.2 - 3.0 , and turbulent Mach numbers, Mt = 0.06 - 0.18 , to explore the parameter space of the interaction at high Reynolds number. The LES shows reasonable agreement with linear analysis and lower Reynolds number direct numerical simulations. LANL Subcontract 305963.

Rotor Noise due to Blade-Turbulence Interaction.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ishimaru, Kiyoto

The time-averaged intensity density function of the acoustic radiation from rotating blades is derived by replacing blades with rotating dipoles. This derivation is done under the following turbulent inflow conditions: turbulent ingestion with no inlet strut wakes, inflow turbulence elongation and contraction with no inlet strut wakes, and inlet strut wakes. Dimensional analysis reveals two non-dimensional parameters which play important roles in generating the blade-passing frequency tone and its multiples. The elongation and contraction of inflow turbulence has a strong effect on the generation of the blade-passing frequency tone and its multiples. Increasing the number of rotor blades widens the peak at the blade-passing frequency and its multiples. Increasing the rotational speed widens the peak under the condition that the non-dimensional parameter involving the rotational speed is fixed. The number of struts and blades should be chosen so that (the least common multiple of them)(.)(rotational speed) is in the cutoff range of Sears' function, in order to minimize the effect of the mean flow deficit on the time averaged intensity density function. The acoustic intensity density function is not necessarily stationary even if the inflow turbulence is homogeneous and isotropic. The time variation of the propagation path due to the rotation should be considered in the computation of the intensity density function; for instance, in the present rotor specification, the rotor radius is about 0.3 m and the rotational speed Mach number is about 0.2.

Circularly symmetric cusped random beams in free space and atmospheric turbulence.

PubMed

Wang, Fei; Korotkova, Olga

2017-03-06

A class of random stationary, scalar sources producing cusped average intensity profiles (i.e. profiles with concave curvature) in the far field is introduced by modeling the source degree of coherence as a Fractional Multi-Gaussian-correlated Schell-Model (FMGSM) function with rotational symmetry. The average intensity (spectral density) generated by such sources is investigated on propagation in free space and isotropic and homogeneous atmospheric turbulence. It is found that the FMGSM beam can retain the cusped shape on propagation at least in weak or moderate turbulence regimes; however, strong turbulence completely suppresses the cusped intensity profile. Under the same atmospheric conditions the spectral density of the FMGSM beam at the receiver is found to be much higher than that of the conventional Gaussian Schell-model (GSM) beam within the narrow central area, implying that for relatively small collecting apertures the power-in-bucket of the FMGSM beam is higher than that of the GSM beam. Our results are of importance to energy delivery, Free-Space Optical communications and imaging in the atmosphere.

The influence of sub-grid scale motions on particle collision in homogeneous isotropic turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xiong, Yan; Li, Jing; Liu, Zhaohui; Zheng, Chuguang

2018-02-01

The absence of sub-grid scale (SGS) motions leads to severe errors in particle pair dynamics, which represents a great challenge to the large eddy simulation of particle-laden turbulent flow. In order to address this issue, data from direct numerical simulation (DNS) of homogenous isotropic turbulence coupled with Lagrangian particle tracking are used as a benchmark to evaluate the corresponding results of filtered DNS (FDNS). It is found that the filtering process in FDNS will lead to a non-monotonic variation of the particle collision statistics, including radial distribution function, radial relative velocity, and the collision kernel. The peak of radial distribution function shifts to the large-inertia region due to the lack of SGS motions, and the analysis of the local flowstructure characteristic variable at particle position indicates that the most effective interaction scale between particles and fluid eddies is increased in FDNS. Moreover, this scale shifting has an obvious effect on the odd-order moments of the probability density function of radial relative velocity, i.e. the skewness, which exhibits a strong correlation to the variance of radial distribution function in FDNS. As a whole, the radial distribution function, together with radial relative velocity, can compensate the SGS effects for the collision kernel in FDNS when the Stokes number based on the Kolmogorov time scale is greater than 3.0. However, it still leaves considerable errors for { St}_k <3.0.

Multiscale analysis of the invariants of the velocity gradient tensor in isotropic turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Danish, Mohammad; Meneveau, Charles

2018-04-01

Knowledge of local flow-topology, the patterns of streamlines around a moving fluid element as described by the velocity-gradient tensor, is useful for developing insights into turbulence processes, such as energy cascade, material element deformation, or scalar mixing. Much has been learned in the recent past about flow topology at the smallest (viscous) scales of turbulence. However, less is known at larger scales, for instance, at the inertial scales of turbulence. In this work, we present a detailed study on the scale dependence of various quantities of interest, such as the population fraction of different types of flow-topologies, the joint probability distribution of the second and third invariants of the velocity gradient tensor, and the geometrical alignment of vorticity with strain-rate eigenvectors. We perform the analysis on a simulation dataset of isotropic turbulence at Reλ=433 . While quantities appear close to scale invariant in the inertial range, we observe a "bump" in several quantities at length scales between the inertial and viscous ranges. For instance, the population fraction of unstable node-saddle-saddle flow topology shows an increase when reducing the scale from the inertial entering the viscous range. A similar bump is observed for the vorticity-strain-rate alignment. In order to document possible dynamical causes for the different trends in the viscous and inertial ranges, we examine the probability fluxes appearing in the Fokker-Plank equation governing the velocity gradient invariants. Specifically, we aim to understand whether the differences observed between the viscous and inertial range statistics are due to effects caused by pressure, subgrid-scale, or viscous stresses or various combinations of these terms. To decompose the flow into small and large scales, we mainly use a spectrally compact non-negative filter with good spatial localization properties (Eyink-Aluie filter). The analysis shows that when going from the inertial

Polarization changes in light beams trespassing anisotropic turbulence.

PubMed

Korotkova, Olga

2015-07-01

The polarization properties of deterministic or random light with isotropic source correlations propagating in anisotropic turbulence along horizontal paths are considered for the first time and predicted to change on the basis of the second-order coherence theory of beam-like fields and the extended Huygens-Fresnel integral. Our examples illustrate that the beams whose degree of polarization is unaffected by free-space propagation or isotropic turbulence can either decrease or increase on traversing the anisotropic turbulence, depending on the polarization state of the source.

Universality of spectrum of passive scalar variance at very high Schmidt number in isotropic steady turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gotoh, Toshiyuki

2012-11-01

Spectrum of passive scalar variance at very high Schmidt number up to 1000 in isotropic steady turbulence has been studied by using very high resolution DNS. Gaussian random force and scalar source which are isotropic and white in time are applied at low wavenumber band. Since the Schmidt number is very large, the system was integrated for 72 large eddy turn over time for the system to forgot the initial state. It is found that the scalar spectrum attains the asymptotic k-1 spectrum in the viscous-convective range and the constant CB is found to be 5.7 which is larger than 4.9 obtained by DNS under the uniform mean scalar gradient. Reasons for the difference are inferred as the Reynolds number effect, anisotropy, difference in the scalar injection, duration of time average, and the universality of the constant is discussed. The constant CB is also compared with the prediction by the Lagrangian statistical theory for the passive scalar. The scalar spectrum in the far diffusive range is found to be exponential, which is consistent with the Kraichnan's spectrum. However, the Kraichnan spectrum was derived under the assumption that the velocity field is white in time, therefore theoretical explanation of the agreement needs to be explored. Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research No. 21360082, Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology of Japan.

Kinematics of velocity and vorticity correlations in turbulent flow

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bernard, P. S.

1983-01-01

The kinematic problem of calculating second-order velocity moments from given values of the vorticity covariance is examined. Integral representation formulas for second-order velocity moments in terms of the two-point vorticity correlation tensor are derived. The special relationships existing between velocity moments in isotropic turbulence are expressed in terms of the integral formulas yielding several kinematic constraints on the two-point vorticity correlation tensor in isotropic turbulence. Numerical evaluation of these constraints suggests that a Gaussian curve may be the only form of the longitudinal velocity correlation coefficient which is consistent with the requirement of isotropy. It is shown that if this is the case, then a family of exact solutions to the decay of isotropic turbulence may be obtained which contains Batchelor's final period solution as a special case. In addition, the computed results suggest a method of approximating the integral representation formulas in general turbulent shear flows.

Preferential particle concentration in wall-bounded turbulence with zero skin friction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yang, Kun; Zhao, Lihao; Andersson, Helge I.

2017-11-01

Inertial particles dispersed in turbulence distribute themselves unevenly. Besides their tendency to segregate near walls, they also concentrate preferentially in wall-parallel planes. We explore the latter phenomenon in a tailor-made flow with the view to examine the homogeneity and anisotropy of particle clustering in the absence of mean shear as compared with conventional, i.e., sheared, wall turbulence. Inertial particles with some different Stokes numbers are suspended in a turbulent Couette-Poiseuille flow, in which one of the walls moves such that the shear rate vanishes at that wall. The anisotropies of the velocity and vorticity fluctuations are therefore qualitatively different from those at the opposite non-moving wall, along which quasi-coherent streaky structures prevail, similarly as in turbulent pipe and channel flows. Preferential particle concentration is observed near both walls. The inhomogeneity of the concentration is caused by the strain-vorticity selection mechanism, whereas the anisotropy originates from coherent flow structures. In order to analyse anisotropic clustering, a two-dimensional Shannon entropy method is developed. Streaky particle structures are observed near the stationary wall where the flow field resembles typical wall-turbulence, whereas particle clusters near the moving friction-free wall are similar to randomly oriented clusters in homogeneous isotropic turbulence, albeit with a modest streamwise inclination. In the absence of mean-shear and near-wall streaks, the observed anisotropy is ascribed to the imprint of large-scale flow structures which reside in the bulk flow and are global in nature.

A priori study of subgrid-scale flux of a passive scalar in isotropic homogeneous turbulence.

PubMed

Chumakov, Sergei G

2008-09-01

We perform a direct numerical simulation (DNS) of forced homogeneous isotropic turbulence with a passive scalar that is forced by mean gradient. The DNS data are used to study the properties of subgrid-scale flux of a passive scalar in the framework of large eddy simulation (LES), such as alignment trends between the flux, resolved, and subgrid-scale flow structures. It is shown that the direction of the flux is strongly coupled with the subgrid-scale stress axes rather than the resolved flow quantities such as strain, vorticity, or scalar gradient. We derive an approximate transport equation for the subgrid-scale flux of a scalar and look at the relative importance of the terms in the transport equation. A particular form of LES tensor-viscosity model for the scalar flux is investigated, which includes the subgrid-scale stress. Effect of different models for the subgrid-scale stress on the model for the subgrid-scale flux is studied.

Nearest-Neighbor Distances and Aggregative Effects in Turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lanerolle, Lyon W. J.; Rothschild, B. J.; Yeung, P. K.

2000-11-01

The dispersive nature of turbulence which causes fluid elements to move apart (on average) is well known. Here we study another facet of turbulent mixing relevant to marine population dynamics - on how small organisms (approximated by fluid particles) are brought close to each other and allowed to interact. The crucial role played by the small scales in this process allows us to use direct numerical simulations of stationary isotropic turbulence, here with Taylor-scale Reynolds numbers (R_λ) from 38 to 91. We study the evolution of the Nearest-Neighbor Distances (NND) for collections of fluid particles initially located randomly in space satisfying Poisson-type distributions with mean values from 0.5 to 2.0 Kolmogorov length scales. Our results show that as particles begin to disperse on average, some also begin to aggregate in space. In particular, we find that (i) a significant proportion of particles are closer to each other than if their NNDs were randomly distributed, (ii) aggregative effects become stronger with R_λ, and (iii) although the mean value of NND grows monotonically with time in Kolmogorov variables, the growth rates are slower at higher R_λ. These results may assist in explaining the ``patchiness'' in plankton distributions observed in biological oceanography. Further details are given in B. J. Rothschild et al., The Biophysical Interpretation of Spatial Effects of Small-scale Turbulent Flow in the Ocean (paper in prep.).

Particle-pair relative velocity measurement in high-Reynolds-number homogeneous and isotropic turbulence using 4-frame particle tracking velocimetry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dou, Zhongwang; Ireland, Peter J.; Bragg, Andrew D.; Liang, Zach; Collins, Lance R.; Meng, Hui

2018-02-01

The radial relative velocity (RV) between particles suspended in turbulent flow plays a critical role in droplet collision and growth. We present a simple and accurate approach to RV measurement in isotropic turbulence—planar 4-frame particle tracking velocimetry—using routine PIV hardware. It improves particle positioning and pairing accuracy over the 2-frame holographic approach by de Jong et al. (Int J Multiphas Flow 36:324-332; de Jong et al., Int J Multiphas Flow 36:324-332, 2010) without using high-speed cameras and lasers as in Saw et al. (Phys Fluids 26:111702, 2014). Homogeneous and isotropic turbulent flow ({R_λ }=357) in a new, fan-driven, truncated iscosahedron chamber was laden with either low-Stokes (mean St=0.09, standard deviation 0.05) or high-Stokes aerosols (mean St=3.46, standard deviation 0.57). For comparison, DNS was conducted under similar conditions ({R_λ }=398; St=0.10 and 3.00, respectively). Experimental RV probability density functions (PDF) and mean inward RV agree well with DNS. Mean inward RV increases with St at small particle separations, r, and decreases with St at large r, indicating the dominance of "path-history" and "inertial filtering" effects, respectively. However, at small r, the experimental mean inward RV trends higher than DNS, possibly due to the slight polydispersity of particles and finite light sheet thickness in experiments. To confirm this interpretation, we performed numerical experiments and found that particle polydispersity increases mean inward RV at small r, while finite laser thickness also overestimates mean inward RV at small r, This study demonstrates the feasibility of accurately measuring RV using routine hardware, and verifies, for the first time, the path-history and inertial filtering effects on particle-pair RV at large particle separations experimentally.

On optical imaging through aircraft turbulent boundary layers

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sutton, G. W.

1980-01-01

Optical resolution quality as affected by aircraft turbulent boundary layers is analyzed. Wind-tunnel data was analyzed to obtained the variation of boundary layer turbulence scale length and mass density rms fluctuations with Mach number. The data gave good agreement with a mass density fluctuation turbulence spectrum that is either isotropic of orthogonally anisotropic. The data did not match an isotropic turbulence velocity spectrum which causes an anisotropic non-orthogonal mass density fluctuation spectrum. The results indicate that the average mass density rms fluctuation is about 10% of the maximum mass density across the boundary layer and that the transverse turbulence scale size is about 10% of the boundary layer thickness. The results indicate that the effect of the turbulent boundary layer is large angle scattering which decreases contrast but not resolution. Using extinction as a criteria the range of acceptable aircraft operating conditions are given.

Critical issues encountered in experiments and measurements involving optical turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Eaton, Frank D.

2007-02-01

The successful design and operation of high energy laser (HEL) and laser communication systems require a comprehensive and thorough knowledge of the real turbulent atmosphere coupled with high-fidelity realistic laser beam propagation models. To date, modeling and simulation of laser beam propagation through atmospheric turbulence have relied upon a traditional theoretical basis that assumes the existence of homogeneous, isotropic, stationary, and Kolmogorov turbulence. The real impact of the refractive index structure parameter ( C2 n ) on laser beam propagation including effects of non-classical turbulence as well as inner (l °) and outer scale (L °) effects will be examined. Observations clearly show turbulence is often layered and is produced by wave activity and episodic events such as Kelvin-Helmholtz instabilities. Other critical turbulence issues involve the relationship between mechanical and optical turbulence and the effect of path variability of turbulence and inner scale on optical turbulence parameters over long paths. These issues will be examined from data obtained from five systems: a) a new measurement platform using a free-flying balloon that lifts a ring with a boom upon which are mounted several fine wire (1-μm diameter) sensors to measure high-speed temperature and velocity fluctuations, b) a new system using a kite/tethered blimp platform that obtains both profile and measurements at a fixed altitude over time, c) a 50 MHz radar at Vandenberg Air Force Base that senses at high temporal and spatial resolution to 20 km ASL, d) an instrumented aircraft system, and e) a suite of optical systems. The first four systems all provide estimates of C2 n , the eddy dissipation rate (\\Vegr), l ° and L °. Methods of calibration and problems of interpreting results from the measurement systems are discussed.

A numerical study of mixing in stationary, nonpremixed, turbulent reacting flows

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Overholt, Matthew Ryan

1998-10-01

In this work a detailed numerical study is made of a statistically-stationary, non-premixed, turbulent reacting model flow known as Periodic Reaction Zones. The mixture fraction-progress variable approach is used, with a mean gradient in the mixture fraction and a model, single-step, reversible, finite-rate thermochemistry, yielding both stationary and local extinction behavior. The passive scalar is studied first, using a statistical forcing scheme to achieve stationarity of the velocity field. Multiple independent direct numerical simulations (DNS) are performed for a wide range of Reynolds numbers with a number of results including a bilinear model for scalar mixing jointly conditioned on the scalar and x2-component of velocity, Gaussian scalar probability density function tails which were anticipated to be exponential, and the quantification of the dissipation of scalar flux. A new deterministic forcing scheme for DNS is then developed which yields reduced fluctuations in many quantities and a more natural evolution of the velocity fields. This forcing method is used for the final portion of this work. DNS results for Periodic Reaction Zones are compared with the Conditional Moment Closure (CMC) model, the Quasi-Equilibrium Distributed Reaction (QEDR) model, and full probability density function (PDF) simulations using the Euclidean Minimum Spanning Tree (EMST) and the Interaction by Exchange with the Mean (IEM) mixing models. It is shown that CMC and QEDR results based on the local scalar dissipation match DNS wherever local extinction is not present. However, due to the large spatial variations of scalar dissipation, and hence local Damkohler number, local extinction is present even when the global Damkohler number is twenty-five times the critical value for extinction. Finally, in the PDF simulations the EMST mixing model closely reproduces CMC and DNS results when local extinction is not present, whereas the IEM model results in large error.

On the application of Rice's exceedance statistics to atmospheric turbulence.

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chen, W. Y.

1972-01-01

Discrepancies produced by the application of Rice's exceedance statistics to atmospheric turbulence are examined. First- and second-order densities from several data sources have been measured for this purpose. Particular care was paid to each selection of turbulence that provides stationary mean and variance over the entire segment. Results show that even for a stationary segment of turbulence, the process is still highly non-Gaussian, in spite of a Gaussian appearance for its first-order distribution. Data also indicate strongly non-Gaussian second-order distributions. It is therefore concluded that even stationary atmospheric turbulence with a normal first-order distribution cannot be considered a Gaussian process, and consequently the application of Rice's exceedance statistics should be approached with caution.

Charged Particle Diffusion in Isotropic Random Static Magnetic Fields

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Subedi, P.; Sonsrettee, W.; Matthaeus, W. H.; Ruffolo, D. J.; Wan, M.; Montgomery, D.

2013-12-01

Study of the transport and diffusion of charged particles in a turbulent magnetic field remains a subject of considerable interest. Research has most frequently concentrated on determining the diffusion coefficient in the presence of a mean magnetic field. Here we consider Diffusion of charged particles in fully three dimensional statistically isotropic magnetic field turbulence with no mean field which is pertinent to many astrophysical situations. We classify different regions of particle energy depending upon the ratio of Larmor radius of the charged particle to the characteristic outer length scale of turbulence. We propose three different theoretical models to calculate the diffusion coefficient each applicable to a distinct range of particle energies. The theoretical results are compared with those from computer simulations, showing very good agreement.

Thermal non-equilibrium effect of small-scale structures in compressible turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Shi-Yi; Li, Qi-Bing

2018-05-01

The thermal non-equilibrium effect of the small-scale structures in the canonical two-dimensional turbulence is studied. Comparative studies of Unified Gas Kinetic Scheme (UGKS) and GKS-Navier-Stokes (NS) for Taylor-Green flow with initial Ma = 1, Kn = 0.01 and decaying isotropic turbulence with initial Mat = 1, Reλ = 20 show that the discrepancy exists both in small and large scales, even beyond the dissipation range to 10η with accuracy to 8% in the SGS energy transfer of the decaying isotropic turbulence, illustrating the necessity for resolving the kinetic scales even at moderated Reλ = 20.

Premixed Turbulent Flame Propagation in Microgravity

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Menon, Suresh

1999-01-01

A combined numerical-experimental study has been carried out to investigate the structure and propagation characteristics of turbulent premixed flames with and without the influence of buoyancy. Experimentally, the premixed flame characteristics are studied in the wrinkled regime using a Couette flow facility and an isotropic flow facility in order to resolve the scale of flame wrinkling. Both facilities were chosen for their ability to achieve sustained turbulence at low Reynolds number. This implies that conventional diagnostics can be employed to resolve the smallest scales of wrinkling. The Couette facility was also built keeping in mind the constraints imposed by the drop tower requirements. Results showed that the flow in this Couette flow facility achieves full-developed turbulence at low Re and all turbulence statistics are in good agreement with past measurements on large-scale facilities. Premixed flame propagation studies were then carried out both using the isotropic box and the Couette facility. Flame imaging showed that fine scales of wrinkling occurs during flame propagation. Both cases in Ig showed significant buoyancy effect. To demonstrate that micro-g can remove this buoyancy effect, a small drop tower was built and drop experiments were conducted using the isotropic box. Results using the Couette facility confirmed the ability to carry out these unique reacting flow experiments at least in 1g. Drop experiments at NASA GRC were planned but were not completed due to termination of this project.

The influence of free-stream turbulence on turbulent boundary layers with mild adverse pressure gradients

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hoffmann, Jon A.

1988-01-01

The influence of near isotropic free-stream turbulence on the shape factors and skin friction coefficients of turbulent bounday layers is presented for the cases of zero and mild adverse pressure gradients. With free-stream turbulence, improved fluid mixing occurs in boundary layers with adverse pressure gradients relative to the zero pressure gradient condition, with the same free-stream turbulence intensity and length scale. Stronger boundary layers with lower shape factors occur as a result of a lower ratio of the integral scale of turbulence to the boundary layer thickness, and to vortex stretching of the turbulent eddies in the free stream, both of which act to improve the transmission of momentum from the free stream to the boundary layers.

The influence of free-stream turbulence on turbulent boundary layers with mild adverse pressure gradients

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hoffmann, J. A.; Kassir, S. M.; Larwood, S. M.

1989-01-01

The influence of near isotropic free-stream turbulence on the shape factors and skin friction coefficients of turbulent boundary layers is presented for the cases of zero and mild adverse pressure gradients. With free-stream turbulence, improved fluid mixing occurs in boundary layers with adverse pressure gradients relative to the zero pressure gradient condition, with the same free-stream turbulence intensity and length scale. Stronger boundary layers with lower shape factors occur as a result of a lower ratio of the integral scale of turbulence to the boundary layer thickness, and to vortex stretching of the turbulent eddies in the free-stream, both of which act to improve the transmission of momentum from the free-stream to the boundary layers.

Three-dimensional direct numerical simulation study of conditioned moments associated with front propagation in turbulent flows

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yu, R.; Lipatnikov, A. N.; Bai, X. S.

2014-08-01

In order to gain further insight into (i) the use of conditioned quantities for characterizing turbulence within a premixed flame brush and (ii) the influence of front propagation on turbulent scalar transport, a 3D Direct Numerical Simulation (DNS) study of an infinitely thin front that self-propagates in statistically stationary, homogeneous, isotropic, forced turbulence was performed by numerically integrating Navier-Stokes and level set equations. While this study was motivated by issues relevant to premixed combustion, the density was assumed to be constant in order (i) to avoid the influence of the front on the flow and, therefore, to know the true turbulence characteristics as reference quantities for assessment of conditioned moments and (ii) to separate the influence of front propagation on turbulent transport from the influence of pressure gradient induced by heat release. Numerical simulations were performed for two turbulence Reynolds numbers (50 and 100) and four ratios (1, 2, 5, and 10) of the rms turbulent velocity to the front speed. Obtained results show that, first, the mean front thickness is decreased when a ratio of the rms turbulent velocity to the front speed is decreased. Second, although the gradient diffusion closure yields the right direction of turbulent scalar flux obtained in the DNS, the diffusion coefficient Dt determined using the DNS data depends on the mean progress variable. Moreover, Dt is decreased when the front speed is increased, thus, indicating that the front propagation affects turbulent scalar transport even in a constant-density case. Third, conditioned moments of the velocity field differ from counterpart mean moments, thus, disputing the use of conditioned velocity moments for characterizing turbulence when modeling premixed turbulent combustion. Fourth, computed conditioned enstrophies are close to the mean enstrophy in all studied cases, thus, suggesting the use of conditioned enstrophy for characterizing turbulence

Evaluation of Several Approximate Methods for Calculating the Symmetrical Bending-Moment Response of Flexible Airplanes to Isotropic Atmospheric Turbulence

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bennett, Floyd V.; Yntema, Robert T.

1959-01-01

Several approximate procedures for calculating the bending-moment response of flexible airplanes to continuous isotropic turbulence are presented and evaluated. The modal methods (the mode-displacement and force-summation methods) and a matrix method (segmented-wing method) are considered. These approximate procedures are applied to a simplified airplane for which an exact solution to the equation of motion can be obtained. The simplified airplane consists of a uniform beam with a concentrated fuselage mass at the center. Airplane motions are limited to vertical rigid-body translation and symmetrical wing bending deflections. Output power spectra of wing bending moments based on the exact transfer-function solutions are used as a basis for the evaluation of the approximate methods. It is shown that the force-summation and the matrix methods give satisfactory accuracy and that the mode-displacement method gives unsatisfactory accuracy.

Measurement of Non-Stationary Characteristics of a Landfall Typhoon at the Jiangyin Bridge Site.

PubMed

He, Xuhui; Qin, Hongxi; Tao, Tianyou; Liu, Wenshuo; Wang, Hao

2017-09-22

The wind-sensitive long-span suspension bridge is a vital element in land transportation. Understanding the wind characteristics at the bridge site is thus of great significance to the wind- resistant analysis of such a flexible structure. In this study, a strong wind event from a landfall typhoon called Soudelor recorded at the Jiangyin Bridge site with the anemometer is taken as the research object. As inherent time-varying trends are frequently captured in typhoon events, the wind characteristics of Soudelor are analyzed in a non-stationary perspective. The time-varying mean is first extracted with the wavelet-based self-adaptive method. Then, the non-stationary turbulent wind characteristics, e.g.; turbulence intensity, gust factor, turbulence integral scale, and power spectral density, are investigated and compared with the results from the stationary analysis. The comparison highlights the importance of non-stationary considerations of typhoon events, and a transition from stationarity to non-stationarity for the analysis of wind effects. The analytical results could help enrich the database of non-stationary wind characteristics, and are expected to provide references for the wind-resistant analysis of engineering structures in similar areas.

Measurement of Non-Stationary Characteristics of a Landfall Typhoon at the Jiangyin Bridge Site

PubMed Central

Qin, Hongxi; Tao, Tianyou; Liu, Wenshuo

2017-01-01

The wind-sensitive long-span suspension bridge is a vital element in land transportation. Understanding the wind characteristics at the bridge site is thus of great significance to the wind- resistant analysis of such a flexible structure. In this study, a strong wind event from a landfall typhoon called Soudelor recorded at the Jiangyin Bridge site with the anemometer is taken as the research object. As inherent time-varying trends are frequently captured in typhoon events, the wind characteristics of Soudelor are analyzed in a non-stationary perspective. The time-varying mean is first extracted with the wavelet-based self-adaptive method. Then, the non-stationary turbulent wind characteristics, e.g.; turbulence intensity, gust factor, turbulence integral scale, and power spectral density, are investigated and compared with the results from the stationary analysis. The comparison highlights the importance of non-stationary considerations of typhoon events, and a transition from stationarity to non-stationarity for the analysis of wind effects. The analytical results could help enrich the database of non-stationary wind characteristics, and are expected to provide references for the wind-resistant analysis of engineering structures in similar areas. PMID:28937641

The analysis and modelling of dilatational terms in compressible turbulence

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sarkar, S.; Erlebacher, G.; Hussaini, M. Y.; Kreiss, H. O.

1991-01-01

It is shown that the dilatational terms that need to be modeled in compressible turbulence include not only the pressure-dilatation term but also another term - the compressible dissipation. The nature of these dilatational terms in homogeneous turbulence is explored by asymptotic analysis of the compressible Navier-Stokes equations. A non-dimensional parameter which characterizes some compressible effects in moderate Mach number, homogeneous turbulence is identified. Direct numerical simulations (DNS) of isotropic, compressible turbulence are performed, and their results are found to be in agreement with the theoretical analysis. A model for the compressible dissipation is proposed; the model is based on the asymptotic analysis and the direct numerical simulations. This model is calibrated with reference to the DNS results regarding the influence of compressibility on the decay rate of isotropic turbulence. An application of the proposed model to the compressible mixing layer has shown that the model is able to predict the dramatically reduced growth rate of the compressible mixing layer.

The analysis and modeling of dilatational terms in compressible turbulence

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sarkar, S.; Erlebacher, G.; Hussaini, M. Y.; Kreiss, H. O.

1989-01-01

It is shown that the dilatational terms that need to be modeled in compressible turbulence include not only the pressure-dilatation term but also another term - the compressible dissipation. The nature of these dilatational terms in homogeneous turbulence is explored by asymptotic analysis of the compressible Navier-Stokes equations. A non-dimensional parameter which characterizes some compressible effects in moderate Mach number, homogeneous turbulence is identified. Direct numerical simulations (DNS) of isotropic, compressible turbulence are performed, and their results are found to be in agreement with the theoretical analysis. A model for the compressible dissipation is proposed; the model is based on the asymptotic analysis and the direct numerical simulations. This model is calibrated with reference to the DNS results regarding the influence of compressibility on the decay rate of isotropic turbulence. An application of the proposed model to the compressible mixing layer has shown that the model is able to predict the dramatically reduced growth rate of the compressible mixing layer.

Preliminary VHF radar and high-data-rate optical turbulence profile observations using a balloon-ring platform

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Eaton, Frank D.; Nastrom, Gregory D.; Kyrazis, Demos T.; Black, Don G.; Black, Wiley T.; Black, R. Alastair

2009-08-01

A recent measurement campaign at Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif. involved taking simultaneous observations with a VHF radar and high-data-rate (1-micron diameter) platinum wires to sense optical turbulence (from temperature fluctuations). The radar observations produce profiles of the refractive index structure parameter (C2n ), the turbulent kinetic energy (σ2t ), the eddy dissipation rate (ɛ), the inner scale (lo ), the outer scale (Lo ) of turbulence, and wind speed and direction to an altitude of 20 km AGL. The fine wire measurements were taken from the surface with several sensors mounted on a balloon-ring platform sampling in excess of 3 kHz to balloon burst altitudes (typically above 25 km AGL). The main objectives of this effort are to compare the two measurement techniques and to obtain observations that can address several fundamental turbulence issues of the real turbulent atmosphere related to laser beam propagation. To date, modeling and simulation of laser beam propagation through atmospheric turbulence have relied upon a traditional theoretical basis that assumes the existence of homogeneous, isotropic, stationary, and Kolmogorov turbulence. Results presented from the radar observations include C2n, σ2t, ɛ, lo, and the standard deviation of vertical velocity (σw). A comparison of the profiles of C2n obtained from the two measurement techniques is shown and discussed. A time series of temperature data obtained from a fine wire probe traversing one radar range gate is presented and discussed. Future measurement and analysis efforts are presented.

The self-preservation of dissipation elements in homogeneous isotropic decaying turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gauding, Michael; Danaila, Luminita; Varea, Emilien

2017-11-01

The concept of self-preservation has played an important role in shaping the understanding of turbulent flows. The assumption of complete self-preservation imposes certain constrains on the dynamics of the flow, allowing to express statistics by choosing an appropriate unique length scale. Another approach in turbulence research is to study the dynamics of geometrical objects, like dissipation elements (DE). DE appear as coherent space-filling structures in turbulent scalar fields and can be parameterized by the linear length between their ending points. This distance is a natural length scale that provides information about the local structure of turbulence. In this work, the evolution of DE in decaying turbulence is investigated from a self-preservation perspective. The analysis is based on data obtained from direct numerical simulations (DNS). The temporal evolution of DE is governed by a complex process, involving cutting and reconnection events, which change the number and consequently also the length of DE. An analysis of the evolution equation for the probability density function of the length of DE is carried out and leads to specific constraints for the self-preservation of DE, which are justified from DNS. Financial support was provided by Labex EMC3 (under the Grant VAVIDEN), Normandy Region and FEDER.

Evolution of the shock front and turbulence structures in the shock/turbulence interaction

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kevlahan, N.; Mahesh, K.; Lee, S.

1992-01-01

The interaction of a weak shock front with isotropic turbulence has been investigated using Direct Numerical Simulation (DNS). Two problems were considered: the ability of the field equation (the equation for a propagating surface) to model the shock; and a quantitative study of the evolution of turbulence structure using the database generated by Lee et al. Field equation model predictions for front shape have been compared with DNS results; good agreement is found for shock wave interaction with 2D turbulence and for a single steady vorticity wave. In the interaction of 3D isotropic turbulence with a normal shock, strong alignment of vorticity with the intermediate eigenvector of the rate of strain tensor (S(sup *)(sub ij) = S(sub ij) - (1/3)(delta(sub ij))(S(sub kk))) is seen to develop upstream of the shock and to be further amplified on passage through the shock. Vorticity tends to align at 90 deg to the largest eigenvector, but there is no preferred alignment with the smallest eigenvector. Upstream of the shock, the alignments continue to develop even after the velocity derivative skewness saturates. There is a significant tendency, which increases with time throughout the computational domain, for velocity to align with vorticity. The alignment between velocity and vorticity is strongest in eddy regions and weakest in convergence regions.

Zonal flow generation and its feedback on turbulence production in drift wave turbulence

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Pushkarev, Andrey V.; Bos, Wouter J. T.; Nazarenko, Sergey V.

2013-04-15

Plasma turbulence described by the Hasegawa-Wakatani equations is simulated numerically for different models and values of the adiabaticity parameter C. It is found that for low values of C turbulence remains isotropic, zonal flows are not generated and there is no suppression of the meridional drift waves and particle transport. For high values of C, turbulence evolves towards highly anisotropic states with a dominant contribution of the zonal sector to the kinetic energy. This anisotropic flow leads to a decrease of turbulence production in the meridional sector and limits the particle transport across the mean isopycnal surfaces. This behavior allowsmore » to consider the Hasegawa-Wakatani equations a minimal PDE model, which contains the drift-wave/zonal-flow feedback loop mechanism.« less

Effect of Contraction on Turbulence and Temperature Fluctuations Generated by a Warm Grid

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mills, Robert R., Jr.; Corrsin, Stanley

1959-01-01

Hot-wire anemometer measurements were made of several statistical properties of approximately homogeneous and isotropic fields of turbulence and temperature fluctuations generated by a warm grid in a uniform airstream sent through a 4-to-1 contraction. These measurements were made both in the contraction and in the axisymmetric domain farther downstream. In addition to confirming the well-known turbulence anisotropy induced by strain, the data show effects on the skewnesses of both longitudinal velocity fluctuation (which has zero skewness in isotropic turbulence) and its derivative. The concomitant anisotropy in the temperature field accelerates the decay of temperature fluctuations.

Direct simulation of compressible turbulence in a shear flow

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sarkar, S.; Erlebacher, G.; Hussaini, M. Y.

1991-01-01

Compressibility effects on the turbulence in homogeneous shear flow are investigated. The growth of the turbulent kinetic energy was found to decrease with increasing Mach number: a phenomenon which is similar to the reduction of turbulent velocity intensities observed in experiments on supersonic free shear layers. An examination of the turbulent energy budget shows that both the compressible dissipation and the pressure-dilatation contribute to the decrease in the growth of kinetic energy. The pressure-dilatation is predominantly negative in homogeneous shear flow, in contrast to its predominantly positive behavior in isotropic turbulence. The different signs of the pressure-dilatation are explained by theoretical consideration of the equations for the pressure variance and density variance. Previously, the following results were obtained for isotropic turbulence: (1) the normalized compressible dissipation is of O(M(sub t)(exp 2)); and (2) there is approximate equipartition between the kinetic and potential energies associated with the fluctuating compressible mode. Both of these results were substantiated in the case of homogeneous shear. The dilatation field is significantly more skewed and intermittent than the vorticity field. Strong compressions seem to be more likely than strong expansions.

Regularization method for large eddy simulations of shock-turbulence interactions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Braun, N. O.; Pullin, D. I.; Meiron, D. I.

2018-05-01

The rapid change in scales over a shock has the potential to introduce unique difficulties in Large Eddy Simulations (LES) of compressible shock-turbulence flows if the governing model does not sufficiently capture the spectral distribution of energy in the upstream turbulence. A method for the regularization of LES of shock-turbulence interactions is presented which is constructed to enforce that the energy content in the highest resolved wavenumbers decays as k - 5 / 3, and is computed locally in physical-space at low computational cost. The application of the regularization to an existing subgrid scale model is shown to remove high wavenumber errors while maintaining agreement with Direct Numerical Simulations (DNS) of forced and decaying isotropic turbulence. Linear interaction analysis is implemented to model the interaction of a shock with isotropic turbulence from LES. Comparisons to analytical models suggest that the regularization significantly improves the ability of the LES to predict amplifications in subgrid terms over the modeled shockwave. LES and DNS of decaying, modeled post shock turbulence are also considered, and inclusion of the regularization in shock-turbulence LES is shown to improve agreement with lower Reynolds number DNS.

Mass dependency of turbulent parameters in stationary glow discharge plasmas

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Titus, J. B.; Alexander, A. B.; Wiggins, D. L.

A direct current glow discharge tube is used to determine how mass changes the effects of certain turbulence characteristics in a weakly ionized gas. Helium, neon, argon, and krypton plasmas were created, and an axial magnetic field, varied from 0.0 to 550.0 Gauss, was used to enhance mass dependent properties of turbulence. From the power spectra of light emission variations associated with velocity fluctuations, determination of mass dependency on turbulent characteristic unstable modes, energy associated with turbulence, and the rate at which energy is transferred from scale to scale are measured. The magnetic field strength is found to be toomore » weak to overcome particle diffusion to the walls to affect the turbulence in all four types of plasmas, though mass dependency is still detected. Though the total energy and the rate at which the energy moves between scales are mass invariant, the amplitude of the instability modes that characterize each plasma are dependent on mass.« less

A DNS study of turbulent mixing of two passive scalars

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Juneja, A.; Pope, S. B.

1996-08-01

We employ direct numerical simulations to study the mixing of two passive scalars in stationary, homogeneous, isotropic turbulence. The present work is a direct extension of that of Eswaran and Pope from one scalar to two scalars and the focus is on examining the evolution states of the scalar joint probability density function (jpdf) and the conditional expectation of the scalar diffusion to motivate better models for multi-scalar mixing. The initial scalar fields are chosen to conform closely to a ``triple-delta function'' jpdf corresponding to blobs of fluid in three distinct states. The effect of the initial length scales and diffusivity of the scalars on the evolution of the jpdf and the conditional diffusion is investigated in detail as the scalars decay from their prescribed initial state. Also examined is the issue of self-similarity of the scalar jpdf at large times and the rate of decay of the scalar variance and dissipation.

Reynolds-number dependence of the dimensionless dissipation rate in homogeneous magnetohydrodynamic turbulence.

PubMed

Linkmann, Moritz; Berera, Arjun; Goldstraw, Erin E

2017-01-01

This paper examines the behavior of the dimensionless dissipation rate C_{ɛ} for stationary and nonstationary magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) turbulence in the presence of external forces. By combining with previous studies for freely decaying MHD turbulence, we obtain here both the most general model equation for C_{ɛ} applicable to homogeneous MHD turbulence and a comprehensive numerical study of the Reynolds number dependence of the dimensionless total energy dissipation rate at unity magnetic Prandtl number. We carry out a series of medium to high resolution direct numerical simulations of mechanically forced stationary MHD turbulence in order to verify the predictions of the model equation for the stationary case. Furthermore, questions of nonuniversality are discussed in terms of the effect of external forces as well as the level of cross- and magnetic helicity. The measured values of the asymptote C_{ɛ,∞} lie between 0.193≤C_{ɛ,∞}≤0.268 for free decay, where the value depends on the initial level of cross- and magnetic helicities. In the stationary case we measure C_{ɛ,∞}=0.223.

Particle Settling in Low Energy Turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Allen, Rachel; MacVean, Lissa; Tse, Ian; Mazzaro, Laura; Stacey, Mark; Variano, Evan

2014-11-01

Particle settling velocities can be altered by turbulence. In turbulence, dense particles may get trapped in convergent flow regions, and falling particles may be swept towards the downward side of turbulent eddies, resulting in enhanced settling velocities. The degree of velocity enhancement may depend on the Stokes number, the Rouse number, and the turbulent Reynolds number. In a homogeneous, isotropic turbulence tank, we tested the effects of particle size and type, suspended sediment concentration, and level of turbulence on the settling velocities of particles typically found in muddy estuaries. Two Acoustic Doppler Velocimeters (ADVs), separated vertically, measured turbulent velocities and suspended sediment concentrations, which yield condition dependent settling velocities, via ∂/á C ñ ∂ t = -∂/∂ z (ws á C ñ + á w ' C ' ñ) . These results are pertinent to fine sediment transport in estuaries, where high concentrations of suspended material are transported and impacted by low energy turbulence.

Influence of gravity on inertial particle clustering in turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lu, J.; Nordsiek, H.; Saw, E. W.; Fugal, J. P.; Shaw, R. A.

2008-11-01

We report results from experiments aimed at studying inertial particles in homogeneous, isotropic turbulence, under the influence of gravitational settling. Conditions are selected to investigate the transition from negligible role of gravity to gravitationally dominated, as is expected to occur in atmospheric clouds. We measure droplet clustering, relative velocities, and the distribution of collision angles in this range. The experiments are carried out in a laboratory chamber with nearly homogeneous, isotropic turbulence. The turbulence is characterized using LDV and 2-frame holographic particle tracking velocimetry. We seed the flow with particles of various Stokes and Froude numbers and use digital holography to obtain 3D particle positions and velocities. From particle positions, we investigate the impact of gravity on inertial clustering through the calculation of the radial distribution function and we compare to computational results and other recent experiments.

Anisotropic enhancement of turbulence in large-scale, low-intensity turbulent premixed propane air flames

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Furukawa, Junichi; Noguchi, Yoshiki; Hirano, Toshisuke; Williams, Forman A.

2002-07-01

The density change across premixed flames propagating in turbulent flows modifies the turbulence. The nature of that modification depends on the regime of turbulent combustion, the burner design, the orientation of the turbulent flame and the position within the flame. The present study addresses statistically stationary turbulent combustion in the flame-sheet regime, in which the laminar-flame thickness is less than the Kolmogorov scale, for flames stabilized on a vertically oriented cylindrical burner having fully developed upward turbulent pipe flow upstream from the exit. Under these conditions, rapidly moving wrinkled laminar flamelets form the axisymmetric turbulent flame brush that is attached to the burner exit. Predictions have been made of changes in turbulence properties across laminar flamelets in such situations, but very few measurements have been performed to test the predictions. The present work measures individual velocity changes and changes in turbulence across flamelets at different positions in the turbulent flame brush for three different equivalence ratios, for comparison with theory.

Turbulent solutions of equations of fluid motion

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Deissler, R. G.

1985-01-01

Some turbulent solutions of the unaveraged Navier-Stokes equations (equations of fluid motion) are reviewed. Those equations are solved numerically in order to study the nonlinear physics of incompressible turbulent flow. The three components of the mean-square velocity fluctuations are initially equal for the conditions chosen. The resulting solutions show characteristics of turbulence, such as the linear and nonlinear excitation of small-scale fluctuations. For the stronger fluctuations the initially nonrandom flow develops into an apparently random turbulence. The cases considered include turbulence that is statistically homogeneous or inhomogeneous and isotropic or anisotropic. A statistically steady-state turbulence is obtained by using a spatially periodic body force. Various turbulence processes, including the transfer of energy between eddy sizes and between directional components and the production, dissipation, and spatial diffusion of turbulence, are considered. It is concluded that the physical processes occurring in turbulence can be profitably studied numerically.

Calculation of Turbulent Expansion Processes

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Tollmien, Walter

1945-01-01

On the basis of certain formulas recently established by L. Prandtl for the turbulent interchange of momentum in stationary flows, various cases of "free turbulence" - that is, of flows without boundary walls - are treated in the present report. Prandtl puts the apparent shearing stress introduced by the turbulent momentum interchange. This present report deals first with the mixing of an air stream of uniform velocity with the adjacent still air, than with the expansion or diffusion of an air jet in the surrounding air space.

Time Correlations and the Frequency Spectrum of Sound Radiated by Turbulent Flows

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rubinstein, Robert; Zhou, Ye

1997-01-01

Theories of turbulent time correlations are applied to compute frequency spectra of sound radiated by isotropic turbulence and by turbulent shear flows. The hypothesis that Eulerian time correlations are dominated by the sweeping action of the most energetic scales implies that the frequency spectrum of the sound radiated by isotropic turbulence scales as omega(exp 4) for low frequencies and as omega(exp -3/4) for high frequencies. The sweeping hypothesis is applied to an approximate theory of jet noise. The high frequency noise again scales as omega(exp -3/4), but the low frequency spectrum scales as omega(exp 2). In comparison, a classical theory of jet noise based on dimensional analysis gives omega(exp -2) and omega(exp 2) scaling for these frequency ranges. It is shown that the omega(exp -2) scaling is obtained by simplifying the description of turbulent time correlations. An approximate theory of the effect of shear on turbulent time correlations is developed and applied to the frequency spectrum of sound radiated by shear turbulence. The predicted steepening of the shear dominated spectrum appears to be consistent with jet noise measurements.

Phase segregation in multiphase turbulent channel flow

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bianco, Federico; Soldati, Alfredo

2014-11-01

The phase segregation of a rapidly quenched mixture (namely spinodal decomposition) is numerically investigated. A phase field approach is considered. Direct numerical simulation of the coupled Navier-Stokes and Cahn-Hilliard equations is performed with spectral accuracy and focus has been put on domain growth scaling laws, in a wide range of regimes. The numerical method has been first validated against well known results of literature, then spinodal decomposition in a turbulent bounded flow (channel flow) has been considered. As for homogeneous isotropic case, turbulent fluctuations suppress the segregation process when surface tension at the interfaces is relatively low (namely low Weber number regimes). For these regimes, segregated domains size reaches a statistically steady state due to mixing and break-up phenomena. In contrast with homogenous and isotropic turbulence, the presence of mean shear, leads to a typical domain size that show a wall-distance dependence. Finally, preliminary results on the effects to the drag forces at the wall, due to phase segregation, have been discussed. Regione FVG, program PAR-FSC.

On the Space-Time Structure of Sheared Turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

de Maré, Martin; Mann, Jakob

2016-09-01

We develop a model that predicts all two-point correlations in high Reynolds number turbulent flow, in both space and time. This is accomplished by combining the design philosophies behind two existing models, the Mann spectral velocity tensor, in which isotropic turbulence is distorted according to rapid distortion theory, and Kristensen's longitudinal coherence model, in which eddies are simultaneously advected by larger eddies as well as decaying. The model is compared with data from both observations and large-eddy simulations and is found to predict spatial correlations comparable to the Mann spectral tensor and temporal coherence better than any known model. Within the developed framework, Lagrangian two-point correlations in space and time are also predicted, and the predictions are compared with measurements of isotropic turbulence. The required input to the models, which are formulated as spectral velocity tensors, can be estimated from measured spectra or be derived from the rate of dissipation of turbulent kinetic energy, the friction velocity and the mean shear of the flow. The developed models can, for example, be used in wind-turbine engineering, in applications such as lidar-assisted feed forward control and wind-turbine wake modelling.

Direct Numerical Simulation of Passive Scalar Mixing in Shock Turbulence Interaction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gao, Xiangyu; Bermejo-Moreno, Ivan; Larsson, Johan

2017-11-01

Passive scalar mixing in the canonical shock-turbulence interaction configuration is investigated through shock-capturing Direct Numerical Simulations (DNS). Scalar fields with different Schmidt numbers are transported by an initially isotropic turbulent flow field passing across a nominally planar shock wave. A solution-adaptive hybrid numerical scheme on Cartesian structured grids is used, that combines a fifth-order WENO scheme near shocks and a sixth-order central-difference scheme away from shocks. The simulations target variations in the shock Mach number, M (from 1.5 to 3), turbulent Mach number, Mt (from 0.1 to 0.4, including wrinkled- and broken-shock regimes), and scalar Schmidt numbers, Sc (from 0.5 to 2), while keeping the Taylor microscale Reynolds number constant (Reλ 40). The effects on passive scalar statistics are investigated, including the streamwise evolution of scalar variance budgets, pdfs and spectra, in comparison with their temporal evolution in decaying isotropic turbulence.

Light Propagation in Turbulent Media

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Perez, Dario G.

2003-07-01

First, we make a revision of the up-to-date Passive Scalar Fields properties: also, the refractive index is among them. Afterwards, we formulated the properties that make the family of `isotropic' fractional Brownian motion (with parameter H) a good candidate to simulate the turbulent refractive index. Moreover, we obtained its fractal dimension which matches the estimated by Constantin for passive scalar, and thus the parameter H determines the state of the turbulence. Next, using a path integral velocity representation, with the Markovian model, to calculate the effects of the turbulence over a system of grids. Finally, with the tools of Stochastic Calculus for fractional Brownian motions we studied the ray-equation coming from the Geometric Optics in the turbulent case. Our analysis covers those cases where average temperature gradients are relevant.

Size distribution spectrum of noninertial particles in turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Saito, Izumi; Gotoh, Toshiyuki; Watanabe, Takeshi

2018-05-01

Collision-coalescence growth of noninertial particles in three-dimensional homogeneous isotropic turbulence is studied. Smoluchowski's coagulation equation describes the evolution of the size distribution of particles in this system. By applying a methodology based on turbulence theory, the equation is shown to have a steady-state solution, which corresponds to the Kolmogorov-type power-law spectrum. Direct numerical simulations of turbulence and Lagrangian particles are conducted. The result shows that the size distribution in a statistically steady state agrees accurately with the theoretical prediction.

Generation of Turbulent Inflow Conditions for Pipe Flow via an Annular Ribbed Turbulator

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Moallemi, Nima; Brinkerhoff, Joshua

2016-11-01

The generation of turbulent inflow conditions adds significant computational expense to direct numerical simulations (DNS) of turbulent pipe flows. Typical approaches involve introducing boxes of isotropic turbulence to the velocity field at the inlet of the pipe. In the present study, an alternative method is proposed that incurs a lower computational cost and allows the anisotropy observed in pipe turbulence to be physically captured. The method is based on a periodic DNS of a ribbed turbulator upstream of the inlet boundary of the pipe. The Reynolds number based on the bulk velocity and pipe diameter is 5300 and the blockage ratio (BR) is 0.06 based on the rib height and pipe diameter. The pitch ratio is defined as the ratio of rib streamwise spacing to rib height and is varied between 1.7 and 5.0. The generation of turbulent flow structures downstream of the ribbed turbulator are identified and discussed. Suitability of this method for accurate representation of turbulent inflow conditions is assessed through comparison of the turbulent mean properties, fluctuations, Reynolds stress profiles, and spectra with published pipe flow DNS studies. The DNS results achieve excellent agreement with the numerical and experimental data available in the literature.

On the distribution of local dissipation scales in turbulent flows

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

May, Ian; Morshed, Khandakar; Venayagamoorthy, Karan; Dasi, Lakshmi

2014-11-01

Universality of dissipation scales in turbulence relies on self-similar scaling and large scale independence. We show that the probability density function of dissipation scales, Q (η) , is analytically defined by the two-point correlation function, and the Reynolds number (Re). We also present a new analytical form for the two-point correlation function for the dissipation scales through a generalized definition of a directional Taylor microscale. Comparison of Q (η) predicted within this framework and published DNS data shows excellent agreement. It is shown that for finite Re no single similarity law exists even for the case of homogeneous isotropic turbulence. Instead a family of scaling is presented, defined by Re and a dimensionless local inhomogeneity parameter based on the spatial gradient of the rms velocity. For moderate Re inhomogeneous flows, we note a strong directional dependence of Q (η) dictated by the principal Reynolds stresses. It is shown that the mode of the distribution Q (η) significantly shifts to sub-Kolmogorov scales along the inhomogeneous directions, as in wall bounded turbulence. This work extends the classical Kolmogorov's theory to finite Re homogeneous isotropic turbulence as well as the case of inhomogeneous anisotropic turbulence.

On the kinematics of scalar iso-surfaces in turbulent flow

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Blakeley, Brandon C.; Riley, James J.; Storti, Duane W.; Wang, Weirong

2017-11-01

The behavior of scalar iso-surfaces in turbulent flows is of fundamental interest and importance in a number of problems, e.g., the stoichiometric surface in non-premixed reactions, and the turbulent/non-turbulent interface in localized turbulent shear flows. Of particular interest here is the behavior of the average surface area per unit volume, Σ. We report on the use of direct numerical simulations and sophisticated surface tracking techniques to directly compute Σ and model its evolution. We consider two different scalar configurations in decaying, isotropic turbulence: first, the iso-surface is initially homogenous and isotropic in space, second, the iso-surface is initially planar. A novel method of computing integral properties from regularly-sampled values of a scalar function is leveraged to provide accurate estimates of Σ. Guided by simulation results, modeling is introduced from two perspectives. The first approach models the various terms in the evolution equation for Σ, while the second uses Rice's theorem to model Σ directly. In particular, the two principal effects on the evolution of Σ, i.e., the growth of the surface area due to local surface stretching, and the ultimate decay due to molecular destruction, are addressed.

Some Results Relevant to Statistical Closures for Compressible Turbulence

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ristorcelli, J. R.

1998-01-01

For weakly compressible turbulent fluctuations there exists a small parameter, the square of the fluctuating Mach number, that allows an investigation using a perturbative treatment. The consequences of such a perturbative analysis in three different subject areas are described: 1) initial conditions in direct numerical simulations, 2) an explanation for the oscillations seen in the compressible pressure in the direct numerical simulations of homogeneous shear, and 3) for turbulence closures accounting for the compressibility of velocity fluctuations. Initial conditions consistent with small turbulent Mach number asymptotics are constructed. The importance of consistent initial conditions in the direct numerical simulation of compressible turbulence is dramatically illustrated: spurious oscillations associated with inconsistent initial conditions are avoided, and the fluctuating dilatational field is some two orders of magnitude smaller for a compressible isotropic turbulence. For the isotropic decay it is shown that the choice of initial conditions can change the scaling law for the compressible dissipation. A two-time expansion of the Navier-Stokes equations is used to distinguish compressible acoustic and compressible advective modes. A simple conceptual model for weakly compressible turbulence - a forced linear oscillator is described. It is shown that the evolution equations for the compressible portions of turbulence can be understood as a forced wave equation with refraction. Acoustic modes of the flow can be amplified by refraction and are able to manifest themselves in large fluctuations of the compressible pressure.

Leith diffusion model for homogeneous anisotropic turbulence

DOE PAGES

Rubinstein, Robert; Clark, Timothy T.; Kurien, Susan

2017-06-01

Here, a proposal for a spectral closure model for homogeneous anisotropic turbulence. The systematic development begins by closing the third-order correlation describing nonlinear interactions by an anisotropic generalization of the Leith diffusion model for isotropic turbulence. The correlation tensor is then decomposed into a tensorially isotropic part, or directional anisotropy, and a trace-free remainder, or polarization anisotropy. The directional and polarization components are then decomposed using irreducible representations of the SO(3) symmetry group. Under the ansatz that the decomposition is truncated at quadratic order, evolution equations are derived for the directional and polarization pieces of the correlation tensor. Here, numericalmore » simulation of the model equations for a freely decaying anisotropic flow illustrate the non-trivial effects of spectral dependencies on the different return-to-isotropy rates of the directional and polarization contributions.« less

CASCADE AND DAMPING OF ALFVEN-CYCLOTRON FLUCTUATIONS: APPLICATION TO SOLAR WIND TURBULENCE

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Jiang Yanwei; Petrosian, Vahe; Liu Siming

2009-06-10

It is well recognized that the presence of magnetic fields will lead to anisotropic energy cascade and dissipation of astrophysical turbulence. With the diffusion approximation and linear dissipation rates, we study the cascade and damping of Alfven-cyclotron fluctuations in solar plasmas numerically for two diagonal diffusion tensors, one (isotropic) with identical components for the parallel and perpendicular directions (with respect to the magnetic field) and one with different components (nonisotropic). It is found that for the isotropic case the steady-state turbulence spectra are nearly isotropic in the inertial range and can be fitted by a single power-law function with amore » spectral index of -3/2, similar to the Iroshnikov-Kraichnan phenomenology, while for the nonisotropic case the spectra vary greatly with the direction of propagation. The energy fluxes in both cases are much higher in the perpendicular direction than in the parallel direction due to the angular dependence (or inhomogeneity) of the components. In addition, beyond the MHD regime the kinetic effects make the spectrum softer at higher wavenumbers. In the dissipation range the turbulence spectrum cuts off at the wavenumber, where the damping rate becomes comparable to the cascade rate, and the cutoff wavenumber changes with the wave propagation direction. The angle-averaged turbulence spectrum of the isotropic model resembles a broken power law, which cuts off at the maximum of the cutoff wavenumbers or the {sup 4}He cyclotron frequency. Taking into account the Doppler effects, the model naturally reproduces the broken power-law turbulence spectra observed in the solar wind and predicts that a higher break frequency always comes along with a softer dissipation range spectrum that may be caused by the increase of the turbulence intensity, the reciprocal of the plasma {beta}{sub p}, and/or the angle between the solar wind velocity and the mean magnetic field. These predictions can be

Measurement of the Turbulence Kinetic Energy Budget of a Turbulent Planar Wake Flow in Pressure Gradients

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Liu, Xiao-Feng; Thomas, Flint O.; Nelson, Robert C.

2001-01-01

Turbulence kinetic energy (TKE) is a very important quantity for turbulence modeling and the budget of this quantity in its transport equation can provide insight into the flow physics. Turbulence kinetic energy budget measurements were conducted for a symmetric turbulent wake flow subjected to constant zero, favorable and adverse pressure gradients in year-three of research effort. The purpose of this study is to clarify the flow physics issues underlying the demonstrated influence of pressure gradient on wake development and provide experimental support for turbulence modeling. To ensure the reliability of these notoriously difficult measurements, the experimental procedure was carefully designed on the basis of an uncertainty analysis. Four different approaches, based on an isotropic turbulence assumption, a locally axisymmetric homogeneous turbulence assumption, a semi-isotropy assumption and a forced balance of the TKE equation, were applied for the estimate of the dissipation term. The pressure transport term is obtained from a forced balance of the turbulence kinetic energy equation. This report will present the results of the turbulence kinetic energy budget measurement and discuss their implication on the development of strained turbulent wakes.

Applications of direct numerical simulation of turbulence in second order closures

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Shih, Tsan-Hsing; Lumley, John L.

1995-01-01

This paper discusses two methods of developing models for the rapid pressure-strain correlation term in the Reynolds stress transport equation using direct numerical simulation (DNS) data. One is a perturbation about isotropic turbulence, the other is a perturbation about two-component turbulence -- an extremely anisotropic turbulence. A model based on the latter method is proposed and is found to be very promising when compared with DNS data and other models.

A turbulent quarter century of active grids: from Makita (1991) to the present

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mydlarski, Laurent

2017-12-01

A quarter of a century ago, following a series of investigations with his colleagues, Makita published a paper (Makita 1991 Fluid Dyn. Res. 8, 53-64) in which the production of high-Reynolds-number, homogeneous, isotropic turbulence in a typical laboratory-sized wind tunnel by way of a novel ‘active grid’ was demonstrated. Until this time, classical (‘passive’) grids had been used to generate homogeneous, isotropic turbulence, which was almost invariably of low Reynolds number. In the years following the publication of Makita’s paper, active grids have played a major role in experimental studies of turbulence, given their ability to generate the most fundamental expression of a turbulent flow (homogeneous, isotropic turbulence) at Reynolds numbers large enough to (i) test Kolmogorov theory (posed in the limit of infinite Reynolds number), and (ii) match those of many natural and industrial flows. The present paper aims to review the research related to active grids undertaken since Makita’s seminal work. To this end, it firstly summarizes the key elements involved in the design, construction and operation of active grids, with the aim of providing a useful reference for those interested in studying or building active grids. Secondly, it discusses how active grids are now being customized to generate novel flows. Lastly, it reviews the accomplishments that have been achieved as a result of the invention of the active grid. It is hoped that the contribution to the field of turbulence brought by active grids a quarter of a century ago will moreover serve to inspire current fluid dynamicists to generate other simple and elegant innovations—like the active grid—to further advance our understanding of turbulent flows.

Investigation of the asymptotic state of rotating turbulence using large-eddy simulation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Squires, Kyle D.; Chasnov, Jeffrey R.; Mansour, Nagi N.; Cambon, Claude

1993-01-01

Study of turbulent flows in rotating reference frames has long been an area of considerable scientific and engineering interest. Because of its importance, the subject of turbulence in rotating reference frames has motivated over the years a large number of theoretical, experimental, and computational studies. The bulk of these previous works has served to demonstrate that the effect of system rotation on turbulence is subtle and remains exceedingly difficult to predict. A rotating flow of particular interest in many studies, including the present work, is examination of the effect of solid-body rotation on an initially isotropic turbulent flow. One of the principal reasons for the interest in this flow is that it represents the most basic turbulent flow whose structure is altered by system rotation but without the complicating effects introduced by mean strains or flow inhomogeneities. The assumption of statistical homogeneity considerably simplifies analysis and computation. The principal objective of the present study has been to examine the asymptotic state of solid-body rotation applied to an initially isotropic, high Reynolds number turbulent flow. Of particular interest has been to determine the degree of two-dimensionalization and the existence of asymptotic self-similar states in homogeneous rotating turbulence.

Turbulence and the Formation of Filaments, Loops, and Shock Fronts in NGC 1275

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Falceta-Gonçalves, D.; de Gouveia Dal Pino, E. M.; Gallagher, J. S.; Lazarian, A.

2010-01-01

NGC 1275, the central galaxy in the Perseus cluster, is the host of gigantic hot bipolar bubbles inflated by active galactic nucleus (AGN) jets observed in the radio as Perseus A. It presents a spectacular Hα-emitting nebulosity surrounding NGC 1275, with loops and filaments of gas extending to over 50 kpc. The origin of the filaments is still unknown, but probably correlates with the mechanism responsible for the giant buoyant bubbles. We present 2.5 and three-dimensional magnetohydrodynamical (MHD) simulations of the central region of the cluster in which turbulent energy, possibly triggered by star formation and supernovae (SNe) explosions, is introduced. The simulations reveal that the turbulence injected by massive stars could be responsible for the nearly isotropic distribution of filaments and loops that drag magnetic fields upward as indicated by recent observations. Weak shell-like shock fronts propagating into the intracluster medium (ICM) with velocities of 100-500 km s-1 are found, also resembling the observations. The isotropic outflow momentum of the turbulence slows the infall of the ICM, thus limiting further starburst activity in NGC 1275. As the turbulence is subsonic over most of the simulated volume, the turbulent kinetic energy is not efficiently converted into heat and additional heating is required to suppress the cooling flow at the core of the cluster. Simulations combining the MHD turbulence with the AGN outflow can reproduce the temperature radial profile observed around NGC 1275. While the AGN mechanism is the main heating source, the SNe are crucial to isotropize the energy distribution.

Dynamics of quantum turbulence of different spectra

PubMed Central

Walmsley, Paul; Zmeev, Dmitry; Pakpour, Fatemeh; Golov, Andrei

2014-01-01

Turbulence in a superfluid in the zero-temperature limit consists of a dynamic tangle of quantized vortex filaments. Different types of turbulence are possible depending on the level of correlations in the orientation of vortex lines. We provide an overview of turbulence in superfluid 4He with a particular focus on recent experiments probing the decay of turbulence in the zero-temperature regime below 0.5 K. We describe extensive measurements of the vortex line density during the free decay of different types of turbulence: ultraquantum and quasiclassical turbulence in both stationary and rotating containers. The observed decays and the effective dissipation as a function of temperature are compared with theoretical models and numerical simulations. PMID:24704876

Magnetohydrodynamic turbulence in the solar wind

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Matthaeus, W. H.; Goldstein, M. L.

1983-01-01

Recent work in describing the solar wind as an MHD turbulent fluid has shown that the magnetic fluctuations are adequately described as time stationary and to some extent as spatially homogeneous. Spectra of the three rugged invariants of incompressible MHD are the principal quantities used to characterize the velocity and magnetic field fluctuations. Unresolved issues concerning the existence of actively developing turbulence are discussed.

PDF methods for combustion in high-speed turbulent flows

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Pope, Stephen B.

1995-01-01

This report describes the research performed during the second year of this three-year project. The ultimate objective of the project is extend the applicability of probability density function (pdf) methods from incompressible to compressible turbulent reactive flows. As described in subsequent sections, progress has been made on: (1) formulation and modelling of pdf equations for compressible turbulence, in both homogeneous and inhomogeneous inert flows; and (2) implementation of the compressible model in various flow configurations, namely decaying isotropic turbulence, homogeneous shear flow and plane mixing layer.

Turbulent and directed plasma motions in solar flares

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Fludra, A.; Bentley, R. D.; Lemen, J. R.; Jakimiec, J.; Sylwester, J.

1989-01-01

An improved method for fitting asymmetric soft X-ray line profiles from solar flares is presented. A two-component model is used where one component represents the total emission from directed upflow plasma and the other the emission from the plasma at rest. Unlike previous methods, the width of the moving component is independent from that of the stationary component. Time variations of flare plasma characteristics (i.e., temperature, emission measure of moving and stationary plasma, upflow and turbulent velocities) are derived from the Ca XIX and Fe XXV spectra recorded by the Bent Crystal Spectrometer on the Solar Maximum Mission. The fitting technique provides a statistical estimation for the uncertainties in the fitting parameters. The relationship between the directed and turbulent motions has been studied, and a correlation of the random and directed motions has been found in some flares with intensive plasma upflows. Mean temperatures of the upflowing and stationary plasmas are compared for the first time from ratios of calcium to iron X-ray line intensities. Finally, evidence for turbulent motions and the possibility of plasma upflow late into the decay phase is presented and discussed.

Mixing and chemical reaction in sheared and nonsheared homogeneous turbulence

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Leonard, Andy D.; Hill, James C.

1992-01-01

Direct numerical simulations were made to examine the local structure of the reaction zone for a moderately fast reaction between unmixed species in decaying, homogeneous turbulence and in a homogeneous turbulent shear flow. Pseudospectral techniques were used in domains of 64 exp 3 and higher wavenumbers. A finite-rate, single step reaction between non-premixed reactants was considered, and in one case temperature-dependent Arrhenius kinetics was assumed. Locally intense reaction rates that tend to persist throughout the simulations occur in locations where the reactant concentration gradients are large and are amplified by the local rate of strain. The reaction zones are more organized in the case of a uniform mean shear than in isotropic turbulence, and regions of intense reaction rate appear to be associated with vortex structures such as horseshoe vortices and fingers seen in mixing layers. Concentration gradients tend to align with the direction of the most compressive principal strain rate, more so in the isotropic case.

Turbulent coagulation of particles smaller than the length scales of turbulence and equilibrium sorption of phenanthrene to clay: Implications for pollutant transport in the estuarine water column

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brunk, Brett Kenneth

1997-11-01

Pollutant and particle transport in estuaries is affected by a multitude of physical, chemical and biological processes. In this research the importance of equilibrium sorption and turbulent coagulation were studied. Sorption in estuaries was modeled using phenanthrene, bacterial extracellular polymer and kaolinite clay as surrogates for a hydrophobic organic pollutant, dissolved organic matter and inorganic suspended sediment, respectively. Experiments over a range of estuarine salinities showed that ionic strength had the largest effect on the extent of sorption, while the effect of extracellular polymer coatings on the mineral surfaces was insignificant. Further calculations using typical estuarine suspended sediment concentrations indicated that equilibrium sorption could not fully account for the solid/solution phase distribution of hydrophobic organic compounds in the estuarine water column. For particles that are small compared to the length scales of turbulence, the rate of coagulation is related to the dynamics of the smallest turbulent eddies since they have the highest shear rate. Experimental and theoretical effort focused on determining the coagulation rate of spherical particles in isotropic turbulence. A pair diffusion approximation valid for rapidly fluctuating flows was used to calculate the rate of coagulation in a randomly varying isotropic linear flow field. Dynamic simulations of particle coagulation in Gaussian turbulence were computed over a range of representative values of particle-particle interactions (i.e, hydrodynamic interactions and van der Waals attraction) and total strain (i.e., the product of the strain rate and its time scale). The computed coagulation rates for isotropic turbulence differed from analytical approximations valid at large and small total strain. As expected, particle interactions were found to be significant. Experimental measurements of coagulation in grid-generated turbulence were obtained by measuring the loss

Transport of Charged Particles in Turbulent Magnetic Fields

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Parashar, T.; Subedi, P.; Sonsrettee, W.; Blasi, P.; Ruffolo, D. J.; Matthaeus, W. H.; Montgomery, D.; Chuychai, P.; Dmitruk, P.; Wan, M.; Chhiber, R.

2017-12-01

Magnetic fields permeate the Universe. They are found in planets, stars, galaxies, and the intergalactic medium. The magnetic field found in these astrophysical systems are usually chaotic, disordered, and turbulent. The investigation of the transport of cosmic rays in magnetic turbulence is a subject of considerable interest. One of the important aspects of cosmic ray transport is to understand their diffusive behavior and to calculate the diffusion coefficient in the presence of these turbulent fields. Research has most frequently concentrated on determining the diffusion coefficient in the presence of a mean magnetic field. Here, we will particularly focus on calculating diffusion coefficients of charged particles and magnetic field lines in a fully three-dimensional isotropic turbulent magnetic field with no mean field, which may be pertinent to many astrophysical situations. For charged particles in isotropic turbulence we identify different ranges of particle energy depending upon the ratio of the Larmor radius of the charged particle to the characteristic outer length scale of the turbulence. Different theoretical models are proposed to calculate the diffusion coefficient, each applicable to a distinct range of particle energies. The theoretical ideas are tested against results of detailed numerical experiments using Monte-Carlo simulations of particle propagation in stochastic magnetic fields. We also discuss two different methods of generating random magnetic field to study charged particle propagation using numerical simulation. One method is the usual way of generating random fields with a specified power law in wavenumber space, using Gaussian random variables. Turbulence, however, is non-Gaussian, with variability that comes in bursts called intermittency. We therefore devise a way to generate synthetic intermittent fields which have many properties of realistic turbulence. Possible applications of such synthetically generated intermittent fields are

Gravity influence on the clustering of charged particles in turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lu, Jiang; Nordsiek, Hansen; Shaw, Raymond

2010-11-01

We report results aimed at studying the interactions of bidisperse charged inertial particles in homogeneous, isotropic turbulence, under the influence of gravitational settling. We theoretically and experimentally investigate the impact of gravititational settling on particle clustering, which is quantified by the radial distribution function (RDF). The theory is based on a drift-diffusion (Fokker-Planck) model with gravitational settling appearing as a diffusive term depending on a dimensionless settling parameter. The experiments are carried out in a laboratory chamber with nearly homogeneous, isotropic turbulence in which the flow is seeded with charged particles and digital holography used to obtain 3D particle positions and velocities. The derived radial distribution function for bidisperse settling charged particles is compared to the experimental RDFs.

Is 2-D turbulence relevant in the atmosphere?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lovejoy, Shaun; Schertzer, Daniel

2010-05-01

Starting with (Taylor, 1935), the paradigm of isotropic (and scaling!) turbulence was developed initially for laboratory applications, but following (Kolmogorov, 1941), three dimensional isotropic turbulence was progressively applied to the atmosphere. Since the atmosphere is strongly stratified, a single wide scale range model which is both isotropic and scaling is not possible so that theorists had to immediately choose between the two symmetries: isotropy or scale invariance. Following the development of models of two dimensional isotropic turbulence ((Fjortoft, 1953), but especially (Kraichnan, 1967) and (Charney, 1971)), the mainstream choice was to first make the convenient assumption of isotropy and to drop wide range scale invariance. Starting at the end of the 1970's this "isotropy primary" (IP) paradigm has lead to a series of increasingly complex isotropic 2D/isotropic 3D models of atmospheric dynamics which continue to dominate the theoretical landscape. Justifications for IP approaches have focused almost exclusively on the horizontal statistics of the horizontal wind in both numerical models and analyses and from aircraft campaigns, especially the highly cited GASP (Nastrom and Gage, 1983), (Gage and Nastrom, 1986; Nastrom and Gage, 1985) and MOZAIC (Cho and Lindborg, 2001) experiments. Since understanding the anisotropy clearly requires comparisons between horizontal and vertical statistics/structures this focus has been unfortunate. Over the same thirty year period that 2D/3D isotropic models were being elaborated, evidence slowly accumulated in favour of the opposite theoretical choice: to drop the isotropy assumption but to retain wide range scaling. The models in the alternative paradigm are scaling but strongly anisotropic with vertical sections of structures becoming increasingly stratified at larger and larger scales albeit in a power law manner; we collectively refer to these as "SP" for "scaling primary" approaches. Early authors explicitly

Subgrid or Reynolds stress-modeling for three-dimensional turbulence computations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rubesin, M. W.

1975-01-01

A review is given of recent advances in two distinct computational methods for evaluating turbulence fields, namely, statistical Reynolds stress modeling and turbulence simulation, where large eddies are followed in time. It is shown that evaluation of the mean Reynolds stresses, rather than use of a scalar eddy viscosity, permits an explanation of streamline curvature effects found in several experiments. Turbulence simulation, with a new volume averaging technique and third-order accurate finite-difference computing is shown to predict the decay of isotropic turbulence in incompressible flow with rather modest computer storage requirements, even at Reynolds numbers of aerodynamic interest.

Consistent Initial Conditions for the DNS of Compressible Turbulence

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ristorcelli, J. R.; Blaisdell, G. A.

1996-01-01

Relationships between diverse thermodynamic quantities appropriate to weakly compressible turbulence are derived. It is shown that for turbulence of a finite turbulent Mach number there is a finite element of compressibility. A methodology for generating initial conditions for the fluctuating pressure, density and dilatational velocity is given which is consistent with finite Mach number effects. Use of these initial conditions gives rise to a smooth development of the flow, in contrast to cases in which these fields are specified arbitrarily or set to zero. Comparisons of the effect of different types of initial conditions are made using direct numerical simulation of decaying isotropic turbulence.

Modeling turbulent energy behavior and sudden viscous dissipation in compressing plasma turbulence

DOE PAGES

Davidovits, Seth; Fisch, Nathaniel J.

2017-12-21

Here, we present a simple model for the turbulent kinetic energy behavior of subsonic plasma turbulence undergoing isotropic three-dimensional compression, which may exist in various inertial confinement fusion experiments or astrophysical settings. The plasma viscosity depends on both the temperature and the ionization state, for which many possible scalings with compression are possible. For example, in an adiabatic compression the temperature scales as 1/L 2, with L the linear compression ratio, but if thermal energy loss mechanisms are accounted for, the temperature scaling may be weaker. As such, the viscosity has a wide range of net dependencies on the compression.more » The model presented here, with no parameter changes, agrees well with numerical simulations for a range of these dependencies. This model permits the prediction of the partition of injected energy between thermal and turbulent energy in a compressing plasma.« less

Modeling turbulent energy behavior and sudden viscous dissipation in compressing plasma turbulence

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Davidovits, Seth; Fisch, Nathaniel J.

Here, we present a simple model for the turbulent kinetic energy behavior of subsonic plasma turbulence undergoing isotropic three-dimensional compression, which may exist in various inertial confinement fusion experiments or astrophysical settings. The plasma viscosity depends on both the temperature and the ionization state, for which many possible scalings with compression are possible. For example, in an adiabatic compression the temperature scales as 1/L 2, with L the linear compression ratio, but if thermal energy loss mechanisms are accounted for, the temperature scaling may be weaker. As such, the viscosity has a wide range of net dependencies on the compression.more » The model presented here, with no parameter changes, agrees well with numerical simulations for a range of these dependencies. This model permits the prediction of the partition of injected energy between thermal and turbulent energy in a compressing plasma.« less

The Surface Pressure Response of a NACA 0015 Airfoil Immersed in Grid Turbulence. Volume 1; Characteristics of the Turbulence

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bereketab, Semere; Wang, Hong-Wei; Mish, Patrick; Devenport, William J.

2000-01-01

Two grids have been developed for the Virginia Tech 6 ft x 6 ft Stability wind tunnel for the purpose of generating homogeneous isotropic turbulent flows for the study of unsteady airfoil response. The first, a square bi-planar grid with a 12" mesh size and an open area ratio of 69.4%, was mounted in the wind tunnel contraction. The second grid, a metal weave with a 1.2 in. mesh size and an open area ratio of 68.2% was mounted in the tunnel test section. Detailed statistical and spectral measurements of the turbulence generated by the two grids are presented for wind tunnel free stream speeds of 10, 20, 30 and 40 m/s. These measurements show the flows to be closely homogeneous and isotropic. Both grids produce flows with a turbulence intensity of about 4% at the location planned for the airfoil leading edge. Turbulence produced by the large grid has an integral scale of some 3.2 inches here. Turbulence produced by the small grid is an order of magnitude smaller. For wavenumbers below the upper limit of the inertial subrange, the spectra and correlations measured with both grids at all speeds can be represented using the von Karman interpolation formula with a single velocity and length scale. The spectra maybe accurately represented over the entire wavenumber range by a modification of the von Karman interpolation formula that includes the effects of dissipation. These models are most accurate at the higher speeds (30 and 40 m/s).

Studying Turbulence Using Numerical Simulation Databases, 2. Proceedings of the 1988 Summer Program

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1988-01-01

The focus of the program was on the use of direct numerical simulations of turbulent flow for study of turbulence physics and modeling. A special interest was placed on turbulent mixing layers. The required data for these investigations were generated from four newly developed codes for simulation of time and spatially developing incompressible and compressible mixing layers. Also of interest were the structure of wall bounded turbulent and transitional flows, evaluation of diagnostic techniques for detection of organized motions, energy transfer in isotropic turbulence, optical propagation through turbulent media, and detailed analysis of the interaction of vortical structures.

Direct simulation of compressible turbulence in a shear flow

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sarkar, S.; Erlebacher, G.; Hussaini, M. Y.

1991-01-01

The purpose of this study is to investigate compressibility effects on the turbulence in homogeneous shear flow. It is found that the growth of the turbulent kinetic energy decreases with increasing Mach number, a phenomenon similar to the reduction of turbulent velocity intensities observed in experiments on supersonic free shear layers. An examination of the turbulent energy budget shows that both the compressible dissipation and the pressure-dilatation contribute to the decrease in the growth of kinetic energy. The pressure-dilatation is predominantly negative in homogeneous shear flow, in contrast to its predominantly positive behavior in isotropic turbulence. The different signs of the pressure-dilatation are explained by theoretical consideration of the equations for the pressure variance and density variance.

Pressure-strain energy redistribution in compressible turbulence: return-to-isotropy versus kinetic-potential energy equipartition

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lee, Kurnchul; Venugopal, Vishnu; Girimaji, Sharath S.

2016-08-01

Return-to-isotropy and kinetic-potential energy equipartition are two fundamental pressure-moderated energy redistributive processes in anisotropic compressible turbulence. Pressure-strain correlation tensor redistributes energy among various Reynolds stress components and pressure-dilatation is responsible for energy reallocation between dilatational kinetic and potential energies. The competition and interplay between these pressure-based processes are investigated in this study. Direct numerical simulations (DNS) of low turbulent Mach number dilatational turbulence are performed employing the hybrid thermal Lattice Boltzman method (HTLBM). It is found that a tendency towards equipartition precedes proclivity for isotropization. An evolution towards equipartition has a collateral but critical effect on return-to-isotropy. The preferential transfer of energy from strong (rather than weak) Reynolds stress components to potential energy accelerates the isotropization of dilatational fluctuations. Understanding of these pressure-based redistributive processes is critical for developing insight into the character of compressible turbulence.

Rotor noise due to atmospheric turbulence ingestion. II - Aeroacoustic results

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Amiet, R. K.; Simonich, J. C.; Schlinker, R. H.

1986-01-01

A computer program for the prediction of noise due to the turbulence of inflow to a propeller or helicopter rotor is extended to the case of nonisotropic turbulence, on the basis of a combined mean flow contraction model and rapid distortion theory. The mean flow distortion is noted to stretch the turbulence, decreasing the velocities along the principal axis of the stretching. In the case of a principal stretching axis lying close to the rotor axis, the distortion acts to decrease the upwash velocities of the rotor: thereby decreasing the noise from levels associated with isotropic turbulence. Acoustic energies are calculated at observer location for several cases, and compared to the turbulence energy as affected by the contraction.

On curve and surface stretching in turbulent flow

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Etemadi, Nassrollah

1989-01-01

Cocke (1969) proved that in incompressible, isotropic turbulence the average material line (material surface) elements increase in comparison with their initial values. Good estimates of how much they increase in terms of the eigenvalues of the Green deformation tensor were rigorously obtained.

Premixed autoignition in compressible turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Konduri, Aditya; Kolla, Hemanth; Krisman, Alexander; Chen, Jacqueline

2016-11-01

Prediction of chemical ignition delay in an autoignition process is critical in combustion systems like compression ignition engines and gas turbines. Often, ignition delay times measured in simple homogeneous experiments or homogeneous calculations are not representative of actual autoignition processes in complex turbulent flows. This is due the presence of turbulent mixing which results in fluctuations in thermodynamic properties as well as chemical composition. In the present study the effect of fluctuations of thermodynamic variables on the ignition delay is quantified with direct numerical simulations of compressible isotropic turbulence. A premixed syngas-air mixture is used to remove the effects of inhomogeneity in the chemical composition. Preliminary results show a significant spatial variation in the ignition delay time. We analyze the topology of autoignition kernels and identify the influence of extreme events resulting from compressibility and intermittency. The dependence of ignition delay time on Reynolds and turbulent Mach numbers is also quantified. Supported by Basic Energy Sciences, Dept of Energy, United States.

DNS, LES and Stochastic Modeling of Turbulent Reacting Flows

DTIC Science & Technology

1994-03-01

NY, 1972. 3 [181 Miller , R. S., Frankel, S. H., Madnia, C. K., and Givi, P., Johnson-Edgeworth Trans- lation for Probability Modeling of Binary Mixing...Givi, " Modeling of Isotropic are also grateful to Richard Miller for many useful discussions. This Reacting Turbulence by a Hybrid Mapping-EDQNM...United State of America * Johnson-Edgeworth Translation for Probability Modeling of Binary Scalar Mixing in Turbulent Flows I R. S. MILLER , S. H

Shape effects in the turbulent tumbling of large particles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Variano, Evan; Oehmke, Theresa; Pujara, Nimish

2017-11-01

We present laboratory results on rotation of finite-sized, neutrally buoyant, anisotropic particles in isotropic turbulence. The isotropic turbulent flow is generated using a randomly-actuated synthetic jet array that minimizes tank scale circulation and measurements are made with stereoscopic particle image velocimetry. By using particles of different shapes, we explore the effects that symmetries have on particle rotation. We add to previous data collected for spheres cylinders and ellipsoids by performing new measurements on cubes, cuboids and cones. The measurement technique and results on mean-square particle rotation will be presented. Preliminary results, at the time of writing this abstract, indicate that symmetry breaking increases the rate of particle rotation. More complete quantitative results will be presented. This work was partially supported by the NSF award ENG-1604026 and by the Army Research Office Biomathematics Program.

PIV measurements in near-wake turbulent regions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Wei-Cheng; Chang, Keh-Chin

2018-05-01

Particle image velocimetry (PIV) is a non-intrusive optical diagnostic and must be made of the seedings (foreign particles) instead of the fluid itself. However, reliable PIV measurement of turbulence requires sufficient numbers of seeding falling in each interrogation window of image. A gray-level criterion is developed in this work to check the attainment of statistically stationary status of turbulent flow properties. It is suggested that the gray level of no less than 0.66 is used as the threshold for reliable PIV measurements in the present near-wake turbulent regions.

Presumed PDF Modeling of Early Flame Propagation in Moderate to Intense Turbulence Environments

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Carmen, Christina; Feikema, Douglas A.

2003-01-01

The present paper describes the results obtained from a one-dimensional time dependent numerical technique that simulates early flame propagation in a moderate to intense turbulent environment. Attention is focused on the development of a spark-ignited, premixed, lean methane/air mixture with the unsteady spherical flame propagating in homogeneous and isotropic turbulence. A Monte-Carlo particle tracking method, based upon the method of fractional steps, is utilized to simulate the phenomena represented by a probability density function (PDF) transport equation. Gaussian distributions of fluctuating velocity and fuel concentration are prescribed. Attention is focused on three primary parameters that influence the initial flame kernel growth: the detailed ignition system characteristics, the mixture composition, and the nature of the flow field. The computational results of moderate and intense isotropic turbulence suggests that flames within the distributed reaction zone are not as vulnerable, as traditionally believed, to the adverse effects of increased turbulence intensity. It is also shown that the magnitude of the flame front thickness significantly impacts the turbulent consumption flame speed. Flame conditions studied have fuel equivalence ratio s in the range phi = 0.6 to 0.9 at standard temperature and pressure.

Morphology of the scattering targets: Fresnel and turbulent mechanisms, part 2.1A

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Royrvik, O.

1984-01-01

Refractive index fluctuations cause coherent scattering and reflection of VHF radio waves from the clear air in the altitude region between 0 and approximately 90 km. Similar echoes from the stratosphere/troposphere and the mesosphere are observed at UHF and MF/HF frequencies, respectively. The nature of the refractive index fluctuations has been studied for many years without producing a clear consensus on what mechanism causes them. It is believed that the irregularities can originate from two different mechanisms: turbulent mixing of the gradient of refractive index, and stable horizontally stratified laminae of sharp gradients in the refractive index. In order to explain observations of volume dependence and aspect sensitivity of the echo power in the MST region, a diversity of submechanisms has been proposed. They include isotropic and anisotropic turbulent scattering, Fresnel scattering and reflection, and diffuse reflection. Isotropic turbulent scattering is believed to cause a majority of the clear air echoes observed by MST radars. The mechanism requires active turbulence mixing of a preexisting gradient in the refractive index profile.

Universality of local dissipation scales in buoyancy-driven turbulence.

PubMed

Zhou, Quan; Xia, Ke-Qing

2010-03-26

We report an experimental investigation of the local dissipation scale field eta in turbulent thermal convection. Our results reveal two types of universality of eta. The first one is that, for the same flow, the probability density functions (PDFs) of eta are insensitive to turbulent intensity and large-scale inhomogeneity and anisotropy of the system. The second is that the small-scale dissipation dynamics in buoyancy-driven turbulence can be described by the same models developed for homogeneous and isotropic turbulence. However, the exact functional form of the PDF of the local dissipation scale is not universal with respect to different types of flows, but depends on the integral-scale velocity boundary condition, which is found to have an exponential, rather than Gaussian, distribution in turbulent Rayleigh-Bénard convection.

Effect of anisotropy on intensity fluctuations in oceanic turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Baykal, Yahya

2018-04-01

For an optical spherical wave propagating in an oceanic turbulent medium, the effect of anisotropy on the received intensity fluctuations is investigated. For different anisotropy factors, the variations of the scintillation index vs. the ratio that determines the relative strength of temperature and salinity in the index fluctuations, the rate of dissipation of the mean squared temperature, the rate of dissipation of the turbulent kinetic energy, viscosity, link length and the wavelength are plotted. It is found that, for all the oceanic turbulence and the link parameters of interest, as the medium becomes more anisotropic, the intensity of the optical spherical wave fluctuates less. It is concluded that the performance of an optical wireless communication systems (OWCS) operating in anisotropic oceanic turbulence is better than the performance of OWCS operating in isotropic oceanic turbulence.

Intermittency and universality of small scales of passive scalar in turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gotoh, Toshiyuki; Watanabe, Takeshi

2014-11-01

Recent experiments and Direct Numerical Simulations (DNSs) suggest that the small scale statistics of passive scalar may not be as ``universal'' as in the velocity case. To address this problem, we study the moments of scalar increment in steady turbulence at Rλ > 800 by using DNS up to the grid points of 40963. In order for the scalar and turbulent flow to be as faithful as possible to the assumptions that would be made in theories, Scalar 1 and Scalar 2 are simultaneously convected by the identical isotropic turbulent flow but excited by two different methods. Scalar 1 is excited by the random scalar injection which is isotropic, Gaussian and white in time at low wavenumber band, while Scalar 2 is excited by the uniform mean scalar gradient. The moments of two scalars as functions of the separation vector are expanded in terms of the Legendre polynomials to extract the scaling exponents of the moments up to the 4th anisotropic sector for Scalar 2. It is found that the exponents of the isotropic sectors seem to have the same values at separation distances in the narrow range over which the 4/3 law holds simultaneously for two scalars. The exponents of the anisotropic sectors and the cumulants of the moments will also be reported. HPCI, JHPCN, Grant-in-Aid for Sci. Res. No.24360068, Ministry of Edu. Sci., Japan.

Flame speed and self-similar propagation of expanding turbulent premixed flames.

PubMed

Chaudhuri, Swetaprovo; Wu, Fujia; Zhu, Delin; Law, Chung K

2012-01-27

In this Letter we present turbulent flame speeds and their scaling from experimental measurements on constant-pressure, unity Lewis number expanding turbulent flames, propagating in nearly homogeneous isotropic turbulence in a dual-chamber, fan-stirred vessel. It is found that the normalized turbulent flame speed as a function of the average radius scales as a turbulent Reynolds number to the one-half power, where the average radius is the length scale and the thermal diffusivity is the transport property, thus showing self-similar propagation. Utilizing this dependence it is found that the turbulent flame speeds from the present expanding flames and those from the Bunsen geometry in the literature can be unified by a turbulent Reynolds number based on flame length scales using recent theoretical results obtained by spectral closure of the transformed G equation.

Flame Speed and Self-Similar Propagation of Expanding Turbulent Premixed Flames

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chaudhuri, Swetaprovo; Wu, Fujia; Zhu, Delin; Law, Chung K.

2012-01-01

In this Letter we present turbulent flame speeds and their scaling from experimental measurements on constant-pressure, unity Lewis number expanding turbulent flames, propagating in nearly homogeneous isotropic turbulence in a dual-chamber, fan-stirred vessel. It is found that the normalized turbulent flame speed as a function of the average radius scales as a turbulent Reynolds number to the one-half power, where the average radius is the length scale and the thermal diffusivity is the transport property, thus showing self-similar propagation. Utilizing this dependence it is found that the turbulent flame speeds from the present expanding flames and those from the Bunsen geometry in the literature can be unified by a turbulent Reynolds number based on flame length scales using recent theoretical results obtained by spectral closure of the transformed G equation.

Turbulent diffusion of chemically reacting flows: Theory and numerical simulations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Elperin, T.; Kleeorin, N.; Liberman, M.; Lipatnikov, A. N.; Rogachevskii, I.; Yu, R.

2017-11-01

The theory of turbulent diffusion of chemically reacting gaseous admixtures developed previously [T. Elperin et al., Phys. Rev. E 90, 053001 (2014), 10.1103/PhysRevE.90.053001] is generalized for large yet finite Reynolds numbers and the dependence of turbulent diffusion coefficient on two parameters, the Reynolds number and Damköhler number (which characterizes a ratio of turbulent and reaction time scales), is obtained. Three-dimensional direct numerical simulations (DNSs) of a finite-thickness reaction wave for the first-order chemical reactions propagating in forced, homogeneous, isotropic, and incompressible turbulence are performed to validate the theoretically predicted effect of chemical reactions on turbulent diffusion. It is shown that the obtained DNS results are in good agreement with the developed theory.

Turbulent diffusion of chemically reacting flows: Theory and numerical simulations.

PubMed

Elperin, T; Kleeorin, N; Liberman, M; Lipatnikov, A N; Rogachevskii, I; Yu, R

2017-11-01

The theory of turbulent diffusion of chemically reacting gaseous admixtures developed previously [T. Elperin et al., Phys. Rev. E 90, 053001 (2014)PLEEE81539-375510.1103/PhysRevE.90.053001] is generalized for large yet finite Reynolds numbers and the dependence of turbulent diffusion coefficient on two parameters, the Reynolds number and Damköhler number (which characterizes a ratio of turbulent and reaction time scales), is obtained. Three-dimensional direct numerical simulations (DNSs) of a finite-thickness reaction wave for the first-order chemical reactions propagating in forced, homogeneous, isotropic, and incompressible turbulence are performed to validate the theoretically predicted effect of chemical reactions on turbulent diffusion. It is shown that the obtained DNS results are in good agreement with the developed theory.

A Stationary One-Equation Turbulent Model with Applications in Porous Media

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

de Oliveira, H. B.; Paiva, A.

2018-06-01

A one-equation turbulent model is studied in this work in the steady-state and with homogeneous Dirichlet boundary conditions. The considered problem generalizes two distinct approaches that are being used with success in the applications to model different flows through porous media. The novelty of the problem relies on the consideration of the classical Navier-Stokes equations with a feedback forces field, whose presence in the momentum equation will affect the equation for the turbulent kinetic energy (TKE) with a new term that is known as the production and represents the rate at which TKE is transferred from the mean flow to the turbulence. By assuming suitable growth conditions on the feedback forces field and on the function that describes the rate of dissipation of the TKE, as well as on the production term, we will prove the existence of the velocity field and of the TKE. The proof of their uniqueness is made by assuming monotonicity conditions on the feedback forces field and on the turbulent dissipation function, together with a condition of Lipschitz continuity on the production term. The existence of a unique pressure, will follow by the application of a standard version of de Rham's lemma.

Turbulence-flame interactions in DNS of a laboratory high Karlovitz premixed turbulent jet flame

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Haiou; Hawkes, Evatt R.; Chen, Jacqueline H.

2016-09-01

In the present work, direct numerical simulation (DNS) of a laboratory premixed turbulent jet flame was performed to study turbulence-flame interactions. The turbulent flame features moderate Reynolds number and high Karlovitz number (Ka). The orientations of the flame normal vector n, the vorticity vector ω and the principal strain rate eigenvectors ei are examined. The in-plane and out-of-plane angles are introduced to quantify the vector orientations, which also measure the flame geometry and the vortical structures. A general observation is that the distributions of these angles are more isotropic downstream as the flame and the flow become more developed. The out-of-plane angle of the flame normal vector, β, is a key parameter in developing the correction of 2D measurements to estimate the corresponding 3D quantities. The DNS results show that the correction factor is unity at the inlet and approaches its theoretical value of an isotropic distribution downstream. The alignment characteristics of n, ω and ei, which reflect the interactions of turbulence and flame, are also studied. Similar to a passive scalar gradient in non-reacting flows, the flame normal has a tendency to align with the most compressive strain rate, e3, in the flame, indicating that turbulence contributes to the production of scalar gradient. The vorticity dynamics are examined via the vortex stretching term, which was found to be the predominant source of vorticity generation balanced by dissipation, in the enstrophy transport equation. It is found that although the vorticity preferentially aligns with the intermediate strain rate, e2, the contribution of the most extensive strain rate, e1, to vortex stretching is comparable with that of the intermediate strain rate, e2. This is because the eigenvalue of the most extensive strain rate, λ1, is always large and positive. It is confirmed that the vorticity vector is preferentially positioned along the flame tangential plane, contributing

Turbulent solutions of the equations of fluid motion

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Deissler, R. G.

1984-01-01

Some turbulent solutions of the unaveraged Navier-Stokes equations (equations of fluid motion) are reviewed. Those equations are solved numerically in order to study the nonlinear physics of incompressible turbulent flow. Initial three-dimensional cosine velocity fluctuations and periodic boundary conditions are used in most of the work considered. The three components of the mean-square velocity fluctuations are initially equal for the conditions chosen. The resulting solutions show characteristics of turbulence such as the linear and nonlinear excitation of small-scale fluctuations. For the stronger fluctuations, the initially nonrandom flow develops into an apparently random turbulence. Thus randomness or turbulence can arise as a consequence of the structure of the Navier-Stokes equations. The cases considered include turbulence which is statistically homogeneous or inhomogeneous and isotropic or anisotropic. A mean shear is present in some cases. A statistically steady-state turbulence is obtained by using a spatially periodic body force. Various turbulence processes, including the transfer of energy between eddy sizes and between directional components, and the production, dissipation, and spatial diffusion of turbulence, are considered. It is concluded that the physical processes occurring in turbulence can be profitably studied numerically.

Kelvin-Helmholtz instability: the ``atom'' of geophysical turbulence?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Smyth, William

2017-11-01

Observations of small-scale turbulence in Earth's atmosphere and oceans have most commonly been interpreted in terms of the Kolmogorov theory of isotropic turbulence, despite the fact that the observed turbulence is significantly anisotropic due to density stratification and sheared large-scale flows. I will describe an alternative picture in which turbulence consists of distinct events that occur sporadically in space and time. The simplest model for an individual event is the ``Kelvin-Helmholtz (KH) ansatz'', in which turbulence relieves the dynamic instability of a localized shear layer. I will summarize evidence that the KH ansatz is a valid description of observed turbulence events, using microstructure measurements from the equatorial Pacific ocean as an example. While the KH ansatz has been under study for many decades and is reasonably well understood, the bigger picture is much less clear. How are the KH events distributed in space and time? How do different events interact with each other? I will describe some tentative steps toward a more thorough understanding.

Experimental study of strained and destrained turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Jun; Meneveau, Charles; Katz, Joseph

2003-11-01

Planar Particle Image Velocimetry measurements are performed in a water tank facility in which high Reynolds number turbulence is generated by an array of spinning grids. Straining fields are applied using a piston with rectangular cross-section which is pushed towards the bottom of the tank, setting up a planar straining field there. The facility can also be used to reverse the distortion ("destraining'') by pulling the piston upwards. We present calibration tests characterizing the flow in the facility. The initial turbulent state is characterized by means of ditributions of rms values and energy spectra, and corresponds closely to isotropic, homogeneous turbulence. The applied straining is characterized using high-speed camera and PIV measurements of the mean flow without turbulence. Initial results of turbulence subjected to a sequence of straining and destraining motions are presented, with particular emphasis on the flux of kinetic energy from large to small scales and possible backscatter during destraining.

The radiated noise from isotropic turbulence and heated jets

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lilley, G. M.

1995-01-01

Our understanding of aerodynamic noise has its foundations in the work of Sir James Lighthill (1952), which was the first major advance in acoustics since the pioneering work of Lord Rayleigh in the last century. The combination of Lighthill's theory of aerodynamic noise as applied to turbulent flows and the experimental growing database from the early 1950's was quickly exploited by various jet propulsion engine designers in reducing the noise of jet engines at takeoff and landing to levels marginally acceptable to communities living in the neighborhoods of airports. The success in this noise containment led to the rapid growth of fast economical subsonic civil transport aircraft worldwide throughout the 1960's and has continued to the present day. One important factor in this success story has been the improvements in the engine cycle that have led to both reductions in specific fuel consumption and noise. The second is the introduction of Noise Certification, which specifies the maximum noise levels at takeoff and landing that all aircraft must meet before they can be entered on the Civil Aircraft Register. The growing interest in the development of a new supersonic civil transport to replace 'Concorde' in the early years of the next century has led to a resurgence of interest in the more challenging problem of predicting the noise of hot supersonic jets and developing means of aircraft noise reduction at takeoff and landing to meet the standards now accepted for subsonic Noise Certification. The prediction of aircraft noise to the accuracy required to meet Noise Certification requirements has necessitated reliance upon experimental measurements and empirically derived laws based on the available experimental data bases. These laws have their foundation in the results from Lighthill's theory, but in the case of jet noise, where the noise is generated in the turbulent mixing region with the external ambient fluid, the complexity of the turbulent motion has

Vorticity, backscatter and counter-gradient transport predictions using two-level simulation of turbulent flows

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ranjan, R.; Menon, S.

2018-04-01

The two-level simulation (TLS) method evolves both the large-and the small-scale fields in a two-scale approach and has shown good predictive capabilities in both isotropic and wall-bounded high Reynolds number (Re) turbulent flows in the past. Sensitivity and ability of this modelling approach to predict fundamental features (such as backscatter, counter-gradient turbulent transport, small-scale vorticity, etc.) seen in high Re turbulent flows is assessed here by using two direct numerical simulation (DNS) datasets corresponding to a forced isotropic turbulence at Taylor's microscale-based Reynolds number Reλ ≈ 433 and a fully developed turbulent flow in a periodic channel at friction Reynolds number Reτ ≈ 1000. It is shown that TLS captures the dynamics of local co-/counter-gradient transport and backscatter at the requisite scales of interest. These observations are further confirmed through a posteriori investigation of the flow in a periodic channel at Reτ = 2000. The results reveal that the TLS method can capture both the large- and the small-scale flow physics in a consistent manner, and at a reduced overall cost when compared to the estimated DNS or wall-resolved LES cost.

Spectral changes in stochastic anisotropic electromagnetic beams propagating through turbulent ocean

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tang, Miaomiao; Zhao, Daomu

2014-02-01

Based on the extended Huygens-Fresnel principle and the unified theory of coherence and polarization of light, the spectral changes of stochastic anisotropic electromagnetic beams propagating through oceanic turbulence are revealed. As an example, some numerical calculations are illustrated for an anisotropic electromagnetic Gaussian Schell-model beam propagating in a homogeneous and isotropic turbulent ocean. It is shown that, under the influence of oceanic turbulence, the on-axis spectrum is always blue-shifted along with the propagation distance, however, for the off-axis positions, red-blue spectral switch can be found.

Anisotropic magnetohydrodynamic turbulence in a strong external magnetic field

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Montgomery, D.; Turner, L.

1981-01-01

A strong external dc magnetic field introduces a basic anisotropy into incompressible magnetohydrodynamic turbulence. The modifications that this is likely to produce in the properties of the turbulence are explored for the high Reynolds number case. The conclusion is reached that the turbulent spectrum splits into two parts: an essentially two dimensional spectrum with both the velocity field and magnetic fluctuations perpendicular to the dc magnetic field, and a generally weaker and more nearly isotropic spectrum of Alfven waves. A minimal characterization of the spectral density tensors is given. Similarities to measurements from the Culham-Harwell Zeta pinch device and the UCLA Macrotor Tokamak are remarked upon, as are certain implications for the Belcher and Davis measurements of magnetohydrodynamic turbulence in the solar wind.

Analysis of Lagrangian stretching in turbulent channel flow using a database task-parallel particle tracking approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Meneveau, Charles; Johnson, Perry; Hamilton, Stephen; Burns, Randal

2016-11-01

An intrinsic property of turbulent flows is the exponential deformation of fluid elements along Lagrangian paths. The production of enstrophy by vorticity stretching follows from a similar mechanism in the Lagrangian view, though the alignment statistics differ and viscosity prevents unbounded growth. In this paper, the stretching properties of fluid elements and vorticity along Lagrangian paths are studied in a channel flow at Reτ = 1000 and compared with prior, known results from isotropic turbulence. To track Lagrangian paths in a public database containing Direct Numerical Simulation (DNS) results, the task-parallel approach previously employed in the isotropic database is extended to the case of flow in a bounded domain. It is shown that above 100 viscous units from the wall, stretching statistics are equal to their isotropic values, in support of the local isotropy hypothesis. Normalized by dissipation rate, the stretching in the buffer layer and below is less efficient due to less favorable alignment statistics. The Cramér function characterizing cumulative Lagrangian stretching statistics shows that overall the channel flow has about half of the stretching per unit dissipation compared with isotropic turbulence. Supported by a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship Program under Grant No. DGE-1232825, and by National Science Foundation Grants CBET-1507469, ACI-1261715, OCI-1244820 and by JHU IDIES.

The effects of particle loading on turbulence structure and modelling

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Squires, Kyle D.; Eaton, J. K.

1989-01-01

The objective of the present research was to extend the Direct Numerical Simulation (DNS) approach to particle-laden turbulent flows using a simple model of particle/flow interaction. The program addressed the simplest type of flow, homogeneous, isotropic turbulence, and examined interactions between the particles and gas phase turbulence. The specific range of problems examined include those in which the particle is much smaller than the smallest length scales of the turbulence yet heavy enough to slip relative to the flow. The particle mass loading is large enough to have a significant impact on the turbulence, while the volume loading was small enough such that particle-particle interactions could be neglected. Therefore, these simulations are relevant to practical problems involving small, dense particles conveyed by turbulent gas flows at moderate loadings. A sample of the results illustrating modifications of the particle concentration field caused by the turbulence structure is presented and attenuation of turbulence by the particle cloud is also illustrated.

Vortex locking in direct numerical simulations of quantum turbulence.

PubMed

Morris, Karla; Koplik, Joel; Rouson, Damian W I

2008-07-04

Direct numerical simulations are used to examine the locking of quantized superfluid vortices and normal fluid vorticity in evolving turbulent flows. The superfluid is driven by the normal fluid, which undergoes either a decaying Taylor-Green flow or a linearly forced homogeneous isotropic turbulent flow, although the back reaction of the superfluid on the normal fluid flow is omitted. Using correlation functions and wavelet transforms, we present numerical and visual evidence for vortex locking on length scales above the intervortex spacing.

Large-eddy simulation of a turbulent mixing layer

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mansour, N. N.; Ferziger, J. H.; Reynolds, W. C.

1978-01-01

The three dimensional, time dependent (incompressible) vorticity equations were used to simulate numerically the decay of isotropic box turbulence and time developing mixing layers. The vorticity equations were spatially filtered to define the large scale turbulence field, and the subgrid scale turbulence was modeled. A general method was developed to show numerical conservation of momentum, vorticity, and energy. The terms that arise from filtering the equations were treated (for both periodic boundary conditions and no stress boundary conditions) in a fast and accurate way by using fast Fourier transforms. Use of vorticity as the principal variable is shown to produce results equivalent to those obtained by use of the primitive variable equations.

An apparatus for generation and quantitative measurement of homogeneous isotropic turbulence in He ii

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mastracci, Brian; Guo, Wei

2018-01-01

The superfluid phase of helium-4, known as He ii, exhibits extremely small kinematic viscosity and may be a useful tool for economically producing and studying high Reynolds number turbulent flow. Such applications are not currently possible because a comprehensive understanding of the complex two-fluid behavior of He ii is lacking. This situation could be remedied by a systematic investigation of simple, well controlled turbulence that can be directly compared with theoretical models. To this end, we have developed a new apparatus that combines flow visualization with second sound attenuation to study turbulence in the wake of a mesh grid towed through a He ii filled channel. One of three mesh grids (mesh number M = 3, 3.75, or 5 mm) can be pulled at speeds between 0.1 and 60 cm/s through a cast acrylic flow channel which has a 16 mm × 16 mm cross section and measures 330 mm long. The motion of solidified deuterium tracer particles, with diameter of the order 1 μm, in the resulting flow is captured by a high speed camera, and a particle tracking velocimetry algorithm resolves the Lagrangian particle trajectories through the turbulent flow field. A pair of oscillating superleak second sound transducers installed in the channel allows complementary measurement of vortex line density in the superfluid throughout the turbulent decay process. Success in early experiments demonstrates the effectiveness of both probes, and preliminary analysis of the data shows that both measurements strongly correlate with each other. Further investigations will provide comprehensive information that can be used to address open questions about turbulence in He ii and move toward the application of this fluid to high Reynolds number fluid research.

Characterization of nonGaussian atmospheric turbulence for prediction of aircraft response statistics

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mark, W. D.

1977-01-01

Mathematical expressions were derived for the exceedance rates and probability density functions of aircraft response variables using a turbulence model that consists of a low frequency component plus a variance modulated Gaussian turbulence component. The functional form of experimentally observed concave exceedance curves was predicted theoretically, the strength of the concave contribution being governed by the coefficient of variation of the time fluctuating variance of the turbulence. Differences in the functional forms of response exceedance curves and probability densities also were shown to depend primarily on this same coefficient of variation. Criteria were established for the validity of the local stationary assumption that is required in the derivations of the exceedance curves and probability density functions. These criteria are shown to depend on the relative time scale of the fluctuations in the variance, the fluctuations in the turbulence itself, and on the nominal duration of the relevant aircraft impulse response function. Metrics that can be generated from turbulence recordings for testing the validity of the local stationary assumption were developed.

Regimes of turbulence without an energy cascade

PubMed Central

Barenghi, C. F.; Sergeev, Y. A.; Baggaley, A. W.

2016-01-01

Experiments and numerical simulations of turbulent 4He and 3He-B have established that, at hydrodynamic length scales larger than the average distance between quantum vortices, the energy spectrum obeys the same 5/3 Kolmogorov law which is observed in the homogeneous isotropic turbulence of ordinary fluids. The importance of the 5/3 law is that it points to the existence of a Richardson energy cascade from large eddies to small eddies. However, there is also evidence of quantum turbulent regimes without Kolmogorov scaling. This raises the important questions of why, in such regimes, the Kolmogorov spectrum fails to form, what is the physical nature of turbulence without energy cascade, and whether hydrodynamical models can account for the unusual behaviour of turbulent superfluid helium. In this work we describe simple physical mechanisms which prevent the formation of Kolmogorov scaling in the thermal counterflow, and analyze the conditions necessary for emergence of quasiclassical regime in quantum turbulence generated by injection of vortex rings at low temperatures. Our models justify the hydrodynamical description of quantum turbulence and shed light into an unexpected regime of vortex dynamics. PMID:27761005

The analysis and simulation of compressible turbulence

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Erlebacher, Gordon; Hussaini, M. Y.; Kreiss, H. O.; Sarkar, S.

1990-01-01

Compressible turbulent flows at low turbulent Mach numbers are considered. Contrary to the general belief that such flows are almost incompressible, (i.e., the divergence of the velocity field remains small for all times), it is shown that even if the divergence of the initial velocity field is negligibly small, it can grow rapidly on a non-dimensional time scale which is the inverse of the fluctuating Mach number. An asymptotic theory which enables one to obtain a description of the flow in terms of its divergence-free and vorticity-free components has been developed to solve the initial-value problem. As a result, the various types of low Mach number turbulent regimes have been classified with respect to the initial conditions. Formulae are derived that accurately predict the level of compressibility after the initial transients have disappeared. These results are verified by extensive direct numerical simulations of isotropic turbulence.

The analysis and simulation of compressible turbulence

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Erlebacher, Gordon; Hussaini, M. Y.; Sarkar, S.; Kreiss, H. O.

1990-01-01

Compressible turbulent flows at low turbulent Mach numbers are considered. Contrary to the general belief that such flows are almost incompressible (i.e., the divergence of the velocity field remains small for all times), it is shown that even if the divergence of the initial velocity field is negligibly small, it can grow rapidly on a nondimensional time scale which is the inverse of the fluctuating Mach number. An asymptotic theory which enables one to obtain a description of the flow in terms of its divergence-free and vorticity-free components has been developed to solve the initial-value problem. As a result, the various types of low Mach number turbulent regimes have been classified with respect to the initial conditions. Formulae are derived that accurately predict the level of compressibility after the initial transients have disappeared. These results are verified by extensive direct numerical simulations of isotropic turbulence.

Onset of meso-scale turbulence in active nematics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Doostmohammadi, Amin; Shendruk, Tyler N.; Thijssen, Kristian; Yeomans, Julia M.

2017-05-01

Meso-scale turbulence is an innate phenomenon, distinct from inertial turbulence, that spontaneously occurs at low Reynolds number in fluidized biological systems. This spatiotemporal disordered flow radically changes nutrient and molecular transport in living fluids and can strongly affect the collective behaviour in prominent biological processes, including biofilm formation, morphogenesis and cancer invasion. Despite its crucial role in such physiological processes, understanding meso-scale turbulence and any relation to classical inertial turbulence remains obscure. Here we show how the motion of active matter along a micro-channel transitions to meso-scale turbulence through the evolution of locally disordered patches (active puffs) from an ordered vortex-lattice flow state. We demonstrate that the stationary critical exponents of this transition to meso-scale turbulence in a channel coincide with the directed percolation universality class. This finding bridges our understanding of the onset of low-Reynolds-number meso-scale turbulence and traditional scale-invariant turbulence in confinement.

Log-Normal Turbulence Dissipation in Global Ocean Models

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pearson, Brodie; Fox-Kemper, Baylor

2018-03-01

Data from turbulent numerical simulations of the global ocean demonstrate that the dissipation of kinetic energy obeys a nearly log-normal distribution even at large horizontal scales O (10 km ) . As the horizontal scales of resolved turbulence are larger than the ocean is deep, the Kolmogorov-Yaglom theory for intermittency in 3D homogeneous, isotropic turbulence cannot apply; instead, the down-scale potential enstrophy cascade of quasigeostrophic turbulence should. Yet, energy dissipation obeys approximate log-normality—robustly across depths, seasons, regions, and subgrid schemes. The distribution parameters, skewness and kurtosis, show small systematic departures from log-normality with depth and subgrid friction schemes. Log-normality suggests that a few high-dissipation locations dominate the integrated energy and enstrophy budgets, which should be taken into account when making inferences from simplified models and inferring global energy budgets from sparse observations.

Methods of separation of variables in turbulence theory

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Tsuge, S.

1978-01-01

Two schemes of closing turbulent moment equations are proposed both of which make double correlation equations separated into single-point equations. The first is based on neglected triple correlation, leading to an equation differing from small perturbed gasdynamic equations where the separation constant appears as the frequency. Grid-produced turbulence is described in this light as time-independent, cylindrically-isotropic turbulence. Application to wall turbulence guided by a new asymptotic method for the Orr-Sommerfeld equation reveals a neutrally stable mode of essentially three dimensional nature. The second closure scheme is based on an assumption of identity of the separated variables through which triple and quadruple correlations are formed. The resulting equation adds, to its equivalent of the first scheme, an integral of nonlinear convolution in the frequency describing a role due to triple correlation of direct energy-cascading.

Second-order closure models for supersonic turbulent flows

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Speziale, Charles G.; Sarkar, Sutanu

1991-01-01

Recent work by the authors on the development of a second-order closure model for high-speed compressible flows is reviewed. This turbulence closure is based on the solution of modeled transport equations for the Favre-averaged Reynolds stress tensor and the solenoidal part of the turbulent dissipation rate. A new model for the compressible dissipation is used along with traditional gradient transport models for the Reynolds heat flux and mass flux terms. Consistent with simple asymptotic analyses, the deviatoric part of the remaining higher-order correlations in the Reynolds stress transport equation are modeled by a variable density extension of the newest incompressible models. The resulting second-order closure model is tested in a variety of compressible turbulent flows which include the decay of isotropic turbulence, homogeneous shear flow, the supersonic mixing layer, and the supersonic flat-plate turbulent boundary layer. Comparisons between the model predictions and the results of physical and numerical experiments are quite encouraging.

Second-order closure models for supersonic turbulent flows

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Speziale, Charles G.; Sarkar, Sutanu

1991-01-01

Recent work on the development of a second-order closure model for high-speed compressible flows is reviewed. This turbulent closure is based on the solution of modeled transport equations for the Favre-averaged Reynolds stress tensor and the solenoidal part of the turbulent dissipation rate. A new model for the compressible dissipation is used along with traditional gradient transport models for the Reynolds heat flux and mass flux terms. Consistent with simple asymptotic analyses, the deviatoric part of the remaining higher-order correlations in the Reynolds stress transport equations are modeled by a variable density extension of the newest incompressible models. The resulting second-order closure model is tested in a variety of compressible turbulent flows which include the decay of isotropic turbulence, homogeneous shear flow, the supersonic mixing layer, and the supersonic flat-plate turbulent boundary layer. Comparisons between the model predictions and the results of physical and numerical experiments are quite encouraging.

Application of a new K-tau model to near wall turbulent flows

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Thangam, S.; Abid, R.; Speziale, Charles G.

1991-01-01

A recently developed K-tau model for near wall turbulent flows is applied to two severe test cases. The turbulent flows considered include the incompressible flat plate boundary layer with the adverse pressure gradients and incompressible flow past a backward facing step. Calculations are performed for this two-equation model using an anisotropic as well as isotropic eddy-viscosity. The model predictions are shown to compare quite favorably with experimental data.

Constraints on the invariant functions of axisymmetric turbulence

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kerschen, E. J.

1983-01-01

Constraints are derived for the two invariant functions Q1 and Q2 that occur in Chandrasekhar's (1950) development of the axisymmetric turbulence theory. These constraints must be satisfied for the correlation tensor derived from Q1 and Q2 to be that of a stationary random process, i.e., for the turbulence to be realizable. The equivalent results in spectrum space are also developed. Applications of the constraints in aerodynamic noise modeling are discussed. It is shown that significant errors in prediction can be introduced by the use of turbulence models which violate the constraints.

Controlled-Turbulence Bioreactors

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wolf, David A.; Schwartz, Ray; Trinh, Tinh

1989-01-01

Two versions of bioreactor vessel provide steady supplies of oxygen and nutrients with little turbulence. Suspends cells in environment needed for sustenance and growth, while inflicting less damage from agitation and bubbling than do propeller-stirred reactors. Gentle environments in new reactors well suited to delicate mammalian cells. One reactor kept human kidney cells alive for as long as 11 days. Cells grow on carrier beads suspended in liquid culture medium that fills cylindrical housing. Rotating vanes - inside vessel but outside filter - gently circulates nutrient medium. Vessel stationary; magnetic clutch drives filter cylinder and vanes. Another reactor creates even less turbulence. Oxygen-permeable tubing wrapped around rod extending along central axis. Small external pump feeds oxygen to tubing through rotary coupling, and oxygen diffuses into liquid medium.

Numerical experiments in homogeneous turbulence

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rogallo, R. S.

1981-01-01

The direct simulation methods developed by Orszag and Patternson (1972) for isotropic turbulence were extended to homogeneous turbulence in an incompressible fluid subjected to uniform deformation or rotation. The results of simulations for irrotational strain (plane and axisymmetric), shear, rotation, and relaxation toward isotropy following axisymmetric strain are compared with linear theory and experimental data. Emphasis is placed on the shear flow because of its importance and because of the availability of accurate and detailed experimental data. The computed results are used to assess the accuracy of two popular models used in the closure of the Reynolds-stress equations. Data from a variety of the computed fields and the details of the numerical methods used in the simulation are also presented.

Shell models of magnetohydrodynamic turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Plunian, Franck; Stepanov, Rodion; Frick, Peter

2013-02-01

Shell models of hydrodynamic turbulence originated in the seventies. Their main aim was to describe the statistics of homogeneous and isotropic turbulence in spectral space, using a simple set of ordinary differential equations. In the eighties, shell models of magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) turbulence emerged based on the same principles as their hydrodynamic counter-part but also incorporating interactions between magnetic and velocity fields. In recent years, significant improvements have been made such as the inclusion of non-local interactions and appropriate definitions for helicities. Though shell models cannot account for the spatial complexity of MHD turbulence, their dynamics are not over simplified and do reflect those of real MHD turbulence including intermittency or chaotic reversals of large-scale modes. Furthermore, these models use realistic values for dimensionless parameters (high kinetic and magnetic Reynolds numbers, low or high magnetic Prandtl number) allowing extended inertial range and accurate dissipation rate. Using modern computers it is difficult to attain an inertial range of three decades with direct numerical simulations, whereas eight are possible using shell models. In this review we set up a general mathematical framework allowing the description of any MHD shell model. The variety of the latter, with their advantages and weaknesses, is introduced. Finally we consider a number of applications, dealing with free-decaying MHD turbulence, dynamo action, Alfvén waves and the Hall effect.

The Impact of Unresolved Turbulence on the Escape Fraction of Lyman Continuum Photons

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Safarzadeh, M.; Scannapieco, E.

2016-11-01

We investigate the relation between the turbulent Mach number ({ M }) and the escape fraction of Lyman continuum photons ({f}{esc}) in high-redshift galaxies. Approximating the turbulence as isothermal and isotropic, we show that the increase in the variance in column densities from { M }=1 to { M }=10 causes {f}{esc} to increase by ≈ 25%, and the increase from { M }=1 to { M }=20 causes {f}{esc} to increases by ≈ 50% for a medium with opacity τ ≈ 1. At a fixed Mach number, the correction factor for escape fraction relative to a constant column density case scales exponentially with the opacity in the cell, which has a large impact for simulated star-forming regions. Furthermore, in simulations of isotropic turbulence with full atomic/ionic cooling and chemistry, the fraction of HI drops by a factor of ≈ 2.5 at { M }≈ 10 even when the mean temperature is ≈ 5× {10}3 {{K}}. If turbulence is unresolved, these effects together enhance {f}{esc} by a factor \\gt 3 at Mach numbers above 10. Such Mach numbers are common at high redshifts where vigorous turbulence is driven by supernovae, gravitational instabilities, and merger activity, as shown both by numerical simulations and observations. These results, if implemented in the current hydrodynamical cosmological simulations to account for unresolved turbulence, can boost the theoretical predictions of the Lyman Continuum photon escape fraction and further constrain the sources of reionization.

Bacteria foraging in turbulent waters

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Taylor, John; Tang, Wenbo; Stocker, Roman

2009-11-01

Marine bacteria are the Ocean's recyclers, contributing to as much as 50% of the productivity of the marine food web. Bacteria forage on patches of dissolved nutrients using chemotaxis, the ability to swim up chemical gradients. As turbulence is ubiquitous in the Ocean, it is important to understand how turbulent flow conditions affect bacterial foraging. We used three-dimensional, isotropic direct numerical simulations coupled with a bacterial transport equation to address this problem. After the flow is continuously forced until it reaches a steady state, microscale nutrient patches are injected into the turbulent flow, and stirring produces thin nutrient filaments. Two populations of bacteria compete against each other: one population is motile and chemotactic (`active'), the other is non-motile (`passive'). The distribution of both populations is initially uniform. Chemotaxis allows active bacteria to cluster near the center of the nutrient filaments, increasing their nutrient uptake relative to passive bacteria. Increasing the turbulence intensity increases the short-term chemotactic advantage by quickly producing large gradients in the nutrient concentration, but also leads to rapid mixing of the nutrient field, which makes the chemotactic advantage short-lived. The results suggest that the evolutionary advantage of chemotaxis, based on the increase in nutrient uptake relative to the energetic cost of swimming, strongly depends on the turbulence level.

Ambient and Wake Turbulence Measurements at Marine Energy Sites from a Five Beam AD2CP

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Guerra, M. A.; Thomson, J. M.

2016-02-01

Ambient turbulence at hydrokinetic energy sites is a key input for turbine design and for their performance determination. Added turbulence from rotating blades to the flow affects the environment surrounding the turbine and has an impact in turbine array distribution. We present two approaches of turbulence measurements: stationary and drifting. Stationary measurements allow for time and frequency analysis of turbulent velocities, while drifting measurements give a spatial characterization of turbulence. For both approaches we used the new five beam Nortek Signature AD2CP. This instrument captures turbulent flow along the water column at high sampling rates (8 Hz) with low Doppler noise level; the use of five beams also makes it possible to fully calculate the Reynolds Stresses. Both sets of measurements require Doppler noise removal for consistent results. Stationary measurements of ambient turbulence were carried out in Admiralty Inlet, WA, in May 2015. The Signature was deployed up looking on a sea spider tripod in a 50 m depth tidal channel during two tidal cycles. This data set allowed us to characterize the turbulence in terms of spectra and Reynolds Stresses in order to evaluate the turbulent kinetic energy balance along the water column and to compare results to other tidal energy sites with similar characteristics where turbulence measurements were taken as well. Drifting measurements of ambient and wake turbulence were conducted in the vicinity of the ORPC RivGen® turbine deployed on the Kvichak River in Alaska in July 2015. The Signature was mounted down looking onboard an anchor buoy equipped with two GPS data receivers for georefference. The cross-sectional river span was covered by releasing the drifter at different positions across the river. More than 300 drifts were performed to spatially characterize turbulence before and after turbine's deployment and grid connection. Results indicate an increased turbulent wake extending up to 75 m downstream

Stochastic modeling of turbulent reacting flows

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Fox, R. O.; Hill, J. C.; Gao, F.; Moser, R. D.; Rogers, M. M.

1992-01-01

Direct numerical simulations of a single-step irreversible chemical reaction with non-premixed reactants in forced isotropic turbulence at R(sub lambda) = 63, Da = 4.0, and Sc = 0.7 were made using 128 Fourier modes to obtain joint probability density functions (pdfs) and other statistical information to parameterize and test a Fokker-Planck turbulent mixing model. Preliminary results indicate that the modeled gradient stretching term for an inert scalar is independent of the initial conditions of the scalar field. The conditional pdf of scalar gradient magnitudes is found to be a function of the scalar until the reaction is largely completed. Alignment of concentration gradients with local strain rate and other features of the flow were also investigated.

Single-particle dispersion in stably stratified turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sujovolsky, N. E.; Mininni, P. D.; Rast, M. P.

2018-03-01

We present models for single-particle dispersion in vertical and horizontal directions of stably stratified flows. The model in the vertical direction is based on the observed Lagrangian spectrum of the vertical velocity, while the model in the horizontal direction is a combination of a continuous-time eddy-constrained random walk process with a contribution to transport from horizontal winds. Transport at times larger than the Lagrangian turnover time is not universal and dependent on these winds. The models yield results in good agreement with direct numerical simulations of stratified turbulence, for which single-particle dispersion differs from the well-studied case of homogeneous and isotropic turbulence.

Subgrid-scale models for large-eddy simulation of rotating turbulent flows

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Silvis, Maurits; Trias, Xavier; Abkar, Mahdi; Bae, Hyunji Jane; Lozano-Duran, Adrian; Verstappen, Roel

2016-11-01

This paper discusses subgrid models for large-eddy simulation of anisotropic flows using anisotropic grids. In particular, we are looking into ways to model not only the subgrid dissipation, but also transport processes, since these are expected to play an important role in rotating turbulent flows. We therefore consider subgrid-scale models of the form τ = - 2νt S +μt (SΩ - ΩS) , where the eddy-viscosity νt is given by the minimum-dissipation model, μt represents a transport coefficient; S is the symmetric part of the velocity gradient and Ω the skew-symmetric part. To incorporate the effect of mesh anisotropy the filter length is taken in such a way that it minimizes the difference between the turbulent stress in physical and computational space, where the physical space is covered by an anisotropic mesh and the computational space is isotropic. The resulting model is successfully tested for rotating homogeneous isotropic turbulence and rotating plane-channel flows. The research was largely carried out during the CTR SP 2016. M.S, and R.V. acknowledge the financial support to attend this Summer Program.

Effects of axisymmetric contractions on turbulence of various scales

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Tan-Atichat, J.; Nagib, H. M.; Drubka, R. E.

1980-01-01

Digitally acquired and processed results from an experimental investigation of grid generated turbulence of various scales through and downstream of nine matched cubic contour contractions ranging in area ratio from 2 to 36, and in length to inlet diameter ratio from 0.25 to 1.50 are reported. An additional contraction with a fifth order contour was also utilized for studying the shape effect. Thirteen homogeneous and nearly isotropic test flow conditions with a range of turbulence intensities, length scales and Reynolds numbers were generated and used to examine the sensitivity of the contractions to upstream turbulence. The extent to which the turbulence is altered by the contraction depends on the incoming turbulence scales, the total strain experienced by the fluid, as well as the contraction ratio and the strain rate. Varying the turbulence integral scale influences the transverse turbulence components more than the streamwise component. In general, the larger the turbulence scale, the lesser the reduction in the turbulence intensity of the transverse components. Best agreement with rapid distortion theory was obtained for large scale turbulence, where viscous decay over the contraction length was negligible, or when a first order correction for viscous decay was applied to the results.

Analysis of two-equation turbulence models for recirculating flows

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Thangam, S.

1991-01-01

The two-equation kappa-epsilon model is used to analyze turbulent separated flow past a backward-facing step. It is shown that if the model constraints are modified to be consistent with the accepted energy decay rate for isotropic turbulence, the dominant features of the flow field, namely the size of the separation bubble and the streamwise component of the mean velocity, can be accurately predicted. In addition, except in the vicinity of the step, very good predictions for the turbulent shear stress, the wall pressure, and the wall shear stress are obtained. The model is also shown to provide good predictions for the turbulence intensity in the region downstream of the reattachment point. Estimated long time growth rates for the turbulent kinetic energy and dissipation rate of homogeneous shear flow are utilized to develop an optimal set of constants for the two equation kappa-epsilon model. The physical implications of the model performance are also discussed.

A formal derivation of the local energy transfer (LET) theory of homogeneous turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McComb, W. D.; Yoffe, S. R.

2017-09-01

A statistical closure of the Navier-Stokes hierarchy which leads to equations for the two-point, two-time covariance of the velocity field for stationary, homogeneous isotropic turbulence is presented. It is a generalisation of the self-consistent field method due to Edwards (1964) for the stationary, single-time velocity covariance. The probability distribution functional P≤ft[\\mathbf{u},t\\right] is obtained, in the form of a series, from the Liouville equation by means of a perturbation expansion about a Gaussian distribution, which is chosen to give the exact two-point, two-time covariance. The triple moment is calculated in terms of an ensemble-averaged infinitesimal velocity-field propagator, and shown to yield the Edwards result as a special case. The use of a Gaussian zero-order distribution has been found to justify the introduction of a fluctuation-response relation, which is in accord with modern dynamical theories. In a sense this work completes the analogy drawn by Edwards between turbulence and Brownian motion. Originally Edwards had shown that the noise input was determined by the correlation of the velocity field with the externally applied stirring forces but was unable to determine the system response. Now we find that the system response is determined by the correlation of the velocity field with internal quasi-entropic forces. This analysis is valid to all orders of perturbation theory, and allows the recovery of the local energy transfer (LET) theory, which had previously been derived by more heuristical methods. The LET theory is known to be in good agreement with experimental results. It is also unique among two-point statistical closures in displaying an acceptable (i.e. non-Markovian) relationship between the transfer spectrum and the system response, in accordance with experimental results. As a result of the latter property, it is compatible with the Kolmogorov (K41) spectral phenomenology. In memory of Professor Sir Sam Edwards F

Structure of the screening layer near a plane isolated body in the deep vacuum. Part 2. Monoenergetic isotropic flow

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gunko, Yuri F.; Gunko, Natalia A.

2018-05-01

In this paper we consider the problem of determining the structure of the electric field near the surface of a flat insulated body under conditions of a deep vacuum. It is assumed that the emitted particles are electrons leaving the body surface under the influence of ionizing radiation whose velocities distribution near the surface is isotropic. It is estimated the thickness of the screening layer under conditions of stationary emission from a flat surface. The solutio of the problem of determining a stationary self-consistent electric field near the surface is found in a simple analytical form. The thickness of the screening layer is calculated from this formula.

Polymer stress tensor in turbulent shear flows.

PubMed

L'vov, Victor S; Pomyalov, Anna; Procaccia, Itamar; Tiberkevich, Vasil

2005-01-01

The interaction of polymers with turbulent shear flows is examined. We focus on the structure of the elastic stress tensor, which is proportional to the polymer conformation tensor. We examine this object in turbulent flows of increasing complexity. First is isotropic turbulence, then anisotropic (but homogenous) shear turbulence, and finally wall bounded turbulence. The main result of this paper is that for all these flows the polymer stress tensor attains a universal structure in the limit of large Deborah number De > 1. We present analytic results for the suppression of the coil-stretch transition at large Deborah numbers. Above the transition the turbulent velocity fluctuations are strongly correlated with the polymer's elongation: there appear high-quality "hydroelastic" waves in which turbulent kinetic energy turns into polymer potential energy and vice versa. These waves determine the trace of the elastic stress tensor but practically do not modify its universal structure. We demonstrate that the influence of the polymers on the balance of energy and momentum can be accurately described by an effective polymer viscosity that is proportional to the cross-stream component of the elastic stress tensor. This component is smaller than the streamwise component by a factor proportional to De2. Finally we tie our results to wall bounded turbulence and clarify some puzzling facts observed in the problem of drag reduction by polymers.

Does the finite size of the proto-neutron star preclude supernova neutrino flavor scintillation due to turbulence?

DOE PAGES

Kneller, James P.; Mauney, Alex W.

2013-08-23

Here, the transition probabilities describing the evolution of a neutrino with a given energy along some ray through a turbulent supernova profile are random variates unique to each ray. If the proto-neutron-star source of the neutrinos were a point, then one might expect the evolution of the turbulence would cause the flavor composition of the neutrinos to vary in time i.e. the flavor would scintillate. But in reality the proto-neutron star is not a point source—it has a size of order ˜10km, so the neutrinos emitted from different points at the source will each have seen different turbulence. The finitemore » source size will reduce the correlation of the flavor transition probabilities along different trajectories and reduce the magnitude of the flavor scintillation. To determine whether the finite size of the proto-neutron star will preclude flavor scintillation, we calculate the correlation of the neutrino flavor transition probabilities through turbulent supernova profiles as a function of the separation δx between the emission points. The correlation will depend upon the power spectrum used for the turbulence, and we consider two cases: when the power spectrum is isotropic, and the more realistic case of a power spectrum which is anisotropic on large scales and isotropic on small. Although it is dependent on a number of uncalibrated parameters, we show the supernova neutrino source is not of sufficient size to significantly blur flavor scintillation in all mixing channels when using an isotropic spectrum, and this same result holds when using an anisotropic spectrum, except when we greatly reduce the similarity of the turbulence along parallel trajectories separated by ˜10km or less.« less

Effect of filter type on the statistics of energy transfer between resolved and subfilter scales from a-priori analysis of direct numerical simulations of isotropic turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Buzzicotti, M.; Linkmann, M.; Aluie, H.; Biferale, L.; Brasseur, J.; Meneveau, C.

2018-02-01

The effects of different filtering strategies on the statistical properties of the resolved-to-subfilter scale (SFS) energy transfer are analysed in forced homogeneous and isotropic turbulence. We carry out a-priori analyses of the statistical characteristics of SFS energy transfer by filtering data obtained from direct numerical simulations with up to 20483 grid points as a function of the filter cutoff scale. In order to quantify the dependence of extreme events and anomalous scaling on the filter, we compare a sharp Fourier Galerkin projector, a Gaussian filter and a novel class of Galerkin projectors with non-sharp spectral filter profiles. Of interest is the importance of Galilean invariance and we confirm that local SFS energy transfer displays intermittency scaling in both skewness and flatness as a function of the cutoff scale. Furthermore, we quantify the robustness of scaling as a function of the filtering type.

Large eddy simulations of compressible magnetohydrodynamic turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Grete, Philipp

2017-02-01

Supersonic, magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) turbulence is thought to play an important role in many processes - especially in astrophysics, where detailed three-dimensional observations are scarce. Simulations can partially fill this gap and help to understand these processes. However, direct simulations with realistic parameters are often not feasible. Consequently, large eddy simulations (LES) have emerged as a viable alternative. In LES the overall complexity is reduced by simulating only large and intermediate scales directly. The smallest scales, usually referred to as subgrid-scales (SGS), are introduced to the simulation by means of an SGS model. Thus, the overall quality of an LES with respect to properly accounting for small-scale physics crucially depends on the quality of the SGS model. While there has been a lot of successful research on SGS models in the hydrodynamic regime for decades, SGS modeling in MHD is a rather recent topic, in particular, in the compressible regime. In this thesis, we derive and validate a new nonlinear MHD SGS model that explicitly takes compressibility effects into account. A filter is used to separate the large and intermediate scales, and it is thought to mimic finite resolution effects. In the derivation, we use a deconvolution approach on the filter kernel. With this approach, we are able to derive nonlinear closures for all SGS terms in MHD: the turbulent Reynolds and Maxwell stresses, and the turbulent electromotive force (EMF). We validate the new closures both a priori and a posteriori. In the a priori tests, we use high-resolution reference data of stationary, homogeneous, isotropic MHD turbulence to compare exact SGS quantities against predictions by the closures. The comparison includes, for example, correlations of turbulent fluxes, the average dissipative behavior, and alignment of SGS vectors such as the EMF. In order to quantify the performance of the new nonlinear closure, this comparison is conducted from the

A model relating Eulerian spatial and temporal velocity correlations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cholemari, Murali R.; Arakeri, Jaywant H.

2006-03-01

In this paper we propose a model to relate Eulerian spatial and temporal velocity autocorrelations in homogeneous, isotropic and stationary turbulence. We model the decorrelation as the eddies of various scales becoming decorrelated. This enables us to connect the spatial and temporal separations required for a certain decorrelation through the ‘eddy scale’. Given either the spatial or the temporal velocity correlation, we obtain the ‘eddy scale’ and the rate at which the decorrelation proceeds. This leads to a spatial separation from the temporal correlation and a temporal separation from the spatial correlation, at any given value of the correlation relating the two correlations. We test the model using experimental data from a stationary axisymmetric turbulent flow with homogeneity along the axis.

Pressure measurements in a rapidly sheared turbulent wall layer

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Diwan, Sourabh; Morrison, Jonathan

2014-11-01

The aim of the present work is to improve understanding of the role of pressure fluctuations in the generation of coherent structures in wall-bounded turbulent flows, with particular regard to the rapid and slow source terms. The work is in part motivated by the recent numerical simulations of Sharma et al. (Phy. Fluids, 23, 2011), which showed the importance of pressure fluctuations (and their spatial gradients) in the dynamics of large-scale turbulent motions. Our experimental design consists of first generating a shearless boundary layer in a wind tunnel by passing a grid-generated turbulent flow over a moving floor whose speed is matched to the freestream velocity, and then shearing it rapidly by passing it over a stationary floor further downstream. Close to the leading edge of the stationary floor, the resulting flow is expected to satisfy the approximations of the Rapid Distortion Theory and therefore would be an ideal candidate for studying linear processes in wall turbulence. We carry out pressure measurements on the wall as well as within the flow - the former using surface mounted pressure transducers and the latter using a static pressure probe similar in design to that used by Tsuji et al. (J. Fluid. Mech. 585, 2007). We also present a comparison between the rapidly sheared flow and a more conventional boundary layer subjected to a turbulent free stream. We acknowledge the financial support from EPSRC (Grant No. EP/I037938).

Group-theoretical model of developed turbulence and renormalization of the Navier-Stokes equation.

PubMed

Saveliev, V L; Gorokhovski, M A

2005-07-01

On the basis of the Euler equation and its symmetry properties, this paper proposes a model of stationary homogeneous developed turbulence. A regularized averaging formula for the product of two fields is obtained. An equation for the averaged turbulent velocity field is derived from the Navier-Stokes equation by renormalization-group transformation.

Theory and modeling of atmospheric turbulence, part 1

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1984-01-01

The cascade transfer which is the only function to describe the mode coupling as the result of the nonlinear hydrodynamic state of turbulence is discussed. A kinetic theory combined with a scaling procedure was developed. The transfer function governs the non-linear mode coupling in strong turbulence. The master equation is consistent with the hydrodynamical system that describes the microdynamic state of turbulence and has the advantages to be homogeneous and have fewer nonlinear terms. The modes are scaled into groups to decipher the governing transport processes and statistical characteristics. An equation of vorticity transport describes the microdynamic state of two dimensional, isotropic and homogeneous, geostrophic turbulence. The equation of evolution of the macrovorticity is derived from group scaling in the form of the Fokker-Planck equation with memory. The microdynamic state of turbulence is transformed into the Liouville equation to derive the kinetic equation of the singlet distribution in turbulence. The collision integral contains a memory, which is analyzed with pair collision and the multiple collision. Two other kinetic equations are developed in parallel for the propagator and the transition probability for the interaction among the groups.

Quasistationary Plasma Predator-Prey System of Coupled Turbulence, Drive, and Sheared E × B Flow During High Performance DIII-D Tokamak Discharges [A New, Quasi-stationary Plasma Predator-Prey System of Coupled Turbulence, Drive, and Sheared E × B Flow During High Performance DIII-D Tokamak Discharges

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Barada, Kshitish; Rhodes, Terry L.; Burrell, Keith H.

A new, long-lived limit cycle oscillation (LCO) regime has been observed in the edge of near zero torque high-performance DIII-D tokamak plasma discharges. These LCOs are localized and comprised of density turbulence, gradient drives, and E X B velocity shear damping ( E and B are the local radial electric and total magnetic fields). Density turbulence sequentially acts as a predator (via turbulence transport) of profile gradients and a prey (via shear suppression) to the E X B velocity shear. Reported here for the first time, a unique spatiotemporal variation of the local E X B velocity which is foundmore » to be essential for the existence of this system. The LCO system is quasi-stationary, existing from 3 to 12 plasma energy confinement times (~30 to 900 LCO cycles) limited by hardware constraints. In conclusion, this plasma system appears to contribute strongly to the edge transport in these high-performance and transient-free plasmas as evident from oscillations in transport relevant edge parameters at LCO timescale.« less

Quasistationary Plasma Predator-Prey System of Coupled Turbulence, Drive, and Sheared E × B Flow During High Performance DIII-D Tokamak Discharges [A New, Quasi-stationary Plasma Predator-Prey System of Coupled Turbulence, Drive, and Sheared E × B Flow During High Performance DIII-D Tokamak Discharges

DOE PAGES

Barada, Kshitish; Rhodes, Terry L.; Burrell, Keith H.; ...

2018-03-27

A new, long-lived limit cycle oscillation (LCO) regime has been observed in the edge of near zero torque high-performance DIII-D tokamak plasma discharges. These LCOs are localized and comprised of density turbulence, gradient drives, and E X B velocity shear damping ( E and B are the local radial electric and total magnetic fields). Density turbulence sequentially acts as a predator (via turbulence transport) of profile gradients and a prey (via shear suppression) to the E X B velocity shear. Reported here for the first time, a unique spatiotemporal variation of the local E X B velocity which is foundmore » to be essential for the existence of this system. The LCO system is quasi-stationary, existing from 3 to 12 plasma energy confinement times (~30 to 900 LCO cycles) limited by hardware constraints. In conclusion, this plasma system appears to contribute strongly to the edge transport in these high-performance and transient-free plasmas as evident from oscillations in transport relevant edge parameters at LCO timescale.« less

Wall-resolved spectral cascade-transport turbulence model

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Brown, C. S.; Shaver, D. R.; Lahey, R. T.

A spectral cascade-transport model has been developed and applied to turbulent channel flows (Reτ= 550, 950, and 2000 based on friction velocity, uτ ; or ReδΜ= 8,500; 14,800 and 31,000, based on the mean velocity and channel half-width). This model is an extension of a spectral model previously developed for homogeneous single and two-phase decay of isotropic turbulence and uniform shear flows; and a spectral turbulence model for wall-bounded flows without resolving the boundary layer. Data from direct numerical simulation (DNS) of turbulent channel flow was used to help develop this model and to assess its performance in the 1Dmore » direction across the channel width. The resultant spectral model is capable of predicting the mean velocity, turbulent kinetic energy and energy spectrum distributions for single-phase wall-bounded flows all the way to the wall, where the model source terms have been developed to account for the wall influence. We implemented the model into the 3D multiphase CFD code NPHASE-CMFD and the latest results are within reasonable error of the 1D predictions.« less

Wall-resolved spectral cascade-transport turbulence model

DOE PAGES

Brown, C. S.; Shaver, D. R.; Lahey, R. T.; ...

2017-07-08

A spectral cascade-transport model has been developed and applied to turbulent channel flows (Reτ= 550, 950, and 2000 based on friction velocity, uτ ; or ReδΜ= 8,500; 14,800 and 31,000, based on the mean velocity and channel half-width). This model is an extension of a spectral model previously developed for homogeneous single and two-phase decay of isotropic turbulence and uniform shear flows; and a spectral turbulence model for wall-bounded flows without resolving the boundary layer. Data from direct numerical simulation (DNS) of turbulent channel flow was used to help develop this model and to assess its performance in the 1Dmore » direction across the channel width. The resultant spectral model is capable of predicting the mean velocity, turbulent kinetic energy and energy spectrum distributions for single-phase wall-bounded flows all the way to the wall, where the model source terms have been developed to account for the wall influence. We implemented the model into the 3D multiphase CFD code NPHASE-CMFD and the latest results are within reasonable error of the 1D predictions.« less

Measurements of Turbulence at Two Tidal Energy Sites in Puget Sound, WA

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Thomson, Jim; Polagye, Brian; Durgesh, Vibhav

2012-06-05

Field measurements of turbulence are pre- sented from two sites in Puget Sound, WA (USA) that are proposed for electrical power generation using tidal current turbines. Rapidly sampled data from multiple acoustic Doppler instruments are analyzed to obtain statistical mea- sures of fluctuations in both the magnitude and direction of the tidal currents. The resulting turbulence intensities (i.e., the turbulent velocity fluctuations normalized by the harmonic tidal currents) are typically 10% at the hub- heights (i.e., the relevant depth bin) of the proposed turbines. Length and time scales of the turbulence are also analyzed. Large-scale, anisotropic eddies dominate the energymore » spectra, which may be the result of proximity to headlands at each site. At small scales, an isotropic turbulent cascade is observed and used to estimate the dissipation rate of turbulent kinetic energy. Data quality and sampling parameters are discussed, with an emphasis on the removal of Doppler noise from turbulence statistics.« less

Development of renormalization group analysis of turbulence

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Smith, L. M.

1990-01-01

The renormalization group (RG) procedure for nonlinear, dissipative systems is now quite standard, and its applications to the problem of hydrodynamic turbulence are becoming well known. In summary, the RG method isolates self similar behavior and provides a systematic procedure to describe scale invariant dynamics in terms of large scale variables only. The parameterization of the small scales in a self consistent manner has important implications for sub-grid modeling. This paper develops the homogeneous, isotropic turbulence and addresses the meaning and consequence of epsilon-expansion. The theory is then extended to include a weak mean flow and application of the RG method to a sequence of models is shown to converge to the Navier-Stokes equations.

Three-dimensional time dependent computation of turbulent flow

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kwak, D.; Reynolds, W. C.; Ferziger, J. H.

1975-01-01

The three-dimensional, primitive equations of motion are solved numerically for the case of isotropic box turbulence and the distortion of homogeneous turbulence by irrotational plane strain at large Reynolds numbers. A Gaussian filter is applied to governing equations to define the large scale field. This gives rise to additional second order computed scale stresses (Leonard stresses). The residual stresses are simulated through an eddy viscosity. Uniform grids are used, with a fourth order differencing scheme in space and a second order Adams-Bashforth predictor for explicit time stepping. The results are compared to the experiments and statistical information extracted from the computer generated data.

Extraction of shear viscosity in stationary states of relativistic particle systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Reining, F.; Bouras, I.; El, A.; Wesp, C.; Xu, Z.; Greiner, C.

2012-02-01

Starting from a classical picture of shear viscosity we construct a stationary velocity gradient in a microscopic parton cascade. Employing the Navier-Stokes ansatz we extract the shear viscosity coefficient η. For elastic isotropic scatterings we find an excellent agreement with the analytic values. This confirms the applicability of this method. Furthermore, for both elastic and inelastic scatterings with pQCD based cross sections we extract the shear viscosity coefficient η for a pure gluonic system and find a good agreement with already published calculations.

The use of direct numerical simulation data in turbulence modeling

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mansour, N. N.

1991-01-01

Direct numerical simulations (DNS) of turbulent flows provide a complete data base to develop and to test turbulence models. In this article, the progress made in developing models for the dissipation rate equation is reviewed. New scaling arguments for the various terms in the dissipation rate equation were tested using data from DNS of homogeneous shear flows. Modifications to the epsilon-equation model that take into account near-wall effects were developed using DNS of turbulent channel flows. Testing of new models for flows under mean compression was carried out using data from DNS of isotropically compressed turbulence. In all of these studies the data from the simulations was essential in guiding the model development. The next generation of DNS will be at higher Reynolds numbers, and will undoubtedly lead to improved models for computations of flows of practical interest.

Analysis and Comparison with DNS of a Stochastic Model for the Relative Motion of High-Stokes-Number Particles in Isotropic Turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dhariwal, Rohit; Rani, Sarma; Koch, Donald

2015-11-01

In an earlier work, Rani, Dhariwal, and Koch (JFM, Vol. 756, 2014) developed an analytical closure for the diffusion current in the PDF transport equation describing the relative motion of high-Stokes-number particle pairs in isotropic turbulence. In this study, an improved closure was developed for the diffusion coefficient, such that the motion of the particle-pair center of mass is taken into account. Using the earlier and the new analytical closures, Langevin simulations of pair relative motion were performed for four particle Stokes numbers, Stη = 10 , 20 , 40 , 80 and at two Taylor micro-scale Reynolds numbers Reλ = 76 , 131 . Detailed comparisons of the analytical model predictions with those of DNS were undertaken. It is seen that the pair relative motion statistics obtained from the improved theory show excellent agreement with the DNS statistics. The radial distribution functions (RDFs), and relative velocity PDFs obtained from the improved-closure-based Langevin simulations are found to be in very good agreement with those from DNS. It was found that the RDFs and relative velocity RMS increased with Reλ for all Stη . The collision kernel also increased strongly with Reλ , since it depended on the RDF and the radial relative velocities.

Evolution of energy-containing turbulent eddies in the solar wind

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Matthaeus, William H.; Oughton, Sean; Pontius, Duane H., Jr.; Zhou, YE

1994-01-01

Previous theoretical treatments of fluid-scale turbulence in the solar wind have concentrated on describing the state and dynamical evolution of fluctuations in the inertial range, which are characterized by power law energy spectra. In the present paper a model for the evolution of somewhat larger, more energetic magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) fluctuations is developed by analogy with classical hydrodynamic turbulence in the quasi-equilibrium range. The model is constructed by assembling and extending existing phenomenologies of homogeneous MHD turbulence, as well as simple two-length-scale models for transport of MHD turbulence in a weekly inhomogeneous medium. A set of equations is presented for the evolution of the turbulence, including the transport and nonlinear evolution of magnetic and kinetic energy, cross helicity, and their correlation scales. Two versions of the model are derived, depending on whether the fluctuations are distributed isotropically in three dimensions or restricted to the two-dimensional plane perpendicular to the mean magnetic field. This model includes a number of potentially important physical effects that have been neglected in previous discussions of transport of solar wind turbulence.

Flow visualization in radial flow through stationary and corotating parallel disks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mochizuki, S.; Tanaka, M.; Yang, Wen-Jei

Paraffin mist is used here as a tracer to observe the patterns in the radial flow through both stationary and corotating parallel disks. The periodic and alternative generation of separation bubbles on both disks and the resulting flow fluctuation and turbulent flow in the radial channel are studied. Stall cells are visualized around the outer rim of the corotating disks.

Mechanisms for the clustering of inertial particles in the inertial range of isotropic turbulence

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Bragg, Andrew D.; Ireland, Peter J.; Collins, Lance R.

2015-08-27

In this study, we consider the physical mechanism for the clustering of inertial particles in the inertial range of isotropic turbulence. We analyze the exact, but unclosed, equation governing the radial distribution function (RDF) and compare the mechanisms it describes for clustering in the dissipation and inertial ranges. We demonstrate that in the limit St r <<1, where St r is the Stokes number based on the eddy turnover time scale at separation r, the clustering in the inertial range can be understood to be due to the preferential sampling of the coarse-grained fluid velocity gradient tensor at that scale.more » When St r≳O(1) this mechanism gives way to a nonlocal clustering mechanism. These findings reveal that the clustering mechanisms in the inertial range are analogous to the mechanisms that we identified for the dissipation regime. Further, we discuss the similarities and differences between the clustering mechanisms we identify in the inertial range and the “sweep-stick” mechanism developed by Coleman and Vassilicos. We show that the idea that initial particles are swept along with acceleration stagnation points is only approximately true because there always exists a finite difference between the velocity of the acceleration stagnation points and the local fluid velocity. This relative velocity is sufficient to allow particles to traverse the average distance between the stagnation points within the correlation time scale of the acceleration field. We also show that the stick part of the mechanism is only valid for St r<<1 in the inertial range. We emphasize that our clustering mechanism provides the more fundamental explanation since it, unlike the sweep-stick mechanism, is able to explain clustering in arbitrary spatially correlated velocity fields. We then consider the closed, model equation for the RDF given in Zaichik and Alipchenkov and use this, together with the results from our analysis, to predict the analytic form of the RDF in the

Symmetry Breaking Drift of Particles Settling in Homogeneous Shear Turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

van Hinsberg, M. A. T.; Clercx, H. J. H.; Toschi, Federico

2016-08-01

We investigate the influence of shear on the gravitational settling of heavy inertial particles in homogeneous shear turbulence (HST). In addition to the well-known enhanced settling velocity, observed for heavy inertial particles in homogeneous isotropic turbulence (HIT), a horizontal drift velocity is also observed in the shearing direction due to the presence of a nonzero mean vorticity (introducing symmetry breaking due to the mean shear). This drift velocity is due to the combination of shear, gravity, and turbulence, and all three of these elements are needed for this effect to occur. We extend the mechanism responsible for the enhanced settling velocity in HIT to the case of HST. Two separate regimes are observed, characterized by positive or negative drift velocity, depending on the particle settling velocity.

DIRECT OBSERVATION OF THE TURBULENT emf AND TRANSPORT OF MAGNETIC FIELD IN A LIQUID SODIUM EXPERIMENT

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Rahbarnia, Kian; Brown, Benjamin P.; Clark, Mike M.

2012-11-10

For the first time, we have directly measured the transport of a vector magnetic field by isotropic turbulence in a high Reynolds number liquid metal flow. In analogy with direct measurements of the turbulent Reynolds stress (turbulent viscosity) that governs momentum transport, we have measured the turbulent electromotive force (emf) by simultaneously measuring three components of velocity and magnetic fields, and computed the correlations that lead to mean-field current generation. Furthermore, we show that this turbulent emf tends to oppose and cancel out the local current, acting to increase the effective resistivity of the medium, i.e., it acts as anmore » enhanced magnetic diffusivity. This has important implications for turbulent transport in astrophysical objects, particularly in dynamos and accretion disks.« less

DNS study of dependence of bulk consumption velocity in a constant-density reacting flow on turbulence and mixture characteristics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yu, Rixin; Lipatnikov, Andrei N.

2017-06-01

3D Direct Numerical Simulation (DNS) study of propagation of a single-reaction wave in forced, statistically stationary, homogeneous, isotropic, and constant-density turbulence was performed in order to evaluate both developing UTt and fully developed UTs bulk turbulent consumption velocities by independently varying a ratio of 0.5 ≤u'/SL≤ 90 of the r.m.s. turbulent velocity to the laminar wave speed and a ratio of 0.39 ≤L11/δF≤ 12.5 of the longitudinal integral length scale of the turbulence to the laminar wave thickness. Accordingly, the Damköhler D a =(L11SL ) /(u'δF ) and Karlovitz K a =δF/(SLτη ) numbers were varied from 0.01 to 24.7 and from 0.36 to 587, respectively. Here, τη is the Kolmogorov time scale. The obtained DNS data show that, at sufficiently low Da, the fully developed ratio of UTs/u' is mainly controlled by Da and scales as √{D a }. However, such a scaling should not be extrapolated to high Da. The higher Da (or the lower Ka), the less pronounced dependence of UTs/u' on a ratio of L11/δF. Moreover, scaling laws UT∝u'αSL1 -α(L11/δF ) β are substantially different for developing UTt and fully developed UTs, i.e., the scaling exponents α and, especially, β depend on the wave-development time. Furthermore, α and, especially, β depend on a method used to evaluate the developing UTt. Such effects can contribute to significant scatter of expressions for UT or ST as a function of {u', SL, L11, δF}, obtained by parameterizing various experimental databases.

Numerical simulation of turbulence in the presence of shear

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Shaanan, S.; Ferziger, J. H.; Reynolds, W. C.

1975-01-01

The numerical calculations are presented of the large eddy structure of turbulent flows, by use of the averaged Navier-Stokes equations, where averages are taken over spatial regions small compared to the size of the computational grid. The subgrid components of motion are modeled by a local eddy-viscosity model. A new finite-difference scheme is proposed to represent the nonlinear average advective term which has fourth-order accuracy. This scheme exhibits several advantages over existing schemes with regard to the following: (1) the scheme is compact as it extends only one point away in each direction from the point to which it is applied; (2) it gives better resolution for high wave-number waves in the solution of Poisson equation, and (3) it reduces programming complexity and computation time. Examples worked out in detail are the decay of isotropic turbulence, homogeneous turbulent shear flow, and homogeneous turbulent shear flow with system rotation.

Non-stationary dynamics in the bouncing ball: A wavelet perspective

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Behera, Abhinna K., E-mail: abhinna@iiserkol.ac.in; Panigrahi, Prasanta K., E-mail: pprasanta@iiserkol.ac.in; Sekar Iyengar, A. N., E-mail: ansekar.iyengar@saha.ac.in

2014-12-01

The non-stationary dynamics of a bouncing ball, comprising both periodic as well as chaotic behavior, is studied through wavelet transform. The multi-scale characterization of the time series displays clear signatures of self-similarity, complex scaling behavior, and periodicity. Self-similar behavior is quantified by the generalized Hurst exponent, obtained through both wavelet based multi-fractal detrended fluctuation analysis and Fourier methods. The scale dependent variable window size of the wavelets aptly captures both the transients and non-stationary periodic behavior, including the phase synchronization of different modes. The optimal time-frequency localization of the continuous Morlet wavelet is found to delineate the scales corresponding tomore » neutral turbulence, viscous dissipation regions, and different time varying periodic modulations.« less

Exact relations for energy transfer in self-gravitating isothermal turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Banerjee, Supratik; Kritsuk, Alexei G.

2017-11-01

Self-gravitating isothermal supersonic turbulence is analyzed in the asymptotic limit of large Reynolds numbers. Based on the inviscid invariance of total energy, an exact relation is derived for homogeneous (not necessarily isotropic) turbulence. A modified definition for the two-point energy correlation functions is used to comply with the requirement of detailed energy equipartition in the acoustic limit. In contrast to the previous relations (S. Galtier and S. Banerjee, Phys. Rev. Lett. 107, 134501 (2011), 10.1103/PhysRevLett.107.134501; S. Banerjee and S. Galtier, Phys. Rev. E 87, 013019 (2013), 10.1103/PhysRevE.87.013019), the current exact relation shows that the pressure dilatation terms play practically no role in the energy cascade. Both the flux and source terms are written in terms of two-point differences. Sources enter the relation in a form of mixed second-order structure functions. Unlike the kinetic and thermodynamic potential energies, the gravitational contribution is absent from the flux term. An estimate shows that, for the isotropic case, the correlation between density and gravitational acceleration may play an important role in modifying the energy transfer in self-gravitating turbulence. The exact relation is also written in an alternative form in terms of two-point correlation functions, which is then used to describe scale-by-scale energy budget in spectral space.

Detailed thermodynamic analyses of high-speed compressible turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Towery, Colin; Darragh, Ryan; Poludnenko, Alexei; Hamlington, Peter

2016-11-01

Interactions between high-speed turbulence and flames (or chemical reactions) are important in the dynamics and description of many different combustion phenomena, including autoignition and deflagration-to-detonation transition. The probability of these phenomena to occur depends on the magnitude and spectral content of turbulence fluctuations, which can impact a wide range of science and engineering problems, from the hypersonic scramjet engine to the onset of Type Ia supernovae. In this talk, we present results from new direct numerical simulations (DNS) of homogeneous isotropic turbulence with turbulence Mach numbers ranging from 0 . 05 to 1 . 0 and Taylor-scale Reynolds numbers as high as 700. A set of detailed analyses are described in both Eulerian and Lagrangian reference frames in order to assess coherent (structural) and incoherent (stochastic) thermodynamic flow features. These analyses provide direct insights into the thermodynamics of strongly compressible turbulence. Furthermore, presented results provide a non-reacting baseline for future studies of turbulence-chemistry interactions in DNS with complex chemistry mechanisms. This work was supported by the Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR) under Award No. FA9550-14-1-0273, and the Department of Defense (DoD) High Performance Computing Modernization Program (HPCMP) under a Frontier project award.

Scaling of Ln(Permeability) in Sediments and Velocity Distributions in Turbulence: The Possibility of an Analogy.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Molz, F. J.; Kozubowski, T. J.; Miller, R. S.; Podgorski, K.

2005-12-01

The theory of non-stationary stochastic processes with stationary increments gives rise to stochastic fractals. When such fractals are used to represent measurements of (assumed stationary) physical properties, such as ln(k) increments in sediments or velocity increments "delta(v)" in turbulent flows, the resulting measurements exhibit scaling, either spatial, temporal or both. (In the present context, such scaling refers to systematic changes in the statistical properties of the increment distributions, such as variance, with the lag size over which the increments are determined.) Depending on the class of probability density functions (PDFs) that describe the increment distributions, the resulting stochastic fractals will display different properties. Until recently, the stationary increment process was represented using mainly Gaussian, Gamma or Levy PDFs. However, measurements in both sediments and fluid turbulence indicate that these PDFs are not commonly observed. Based on recent data and previous studies referenced and discussed in Meerschaert et al. (2004) and Molz et al. (2005), the measured increment PDFs display an approximate double exponential (Laplace) shape at smaller lags, and this shape evolves towards Gaussian at larger lags. A model for this behavior based on the Generalized Laplace PDF family called fractional Laplace motion, in analogy with its Gaussian counterpart - fractional Brownian motion, has been suggested (Meerschaert et al., 2004) and the necessary mathematics elaborated (Kozubowski et al., 2005). The resulting stochastic fractal is not a typical self-affine monofractal, but it does exhibit monofractal-like scaling in certain lag size ranges. To date, it has been shown that the Generalized Laplace family fits ln(k) increment distributions and reproduces the original 1941 theory of Kolmogorov when applied to Eulerian turbulent velocity increments. However, to make a physically self-consistent application to turbulence, one must adopt a

PDF turbulence modeling and DNS

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hsu, A. T.

1992-01-01

The problem of time discontinuity (or jump condition) in the coalescence/dispersion (C/D) mixing model is addressed in probability density function (pdf). A C/D mixing model continuous in time is introduced. With the continuous mixing model, the process of chemical reaction can be fully coupled with mixing. In the case of homogeneous turbulence decay, the new model predicts a pdf very close to a Gaussian distribution, with finite higher moments also close to that of a Gaussian distribution. Results from the continuous mixing model are compared with both experimental data and numerical results from conventional C/D models. The effect of Coriolis forces on compressible homogeneous turbulence is studied using direct numerical simulation (DNS). The numerical method used in this study is an eight order compact difference scheme. Contrary to the conclusions reached by previous DNS studies on incompressible isotropic turbulence, the present results show that the Coriolis force increases the dissipation rate of turbulent kinetic energy, and that anisotropy develops as the Coriolis force increases. The Taylor-Proudman theory does apply since the derivatives in the direction of the rotation axis vanishes rapidly. A closer analysis reveals that the dissipation rate of the incompressible component of the turbulent kinetic energy indeed decreases with a higher rotation rate, consistent with incompressible flow simulations (Bardina), while the dissipation rate of the compressible part increases; the net gain is positive. Inertial waves are observed in the simulation results.

DNS of Laminar-Turbulent Transition in Swept-Wing Boundary Layers

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Duan, L.; Choudhari, M.; Li, F.

2014-01-01

Direct numerical simulation (DNS) is performed to examine laminar to turbulent transition due to high-frequency secondary instability of stationary crossflow vortices in a subsonic swept-wing boundary layer for a realistic natural-laminar-flow airfoil configuration. The secondary instability is introduced via inflow forcing and the mode selected for forcing corresponds to the most amplified secondary instability mode that, in this case, derives a majority of its growth from energy production mechanisms associated with the wall-normal shear of the stationary basic state. An inlet boundary condition is carefully designed to allow for accurate injection of instability wave modes and minimize acoustic reflections at numerical boundaries. Nonlinear parabolized stability equation (PSE) predictions compare well with the DNS in terms of modal amplitudes and modal shape during the strongly nonlinear phase of the secondary instability mode. During the transition process, the skin friction coefficient rises rather rapidly and the wall-shear distribution shows a sawtooth pattern that is analogous to the previously documented surface flow visualizations of transition due to stationary crossflow instability. Fully turbulent features are observed in the downstream region of the flow.

A LES-Langevin model for turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dolganov, Rostislav; Dubrulle, Bérengère; Laval, Jean-Philippe

2006-11-01

The rationale for Large Eddy Simulation is rooted in our inability to handle all degrees of freedom (N˜10^16 for Re˜10^7). ``Deterministic'' models based on eddy-viscosity seek to reproduce the intensification of the energy transport. However, they fail to reproduce backward energy transfer (backscatter) from small to large scale, which is an essentiel feature of the turbulence near wall or in boundary layer. To capture this backscatter, ``stochastic'' strategies have been developed. In the present talk, we shall discuss such a strategy, based on a Rapid Distorsion Theory (RDT). Specifically, we first divide the small scale contribution to the Reynolds Stress Tensor in two parts: a turbulent viscosity and the pseudo-Lamb vector, representing the nonlinear cross terms of resolved and sub-grid scales. We then estimate the dynamics of small-scale motion by the RDT applied to Navier-Stockes equation. We use this to model the cross term evolution by a Langevin equation, in which the random force is provided by sub-grid pressure terms. Our LES model is thus made of a truncated Navier-Stockes equation including the turbulent force and a generalized Langevin equation for the latter, integrated on a twice-finer grid. The backscatter is automatically included in our stochastic model of the pseudo-Lamb vector. We apply this model to the case of homogeneous isotropic turbulence and turbulent channel flow.

Formation of temperature front in stably stratified turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kimura, Yoshifumi; Sullivan, Peter; Herring, Jackson

2016-11-01

An important feature of stably stratified turbulence is the significant influence of internal gravity waves which makes stably stratified turbulence unique compared to homogeneous isotropic turbulence. In this paper, we investigate the genesis of temperature fronts-a crucial subject both practically and fundamentally-in stably stratified turbulence using Direct Numerical Simulations (DNS) of the Navier-Stokes equation under the Boussinesq approximation with 10243 grid points. Vertical profiles of temperature fluctuations show almost vertically periodic sawtooth wavy structures with negative and positive layers stacked together with clear boundaries implying a sharp temperature fronts. The sawtooth waves consist of gradual decreasing temperature fluctuations with rapid recovery to a positive value as the frontal boundary is crossed vertically. This asymmetry of gradients comes from the structure that warm temperature region lies on top of cool temperature region, and can be verified in the skewed probability density function (PDF) of vertical temperature gradient. We try to extract the flow structures and mechanism for the formation and maintenance of the strong temperature front numerically.

Quenching and anisotropy of hydromagnetic turbulent transport

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Karak, Bidya Binay; Brandenburg, Axel; Rheinhardt, Matthias

2014-11-01

Hydromagnetic turbulence affects the evolution of large-scale magnetic fields through mean-field effects like turbulent diffusion and the α effect. For stronger fields, these effects are usually suppressed or quenched, and additional anisotropies are introduced. Using different variants of the test-field method, we determine the quenching of the turbulent transport coefficients for the forced Roberts flow, isotropically forced non-helical turbulence, and rotating thermal convection. We see significant quenching only when the mean magnetic field is larger than the equipartition value of the turbulence. Expressing the magnetic field in terms of the equipartition value of the quenched flows, we obtain for themore » quenching exponents of the turbulent magnetic diffusivity about 1.3, 1.1, and 1.3 for Roberts flow, forced turbulence, and convection, respectively. However, when the magnetic field is expressed in terms of the equipartition value of the unquenched flows, these quenching exponents become about 4, 1.5, and 2.3, respectively. For the α effect, the exponent is about 1.3 for the Roberts flow and 2 for convection in the first case, but 4 and 3, respectively, in the second. In convection, the quenching of turbulent pumping follows the same power law as turbulent diffusion, while for the coefficient describing the Ω×J effect nearly the same quenching exponent is obtained as for α. For forced turbulence, turbulent diffusion proportional to the second derivative along the mean magnetic field is quenched much less, especially for larger values of the magnetic Reynolds number. However, we find that in corresponding axisymmetric mean-field dynamos with dominant toroidal field the quenched diffusion coefficients are the same for the poloidal and toroidal field constituents.« less

Direct numerical simulations of premixed autoignition in compressible uniformly-sheared turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Towery, Colin; Darragh, Ryan; Poludnenko, Alexei; Hamlington, Peter

2017-11-01

High-speed combustion systems, such as scramjet engines, operate at high temperatures and pressures, extremely short combustor residence times, very high rates of shear stress, and intense turbulent mixing. As a result, the reacting flow can be premixed and have highly-compressible turbulence fluctuations. We investigate the effects of compressible turbulence on the ignition delay time, heat-release-rate (HRR) intermittency, and mode of autoignition of premixed Hydrogen-air fuel in uniformly-sheared turbulence using new three-dimensional direct numerical simulations with a multi-step chemistry mechanism. We analyze autoignition in both the Eulerian and Lagrangian reference frames at eight different turbulence Mach numbers, Mat , spanning the quasi-isentropic, linear thermodynamic, and nonlinear compressibility regimes, with eddy shocklets appearing in the nonlinear regime. Results are compared to our previous study of premixed autoignition in isotropic turbulence at the same Mat and with a single-step reaction mechanism. This previous study found large decreases in delay times and large increases in HRR intermittency between the linear and nonlinear compressibility regimes and that detonation waves could form in both regimes.

Microbubbles and Microparticles are Not Faithful Tracers of Turbulent Acceleration

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mathai, Varghese; Calzavarini, Enrico; Brons, Jon; Sun, Chao; Lohse, Detlef

2016-07-01

We report on the Lagrangian statistics of acceleration of small (sub-Kolmogorov) bubbles and tracer particles with Stokes number St ≪1 in turbulent flow. At a decreasing Reynolds number, the bubble accelerations show deviations from that of tracer particles; i.e., they deviate from the Heisenberg-Yaglom prediction and show a quicker decorrelation despite their small size and minute St. Using direct numerical simulations, we show that these effects arise due the drift of these particles through the turbulent flow. We theoretically predict this gravity-driven effect for developed isotropic turbulence, with the ratio of Stokes to Froude number or equivalently the particle drift velocity governing the enhancement of acceleration variance and the reductions in correlation time and intermittency. Our predictions are in good agreement with experimental and numerical results. The present findings are relevant to a range of scenarios encompassing tiny bubbles and droplets that drift through the turbulent oceans and the atmosphere. They also question the common usage of microbubbles and microdroplets as tracers in turbulence research.

Anisotropy in MHD turbulence due to a mean magnetic field

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Shebalin, J. V.; Matthaeus, W. H.; Montgomery, D.

1982-01-01

The development of anisotropy in an initially isotropic spectrum is studied numerically for two-dimensional magnetohydrodynamic turbulence. The anisotropy develops due to the combined effects of an externally imposed dc magnetic field and viscous and resistive dissipation at high wave numbers. The effect is most pronounced at high mechanical and magnetic Reynolds numbers. The anisotropy is greater at the higher wave numbers.

A stochastic vortex structure method for interacting particles in turbulent shear flows

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dizaji, Farzad F.; Marshall, Jeffrey S.; Grant, John R.

2018-01-01

In a recent study, we have proposed a new synthetic turbulence method based on stochastic vortex structures (SVSs), and we have demonstrated that this method can accurately predict particle transport, collision, and agglomeration in homogeneous, isotropic turbulence in comparison to direct numerical simulation results. The current paper extends the SVS method to non-homogeneous, anisotropic turbulence. The key element of this extension is a new inversion procedure, by which the vortex initial orientation can be set so as to generate a prescribed Reynolds stress field. After validating this inversion procedure for simple problems, we apply the SVS method to the problem of interacting particle transport by a turbulent planar jet. Measures of the turbulent flow and of particle dispersion, clustering, and collision obtained by the new SVS simulations are shown to compare well with direct numerical simulation results. The influence of different numerical parameters, such as number of vortices and vortex lifetime, on the accuracy of the SVS predictions is also examined.

An investigation of turbulent transport in the extreme lower atmosphere

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Koper, C. A., Jr.; Sadeh, W. Z.

1975-01-01

A model in which the Lagrangian autocorrelation is expressed by a domain integral over a set of usual Eulerian autocorrelations acquired concurrently at all points within a turbulence box is proposed along with a method for ascertaining the statistical stationarity of turbulent velocity by creating an equivalent ensemble to investigate the flow in the extreme lower atmosphere. Simultaneous measurements of turbulent velocity on a turbulence line along the wake axis were carried out utilizing a longitudinal array of five hot-wire anemometers remotely operated. The stationarity test revealed that the turbulent velocity is approximated as a realization of a weakly self-stationary random process. Based on the Lagrangian autocorrelation it is found that: (1) large diffusion time predominated; (2) ratios of Lagrangian to Eulerian time and spatial scales were smaller than unity; and, (3) short and long diffusion time scales and diffusion spatial scales were constrained within their Eulerian counterparts.

Nonhelical inverse transfer of a decaying turbulent magnetic field.

PubMed

Brandenburg, Axel; Kahniashvili, Tina; Tevzadze, Alexander G

2015-02-20

In the presence of magnetic helicity, inverse transfer from small to large scales is well known in magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) turbulence and has applications in astrophysics, cosmology, and fusion plasmas. Using high resolution direct numerical simulations of magnetically dominated self-similarly decaying MHD turbulence, we report a similar inverse transfer even in the absence of magnetic helicity. We compute for the first time spectral energy transfer rates to show that this inverse transfer is about half as strong as with helicity, but in both cases the magnetic gain at large scales results from velocity at similar scales interacting with smaller-scale magnetic fields. This suggests that both inverse transfers are a consequence of universal mechanisms for magnetically dominated turbulence. Possible explanations include inverse cascading of the mean squared vector potential associated with local near two dimensionality and the shallower k^{2} subinertial range spectrum of kinetic energy forcing the magnetic field with a k^{4} subinertial range to attain larger-scale coherence. The inertial range shows a clear k^{-2} spectrum and is the first example of fully isotropic magnetically dominated MHD turbulence exhibiting weak turbulence scaling.

Spatial and velocity statistics of inertial particles in turbulent flows

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bec, J.; Biferale, L.; Cencini, M.; Lanotte, A. S.; Toschi, F.

2011-12-01

Spatial and velocity statistics of heavy point-like particles in incompressible, homogeneous, and isotropic three-dimensional turbulence is studied by means of direct numerical simulations at two values of the Taylor-scale Reynolds number Reλ ~ 200 and Reλ ~ 400, corresponding to resolutions of 5123 and 20483 grid points, respectively. Particles Stokes number values range from St ≈ 0.2 to 70. Stationary small-scale particle distribution is shown to display a singular -multifractal- measure, characterized by a set of generalized fractal dimensions with a strong sensitivity on the Stokes number and a possible, small Reynolds number dependency. Velocity increments between two inertial particles depend on the relative weight between smooth events - where particle velocity is approximately the same of the fluid velocity-, and caustic contributions - when two close particles have very different velocities. The latter events lead to a non-differentiable small-scale behaviour for the relative velocity. The relative weight of these two contributions changes at varying the importance of inertia. We show that moments of the velocity difference display a quasi bi-fractal-behavior and that the scaling properties of velocity increments for not too small Stokes number are in good agreement with a recent theoretical prediction made by K. Gustavsson and B. Mehlig arXiv: 1012.1789v1 [physics.flu-dyn], connecting the saturation of velocity scaling exponents with the fractal dimension of particle clustering.

Vertical migration of motile phytoplankton chains through turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Climent, Eric; Lovecchio, Salvatore; Durham, William; Stocker, Roman

2017-11-01

Daily, phytoplankton needs to migrate vertically from and towards the ocean surface to find nutrients such as dissolved oxygen. To travel through the water column they need to fight against gravity (by swimming) and fluid turbulence which can make their journey longer. It is often observed that cells migrate across the water column as chains. The first benefit to form chains is that micro-organisms sum up their thrust while reducing their drag. Therefore, upwards swimming is faster for chains in a quiescent fluid with steady vertical orientation. However, as chain length increases their tendency to periodically tumble in turbulent structures increases which reduces orientation stability and limits their capacity to swim upwards. The purpose of our study is to elaborate on this apparent contradiction. We carried out direct numerical simulations and physical analysis of the coupled system of homogeneous isotropic turbulence and chain trajectories through Lagrangian tracking. Formation of chains is indeed favorable for vertical migration through the upper layer of the ocean.

Small Scale Response and Modeling of Periodically Forced Turbulence

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bos, Wouter; Clark, Timothy T.; Rubinstein, Robert

2007-01-01

The response of the small scales of isotropic turbulence to periodic large scale forcing is studied using two-point closures. The frequency response of the turbulent kinetic energy and dissipation rate, and the phase shifts between production, energy and dissipation are determined as functions of Reynolds number. It is observed that the amplitude and phase of the dissipation exhibit nontrivial frequency and Reynolds number dependence that reveals a filtering effect of the energy cascade. Perturbation analysis is applied to understand this behavior which is shown to depend on distant interactions between widely separated scales of motion. Finally, the extent to which finite dimensional models (standard two-equation models and various generalizations) can reproduce the observed behavior is discussed.

Analysis of atmospheric flow over a surface protrusion using the turbulence kinetic energy equation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Frost, W.; Harper, W. L.; Fichtl, G. H.

1975-01-01

Atmospheric flow fields resulting from a semi-elliptical surface obstruction in an otherwise horizontally homogeneous statistically stationary flow are modelled with the boundary-layer/Boussinesq-approximation of the governing equation of fluid mechanics. The turbulence kinetic energy equation is used to determine the dissipative effects of turbulent shear on the mean flow. Mean-flow results are compared with those given in a previous paper where the same problem was attacked using a Prandtl mixing-length hypothesis. Iso-lines of turbulence kinetic energy and turbulence intensity are plotted in the plane of the flow. They highlight regions of high turbulence intensity in the stagnation zone and sharp gradients in intensity along the transition from adverse to favourable pressure gradient.

Turbulence Measurements from Compliant Moorings. Part II: Motion Correction

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Kilcher, Levi F.; Thomson, Jim; Harding, Samuel

2017-06-01

Acoustic Doppler velocimeters (ADVs) are a valuable tool for making highprecision measurements of turbulence, and moorings are a convenient and ubiquitous platform for making many kinds of measurements in the ocean. However—because of concerns that mooring motion can contaminate turbulence measurements and acoustic Doppler profilers are relatively easy to deploy—ADVs are not frequently deployed from moorings. This work details a method for measuring turbulence using moored ADVs that corrects for mooring motion using measurements from inertial motion sensors. Three distinct mooring platforms were deployed in a tidal channel with inertial motion-sensor-equipped ADVs. In each case, the motion correction based onmore » the inertial measurements dramatically reduced contamination from mooring motion. The spectra from these measurements have a shape that is consistent with other measurements in tidal channels, and have a f^(5/3) slope at high frequencies—consistent with Kolmogorov’s theory of isotropic turbulence. Motion correction also improves estimates of cross-spectra and Reynold’s stresses. Comparison of turbulence dissipation with flow speed and turbulence production indicates a bottom boundary layer production-dissipation balance during ebb and flood that is consistent with the strong tidal forcing at the site. These results indicate that inertial-motion-sensor-equipped ADVs are a valuable new tool for measuring turbulence from moorings.« less

Accretion-driven turbulence in filaments - I. Non-gravitational accretion

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Heigl, S.; Burkert, A.; Gritschneder, M.

2018-03-01

We study accretion-driven turbulence for different inflow velocities in star-forming filaments using the code RAMSES. Filaments are rarely isolated objects and their gravitational potential will lead to radially dominated accretion. In the non-gravitational case, accretion by itself can already provoke non-isotropic, radially dominated turbulent motions responsible for the complex structure and non-thermal line widths observed in filaments. We find that there is a direct linear relation between the absolute value of the total density-weighted velocity dispersion and the infall velocity. The turbulent velocity dispersion in the filaments is independent of sound speed or any net flow along the filament. We show that the density-weighted velocity dispersion acts as an additional pressure term, supporting the filament in hydrostatic equilibrium. Comparing to observations, we find that the projected non-thermal line width variation is generally subsonic independent of inflow velocity.

Perspectives on scaling and multiscaling in passive scalar turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Banerjee, Tirthankar; Basu, Abhik

2018-05-01

We revisit the well-known problem of multiscaling in substances passively advected by homogeneous and isotropic turbulent flows or passive scalar turbulence. To that end we propose a two-parameter continuum hydrodynamic model for an advected substance concentration θ , parametrized jointly by y and y ¯, that characterize the spatial scaling behavior of the variances of the advecting stochastic velocity and the stochastic additive driving force, respectively. We analyze it within a one-loop dynamic renormalization group method to calculate the multiscaling exponents of the equal-time structure functions of θ . We show how the interplay between the advective velocity and the additive force may lead to simple scaling or multiscaling. In one limit, our results reduce to the well-known results from the Kraichnan model for passive scalar. Our framework of analysis should be of help for analytical approaches for the still intractable problem of fluid turbulence itself.

Fluid Dynamics Prize Otto Laporte Lecture:Turbulence and Aeroacoustics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Comte-Bellot, Genevieve

2014-11-01

Some significant advances obtained over the years for two closely related fields, Turbulence and Aeroacoustics, are presented. Particular focus is placed on experimental results and on physical mechanisms. For example, for a 2D channel flow, skewness factors of velocity fluctuations are discussed. The study of isotropic turbulence generated by grids in the «Velvet wind tunnel» of Stanley Corrsin, constitutes a masterpiece. Of particular note are the Eulerian memory times, analysed for all wavenumbers. Concerning hot-wire anemometry, the potential of the new constant voltage technique is presented. Some results obtained with Particule Image Velocimetry are also reported. Two flow control examples are illustrated: lift generation for a circular cylinder, and noise reduction for a high speed jet. Finally, the propagation of acoustic waves through turbulence is considered. Experimental data are here completed by numerical simulations showing the possible occurrence of caustics.

TURBOGEN: Computer-controlled vertically oscillating grid system for small-scale turbulence studies on plankton

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Amato, Alberto; Fortini, Stefania; Watteaux, Romain; Diano, Marcello; Espa, Stefania; Esposito, Serena; Ferrante, Maria I.; Peters, Francesc; Iudicone, Daniele; Ribera d'Alcalà, Maurizio

2016-03-01

In recent years, there has been a renewed interest in the impact of turbulence on aquatic organisms. In response to this interest, a novel instrument has been constructed, TURBOGEN, that generates turbulence in water volumes up to 13 l. TURBOGEN is fully computer controlled, thus, allowing for a high level of reproducibility and for variations of the intensity and characteristics of turbulence during the experiment. The calibration tests, carried out by particle image velocimetry, showed TURBOGEN to be successful in generating isotropic turbulence at the typical relatively low levels of the marine environment. TURBOGEN and its sizing have been devised with the long-term scope of analyzing in detail the molecular responses of plankton to different mixing regimes, which is of great importance in both environmental and biotechnological processes.

Statistics of spatial derivatives of velocity and pressure in turbulent channel flow

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vreman, A. W.; Kuerten, J. G. M.

2014-08-01

Statistical profiles of the first- and second-order spatial derivatives of velocity and pressure are reported for turbulent channel flow at Reτ = 590. The statistics were extracted from a high-resolution direct numerical simulation. To quantify the anisotropic behavior of fine-scale structures, the variances of the derivatives are compared with the theoretical values for isotropic turbulence. It is shown that appropriate combinations of first- and second-order velocity derivatives lead to (directional) viscous length scales without explicit occurrence of the viscosity in the definitions. To quantify the non-Gaussian and intermittent behavior of fine-scale structures, higher-order moments and probability density functions of spatial derivatives are reported. Absolute skewnesses and flatnesses of several spatial derivatives display high peaks in the near wall region. In the logarithmic and central regions of the channel flow, all first-order derivatives appear to be significantly more intermittent than in isotropic turbulence at the same Taylor Reynolds number. Since the nine variances of first-order velocity derivatives are the distinct elements of the turbulence dissipation, the budgets of these nine variances are shown, together with the budget of the turbulence dissipation. The comparison of the budgets in the near-wall region indicates that the normal derivative of the fluctuating streamwise velocity (∂u'/∂y) plays a more important role than other components of the fluctuating velocity gradient. The small-scale generation term formed by triple correlations of fluctuations of first-order velocity derivatives is analyzed. A typical mechanism of small-scale generation near the wall (around y+ = 1), the intensification of positive ∂u'/∂y by local strain fluctuation (compression in normal and stretching in spanwise direction), is illustrated and discussed.

Secondary Instability of Stationary Crossflow Vortices in Mach 6 Boundary Layer Over a Circular Cone

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Li, Fei; Choudhari, Meelan M.; Paredes-Gonzalez, Pedro; Duan, Lian

2015-01-01

Hypersonic boundary layer flows over a circular cone at moderate incidence can support strong crossflow instability. Due to more efficient excitation of stationary crossflow vortices by surface roughness, such boundary layer flows may transition to turbulence via rapid amplification of the high-frequency secondary instabilities of finite amplitude stationary crossflow vortices. The amplification characteristics of these secondary instabilities are investigated for crossflow vortices generated by an azimuthally periodic array of roughness elements over a 7-degree half-angle circular cone in a Mach 6 free stream. Depending on the local amplitude of the stationary crossflow mode, the most unstable secondary disturbances either originate from the second (i.e., Mack) mode instabilities of the unperturbed boundary layer or correspond to genuine secondary instabilities that reduce to stable disturbances at sufficiently small amplitudes of the stationary crossflow vortex. The predicted frequencies of dominant secondary disturbances are similar to those measured during wind tunnel experiments at Purdue University and the Technical University of Braunschweig, Germany.

Direct numerical simulation of axisymmetric turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Qu, Bo; Bos, Wouter J. T.; Naso, Aurore

2017-09-01

The dynamics of decaying, strictly axisymmetric, incompressible turbulence is investigated using direct numerical simulations. It is found that the angular momentum is a robust invariant of the system. It is further shown that long-lived coherent structures are generated by the flow. These structures can be associated with stationary solutions of the Euler equations. The structures obey relations in agreement with predictions from selective decay principles, compatible with the decay laws of the system. Two different types of decay scenarios are highlighted. The first case results in a quasi-two-dimensional flow with a dynamical behavior in the poloidal plane similar to freely decaying two-dimensional turbulence. In a second regime, the long-time dynamics is dominated by a single three-dimensional mode.

Advances in Turbulent Combustion Dynamics Simulations in Bluff-Body Stabilized Flames-Body Stabilized Flames

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-11-30

Master’s Thesis 3. DATES COVERED (From - To) 01 Nov 2015 – 30 Nov 2015 4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE Advances in Turbulent Combustion Dynamics Simulations...the three main aspects of bluff-body stabilized flames: stationary combustion , lean blow-out, and thermo-acoustic instabilities. For the cases of...stationary combustion and lean blow-out, an improved version of the Linear Eddy Model approach is used, while in the case of thermo-acoustic

Effects of shock strength on shock turbulence interaction

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lee, Sangsan

1993-01-01

Direct numerical simulation (DNS) and linear analysis (LIA) of isotropic turbulence interacting with a shock wave are performed for several upstream shock normal Mach numbers (M(sub 1)). Turbulence kinetic energy (TKE) is amplified across the shock wave, but this amplification tends to saturate beyond M(sub 1) = 3.0. TKE amplification and Reynolds stress anisotropy obtained in DNS are consistent with LIA predictions. Rapid evolution of TKE immediate downstream of the shock wave persists for all shock strengths and is attributed to the transfer between kinetic and potential modes of turbulence energy through acoustic fluctuations. Changes in energy spectra and various length scales across the shock wave are predicted by LIA, which is consistent with DNS results. Most turbulence length scales decrease across the shock. Dissipation length scale (rho-bar q(exp 3) / epsilon), however, increases slightly for shock waves with M(sub 1) less than 1.65. Fluctuations in thermodynamic variables behind the shock wave stay nearly isentropic for M(sub 1) less than 1.2 and deviate significantly from isentropy for the stronger shock waves due to large entropy fluctuation generated through the interaction.

DNS of droplet motion in a turbulent flow

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rosso, Michele; Elghobashi, S.

2013-11-01

The objective of our research is to study the multi-way interactions between turbulence and vaporizing liquid droplets by performing direct numerical simulations (DNS). The freely-moving droplets are fully resolved in 3D space and time and all the relevant scales of the turbulent motion are simultaneously resolved down to the smallest length- and time-scales. Our DNS solve the unsteady three-dimensional Navier-Stokes and continuity equations throughout the whole computational domain, including the interior of the liquid droplets. The droplet surface motion and deformation are captured accurately by using the Level Set method. The pressure jump condition, density and viscosity discontinuities across the interface as well as surface tension are accounted for. Here, we present only the results of the first stage of our research which considers the effects of turbulence on the shape change of an initially spherical liquid droplet, at density ratio (of liquid to carrier fluid) of 1000, moving in isotropic turbulent flow. We validate our results via comparison with available expe. This research has been supported by NSF-CBET Award 0933085 and NSF PRAC (Petascale Computing Resource Allocation) Award.

Zooplankton can actively adjust their motility to turbulent flow

PubMed Central

Michalec, François-Gaël; Fouxon, Itzhak

2017-01-01

Calanoid copepods are among the most abundant metazoans in the ocean and constitute a vital trophic link within marine food webs. They possess relatively narrow swimming capabilities, yet are capable of significant self-locomotion under strong hydrodynamic conditions. Here we provide evidence for an active adaptation that allows these small organisms to adjust their motility in response to background flow. We track simultaneously and in three dimensions the motion of flow tracers and planktonic copepods swimming freely at several intensities of quasi-homogeneous, isotropic turbulence. We show that copepods synchronize the frequency of their relocation jumps with the frequency of small-scale turbulence by performing frequent relocation jumps of low amplitude that seem unrelated to localized hydrodynamic signals. We develop a model of plankton motion in turbulence that shows excellent quantitative agreement with our measurements when turbulence is significant. We find that, compared with passive tracers, active motion enhances the diffusion of organisms at low turbulence intensity whereas it dampens diffusion at higher turbulence levels. The existence of frequent jumps in a motion that is otherwise dominated by turbulent transport allows for the possibility of active locomotion and hence to transition from being passively advected to being capable of controlling diffusion. This behavioral response provides zooplankton with the capability to retain the benefits of self-locomotion despite turbulence advection and may help these organisms to actively control their distribution in dynamic environments. Our study reveals an active adaptation that carries strong fitness advantages and provides a realistic model of plankton motion in turbulence. PMID:29229858

Propagation of a phase-locked circular dark hollow beams array in a turbulent atmosphere

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhou, Pu; Wang, Xiaolin; Ma, Yanxing; Ma, Haotong; Xu, Xiaojun; Liu, Zejin

2010-10-01

The propagation of phase-locked circular dark hollow beams array in a turbulent atmosphere is studied. An analytical expression for the average intensity distribution at the receiving plane is obtained based on the extended Huygens-Fresnel principle. The effects of turbulence, dark parameter and beam order of the beams array on the intensity pattern are studied and analyzed. It is found that the intensity pattern of the phase-locked circular dark hollow beams array will evolve from a multiple-spot-pattern into a Gaussian beam spot under the isotropic influence of the turbulence. The intensity pattern of beam array with a larger dark parameter and beam order evolves into the Gaussian-shape faster with increasing propagation distance.

Turbulent Transport of Fast Ions in the Large Plasma Device (LAPD)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhou, Shu; Heidbrink, William; McWilliams, Roger; Boehmer, Heinrich; Carter, Troy; Popovich, Pavel; Tripathi, Shreekrishna; Vincena, Steve; Jenko, Frank

2010-11-01

Due to gyroradius averaging and drift-orbit averaging, the transport of fast ions by microturbulence is often smaller than for thermal ions. In this experiment, Strong drift wave turbulence is observed in LAPD on gradients produced by a plate obstacle. Energetic lithium ions orbit through the turbulent region. Scans with a collimated analyzer and with probes give detailed profiles of the fast ion spatial distribution and of the fluctuating fields. The fast-ion transport decreases rapidly with increasing fast-ion gyroradius. Unlike the diffusive transport caused by Coulomb collisions, in this case the turbulent transport is non-diffusive. Analysis and simulation suggest that the fast ions interact ballistically with stationary two-dimensional electrostatic turbulence. The energy dependence of the transport is well explained by gyro-averaging theory. In new experiments, different sources and obstacles alter the drift-wave turbulence to modify the nature of the transport.

Stationary holographic plasma quenches and numerical methods for non-killing horizons.

PubMed

Figueras, Pau; Wiseman, Toby

2013-04-26

We explore use of the harmonic Einstein equations to numerically find stationary black holes where the problem is posed on an ingoing slice that extends into the interior of the black hole. Requiring no boundary conditions at the horizon beyond smoothness of the metric, this method may be applied for horizons that are not Killing. As a nontrivial illustration we find black holes which, via AdS-CFT, describe a time-independent CFT plasma flowing through a static spacetime which asymptotes to Minkowski in the flow's past and future, with a varying spatial geometry in between. These are the first nonperturbative examples of stationary black holes which do not have Killing horizons. When the CFT spacetime slowly varies, the CFT stress tensor derived from gravity is well described by viscous hydrodynamics. For fast variation it is not, and the solutions are stationary analogs of dynamical quenches, with the plasma being suddenly driven out of equilibrium. We find evidence these flows become unstable for sufficiently strong quenches, and speculate the instability may be turbulent.

The alpha dynamo parameter and measurability of helicities in magnetohydrodynamic turbulence

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Matthaeus, W. H.; Goldstein, M. L.; Lantz, S. R.

1986-01-01

Alpha, an important parameter in dynamo theory, is shown to be proportional to either the kinetic, current, magnetic, or velocity helicities of the fluctuating magnetic field and fluctuating velocity field. The particular helicity to which alpha is proportional depends on the assumptions used in deriving the first-order smoothed equations that describe the alpha effect. In two cases, viz., when alpha is proportional to either the magnetic helicity or velocity helicity, alpha can be determined experimentally from two-point measurements of the fluctuating fields in incompressible, homogeneous turbulence with arbitrary rotational symmetry. For the other two possibilities, alpha can be determined if the turbulence is isotropic.

The isotropic radio background revisited

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fornengo, Nicolao; Lineros, Roberto A.; Regis, Marco; Taoso, Marco

2014-04-01

We present an extensive analysis on the determination of the isotropic radio background. We consider six different radio maps, ranging from 22 MHz to 2.3 GHz and covering a large fraction of the sky. The large scale emission is modeled as a linear combination of an isotropic component plus the Galactic synchrotron radiation and thermal bremsstrahlung. Point-like and extended sources are either masked or accounted for by means of a template. We find a robust estimate of the isotropic radio background, with limited scatter among different Galactic models. The level of the isotropic background lies significantly above the contribution obtained by integrating the number counts of observed extragalactic sources. Since the isotropic component dominates at high latitudes, thus making the profile of the total emission flat, a Galactic origin for such excess appears unlikely. We conclude that, unless a systematic offset is present in the maps, and provided that our current understanding of the Galactic synchrotron emission is reasonable, extragalactic sources well below the current experimental threshold seem to account for the majority of the brightness of the extragalactic radio sky.

Philosophies and fallacies in turbulence modeling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Spalart, Philippe R.

2015-04-01

We present a set of positions, likely to be controversial, on turbulence modeling for the Reynolds-Averaged Navier Stokes (RANS) equations. The paper has three themes. First is what we call the "fundamental paradox" of turbulence modeling, between the local character of the Partial Differential Equations strongly favored by CFD methods and the nonlocal physical nature of turbulence. Second, we oppose two philosophies. The "Systematic" philosophy attempts to model the exact transport equations for the Reynolds stresses or possibly higher moments term by term, gradually relegating the Closure Problem to higher moments and invoking the "Principle of Receding Influence" (although rarely formulating it). In contrast, the "Openly Empirical" philosophy produces models which satisfy strict constraints such as Galilean invariance, but lack an explicit connection with terms in the exact turbulence equations. The prime example is the eddy-viscosity assumption. Third, we explain a series of what we perceive as fallacies, many of them widely held and by senior observers, in turbulence knowledge, leading to turbulence models. We divide them into "hard" fallacies for which a short mathematical argument demonstrates that a particular statement is wrong or meaningless, and "soft" fallacies for which approximate physical arguments can be opposed, but we contend that a clear debate is overdue and wishful thinking has been involved. Some fallacies appear to be "intermediate." An example in the hard class is the supposed isotropy of the diagonal Reynolds stresses. Examples in the soft class are the need to match the decay rate of isotropic turbulence, and the value of realizability in a model. Our hope is to help the direct effort in this field away from simplistic and hopeless lines of work, and to foster debates.

Influence of a large-scale field on energy dissipation in magnetohydrodynamic turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhdankin, Vladimir; Boldyrev, Stanislav; Mason, Joanne

2017-07-01

In magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) turbulence, the large-scale magnetic field sets a preferred local direction for the small-scale dynamics, altering the statistics of turbulence from the isotropic case. This happens even in the absence of a total magnetic flux, since MHD turbulence forms randomly oriented large-scale domains of strong magnetic field. It is therefore customary to study small-scale magnetic plasma turbulence by assuming a strong background magnetic field relative to the turbulent fluctuations. This is done, for example, in reduced models of plasmas, such as reduced MHD, reduced-dimension kinetic models, gyrokinetics, etc., which make theoretical calculations easier and numerical computations cheaper. Recently, however, it has become clear that the turbulent energy dissipation is concentrated in the regions of strong magnetic field variations. A significant fraction of the energy dissipation may be localized in very small volumes corresponding to the boundaries between strongly magnetized domains. In these regions, the reduced models are not applicable. This has important implications for studies of particle heating and acceleration in magnetic plasma turbulence. The goal of this work is to systematically investigate the relationship between local magnetic field variations and magnetic energy dissipation, and to understand its implications for modelling energy dissipation in realistic turbulent plasmas.

A phenomenological treatment of rotating turbulence

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zhou, YE

1995-01-01

The strong similarity between the magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) turbulence and initially isotropic turbulence subject to rotation is noted. We then apply the MHD phenomenologies of Kraichnan and Matthaeus & Zhou to rotating turbulence. When the turbulence is subject to a strong rotation, the energy spectrum is found to scale as E(k) = C(sub Omega)(Omega(sub epsilon))(sup 1/2)k(sup -2), where Omega is the rotation rate, k is the wavenumber, and epsilon is the dissipation rate. This spectral form is consistent with a recent letter by Zeman. However, here the constant C(sub Omega) is found to be related to the Kolmogorov constant and is estimated in the range 1.22 - 1.87 for the typical values of the latter constant. A 'rule' that relates spectral transfer times to the eddy turnover time and the time scale for decay of the triple correlations is deduced. A hypothesis for the triple correlation decay rate leads to the spectral law which varies between the '-5/3' (without rotation) and '-2' laws (with strong rotation). For intermediate rotation rates, the spectrum varies according to the value of a dimensionless parameter that measures the strength of the rotation wavenumber k(sub Omega) = (Omega(sup 3)/epsiolon)(sup 1/2) relative to the wavenumber k. An eddy viscosity is derived with an explicit dependence on the rotation rate.

The first-digit frequencies in data of turbulent flows

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Biau, Damien

2015-12-01

Considering the first significant digits (noted d) in data sets of dissipation for turbulent flows, the probability to find a given number (d = 1 or 2 or …9) would be 1/9 for a uniform distribution. Instead the probability closely follows Newcomb-Benford's law, namely P(d) = log(1 + 1 / d) . The discrepancies between Newcomb-Benford's law and first-digits frequencies in turbulent data are analysed through Shannon's entropy. The data sets are obtained with direct numerical simulations for two types of fluid flow: an isotropic case initialized with a Taylor-Green vortex and a channel flow. Results are in agreement with Newcomb-Benford's law in nearly homogeneous cases and the discrepancies are related to intermittent events. Thus the scale invariance for the first significant digits, which supports Newcomb-Benford's law, seems to be related to an equilibrium turbulent state, namely with a significant inertial range. A matlab/octave program provided in appendix is such that part of the presented results can easily be replicated.

Scaling laws in magnetized plasma turbulence

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Boldyrev, Stanislav

2015-06-28

Interactions of plasma motion with magnetic fields occur in nature and in the laboratory in an impressively broad range of scales, from megaparsecs in astrophysical systems to centimeters in fusion devices. The fact that such an enormous array of phenomena can be effectively studied lies in the existence of fundamental scaling laws in plasma turbulence, which allow one to scale the results of analytic and numerical modeling to the sized of galaxies, velocities of supernovae explosions, or magnetic fields in fusion devices. Magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) provides the simplest framework for describing magnetic plasma turbulence. Recently, a number of new features ofmore » MHD turbulence have been discovered and an impressive array of thought-provoking phenomenological theories have been put forward. However, these theories have conflicting predictions, and the currently available numerical simulations are not able to resolve the contradictions. MHD turbulence exhibits a variety of regimes unusual in regular hydrodynamic turbulence. Depending on the strength of the guide magnetic field it can be dominated by weakly interacting Alfv\\'en waves or strongly interacting wave packets. At small scales such turbulence is locally anisotropic and imbalanced (cross-helical). In a stark contrast with hydrodynamic turbulence, which tends to ``forget'' global constrains and become uniform and isotropic at small scales, MHD turbulence becomes progressively more anisotropic and unbalanced at small scales. Magnetic field plays a fundamental role in turbulent dynamics. Even when such a field is not imposed by external sources, it is self-consistently generated by the magnetic dynamo action. This project aims at a comprehensive study of universal regimes of magnetic plasma turbulence, combining the modern analytic approaches with the state of the art numerical simulations. The proposed study focuses on the three topics: weak MHD turbulence, which is relevant for laboratory devices, the

Numerical Study of Rotating Turbulence with External Forcing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Yeung, P. K.; Zhou, Ye

1998-01-01

Direct numerical simulation at 256(exp 3) resolution have been carried out to study the response of isotropic turbulence to the concurrent effects of solid-body rotation and numerical forcing at the large scales. Because energy transfer to the smaller scales is weakened by rotation, energy input from forcing gradually builds up at the large scales, causing the overall kinetic energy to increase. At intermediate wavenumbers the energy spectrum undergoes a transition from a limited k(exp -5/3) inertial range to k(exp -2) scaling recently predicted in the literature. Although the Reynolds stress tensor remains approximately isotropic and three-components, evidence for anisotropy and quasi- two-dimensionality in length scales and spectra in different velocity components and directions is strong. The small scales are found to deviate from local isotropy, primarily as a result of anisotropic transfer to the high wavenumbers. To understand the spectral dynamics of this flow we study the detailed behavior of nonlinear triadic interactions in wavenumber space. Spectral transfer in the velocity component parallel to the axis of rotation is qualitatively similar to that in non-rotating turbulence; however the perpendicular component is characterized by a greatly suppressed energy cascade at high wavenumber and a local reverse transfer at the largest scales. The broader implications of this work are briefly addressed.

Statistics of polymer extensions in turbulent channel flow.

PubMed

Bagheri, Faranggis; Mitra, Dhrubaditya; Perlekar, Prasad; Brandt, Luca

2012-11-01

We present direct numerical simulations of turbulent channel flow with passive Lagrangian polymers. To understand the polymer behavior we investigate the behavior of infinitesimal line elements and calculate the probability distribution function (PDF) of finite-time Lyapunov exponents and from them the corresponding Cramer's function for the channel flow. We study the statistics of polymer elongation for both the Oldroyd-B model (for Weissenberg number Wi<1) and the FENE model. We use the location of the minima of the Cramer's function to define the Weissenberg number precisely such that we observe coil-stretch transition at Wi ≈1. We find agreement with earlier analytical predictions for PDF of polymer extensions made by Balkovsky, Fouxon, and Lebedev [Phys. Rev. Lett. 84, 4765 (2000)] for linear polymers (Oldroyd-B model) with Wi <1 and by Chertkov [Phys. Rev. Lett. 84, 4761 (2000)] for nonlinear FENE-P model of polymers. For Wi >1 (FENE model) the polymer are significantly more stretched near the wall than at the center of the channel where the flow is closer to homogenous isotropic turbulence. Furthermore near the wall the polymers show a strong tendency to orient along the streamwise direction of the flow, but near the center line the statistics of orientation of the polymers is consistent with analogous results obtained recently in homogeneous and isotropic flows.

Turbulence Measurements from Compliant Moorings. Part II: Motion Correction

DOE PAGES

Kilcher, Levi F.; Thomson, Jim; Harding, Samuel; ...

2017-06-20

Acoustic Doppler velocimeters (ADVs) are a valuable tool for making high-precision measurements of turbulence, and moorings are a convenient and ubiquitous platform for making many kinds of measurements in the ocean. However, because of concerns that mooring motion can contaminate turbulence measurements and that acoustic Doppler profilers make middepth velocity measurements relatively easy, ADVs are not frequently deployed from moorings. This work demonstrates that inertial motion measurements can be used to reduce motion contamination from moored ADV velocity measurements. Three distinct mooring platforms were deployed in a tidal channel with inertial-motion-sensor-equipped ADVs. In each case, motion correction based on themore » inertial measurements reduces mooring motion contamination of velocity measurements. The spectra from these measurements are consistent with other measurements in tidal channels and have an f –5/3 slope at high frequencies - consistent with Kolmogorov's theory of isotropic turbulence. Motion correction also improves estimates of cross spectra and Reynolds stresses. A comparison of turbulence dissipation with flow speed and turbulence production indicates a bottom boundary layer production-dissipation balance during ebb and flood that is consistent with the strong tidal forcing at the site. Finally, these results indicate that inertial-motion-sensor-equipped ADVs are a valuable new tool for making high-precision turbulence measurements from moorings.« less

An integral turbulent kinetic energy analysis of free shear flows

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Peters, C. E.; Phares, W. J.

1973-01-01

Mixing of coaxial streams is analyzed by application of integral techniques. An integrated turbulent kinetic energy (TKE) equation is solved simultaneously with the integral equations for the mean flow. Normalized TKE profile shapes are obtained from incompressible jet and shear layer experiments and are assumed to be applicable to all free turbulent flows. The shear stress at the midpoint of the mixing zone is assumed to be directly proportional to the local TKE, and dissipation is treated with a generalization of the model developed for isotropic turbulence. Although the analysis was developed for ducted flows, constant-pressure flows were approximated with the duct much larger than the jet. The axisymmetric flows under consideration were predicted with reasonable accuracy. Fairly good results were also obtained for the fully developed two-dimensional shear layers, which were computed as thin layers at the boundary of a large circular jet.

Self-Regulation of E×B Flow Shear via Plasma Turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vianello, N.; Spada, E.; Antoni, V.; Spolaore, M.; Serianni, G.; Regnoli, G.; Cavazzana, R.; Bergsåker, H.; Drake, J. R.

2005-04-01

The momentum balance has been applied to the E×B flow in the edge region of a reversed field pinch (RFP) configuration. All terms, including those involving fluctuations, have been measured in stationary condition in the edge region of the Extrap-T2R RFP experiment. It is found that the component of the Reynolds stress driven by electrostatic fluctuations is the term playing the major role in driving the shear of the E×B flow to a value marginal for turbulent suppression, so that the results are in favor of a turbulence self-regulating mechanism underlying the momentum balance at the edge. Balancing the sheared flow driving and damping terms, the plasma viscosity is found anomalous and consistent with the diffusivity due to electrostatic turbulence.

A Novel Multi-scale Simulation Strategy for Turbulent Reacting Flows

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

James, Sutherland C.

In this project, a new methodology was proposed to bridge the gap between Direct Numerical Simulation (DNS) and Large Eddy Simulation (LES). This novel methodology, titled Lattice-Based Multiscale Simulation (LBMS), creates a lattice structure of One-Dimensional Turbulence (ODT) models. This model has been shown to capture turbulent combustion with high fidelity by fully resolving interactions between turbulence and diffusion. By creating a lattice of ODT models, which are then coupled, LBMS overcomes the shortcomings of ODT, which are its inability to capture large scale three dimensional flow structures. However, by spacing these lattices significantly apart, LBMS can avoid the cursemore » of dimensionality that creates untenable computational costs associated with DNS. This project has shown that LBMS is capable of reproducing statistics of isotropic turbulent flows while coarsening the spacing between lines significantly. It also investigates and resolves issues that arise when coupling ODT lines, such as flux reconstruction perpendicular to a given ODT line, preservation of conserved quantities when eddies cross a course cell volume and boundary condition application. Robust parallelization is also investigated.« less

Broken Ergodicity in Two-Dimensional Homogeneous Magnetohydrodynamic Turbulence

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Shebalin, John V.

2010-01-01

Two-dimensional (2-D) homogeneous magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) turbulence has many of the same qualitative features as three-dimensional (3-D) homogeneous MHD turbulence.The se features include several ideal invariants, along with the phenomenon of broken ergodicity. Broken ergodicity appears when certain modes act like random variables with mean values that are large compared to their standard deviations, indicating a coherent structure or dynamo.Recently, the origin of broken ergodicity in 3-D MHD turbulence that is manifest in the lowest wavenumbers was explained. Here, a detailed description of the origins of broken ergodicity in 2-D MHD turbulence is presented. It will be seen that broken ergodicity in ideal 2-D MHD turbulence can be manifest in the lowest wavenumbers of a finite numerical model for certain initial conditions or in the highest wavenumbers for another set of initial conditions.T he origins of broken ergodicity in ideal 2-D homogeneous MHD turbulence are found through an eigen analysis of the covariance matrices of the modal probability density functions.It will also be shown that when the lowest wavenumber magnetic field becomes quasi-stationary, the higher wavenumber modes can propagate as Alfven waves on these almost static large-scale magnetic structures

Fully developed turbulence in slugs of pipe flows

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cerbus, Rory; Liu, Chien-Chia; Sakakibara, Jun; Gioia, Gustavo; Chakraborty, Pinaki

2015-11-01

Despite over a century of research, transition to turbulence in pipe flows remains a mystery. In theory the flow remains laminar for arbitrarily large Reynolds number, Re. In practice, however, the flow transitions to turbulence at a finite Re whose value depends on the disturbance, natural or artificial, in the experimental setup. The flow remains in the transition state for a range of Re ~ 0 (1000) ; for larger Re the flow becomes fully developed. The transition state for Re > 3000 consists of axially segregated regions of laminar and turbulent patches. These turbulent patches, known as slugs, grow as they move downstream. Their lengths span anywhere between a few pipe diameters to the whole length of the pipe. Here we report Stereo Particle Image Velocimetry measurements in the cross-section of the slugs. Notwithstanding the continuous growth of the slugs, we find that the mean velocity and stress profiles in the slugs are indistinguishable from that of statistically-stationary fully-developed turbulent flows. Our results are independent of the length of the slugs. We contrast our results with the well-known work of Wygnanski & Champagne (1973), whose measurements, we argue, are insufficient to draw a clear conclusion regarding fully developed turbulence in slugs.

Effects of anisotropic turbulent thermal diffusion on spherical magnetoconvection in the Earth's core

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ivers, D. J.; Phillips, C. G.

2018-03-01

We re-consider the plate-like model of turbulence in the Earth's core, proposed by Braginsky and Meytlis (1990), and show that it is plausible for core parameters not only in polar regions but extends to mid- and low-latitudes where rotation and gravity are not parallel, except in a very thin equatorial layer. In this model the turbulence is highly anisotropic with preferred directions imposed by the Earth's rotation and the magnetic field. Current geodynamo computations effectively model sub-grid scale turbulence by using isotropic viscous and thermal diffusion values significantly greater than the molecular values of the Earth's core. We consider a local turbulent dynamo model for the Earth's core in which the mean magnetic field, velocity and temperature satisfy the Boussinesq induction, momentum and heat equations with an isotropic turbulent Ekman number and Roberts number. The anisotropy is modelled only in the thermal diffusion tensor with the Earth's rotation and magnetic field as preferred directions. Nonlocal organising effects of gravity and rotation (but not aspect ratio in the Earth's core) such as an inverse cascade and nonlocal transport are assumed to occur at longer length scales, which computations may accurately capture with sufficient resolution. To investigate the implications of this anisotropy for the proposed turbulent dynamo model we investigate the linear instability of turbulent magnetoconvection on length scales longer than the background turbulence in a rotating sphere with electrically insulating exterior for no-slip and isothermal boundary conditions. The equations are linearised about an axisymmetric basic state with a conductive temperature, azimuthal magnetic field and differential rotation. The basic state temperature is a function of the anisotropy and the spherical radius. Elsasser numbers in the range 1-20 and turbulent Roberts numbers 0.01-1 are considered for both equatorial symmetries of the magnetic basic state. It is found

Measurements in Transitional Boundary Layers Under High Free-Stream Turbulence and Strong Acceleration Conditions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Volino, Ralph J.; Simon, Terrence W.

1995-01-01

Measurements from transitional, heated boundary layers along a concave-curved test wall are presented and discussed. A boundary layer subject to low free-stream turbulence intensity (FSTI), which contains stationary streamwise (Gortler) vortices, is documented. The low FSTI measurements are followed by measurements in boundary layers subject to high (initially 8%) free-stream turbulence intensity and moderate to strong streamwise acceleration. Conditions were chosen to simulate those present on the downstream half of the pressure side of a gas turbine airfoil. Mean flow characteristics as well as turbulence statistics, including the turbulent shear stress, turbulent heat flux, and turbulent Prandtl number, are documented. A technique called "octant analysis" is introduced and applied to several cases from the literature as well as to data from the present study. Spectral analysis was applied to describe the effects of turbulence scales of different sizes during transition. To the authors'knowledge, this is the first detailed documentation of boundary layer transition under such high free-stream turbulence conditions.

Towed-grid system for production and calorimetric study of homogenous quantum turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ciapurin, Roman; Thompson, Kyle; Ihas, Gary G.

2011-10-01

The decay of quantum turbulence is not fully understood in superfluid helium at milikelvin temperatures where the viscous normal component is absent. Vibrating grid experiments performed periously produced inhomogeneous turbulence, making the results hard to interpret. We have developed experimental methods to produce homogeneous isotropic turbulence by pulling a grid at a variable constant velocity through superfluid 4He. While using calorimetric technique to measure the energy dissipation, the Meissner effect was employed to eliminate all heat sources except from turbulent decay. A controlled divergent magnetic field provides the lift to a hollow cylindrical superconducting actuator to which the grid is attached. Position sensing is performed by measuring the inductance change of a coil when a superconductor, similar to that of the actuator, is moved inside it. This position sensing technique proved to be reliable under varying temperatures and magnetic fields, making it perfect for use in the towed-grid experiment where a rise in temperature emerges from turbulent decay. Additionally, the reproducible dependency of the grid's position on the applied magnetic field enables complete control of the actuator's motion.

3D flow effects on measuring turbulence statistics using 2D PIV

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lee, Hoonsang; Hwang, Wontae

2017-11-01

Homogeneous & isotropic turbulence (HIT) with no mean flow is the simplest type of turbulent flow which can be used to study various phenomena. Although HIT is inherently three dimensional in nature, various turbulence statistics can be measured with 2D PIV utilizing various assumptions. In this study, the loss of tracer particle pairs due to out-of-plane motion, and the effect it has on statistics such as turbulence kinetic energy, dissipation rate, and velocity correlations is investigated. Synthetic PIV images created from HIT direct numerical simulation (DNS) data are utilized to quantify this effect. We estimate the out-of-plane error by adjusting parameters such as PIV time interval, interrogation window size, and particle size. This information can be utilized to optimize experimental parameters when examining 3D turbulence via 2D PIV. This research was supported by Basic Science Research Program through the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) funded by the Ministry of Science, ICT & Future Planning (No. 2017R1A2B4007372), and also by SNU new faculty Research Resettlement Fund.

Statistical Mechanics of Turbulent Dynamos

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Shebalin, John V.

2014-01-01

Incompressible magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) turbulence and magnetic dynamos, which occur in magnetofluids with large fluid and magnetic Reynolds numbers, will be discussed. When Reynolds numbers are large and energy decays slowly, the distribution of energy with respect to length scale becomes quasi-stationary and MHD turbulence can be described statistically. In the limit of infinite Reynolds numbers, viscosity and resistivity become zero and if these values are used in the MHD equations ab initio, a model system called ideal MHD turbulence results. This model system is typically confined in simple geometries with some form of homogeneous boundary conditions, allowing for velocity and magnetic field to be represented by orthogonal function expansions. One advantage to this is that the coefficients of the expansions form a set of nonlinearly interacting variables whose behavior can be described by equilibrium statistical mechanics, i.e., by a canonical ensemble theory based on the global invariants (energy, cross helicity and magnetic helicity) of ideal MHD turbulence. Another advantage is that truncated expansions provide a finite dynamical system whose time evolution can be numerically simulated to test the predictions of the associated statistical mechanics. If ensemble predictions are the same as time averages, then the system is said to be ergodic; if not, the system is nonergodic. Although it had been implicitly assumed in the early days of ideal MHD statistical theory development that these finite dynamical systems were ergodic, numerical simulations provided sufficient evidence that they were, in fact, nonergodic. Specifically, while canonical ensemble theory predicted that expansion coefficients would be (i) zero-mean random variables with (ii) energy that decreased with length scale, it was found that although (ii) was correct, (i) was not and the expected ergodicity was broken. The exact cause of this broken ergodicity was explained, after much

MHD Turbulence and Magnetic Dynamos

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Shebalin, John V

2014-01-01

Incompressible magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) turbulence and magnetic dynamos, which occur in magnetofluids with large fluid and magnetic Reynolds numbers, will be discussed. When Reynolds numbers are large and energy decays slowly, the distribution of energy with respect to length scale becomes quasi-stationary and MHD turbulence can be described statistically. In the limit of infinite Reynolds numbers, viscosity and resistivity become zero and if these values are used in the MHD equations ab initio, a model system called ideal MHD turbulence results. This model system is typically confined in simple geometries with some form of homogeneous boundary conditions, allowing for velocity and magnetic field to be represented by orthogonal function expansions. One advantage to this is that the coefficients of the expansions form a set of nonlinearly interacting variables whose behavior can be described by equilibrium statistical mechanics, i.e., by a canonical ensemble theory based on the global invariants (energy, cross helicity and magnetic helicity) of ideal MHD turbulence. Another advantage is that truncated expansions provide a finite dynamical system whose time evolution can be numerically simulated to test the predictions of the associated statistical mechanics. If ensemble predictions are the same as time averages, then the system is said to be ergodic; if not, the system is nonergodic. Although it had been implicitly assumed in the early days of ideal MHD statistical theory development that these finite dynamical systems were ergodic, numerical simulations provided sufficient evidence that they were, in fact, nonergodic. Specifically, while canonical ensemble theory predicted that expansion coefficients would be (i) zero-mean random variables with (ii) energy that decreased with length scale, it was found that although (ii) was correct, (i) was not and the expected ergodicity was broken. The exact cause of this broken ergodicity was explained, after much

Vortex scaling ranges in two-dimensional turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Burgess, B. H.; Dritschel, D. G.; Scott, R. K.

2017-11-01

We survey the role of coherent vortices in two-dimensional turbulence, including formation mechanisms, implications for classical similarity and inertial range theories, and characteristics of the vortex populations. We review early work on the spatial and temporal scaling properties of vortices in freely evolving turbulence and more recent developments, including a spatiotemporal scaling theory for vortices in the forced inverse energy cascade. We emphasize that Kraichnan-Batchelor similarity theories and vortex scaling theories are best viewed as complementary and together provide a more complete description of two-dimensional turbulence. In particular, similarity theory has a continued role in describing the weak filamentary sea between the vortices. Moreover, we locate both classical inertial and vortex scaling ranges within the broader framework of scaling in far-from-equilibrium systems, which generically exhibit multiple fixed point solutions with distinct scaling behaviour. We describe how stationary transport in a range of scales comoving with the dilatation of flow features, as measured by the growth in vortex area, constrains the vortex number density in both freely evolving and forced two-dimensional turbulence. The new theories for coherent vortices reveal previously hidden nontrivial scaling, point to new dynamical understanding, and provide a novel exciting window into two-dimensional turbulence.

Micro-bubbles and Micro-particles are Not Faithful Tracers of Turbulent Acceleration

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sun, Chao; Mathai, Varghese; Calzavarini, Enrico; Brons, Jon; Lohse, Detlef

2016-11-01

We report on the Lagrangian statistics of acceleration of small (sub-Kolmogorov) bubbles and tracer particles with Stokes number St <<1 in turbulent flow. At decreasing Reynolds number, the bubble accelerations show deviations from that of tracer particles, i.e. they deviate from the Heisenberg-Yaglom prediction and show a quicker decorrelation despite their small size and minute St. Using direct numerical simulations, we show that these effects arise due the drift of these particles through the turbulent flow. We theoretically predict this gravity-driven effect for developed isotropic turbulence, with the ratio of Stokes to Froude number or equivalently the particle drift-velocity governing the enhancement of acceleration variance and the reductions in correlation time and intermittency. Our predictions are in good agreement with experimental and numerical results. The present findings are relevant to a range of scenarios encompassing tiny bubbles and droplets that drift through the turbulent oceans and the atmosphere.

Extracting stationary segments from non-stationary synthetic and cardiac signals

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rodríguez, María. G.; Ledezma, Carlos A.; Perpiñán, Gilberto; Wong, Sara; Altuve, Miguel

2015-01-01

Physiological signals are commonly the result of complex interactions between systems and organs, these interactions lead to signals that exhibit a non-stationary behaviour. For cardiac signals, non-stationary heart rate variability (HRV) may produce misinterpretations. A previous work proposed to divide a non-stationary signal into stationary segments by looking for changes in the signal's properties related to changes in the mean of the signal. In this paper, we extract stationary segments from non-stationary synthetic and cardiac signals. For synthetic signals with different signal-to-noise ratio levels, we detect the beginning and end of the stationary segments and the result is compared to the known values of the occurrence of these events. For cardiac signals, RR interval (cardiac cycle length) time series, obtained from electrocardiographic records during stress tests for two populations (diabetic patients with cardiovascular autonomic neuropathy and control subjects), were divided into stationary segments. Results on synthetic signals reveal that the non-stationary sequence is divided into more stationary segments than needed. Additionally, due to HRV reduction and exercise intolerance reported on diabetic cardiovascular autonomic neuropathy patients, non-stationary RR interval sequences from these subjects can be divided into longer stationary segments compared to the control group.

Effects of wall curvature on turbulence statistics

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Moser, R. D.; Moin, P.

1985-01-01

A three-dimensional, time-dependent, direct numerical simulation of low-Reynolds number turbulent flow in a mildly curved channel was performed, and the results examined to determine the mechanism by which curvature affects wall-bounded turbulent shear flows. A spectral numerical method with about one-million modes was employed, and no explicit subgrid scale model was used. The effects of curvature on this flow were determined by comparing the concave and convex sides of the channel. The observed effects are consistent with experimental observations for mild curvature. The most significant difference in the turbulence statistics between the concave and convex sides is in the Reynolds shear stress. This is accompanied by significant differences in the terms of the Reynolds shear stress balance equations. In addition, it was found that stationary Taylor-Goertler vortices were present and that they had a significant effect on the flow by contributing to the mean Reynolds shear stress, and by enhancing the difference between the wall shear stresses.

The Interaction of Coronal Mass Ejections with Alfvenic Turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Manchester, W.; van der Holst, B.

2017-12-01

We provide a first attempt to understand the interaction between Alfven wave turbulence, kinetic instabilities and temperature anisotropies in the environment of a fast coronal mass ejection (CME). The impact of a fast CME on the solar corona causes turbulent energy, thermal energy and dissipative heating to increase by orders of magnitude, and produces conditions suitable for a host of kinetic instabilities. We study these CME-induced effects with the recently developed Alfven Wave Solar Model, with which we are able to self-consistently simulate the turbulent energy transport and dissipation as well as isotropic electron heating and anisotropic proton heating. Furthermore, the model also offers the capability to address the effects of firehose, mirror mode, and cyclotron kinetic instabilities on proton energy partitioning, all in a global-scale numerical simulation. We find turbulent energy greatly enhanced in the CME sheath, strong wave reflection at the shock, which leads to wave dissipation rates increasing by more than a factor of 100. In contrast, wave energy is greatly diminished by adiabatic expansion in the flux rope. Finally, we find proton temperature anisotropies are limited by kinetic instabilities to a level consistent with solar wind observations.

Chaotic and regular instantons in helical shell models of turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

De Pietro, Massimo; Mailybaev, Alexei A.; Biferale, Luca

2017-03-01

Shell models of turbulence have a finite-time blowup in the inviscid limit, i.e., the enstrophy diverges while the single-shell velocities stay finite. The signature of this blowup is represented by self-similar instantonic structures traveling coherently through the inertial range. These solutions might influence the energy transfer and the anomalous scaling properties empirically observed for the forced and viscous models. In this paper we present a study of the instantonic solutions for a set of four shell models of turbulence based on the exact decomposition of the Navier-Stokes equations in helical eigenstates. We find that depending on the helical structure of each model, instantons are chaotic or regular. Some instantonic solutions tend to recover mirror symmetry for scales small enough. Models that have anomalous scaling develop regular nonchaotic instantons. Conversely, models that have nonanomalous scaling in the stationary regime are those that have chaotic instantons. The direction of the energy carried by each single instanton tends to coincide with the direction of the energy cascade in the stationary regime. Finally, we find that whenever the small-scale stationary statistics is intermittent, the instanton is less steep than the dimensional Kolmogorov scaling, independently of whether or not it is chaotic. Our findings further support the idea that instantons might be crucial to describe some aspects of the multiscale anomalous statistics of shell models.

Schneefernerhaus as a mountain research station for clouds and turbulence - Part 1: Flow conditions and large-scale turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Risius, S.; Xu, H.; Di Lorenzo, F.; Xi, H.; Siebert, H.; Shaw, R. A.; Bodenschatz, E.

2015-01-01

Cloud measurements are usually carried out with airborne campaigns, which are expensive and are limited by temporal duration and weather conditions. Ground based measurements at high-altitude research stations therefore play a complementary role in cloud study. Using the meteorological data (wind speed, direction, temperature, humidity, visibility, etc.) collected by the German Weather Service (DWD) from 2000 to 2012 and turbulence measurements recorded by multiple ultrasonic sensors (sampled at 10 Hz) in 2010, we show that the Umweltforschungsstation Schneefernerhaus (UFS) located just below the peak of Zugspitze in the German Alps, at a height of 2650 m, is a well-suited station for cloud-turbulence research. The wind at UFS is dominantly in the east-west direction and nearly horizontal. During the summer time (July and August) the UFS is immersed in warm clouds about 25% of the time. The clouds are either from convection originating in the valley in the east, or associated with synoptic-scale weather systems typically advected from the west. Air turbulence, as measured from the second and third order velocity structure functions that exhibit well-developed inertial ranges, possesses Taylor microscale Reynolds numbers up to 104, with the most probable value at ~ 3000. In spite of the complex topography, the turbulence appears to be nearly as isotropic as many laboratory flows when evaluated on the so called "Lumley-triangle".

Nonuniversal k-3 energy spectrum in stationary two-dimensional homogeneous turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kaneda, Yukio; Ishihara, Takashi

2001-05-01

A spectral closure analysis and numerical simulations suggest that there may be a class of two-dimensional turbulence in which the energy spectrum E(k) scales with the wave number k like E(k)=Ak-3 in the enstrophy transfer range in accordance with the Kraichnan-Leith-Batchelor (KLB) spectrum, but the prefactor A is different from the KLB spectrum and depends in a nontrivial way on the flow conditions at large scales.

Self-similar regimes of turbulence in weakly coupled plasmas under compression

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Viciconte, Giovanni; Gréa, Benoît-Joseph; Godeferd, Fabien S.

2018-02-01

Turbulence in weakly coupled plasmas under compression can experience a sudden dissipation of kinetic energy due to the abrupt growth of the viscosity coefficient governed by the temperature increase. We investigate in detail this phenomenon by considering a turbulent velocity field obeying the incompressible Navier-Stokes equations with a source term resulting from the mean velocity. The system can be simplified by a nonlinear change of variable, and then solved using both highly resolved direct numerical simulations and a spectral model based on the eddy-damped quasinormal Markovian closure. The model allows us to explore a wide range of initial Reynolds and compression numbers, beyond the reach of simulations, and thus permits us to evidence the presence of a nonlinear cascade phase. We find self-similarity of intermediate regimes as well as of the final decay of turbulence, and we demonstrate the importance of initial distribution of energy at large scales. This effect can explain the global sensitivity of the flow dynamics to initial conditions, which we also illustrate with simulations of compressed homogeneous isotropic turbulence and of imploding spherical turbulent layers relevant to inertial confinement fusion.

A Two-length Scale Turbulence Model for Single-phase Multi-fluid Mixing

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Schwarzkopf, J. D.; Livescu, D.; Baltzer, J. R.

2015-09-08

A two-length scale, second moment turbulence model (Reynolds averaged Navier-Stokes, RANS) is proposed to capture a wide variety of single-phase flows, spanning from incompressible flows with single fluids and mixtures of different density fluids (variable density flows) to flows over shock waves. The two-length scale model was developed to address an inconsistency present in the single-length scale models, e.g. the inability to match both variable density homogeneous Rayleigh-Taylor turbulence and Rayleigh-Taylor induced turbulence, as well as the inability to match both homogeneous shear and free shear flows. The two-length scale model focuses on separating the decay and transport length scales,more » as the two physical processes are generally different in inhomogeneous turbulence. This allows reasonable comparisons with statistics and spreading rates over such a wide range of turbulent flows using a common set of model coefficients. The specific canonical flows considered for calibrating the model include homogeneous shear, single-phase incompressible shear driven turbulence, variable density homogeneous Rayleigh-Taylor turbulence, Rayleigh-Taylor induced turbulence, and shocked isotropic turbulence. The second moment model shows to compare reasonably well with direct numerical simulations (DNS), experiments, and theory in most cases. The model was then applied to variable density shear layer and shock tube data and shows to be in reasonable agreement with DNS and experiments. Additionally, the importance of using DNS to calibrate and assess RANS type turbulence models is highlighted.« less

Fluid particles only separate exponentially in the dissipation range of turbulence after extremely long times

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dhariwal, Rohit; Bragg, Andrew D.

2018-03-01

In this paper, we consider how the statistical moments of the separation between two fluid particles grow with time when their separation lies in the dissipation range of turbulence. In this range, the fluid velocity field varies smoothly and the relative velocity of two fluid particles depends linearly upon their separation. While this may suggest that the rate at which fluid particles separate is exponential in time, this is not guaranteed because the strain rate governing their separation is a strongly fluctuating quantity in turbulence. Indeed, Afik and Steinberg [Nat. Commun. 8, 468 (2017), 10.1038/s41467-017-00389-8] argue that there is no convincing evidence that the moments of the separation between fluid particles grow exponentially with time in the dissipation range of turbulence. Motivated by this, we use direct numerical simulations (DNS) to compute the moments of particle separation over very long periods of time in a statistically stationary, isotropic turbulent flow to see if we ever observe evidence for exponential separation. Our results show that if the initial separation between the particles is infinitesimal, the moments of the particle separation first grow as power laws in time, but we then observe convincing evidence that at sufficiently long times the moments do grow exponentially. However, this exponential growth is only observed after extremely long times ≳200 τη , where τη is the Kolmogorov time scale. This is due to fluctuations in the strain rate about its mean value measured along the particle trajectories, the effect of which on the moments of the particle separation persists for very long times. We also consider the backward-in-time (BIT) moments of the article separation, and observe that they too grow exponentially in the long-time regime. However, a dramatic consequence of the exponential separation is that at long times the difference between the rate of the particle separation forward in time (FIT) and BIT grows

Couette-Poiseuille flow experiment with zero mean advection velocity: Subcritical transition to turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Klotz, L.; Lemoult, G.; Frontczak, I.; Tuckerman, L. S.; Wesfreid, J. E.

2017-04-01

We present an experimental setup that creates a shear flow with zero mean advection velocity achieved by counterbalancing the nonzero streamwise pressure gradient by moving boundaries, which generates plane Couette-Poiseuille flow. We obtain experimental results in the transitional regime for this flow. Using flow visualization, we characterize the subcritical transition to turbulence in Couette-Poiseuille flow and show the existence of turbulent spots generated by a permanent perturbation. Due to the zero mean advection velocity of the base profile, these turbulent structures are nearly stationary. We distinguish two regions of the turbulent spot: the active turbulent core, which is characterized by waviness of the streaks similar to traveling waves, and the surrounding region, which includes in addition the weak undisturbed streaks and oblique waves at the laminar-turbulent interface. We also study the dependence of the size of these two regions on Reynolds number. Finally, we show that the traveling waves move in the downstream (Poiseuille) direction.

Turbulence modelling of flow fields in thrust chambers

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chen, C. P.; Kim, Y. M.; Shang, H. M.

1993-01-01

Following the consensus of a workshop in Turbulence Modelling for Liquid Rocket Thrust Chambers, the current effort was undertaken to study the effects of second-order closure on the predictions of thermochemical flow fields. To reduce the instability and computational intensity of the full second-order Reynolds Stress Model, an Algebraic Stress Model (ASM) coupled with a two-layer near wall treatment was developed. Various test problems, including the compressible boundary layer with adiabatic and cooled walls, recirculating flows, swirling flows, and the entire SSME nozzle flow were studied to assess the performance of the current model. Detailed calculations for the SSME exit wall flow around the nozzle manifold were executed. As to the overall flow predictions, the ASM removes another assumption for appropriate comparison with experimental data to account for the non-isotropic turbulence effects.

Self-regulation of E x B flow shear via plasma turbulence.

PubMed

Vianello, N; Spada, E; Antoni, V; Spolaore, M; Serianni, G; Regnoli, G; Cavazzana, R; Bergsåker, H; Drake, J R

2005-04-08

The momentum balance has been applied to the ExB flow in the edge region of a reversed field pinch (RFP) configuration. All terms, including those involving fluctuations, have been measured in stationary condition in the edge region of the Extrap-T2R RFP experiment. It is found that the component of the Reynolds stress driven by electrostatic fluctuations is the term playing the major role in driving the shear of the ExB flow to a value marginal for turbulent suppression, so that the results are in favor of a turbulence self-regulating mechanism underlying the momentum balance at the edge. Balancing the sheared flow driving and damping terms, the plasma viscosity is found anomalous and consistent with the diffusivity due to electrostatic turbulence.

A stochastic model of particle dispersion in turbulent reacting gaseous environments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sun, Guangyuan; Lignell, David; Hewson, John

2012-11-01

We are performing fundamental studies of dispersive transport and time-temperature histories of Lagrangian particles in turbulent reacting flows. The particle-flow statistics including the full particle temperature PDF are of interest. A challenge in modeling particle motions is the accurate prediction of fine-scale aerosol-fluid interactions. A computationally affordable stochastic modeling approach, one-dimensional turbulence (ODT), is a proven method that captures the full range of length and time scales, and provides detailed statistics of fine-scale turbulent-particle mixing and transport. Limited results of particle transport in ODT have been reported in non-reacting flow. Here, we extend ODT to particle transport in reacting flow. The results of particle transport in three flow configurations are presented: channel flow, homogeneous isotropic turbulence, and jet flames. We investigate the functional dependence of the statistics of particle-flow interactions including (1) parametric study with varying temperatures, Reynolds numbers, and particle Stokes numbers; (2) particle temperature histories and PDFs; (3) time scale and the sensitivity of initial and boundary conditions. Flow statistics are compared to both experimental measurements and DNS data.

Simulation of Unsteady Flows Using an Unstructured Navier-Stokes Solver on Moving and Stationary Grids

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Biedron, Robert T.; Vatsa, Veer N.; Atkins, Harold L.

2005-01-01

We apply an unsteady Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes (URANS) solver for unstructured grids to unsteady flows on moving and stationary grids. Example problems considered are relevant to active flow control and stability and control. Computational results are presented using the Spalart-Allmaras turbulence model and are compared to experimental data. The effect of grid and time-step refinement are examined.

Lagrangian analysis of premixed turbulent combustion in hydrogen-air flames

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Darragh, Ryan; Poludnenko, Alexei; Hamlington, Peter

2016-11-01

Lagrangian analysis has long been a tool used to analyze non-reacting turbulent flows, and has recently gained attention in the reacting flow and combustion communities. The approach itself allows one to separate local molecular effects, such as those due to reactions or diffusion, from turbulent advective effects along fluid pathlines, or trajectories. Accurate calculation of these trajectories can, however, be rather difficult due to the chaotic nature of turbulent flows and the added complexity of reactions. In order to determine resolution requirements and verify the numerical algorithm, extensive tests are described in this talk for prescribed steady, unsteady, and chaotic flows, as well as for direct numerical simulations (DNS) of non-reacting homogeneous isotropic turbulence. The Lagrangian analysis is then applied to DNS of premixed hydrogen-air flames at two different turbulence intensities for both single- and multi-step chemical mechanisms. Non-monotonic temperature and fuel-mass fraction evolutions are found to exist along trajectories passing through the flame brush. Such non-monotonicity is shown to be due to molecular diffusion resulting from large spatial gradients created by turbulent advection. This work was supported by the Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR) under Award No. FA9550-14-1-0273, and the Department of Defense (DoD) High Performance Computing Modernization Program (HPCMP) under a Frontier project award.

Noise produced by turbulent flow into a rotor: Theory manual for noise calculation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Amiet, R. K.

1989-01-01

An analysis is presented for the calculation of noise produced by turbulent flow into a helicopter rotor. The method is based on the analysis of Amiet for the sound produced by an airfoil moving in rectilinear motion through a turbulent flow field. The rectilinear motion results are used in a quasi-steady manner to calculate the instantaneous spectrum of the rotor noise at any given rotor position; the overall spectrum is then found by averaging the instantaneous spectrum over all rotor azimuth angles. Account is taken of the fact that the rotor spends different amounts of retarded time at different rotor positions. Blade to blade correlation is included in the analysis, leading to harmonics of blade passing frequency. The spectrum of the turbulence entering the rotor is calculated by applying rapid distortion theory to an isotropic turbulence spectrum, assuming that the turbulence is stretched as it is pulled into the rotor. The inputs to the program are obtained from the atmospheric turbulence model and mean flow distortion calculation, described in another volume of this set of reports. The analytical basis is provided for a module which was incorporated in NASA's ROTONET helicopter noise prediction program.

Comparison of measured and computed Strehl ratios for light propagated through a channel flow of a He N 2 mixing layer at high Reynolds numbers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gardner, Patrick J.; Roggemann, Michael C.; Welsh, Byron M.; Bowersox, Rodney D.; Luke, Theodore E.

1997-04-01

A lateral shearing interferometer was used to measure the slope of perturbed wave fronts after they propagated through a He N 2 mixing layer in a rectangular channel. Slope measurements were used to reconstruct the phase of the turbulence-corrupted wave front. The random phase fluctuations induced by the mixing layer were captured in a large ensemble of wave-front measurements. Phase structure functions, computed from the reconstructed phase surfaces, were stationary in first increments. A five-thirds power law is shown to fit streamwise and cross-stream slices of the structure function, analogous to the Kolmogorov model for isotropic turbulence, which describes the structure function with a single parameter. Strehl ratios were computed from the phase structure functions and compared with a measured experiment obtained from simultaneous point-spread function measurements. Two additional Strehl ratios were calculated by using classical estimates that assume statistical isotropy throughout the flow. The isotropic models are a reasonable estimate of the optical degradation only within a few centimeters of the initial mixing, where the Reynolds number is low. At higher Reynolds numbers, Strehl ratios calculated from the structure functions match the experiment much better than Strehl ratio calculations that assume isotropic flow.

The interaction of turbulence with parallel and perpendicular shocks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Adhikari, L.; Zank, G. P.; Hunana, P.; Hu, Q.

2016-11-01

Interplanetary shocks exist in most astrophysical flows, and modify the properties of the background flow. We apply the Zank et al 2012 six coupled turbulence transport model equations to study the interaction of turbulence with parallel and perpendicular shock waves in the solar wind. We model the 1D structure of a stationary perpendicular or parallel shock wave using a hyperbolic tangent function and the Rankine-Hugoniot conditions. A reduced turbulence transport model (the 4-equation model) is applied to parallel and perpendicular shock waves, and solved using a 4th- order Runge Kutta method. We compare the model results with ACE spacecraft observations. We identify one quasi-parallel and one quasi-perpendicular event in the ACE spacecraft data sets, and compute various turbulent observed values such as the fluctuating magnetic and kinetic energy, the energy in forward and backward propagating modes, the total turbulent energy in the upstream and downstream of the shock. We also calculate the error associated with each turbulent observed value, and fit the observed values by a least square method and use a Fourier series fitting function. We find that the theoretical results are in reasonable agreement with observations. The energy in turbulent fluctuations is enhanced and the correlation length is approximately constant at the shock. Similarly, the normalized cross helicity increases across a perpendicular shock, and decreases across a parallel shock.

Decoupling of mass flux and turbulent wind fluctuations in drifting snow

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Paterna, E.; Crivelli, P.; Lehning, M.

2016-05-01

The wind-driven redistribution of snow has a significant impact on the climate and mass balance of polar and mountainous regions. Locally, it shapes the snow surface, producing dunes and sastrugi. Sediment transport has been mainly represented as a function of the wind strength, and the two processes assumed to be stationary and in equilibrium. The wind flow in the atmospheric boundary layer is unsteady and turbulent, and drifting snow may never reach equilibrium. Our question is therefore: what role do turbulent eddies play in initiating and maintaining drifting snow? To investigate the interaction between drifting snow and turbulence experimentally, we conducted several wind tunnel measurements of drifting snow over naturally deposited snow covers. We observed a coupling between snow transport and turbulent flow only in a weak saltation regime. In stronger regimes it self-organizes developing its own length scales and efficiently decoupling from the wind forcing.

High freestream turbulence studies on a scaled-up stator vane

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Radomsky, Roger William, Jr.

2000-10-01

Today's gas turbine engines are operating at combustor exit temperatures far exceeding the maximum temperatures of the component alloys downstream of the combustor. These higher temperatures are necessary to increase the efficiency of the engine, and, as such, durability of the downstream components becomes an issue. The highly turbulent flowfield that exists at the exit of the combustor complicates issues further by increasing heat transfer from the hot gas to the component surface. To account for the high heat transfer rates, and provide a better prediction of the applied heat loads, detailed heat transfer and flowfield information is needed at turbulence levels representative those exiting a combustor. Flowfield measurements at high freestream turbulence levels indicated that turbulence, which was isotropic at the inlet, became highly anisotropic in the test section as a result of surface curvature and strain. Turbulent kinetic energy levels were shown to increase in the passage by as much as 131% and 31% for the 10% and 19.5% turbulence levels. Although the turbulent kinetic energy was high, the turbulence level based upon local velocity decreased quickly to levels of 3% and 6% near the suction surface for the 10% and 19.5% turbulence levels. For the pressure surface, local turbulence levels were as high as 10% and 16% for the 10% and 19.5% turbulence levels. High local turbulence levels and heat transfer augmentation were observed near the stagnation location, by as much as 50%, and along the pressure surface, by as much as 80%, where airfoil geometries have shown degradation after prolonged usage. Endwall flowfield measurements on a plane at the stagnation location showed that a horseshoe vortex developed in the juncture region of the vane at high freestream. turbulence similar to that at low freestream turbulence. Measurements near the center of the vortex indicated that the vortex was highly unsteady. In regions where strong secondary flows (horseshoe and

Control and instanton trajectories for random transitions in turbulent flows

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bouchet, Freddy; Laurie, Jason; Zaboronski, Oleg

2011-12-01

Many turbulent systems exhibit random switches between qualitatively different attractors. The transition between these bistable states is often an extremely rare event, that can not be computed through DNS, due to complexity limitations. We present results for the calculation of instanton trajectories (a control problem) between non-equilibrium stationary states (attractors) in the 2D stochastic Navier-Stokes equations. By representing the transition probability between two states using a path integral formulation, we can compute the most probable trajectory (instanton) joining two non-equilibrium stationary states. Technically, this is equivalent to the minimization of an action, which can be related to a fluid mechanics control problem.

Cascades and dissipation ratio in rotating magnetohydrodynamic turbulence at low magnetic Prandtl number.

PubMed

Plunian, Franck; Stepanov, Rodion

2010-10-01

A phenomenology of isotropic magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) turbulence subject to both rotation and applied magnetic field is presented. It is assumed that the triple correlation decay time is the shortest between the eddy turn-over time and the ones associated to the rotating frequency and the Alfvén wave period. For Pm=1 it leads to four kinds of piecewise spectra, depending on four parameters: injection rate of energy, magnetic diffusivity, rotation rate, and applied field. With a shell model of MHD turbulence (including rotation and applied magnetic field), spectra for Pm ≤ 1 are presented, together with the ratio between magnetic and viscous dissipations.

Modeling variable density turbulence in the wake of an air-entraining transom stern

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hendrickson, Kelli; Yue, Dick

2015-11-01

This work presents a priori testing of closure models for the incompressible highly-variable density turbulent (IHVDT) flows in the near wake region of a transom stern. This three-dimensional flow is comprised of convergent corner waves that originate from the body and collide on the ship center plane forming the ``rooster tail'' that then widens to form the divergent wave train. These violent free-surface flows and breaking waves are characterized by significant turbulent mass flux (TMF) at Atwood number At = (ρ2 -ρ1) / (ρ2 +ρ1) ~ 1 for which there is little guidance in turbulence closure modeling for the momentum and scalar transport along the wake. To whit, this work utilizes high-resolution simulations of the near wake of a canonical three-dimensional transom stern using conservative Volume-of-Fluid (cVOF), implicit Large Eddy Simulation (iLES), and Boundary Data Immersion Method (BDIM) to capture the turbulence and large scale air entrainment. Analysis of the simulation results across and along the wake for the TMF budget and turbulent anisotropy provide the physical basis of the development of multiphase turbulence closure models. Performance of isotropic and anisotropic turbulent mass flux closure models will be presented. Sponsored by the Office of Naval Research.

Emergence of a turbulent cascade in a quantum gas

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Navon, Nir; Gaunt, Alexander L.; Smith, Robert P.; Hadzibabic, Zoran

2016-11-01

A central concept in the modern understanding of turbulence is the existence of cascades of excitations from large to small length scales, or vice versa. This concept was introduced in 1941 by Kolmogorov and Obukhov, and such cascades have since been observed in various systems, including interplanetary plasmas, supernovae, ocean waves and financial markets. Despite much progress, a quantitative understanding of turbulence remains a challenge, owing to the interplay between many length scales that makes theoretical simulations of realistic experimental conditions difficult. Here we observe the emergence of a turbulent cascade in a weakly interacting homogeneous Bose gas—a quantum fluid that can be theoretically described on all relevant length scales. We prepare a Bose-Einstein condensate in an optical box, drive it out of equilibrium with an oscillating force that pumps energy into the system at the largest length scale, study its nonlinear response to the periodic drive, and observe a gradual development of a cascade characterized by an isotropic power-law distribution in momentum space. We numerically model our experiments using the Gross-Pitaevskii equation and find excellent agreement with the measurements. Our experiments establish the uniform Bose gas as a promising new medium for investigating many aspects of turbulence, including the interplay between vortex and wave turbulence, and the relative importance of quantum and classical effects.

Forces on stationary particles in near-bed turbulent flows

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schmeeckle, Mark W.; Nelson, Jonathan M.; Shreve, Ronald L.

2007-06-01

In natural flows, bed sediment particles are entrained and moved by the fluctuating forces, such as lift and drag, exerted by the overlying flow on the particles. To develop a better understanding of these forces and the relation of the forces to the local flow, the downstream and vertical components of force on near-bed fixed particles and of fluid velocity above or in front of them were measured synchronously at turbulence-resolving frequencies (200 or 500 Hz) in a laboratory flume. Measurements were made for a spherical test particle fixed at various heights above a smooth bed, above a smooth bed downstream of a downstream-facing step, and in a gravel bed of similarly sized particles as well as for a cubical test particle and 7 natural particles above a smooth bed. Horizontal force was well correlated with downstream velocity and not correlated with vertical velocity or vertical momentum flux. The standard drag formula worked well to predict the horizontal force, but the required value of the drag coefficient was significantly higher than generally used to model bed load motion. For the spheres, cubes, and natural particles, average drag coefficients were found to be 0.76, 1.36, and 0.91, respectively. For comparison, the drag coefficient for a sphere settling in still water at similar particle Reynolds numbers is only about 0.4. The variability of the horizontal force relative to its mean was strongly increased by the presence of the step and the gravel bed. Peak deviations were about 30% of the mean force for the sphere over the smooth bed, about twice the mean with the step, and 4 times it for the sphere protruding roughly half its diameter above the gravel bed. Vertical force correlated poorly with downstream velocity, vertical velocity, and vertical momentum flux whether measured over or ahead of the test particle. Typical formulas for shear-induced lift based on Bernoulli's principle poorly predict the vertical forces on near-bed particles. The

Forces on stationary particles in near-bed turbulent flows

USGS Publications Warehouse

Schmeeckle, M.W.; Nelson, J.M.; Shreve, R.L.

2007-01-01

In natural flows, bed sediment particles are entrained and moved by the fluctuating forces, such as lift and drag, exerted by the overlying flow on the particles. To develop a better understanding of these forces and the relation of the forces to the local flow, the downstream and vertical components of force on near-bed fixed particles and of fluid velocity above or in front of them were measured synchronously at turbulence-resolving frequencies (200 or 500 Hz) in a laboratory flume. Measurements were made for a spherical test particle fixed at various heights above a smooth bed, above a smooth bed downstream of a downstream-facing step, and in a gravel bed of similarly sized particles as well as for a cubical test particle and 7 natural particles above a smooth bed. Horizontal force was well correlated with downstream velocity and not correlated with vertical velocity or vertical momentum flux. The standard drag formula worked well to predict the horizontal force, but the required value of the drag coefficient was significantly higher than generally used to model bed load motion. For the spheres, cubes, and natural particles, average drag coefficients were found to be 0.76, 1.36, and 0.91, respectively. For comparison, the drag coefficient for a sphere settling in still water at similar particle Reynolds numbers is only about 0.4. The variability of the horizontal force relative to its mean was strongly increased by the presence of the step and the gravel bed. Peak deviations were about 30% of the mean force for the sphere over the smooth bed, about twice the mean with the step, and 4 times it for the sphere protruding roughly half its diameter above the gravel bed. Vertical force correlated poorly with downstream velocity, vertical velocity, and vertical momentum flux whether measured over or ahead of the test particle. Typical formulas for shear-induced lift based on Bernoulli's principle poorly predict the vertical forces on near-bed particles. The

Computing aerodynamic sound using advanced statistical turbulence theories

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hecht, A. M.; Teske, M. E.; Bilanin, A. J.

1981-01-01

It is noted that the calculation of turbulence-generated aerodynamic sound requires knowledge of the spatial and temporal variation of Q sub ij (xi sub k, tau), the two-point, two-time turbulent velocity correlations. A technique is presented to obtain an approximate form of these correlations based on closure of the Reynolds stress equations by modeling of higher order terms. The governing equations for Q sub ij are first developed for a general flow. The case of homogeneous, stationary turbulence in a unidirectional constant shear mean flow is then assumed. The required closure form for Q sub ij is selected which is capable of qualitatively reproducing experimentally observed behavior. This form contains separation time dependent scale factors as parameters and depends explicitly on spatial separation. The approximate forms of Q sub ij are used in the differential equations and integral moments are taken over the spatial domain. The velocity correlations are used in the Lighthill theory of aerodynamic sound by assuming normal joint probability.

Application of turbulence modeling to predict surface heat transfer in stagnation flow region of circular cylinder

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wang, Chi R.; Yeh, Frederick C.

1987-01-01

A theoretical analysis and numerical calculations for the turbulent flow field and for the effect of free-stream turbulence on the surface heat transfer rate of a stagnation flow are presented. The emphasis is on the modeling of turbulence and its augmentation of surface heat transfer rate. The flow field considered is the region near the forward stagnation point of a circular cylinder in a uniform turbulent mean flow. The free stream is steady and incompressible with a Reynolds number of the order of 10 to the 5th power and turbulence intensity of less than 5 percent. For this analysis, the flow field is divided into three regions: (1) a uniform free-stream region where the turbulence is homogeneous and isotropic; (2) an external viscid flow region where the turbulence is distorted by the variation of the mean flow velocity; and, (3) an anisotropic turbulent boundary layer region over the cylinder surface. The turbulence modeling techniques used are the kappa-epsilon two-equation model in the external flow region and the time-averaged turbulence transport equation in the boundary layer region. The turbulence double correlations, the mean velocity, and the mean temperature within the boundary layer are solved numerically from the transport equations. The surface heat transfer rate is calculated as functions of the free-stream turbulence longitudinal microlength scale, the turbulence intensity, and the Reynolds number.

Subgrid-scale models for large-eddy simulation of rotating turbulent channel flows

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Silvis, Maurits H.; Bae, Hyunji Jane; Trias, F. Xavier; Abkar, Mahdi; Moin, Parviz; Verstappen, Roel

2017-11-01

We aim to design subgrid-scale models for large-eddy simulation of rotating turbulent flows. Rotating turbulent flows form a challenging test case for large-eddy simulation due to the presence of the Coriolis force. The Coriolis force conserves the total kinetic energy while transporting it from small to large scales of motion, leading to the formation of large-scale anisotropic flow structures. The Coriolis force may also cause partial flow laminarization and the occurrence of turbulent bursts. Many subgrid-scale models for large-eddy simulation are, however, primarily designed to parametrize the dissipative nature of turbulent flows, ignoring the specific characteristics of transport processes. We, therefore, propose a new subgrid-scale model that, in addition to the usual dissipative eddy viscosity term, contains a nondissipative nonlinear model term designed to capture transport processes, such as those due to rotation. We show that the addition of this nonlinear model term leads to improved predictions of the energy spectra of rotating homogeneous isotropic turbulence as well as of the Reynolds stress anisotropy in spanwise-rotating plane-channel flows. This work is financed by the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO) under Project Number 613.001.212.

Anomalous Chained Turbulence in Actively Driven Flows on Spheres

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mickelin, Oscar; Słomka, Jonasz; Burns, Keaton J.; Lecoanet, Daniel; Vasil, Geoffrey M.; Faria, Luiz M.; Dunkel, Jörn

2018-04-01

Recent experiments demonstrate the importance of substrate curvature for actively forced fluid dynamics. Yet, the covariant formulation and analysis of continuum models for nonequilibrium flows on curved surfaces still poses theoretical challenges. Here, we introduce and study a generalized covariant Navier-Stokes model for fluid flows driven by active stresses in nonplanar geometries. The analytical tractability of the theory is demonstrated through exact stationary solutions for the case of a spherical bubble geometry. Direct numerical simulations reveal a curvature-induced transition from a burst phase to an anomalous turbulent phase that differs distinctly from externally forced classical 2D Kolmogorov turbulence. This new type of active turbulence is characterized by the self-assembly of finite-size vortices into linked chains of antiferromagnetic order, which percolate through the entire fluid domain, forming an active dynamic network. The coherent motion of the vortex chain network provides an efficient mechanism for upward energy transfer from smaller to larger scales, presenting an alternative to the conventional energy cascade in classical 2D turbulence.

Rossby waves and two-dimensional turbulence in a large-scale zonal jet

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Shepherd, Theodor G.

1987-01-01

Homogeneous barotropic beta-plane turbulence is investigated, taking into account the effects of spatial inhomogeneity in the form of a zonal shear flows. Attention is given to the case of zonal flows that are barotropically stable and of larger scale than the resulting transient eddy field. Numerical simulations reveal that large-scale zonal flows alter the picture of classical beta-plane turbulence. It is found that the disturbance field penetrates to the largest scales of motion, that the larger disturbance scales show a tendency to meridional rather than zonal anisotropy, and that the initial spectral transfer rate away from an isotropic intermediate-scale source is enhanced by the shear-induced transfer associated with straining by the zonal flow.

A combined volume-of-fluid method and low-Mach-number approach for DNS of evaporating droplets in turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dodd, Michael; Ferrante, Antonino

2017-11-01

Our objective is to perform DNS of finite-size droplets that are evaporating in isotropic turbulence. This requires fully resolving the process of momentum, heat, and mass transfer between the droplets and surrounding gas. We developed a combined volume-of-fluid (VOF) method and low-Mach-number approach to simulate this flow. The two main novelties of the method are: (i) the VOF algorithm captures the motion of the liquid gas interface in the presence of mass transfer due to evaporation and condensation without requiring a projection step for the liquid velocity, and (ii) the low-Mach-number approach allows for local volume changes caused by phase change while the total volume of the liquid-gas system is constant. The method is verified against an analytical solution for a Stefan flow problem, and the D2 law is verified for a single droplet in quiescent gas. We also demonstrate the schemes robustness when performing DNS of an evaporating droplet in forced isotropic turbulence.

Developing Interpretive Turbulence Models from a Database with Applications to Wind Farms and Shipboard Operations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schau, Kyle A.

This thesis presents a complete method of modeling the autospectra of turbulence in closed form via an expansion series using the von Karman model as a basis function. It is capable of modeling turbulence in all three directions of fluid flow: longitudinal, lateral, and vertical, separately, thus eliminating the assumption of homogeneous, isotropic flow. A thorough investigation into the expansion series is presented, with the strengths and weaknesses highlighted. Furthermore, numerical aspects and theoretical derivations are provided. This method is then tested against three highly complex flow fields: wake turbulence inside wind farms, helicopter downwash, and helicopter downwash coupled with turbulence shed from a ship superstructure. These applications demonstrate that this method is remarkably robust, that the developed autospectral models are virtually tailored to the design of white noise driven shaping filters, and that these models in closed form facilitate a greater understanding of complex flow fields in wind engineering.

Response of a rigid aircraft to nonstationary atmospheric turbulence.

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Verdon, J. M.; Steiner, R.

1973-01-01

The plunging response of an aircraft to a type of nonstationary turbulent excitation is considered. The latter consists of stationary Gaussian noise modulated by a well-defined envelope function. The intent of the investigation is to model the excitation experienced by an airplane flying through turbulence of varying intensity and to examine the influence of intensity variations on exceedance frequencies of the gust velocity and the airplane's plunging velocity and acceleration. One analytical advantage of the proposed model is that the Gaussian assumption for the gust excitation is retained. The analysis described herein is developed in terms of an envelope function of arbitrary form; however, numerical calculations are limited to the case of harmonic modulation.

Discontinuous Transition from Direct to Inverse Cascade in Three-Dimensional Turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sahoo, Ganapati; Alexakis, Alexandros; Biferale, Luca

2017-04-01

Inviscid invariants of flow equations are crucial in determining the direction of the turbulent energy cascade. In this work we investigate a variant of the three-dimensional Navier-Stokes equations that shares exactly the same ideal invariants (energy and helicity) and the same symmetries (under rotations, reflections, and scale transforms) as the original equations. It is demonstrated that the examined system displays a change in the direction of the energy cascade when varying the value of a free parameter which controls the relative weights of the triadic interactions between different helical Fourier modes. The transition from a forward to inverse cascade is shown to occur at a critical point in a discontinuous manner with diverging fluctuations close to criticality. Our work thus supports the observation that purely isotropic and three-dimensional flow configurations can support inverse energy transfer when interactions are altered and that inside all turbulent flows there is a competition among forward and backward transfer mechanisms which might lead to multiple energy-containing turbulent states.

Understanding Turbulence in Compressing Plasmas and Its Exploitation or Prevention

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Davidovits, Seth

Unprecedented densities and temperatures are now achieved in compressions of plasma, by lasers and by pulsed power, in major experimental facilities. These compressions, carried out at the largest scale at the National Ignition Facility and at the Z Pulsed Power Facility, have important applications, including fusion, X-ray production, and materials research. Several experimental and simulation results suggest that the plasma in some of these compressions is turbulent. In fact, measurements suggest that in certain laboratory plasma compressions the turbulent energy is a dominant energy component. Similarly, turbulence is dominant in some compressing astrophysical plasmas, such as in molecular clouds. Turbulence need not be dominant to be important; even small quantities could greatly influence experiments that are sensitive to mixing of non-fuel into fuel, such as compressions seeking fusion ignition. Despite its important role in major settings, bulk plasma turbulence under compression is insufficiently understood to answer or even to pose some of the most fundamental questions about it. This thesis both identifies and answers key questions in compressing turbulent motion, while providing a description of the behavior of three-dimensional, isotropic, compressions of homogeneous turbulence with a plasma viscosity. This description includes a simple, but successful, new model for the turbulent energy of plasma undergoing compression. The unique features of compressing turbulence with a plasma viscosity are shown, including the sensitivity of the turbulence to plasma ionization, and a "sudden viscous dissipation'' effect which rapidly converts plasma turbulent energy into thermal energy. This thesis then examines turbulence in both laboratory compression experiments and molecular clouds. It importantly shows: the possibility of exploiting turbulence to make fusion or X-ray production more efficient; conditions under which hot-spot turbulence can be prevented; and a

Inference of turbulence parameters from a ROMS simulation using the k-ε closure scheme

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Thyng, Kristen M.; Riley, James J.; Thomson, Jim

2013-12-01

Comparisons between high resolution turbulence data from Admiralty Inlet, WA (USA), and a 65-meter horizontal grid resolution simulation using the hydrostatic ocean modelling code, Regional Ocean Modeling System (ROMS), show that the model's k-ε turbulence closure scheme performs reasonably well. Turbulent dissipation rates and Reynolds stresses agree within a factor of two, on average. Turbulent kinetic energy (TKE) also agrees within a factor of two, but only for motions within the observed inertial sub-range of frequencies (i.e., classic approximately isotropic turbulence). TKE spectra from the observations indicate that there is significant energy at lower frequencies than the inertial sub-range; these scales are not captured by the model closure scheme nor the model grid resolution. To account for scales not present in the model, the inertial sub-range is extrapolated to lower frequencies and then integrated to obtain an inferred, diagnostic total TKE, with improved agreement with the observed total TKE. The realistic behavior of the dissipation rate and Reynolds stress, combined with the adjusted total TKE, imply that ROMS simulations can be used to understand and predict spatial and temporal variations in turbulence. The results are suggested for application to siting tidal current turbines.

Direct numerical simulation of curved turbulent channel flow

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Moser, R. D.; Moin, P.

1984-01-01

Low Reynolds number, mildly curved, turbulent channel flow has been simulated numerically without subgrid scale models. A new spectral numerical method developed for this problem was used, and the computations were performed with 2 million degrees of freedom. A variety of statistical and structural information has been extracted from the computed flow fields. These include mean velocity, turbulence stresses, velocity skewness, and flatness factors, space time correlations and spectra, all the terms in the Reynolds stress balance equations, and contour and vector plots of instantaneous velocity fields. The effects of curvature on this flow were determined by comparing the concave and convex sides of the channel. The observed effects are consistent with experimental observations for mild curvature. The most significant difference in the turbulence statistics between the concave and convex sides was in the Reynolds shear stress. This was accompanied by significant differences in the terms of the Reynolds shear stress balance equations. In addition, it was found that stationary Taylor-Gortler vortices were present and that they had a significant effect on the flow by contributing to the mean Reynolds shear stress, and by affecting the underlying turbulence.

Velocity Resolved---Scalar Modeled Simulations of High Schmidt Number Turbulent Transport

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Verma, Siddhartha

The objective of this thesis is to develop a framework to conduct velocity resolved - scalar modeled (VR-SM) simulations, which will enable accurate simulations at higher Reynolds and Schmidt (Sc) numbers than are currently feasible. The framework established will serve as a first step to enable future simulation studies for practical applications. To achieve this goal, in-depth analyses of the physical, numerical, and modeling aspects related to Sc " 1 are presented, specifically when modeling in the viscous-convective subrange. Transport characteristics are scrutinized by examining scalar-velocity Fourier mode interactions in Direct Numerical Simulation (DNS) datasets and suggest that scalar modes in the viscous-convective subrange do not directly affect large-scale transport for high Sc . Further observations confirm that discretization errors inherent in numerical schemes can be sufficiently large to wipe out any meaningful contribution from subfilter models. This provides strong incentive to develop more effective numerical schemes to support high Sc simulations. To lower numerical dissipation while maintaining physically and mathematically appropriate scalar bounds during the convection step, a novel method of enforcing bounds is formulated, specifically for use with cubic Hermite polynomials. Boundedness of the scalar being transported is effected by applying derivative limiting techniques, and physically plausible single sub-cell extrema are allowed to exist to help minimize numerical dissipation. The proposed bounding algorithm results in significant performance gain in DNS of turbulent mixing layers and of homogeneous isotropic turbulence. Next, the combined physical/mathematical behavior of the subfilter scalar-flux vector is analyzed in homogeneous isotropic turbulence, by examining vector orientation in the strain-rate eigenframe. The results indicate no discernible dependence on the modeled scalar field, and lead to the identification of the tensor

Nonuniform quantum turbulence in superfluids

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nemirovskii, Sergey K.

2018-04-01

The problem of quantum turbulence in a channel with an inhomogeneous counterflow of superfluid turbulent helium is studied. The counterflow velocity Vns x(y ) along the channel is supposed to have a parabolic profile in the transverse direction y . Such statement corresponds to the recent numerical simulation by Khomenko et al. [Phys. Rev. B 91, 180504 (2015), 10.1103/PhysRevB.91.180504]. The authors reported about a sophisticated behavior of the vortex-line density (VLD) L (r ,t ) , different from L ∝Vns x(y) 2 , which follows from the straightforward application of the conventional Vinen theory. It is clear that Vinen theory should be refined by taking into account transverse effects, and the way it ought to be done is the subject of active discussion in the literature. In this work, we discuss several possible mechanisms of the transverse flux of VLD L (r ,t ) which should be incorporated in the standard Vinen equation to describe adequately the inhomogeneous quantum turbulence. It is shown that the most effective among these mechanisms is the one that is related to the phase-slippage phenomenon. The use of this flux in the modernized Vinen equation corrects the situation with an unusual distribution of the vortex-line density, and satisfactorily describes the behavior L (r ,t ) both in stationary and nonstationary situations. The general problem of the phenomenological Vinen theory in the case of nonuniform and nonstationary quantum turbulence is thoroughly discussed.

Understanding turbulence in compressing plasmas and its exploitation or prevention.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Davidovits, Seth

Unprecedented densities and temperatures are now achieved in compressions of plasma, by lasers and by pulsed power, in major experimental facilities. These compressions, carried out at the largest scale at the National Ignition Facility and at the Z Pulsed Power Facility, have important applications, including fusion, X-ray production, and materials research. Several experimental and simulation results suggest that the plasma in some of these compressions is turbulent. In fact, measurements suggest that in certain laboratory plasma compressions the turbulent energy is a dominant energy component. Similarly, turbulence is dominant in some compressing astrophysical plasmas, such as in molecular clouds. Turbulencemore » need not be dominant to be important; even small quantities could greatly influence experiments that are sensitive to mixing of non-fuel into fuel, such as compressions seeking fusion ignition. Despite its important role in major settings, bulk plasma turbulence under compression is insufficiently understood to answer or even to pose some of the most fundamental questions about it. This thesis both identifies and answers key questions in compressing turbulent motion, while providing a description of the behavior of three-dimensional, isotropic, compressions of homogeneous turbulence with a plasma viscosity. This description includes a simple, but successful, new model for the turbulent energy of plasma undergoing compression. The unique features of compressing turbulence with a plasma viscosity are shown, including the sensitivity of the turbulence to plasma ionization, and a sudden viscous dissipation'' effect which rapidly converts plasma turbulent energy into thermal energy. This thesis then examines turbulence in both laboratory compression experiments and molecular clouds. It importantly shows: the possibility of exploiting turbulence to make fusion or X-ray production more efficient; conditions under which hot-spot turbulence can be prevented

Discovery of stationary operation of quiescent H-mode plasmas with net-zero neutral beam injection torque and high energy confinement on DIII-D [Discovery of stationary operation of quiescent H-mode plasmas with Net-Zero NBI torque and high energy confinement on DIII-D

DOE PAGES

Burrell, Keith H.; Barada, Kshitish; Chen, Xi; ...

2016-03-11

Here, recent experiments in DIII-D have led to the discovery of a means of modifying edge turbulence to achieve stationary, high confinement operation without Edge Localized Mode (ELM) instabilities and with no net external torque input. Eliminating the ELM-induced heat bursts and controlling plasma stability at low rotation represent two of the great challenges for fusion energy. By exploiting edge turbulence in a novel manner, we achieved excellent tokamak performance, well above the H 98y2 international tokamak energy confinement scaling (H 98y2=1.25), thus meeting an additional confinement challenge that is usually difficult at low torque. The new regime is triggeredmore » in double null plasmas by ramping the injected torque to zero and then maintaining it there. This lowers ExB rotation shear in the plasma edge, allowing low-k, broadband, electromagnetic turbulence to increase. In the H-mode edge, a narrow transport barrier usually grows until MHD instability (a peeling ballooning mode) leads to the ELM heat burst. However, the increased turbulence reduces the pressure gradient, allowing the development of a broader and thus higher transport barrier. A 60% increase in pedestal pressure and 40% increase in energy confinement result. An increase in the ExB shearing rate inside of the edge pedestal is a key factor in the confinement increase. Strong double-null plasma shaping raises the threshold for the ELM instability, allowing the plasma to reach a transport-limited state near but below the explosive ELM stability boundary. The resulting plasmas have burning-plasma-relevant β N=1.6-1.8 and run without the need for extra torque from 3D magnetic fields. To date, stationary conditions have been produced for 2 s or 12 energy confinement times, limited only by external hardware constraints. Stationary operation with improved pedestal conditions is highly significant for future burning plasma devices, since operation without ELMs at low rotation and good

Discovery of stationary operation of quiescent H-mode plasmas with net-zero neutral beam injection torque and high energy confinement on DIII-D [Discovery of stationary operation of quiescent H-mode plasmas with Net-Zero NBI torque and high energy confinement on DIII-D

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Burrell, Keith H.; Barada, Kshitish; Chen, Xi

Here, recent experiments in DIII-D have led to the discovery of a means of modifying edge turbulence to achieve stationary, high confinement operation without Edge Localized Mode (ELM) instabilities and with no net external torque input. Eliminating the ELM-induced heat bursts and controlling plasma stability at low rotation represent two of the great challenges for fusion energy. By exploiting edge turbulence in a novel manner, we achieved excellent tokamak performance, well above the H 98y2 international tokamak energy confinement scaling (H 98y2=1.25), thus meeting an additional confinement challenge that is usually difficult at low torque. The new regime is triggeredmore » in double null plasmas by ramping the injected torque to zero and then maintaining it there. This lowers ExB rotation shear in the plasma edge, allowing low-k, broadband, electromagnetic turbulence to increase. In the H-mode edge, a narrow transport barrier usually grows until MHD instability (a peeling ballooning mode) leads to the ELM heat burst. However, the increased turbulence reduces the pressure gradient, allowing the development of a broader and thus higher transport barrier. A 60% increase in pedestal pressure and 40% increase in energy confinement result. An increase in the ExB shearing rate inside of the edge pedestal is a key factor in the confinement increase. Strong double-null plasma shaping raises the threshold for the ELM instability, allowing the plasma to reach a transport-limited state near but below the explosive ELM stability boundary. The resulting plasmas have burning-plasma-relevant β N=1.6-1.8 and run without the need for extra torque from 3D magnetic fields. To date, stationary conditions have been produced for 2 s or 12 energy confinement times, limited only by external hardware constraints. Stationary operation with improved pedestal conditions is highly significant for future burning plasma devices, since operation without ELMs at low rotation and good

Application of PDF methods to compressible turbulent flows

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Delarue, B. J.; Pope, S. B.

1997-09-01

A particle method applying the probability density function (PDF) approach to turbulent compressible flows is presented. The method is applied to several turbulent flows, including the compressible mixing layer, and good agreement is obtained with experimental data. The PDF equation is solved using a Lagrangian/Monte Carlo method. To accurately account for the effects of compressibility on the flow, the velocity PDF formulation is extended to include thermodynamic variables such as the pressure and the internal energy. The mean pressure, the determination of which has been the object of active research over the last few years, is obtained directly from the particle properties. It is therefore not necessary to link the PDF solver with a finite-volume type solver. The stochastic differential equations (SDE) which model the evolution of particle properties are based on existing second-order closures for compressible turbulence, limited in application to low turbulent Mach number flows. Tests are conducted in decaying isotropic turbulence to compare the performances of the PDF method with the Reynolds-stress closures from which it is derived, and in homogeneous shear flows, at which stage comparison with direct numerical simulation (DNS) data is conducted. The model is then applied to the plane compressible mixing layer, reproducing the well-known decrease in the spreading rate with increasing compressibility. It must be emphasized that the goal of this paper is not as much to assess the performance of models of compressibility effects, as it is to present an innovative and consistent PDF formulation designed for turbulent inhomogeneous compressible flows, with the aim of extending it further to deal with supersonic reacting flows.

Turbulent dispersion of slightly buoyant oil droplets and turbulent breakup of crude oil droplets mixed with dispersants

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gopalan, Balaji

In part I, high speed in-line digital holographic cinematography is used for studying turbulent diffusion of slightly buoyant 0.5-1.2 mm diameter diesel droplets (specific gravity of 0.85) and 50 mum diameter neutral density particles. Experiments are performed in a 50x50x70 mm3 sample volume in a controlled, nearly isotropic turbulence facility, which is characterized by 2-D PIV. An automated tracking program has been used for measuring velocity time history of more than 17000 droplets and 15000 particles. The PDF's of droplet velocity fluctuations are close to Gaussian for all turbulent intensities ( u'i ). The mean rise velocity of droplets is enhanced or suppressed, compared to quiescent rise velocity (Uq), depending on Stokes number at lower turbulence levels, but becomes unconditionally enhanced at higher turbulence levels. The horizontal droplet velocity rms exceeds the fluid velocity rms for most of the data, while the vertical ones are higher than the fluid only at the highest turbulence level. The scaled droplet horizontal diffusion coefficient is higher than the vertical one, for 1 < u'i /Uq < 5, consistent with trends of the droplet velocity fluctuations. Conversely, the scaled droplet horizontal diffusion timescale is smaller than the vertical one due to crossing trajectories effect. The droplet diffusion coefficients scaled by the product of turbulence intensity and an integral length scale is a monotonically increasing function of u'i /Uq. Part II of this work explains the formation of micron sized droplets in turbulent flows from crude oil droplets pre-mixed with dispersants. Experimental visualization shows that this breakup starts with the formation of very long and quite stable, single or multiple micro threads that trail behind millimeter sized droplets. These threads form in regions with localized increase in concentration of surfactant, which in turn depends on the flow around the droplet. The resulting reduction of local surface tension

Augmentation of Stagnation Region Heat Transfer Due to Turbulence From a DLN Can Combustor

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

VanFossen, G. James; Bunker, Ronald S.

2000-01-01

Heat transfer measurements have been made in the stagnation region of a flat plate with a circular leading edge. Electrically heated aluminum strips placed symmetrically about the leading edge stagnation region were used to measure spanwise averaged heat transfer coefficients. The maximum Reynolds number obtained, based on leading edge diameter, was about 100,000. The model was immersed in the flow field downstream of an approximately half scale model of a can-type combustor from a low NO(x), ground based power-generating turbine. The tests were conducted with room temperature air; no fuel was added. Room air flowed into the combustor through six vane type fuel/air swirlers. The combustor can contained no dilution holes. The fuel/air swirlers all swirled the incoming airflow in a counter clockwise direction (facing downstream). A 5-hole probe flow field survey in the plane of the model stagnation point showed the flow was one big vortex with flow angles up to 36' at the outer edges of the rectangular test section. Hot wire measurements showed test section flow had very high levels of turbulence, around 28.5 percent, and had a relatively large axial-length scale-to-leading edge diameter ratio of 0.5. X-wire measurements showed the turbulence to be nearly isotropic. Stagnation heat transfer augmentation over laminar levels was around 77 percent and was about 14 percent higher than predicted by a previously developed correlation for isotropic grid generated turbulence.

Scaling laws for mixing and dissipation in unforced rotating stratified turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pouquet, A.; Rosenberg, D.; Marino, R.; Herbert, C.

2018-06-01

We present a model for the scaling of mixing in weakly rotating stratified flows characterized by their Rossby, Froude and Reynolds numbers Ro, Fr, Re. It is based on quasi-equipartition between kinetic and potential modes, sub-dominant vertical velocity and lessening of the energy transfer to small scales as measured by the ratio rE of kinetic energy dissipation to its dimensional expression. We determine their domains of validity for a numerical study of the unforced Boussinesq equations mostly on grids of 10243 points, with Ro/Fr> 2.5 and with 1600< Re<1.9x104; the Prandtl number is one, initial conditions are either isotropic and at large scale for the velocity, and zero for the temperature {\\theta}, or in geostrophic balance. Three regimes in Fr are observed: dominant waves, eddy-wave interactions and strong turbulence. A wave-turbulence balance for the transfer time leads to rE growing linearly with Fr in the intermediate regime, with a saturation at ~0.3 or more, depending on initial conditions for larger Froude numbers. The Ellison scale is also found to scale linearly with Fr, and the flux Richardson number Rf transitions for roughly the same parameter values as well. Putting together the 3 relationships of the model allows for the prediction of mixing efficiency scaling as Fr-2~RB-1 in the low and intermediate regimes, whereas for higher Fr, it scales as RB-1/2, as already observed: as turbulence strengthens, rE~1, the velocity is isotropic and smaller buoyancy fluxes altogether correspond to a decoupling of velocity and temperature fluctuations, the latter becoming passive.

Time and space analysis of turbulence of gravity surface waves

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mordant, Nicolas; Aubourg, Quentin; Viboud, Samuel; Sommeria, Joel

2016-11-01

Wave turbulence is a statistical state made of a very large number of nonlinearly interacting waves. The Weak Turbulence Theory was developed to describe such a situation in the weakly nonlinear regime. Although, oceanic data tend to be compatible with the theory, laboratory data fail to fulfill the theoretical predictions. A space-time resolved measurement of the waves have proven to be especially fruitful to identify the mechanism at play in turbulence of gravity-capillary waves. We developed an image processing algorithm to measure the motion of the surface of water with both space and time resolution. We first seed the surface with slightly buoyant polystyrene particles and use 3 cameras to reconstruct the surface. Our stereoscopic algorithm is coupled to PIV so that to obtain both the surface deformation and the velocity of the water surface. Such a coupling is shown to improve the sensitivity of the measurement by one order of magnitude. We use this technique to probe the existence of weakly nonlinear turbulence excited by two small wedge wavemakers in a 13-m diameter wave flume. We observe a truly weakly nonlinear regime of isotropic wave turbulence. This project has received funding from the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme (Grant Agreement No 647018-WATU).

Vorticity dynamics after the shock–turbulence interaction

DOE PAGES

Livescu, Daniel; Ryu, Jaiyoung

2015-07-23

In this article, the interaction of a shock wave with quasi-vortical isotropic turbulence (IT) represents a basic problem for studying some of the phenomena associated with high speed flows, such as hypersonic flight, supersonic combustion and Inertial Confinement Fusion (ICF). In general, in practical applications, the shock width is much smaller than the turbulence scales and the upstream turbulent Mach number is modest. In this case, recent high resolution shock-resolved Direct Numerical Simulations (DNS) (Ryu and Livescu, J Fluid Mech 756, R1, 2014) show that the interaction can be described by the Linear Interaction Approximation (LIA). Using LIA to alleviatemore » the need to resolve the shock, DNS post-shock data can be generated at much higher Reynolds numbers than previously possible. Here, such results with Taylor Reynolds number approximately 180 are used to investigate the changes in the vortical structure as a function of the shock Mach number, M s, up to M s = 10. It is shown that, as M s increases, the shock interaction induces a tendency towards a local axisymmetric state perpendicular to the shock front, which has a profound influence on the vortex-stretching mechanism and divergence of the Lamb vector and, ultimately, on the flow evolution away from the shock.« less

Short wavelength turbulence generated by shear in the quiescent H-mode edge on DIII–D [Short wavelength turbulence generated by shear in the QH-mode edge on DIII-D

DOE PAGES

Rost, Jon C.; Porkolab, Miklos; Dorris, James R.; ...

2014-06-17

A region of turbulence with large radial wavenumber (k rρ s > 1) is found in the high-shear portion of the plasma edge in Quiescent H-mode (QH-mode) on DIII{D using the Phase Contrast Imaging (PCI) diagnostic. At its peak outside the minimum of the E r well, the turbulence exhibits large amplitudemore » $$\\tilde{n}$$/n ~ 40%, with large radial wavenumber |$$\\bar{k}$$ r/ $$\\bar{k}$$ θ| ~ 11 and short radial correlation length L r/ρ i ~ 0.2. The turbulence inside the E r well minimum is characterized by the opposite sign in radial wavenumber from that of turbulence outside the minimum, consistent with the expected effects of velocity shear. The PCI diagnostic provides a line-integrated measurement of density uctuations, so data is taken during a scan of plasma position at constant parameters to allow the PCI to sample a range in k r/k θ . Analysis of the Doppler Shift and plasma geometry allows the turbulence to be localized to a narrow region 3 mm inside the last closed flux surface (LCFS), outside the minimum of the E r well. The turbulence amplitude and radial wavenumber and correlation length are determined by fitting the PCI results with a simple non-isotropic turbulence model with two regions of turbulence. Finally, these PCI observations, made in QH-mode, are qualitatively similar to those made in standard ELM-free H-mode and between edge localized modes (ELMs), suggesting a similar role for large k r turbulence there.« less

Decoupling the Roles of Inertia and Gravity on Particle Dispersion

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Groszmann, D. E.; Thompson, J. H.; Coppen, S. W.; Rogers, C. B.

1999-01-01

Inertial and gravitational forces determine a particle's motion in a turbulent flow field. Gravity plays the dominant role in this motion by pulling the particles through adjacent regions of fluid turbulence. To better understand and model how a particle's inertia effects its displacement, one must examine the dispersion in a turbulent flow in the absence of gravity. In this paper, we present the particle experiments planned for NASA's KC-135 Reduced-Gravity Aircraft, which generates microgravity conditions for about 20 seconds. We also predict the particle behavior using simulation and ground-based experiments. We will release particles with Stokes numbers of 0.1, 1, and 10 into an enclosed tank of near-isotropic, stationary, and homogenous turbulence. These particle Stoke numbers cover a broad range of flow regimes of interest. Two opposed grids oscillating back and forth generate the turbulent field in the tank with a range of turbulence scales that covers about three orders of magnitude and with turbulence intensities of about ten times the mean velocity. The motion of the particles will be tracked using a stereo image velocimetry technique.

A dissipative random velocity field for fully developed fluid turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chevillard, Laurent; Pereira, Rodrigo; Garban, Christophe

2016-11-01

We investigate the statistical properties, based on numerical simulations and analytical calculations, of a recently proposed stochastic model for the velocity field of an incompressible, homogeneous, isotropic and fully developed turbulent flow. A key step in the construction of this model is the introduction of some aspects of the vorticity stretching mechanism that governs the dynamics of fluid particles along their trajectory. An additional further phenomenological step aimed at including the long range correlated nature of turbulence makes this model depending on a single free parameter that can be estimated from experimental measurements. We confirm the realism of the model regarding the geometry of the velocity gradient tensor, the power-law behaviour of the moments of velocity increments, including the intermittent corrections, and the existence of energy transfers across scales. We quantify the dependence of these basic properties of turbulent flows on the free parameter and derive analytically the spectrum of exponents of the structure functions in a simplified non dissipative case. A perturbative expansion shows that energy transfers indeed take place, justifying the dissipative nature of this random field.

Turbulence studies with means of reflectometry at TEXTOR

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Krämer-Flecken, A.; Dreval, V.; Soldatov, S.; Rogister, A.; Vershkov, V.; TEXTOR-team

2004-11-01

At TEXTOR, an O-mode heterodyne reflectometer system is installed and operated for the measurement of plasma density fluctuations and turbulence investigations. With two antenna arrays in the equatorial and top positions having two and three horn antennae, respectively, poloidal correlations are investigated under different plasma scenarios. From the amplitude, cross-phase and coherency spectrum, differences in the ohmic and auxiliary heated discharges are investigated. Furthermore the dynamic behaviour of the turbulence is studied in the SOC-IOC transition and in the precursor phase of a disruption. For the latter an increased integrated power spectral density was observed at the X-point of the mode compared with the O-point. Stationary m = 2 mode activity is observed for the first time at TEXTOR by reflectometry. The fluctuation level is calculated for different conditions and rises significantly increasing heating power which is consistent with the L-mode confinement degradation. Correlation measurements yield the measured phase delays which are used to calculate the poloidal phase velocity perpendicular to the magnetic field. In ohmic plasmas the turbulence rotates like a 'rigid body' with constant angular velocity inside the q = 2 surface. The rigid body rotation is broken up during tangential neutral beam injection. From the deduced poloidal wavenumber of the turbulence, most likely ion temperature gradient modes are the driving mechanism of the turbulence.

Compressibility effects on turbulent mixing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Panickacheril John, John; Donzis, Diego

2016-11-01

We investigate the effect of compressibility on passive scalar mixing in isotropic turbulence with a focus on the fundamental mechanisms that are responsible for such effects using a large Direct Numerical Simulation (DNS) database. The database includes simulations with Taylor Reynolds number (Rλ) up to 100, turbulent Mach number (Mt) between 0.1 and 0.6 and Schmidt number (Sc) from 0.5 to 1.0. We present several measures of mixing efficiency on different canonical flows to robustly identify compressibility effects. We found that, like shear layers, mixing is reduced as Mach number increases. However, data also reveal a non-monotonic trend with Mt. To assess directly the effect of dilatational motions we also present results with both dilatational and soleniodal forcing. Analysis suggests that a small fraction of dilatational forcing decreases mixing time at higher Mt. Scalar spectra collapse when normalized by Batchelor variables which suggests that a compressive mechanism similar to Batchelor mixing in incompressible flows might be responsible for better mixing at high Mt and with dilatational forcing compared to pure solenoidal mixing. We also present results on scalar budgets, in particular on production and dissipation. Support from NSF is gratefully acknowledged.

Fundamental Physics and Model Assumptions in Turbulent Combustion Models for Aerospace Propulsion

DTIC Science & Technology

2014-06-01

of the equation of state is enabling to this variables split since a constant pressure implies that density can be obtained ... of models, the Reynolds stress term is first expressed as the sum of the deviatoric and isotropic stress parts. The deviatoric part is given by: τD...interpretation with regard to turbulent flow. It may be more appropriate to look at the modeling of the cross- stress terms in the LES equations

Spectral calculations for pressure-velocity and pressure-strain correlations in homogeneous shear turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dutta, Kishore

2018-02-01

Theoretical analyses of pressure related turbulent statistics are vital for a reliable and accurate modeling of turbulence. In the inertial subrange of turbulent shear flow, pressure-velocity and pressure-strain correlations are affected by anisotropy imposed at large scales. Recently, Tsuji and Kaneda (2012 J. Fluid Mech. 694 50) performed a set of experiments on homogeneous shear flow, and estimated various one-dimensional pressure related spectra and the associated non-dimensional universal numbers. Here, starting from the governing Navier-Stokes dynamics for the fluctuating velocity field and assuming the anisotropy at inertial scales as a weak perturbation of an otherwise isotropic dynamics, we analytically derive the form of the pressure-velocity and pressure-strain correlations. The associated universal numbers are calculated using the well-known renormalization-group results, and are compared with the experimental estimates of Tsuji and Kaneda. Approximations involved in the perturbative calculations are discussed.

Anisotropy of MHD Turbulence at Low Magnetic Reynolds Number

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zikanov, O.; Vorobev, A.; Thess, A.; Davidson, P. A.; Knaepen, B.

2004-01-01

Turbulent fluctuations in MHD flows are known to become dimensionally anisotropic under the action of a sufficiently strong magnetic field. We consider the technologically relevant case of low magnetic Reynolds number and apply the method of DNS of forced flow in a periodic box to generate velocity fields. The analysis based on different anisotropy characteristics shows that the dimensional anisotropy is virtually scale-independent. We also find that, except for the case of very strong magnetic field, the flow is componentally isotropic. Its kinetic energy is practically uniformly distributed among the velocity components.

Turbulence Impact on Wind Turbines: Experimental Investigations on a Wind Turbine Model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Al-Abadi, A.; Kim, Y. J.; Ertunç, Ö.; Delgado, A.

2016-09-01

Experimental investigations have been conducted by exposing an efficient wind turbine model to different turbulence levels in a wind tunnel. Nearly isotropic turbulence is generated by using two static squared grids: fine and coarse one. In addition, the distance between the wind-turbine and the grid is adjusted. Hence, as the turbulence decays in the flow direction, the wind-turbine is exposed to turbulence with various energy and length scale content. The developments of turbulence scales in the flow direction at various Reynolds numbers and the grid mesh size are measured. Those measurements are conducted with hot-wire anemometry in the absence of the wind-turbine. Detailed measurements and analysis of the upstream and downstream velocities, turbulence intensity and spectrum distributions are done. Performance measurements are conducted with and without turbulence grids and the results are compared. Performance measurements are conducted with an experimental setup that allow measuring of torque, rotational speed from the electrical parameters. The study shows the higher the turbulence level, the higher the power coefficient. This is due to many reasons. First, is the interaction of turbulence scales with the blade surface boundary layer, which in turn delay the stall. Thus, suppressing the boundary layer and preventing it from separation and hence enhancing the aerodynamics characteristics of the blade. In addition, higher turbulence helps in damping the tip vortices. Thus, reduces the tip losses. Adding winglets to the blade tip will reduce the tip vortex. Further investigations of the near and far wake-surrounding intersection are performed to understand the energy exchange and the free stream entrainment that help in retrieving the velocity.

Light-Steered Isotropic Semiconductor Micromotors.

PubMed

Chen, Chuanrui; Mou, Fangzhi; Xu, Leilei; Wang, Shaofei; Guan, Jianguo; Feng, Zunpeng; Wang, Quanwei; Kong, Lei; Li, Wei; Wang, Joseph; Zhang, Qingjie

2017-01-01

Intelligent photoresponsive isotropic semiconductor micromotors are developed by taking advantage of the limited penetration depth of light to induce asymmetrical surface chemical reactions. Independent of the Brownian motion of themselves, the as-proposed isotropic micromotors are able to continuously move with both motion direction and speed just controlled by light, as well as precisely manipulate particles for nanoengineering. © 2016 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Analytical expressions for the log-amplitude correlation function of a plane wave through anisotropic atmospheric refractive turbulence.

PubMed

Gudimetla, V S Rao; Holmes, Richard B; Smith, Carey; Needham, Gregory

2012-05-01

The effect of anisotropic Kolmogorov turbulence on the log-amplitude correlation function for plane-wave fields is investigated using analysis, numerical integration, and simulation. A new analytical expression for the log-amplitude correlation function is derived for anisotropic Kolmogorov turbulence. The analytic results, based on the Rytov approximation, agree well with a more general wave-optics simulation based on the Fresnel approximation as well as with numerical evaluations, for low and moderate strengths of turbulence. The new expression reduces correctly to previously published analytic expressions for isotropic turbulence. The final results indicate that, as asymmetry becomes greater, the Rytov variance deviates from that given by the standard formula. This deviation becomes greater with stronger turbulence, up to moderate turbulence strengths. The anisotropic effects on the log-amplitude correlation function are dominant when the separation of the points is within the Fresnel length. In the direction of stronger turbulence, there is an enhanced dip in the correlation function at a separation close to the Fresnel length. The dip is diminished in the weak-turbulence axis, suggesting that energy redistribution via focusing and defocusing is dominated by the strong-turbulence axis. The new analytical expression is useful when anisotropy is observed in relevant experiments. © 2012 Optical Society of America

Reproducing scalar mixing of turbulent jets in a 3D periodic box

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rah, K. Jeff; Blanquart, Guillaume

2017-11-01

A triply periodic DNS is a convenient framework to analyze the turbulent mixing process, since it can produce statistically stationary turbulence. In addition, the periodic boundary condition makes it easy to compute the spatial spectra of scalars. However, it is difficult to create a realistic turbulent flow with such a geometry. In this current investigation, we aim to develop a method to simulate a realistic turbulent mixing process inside a 3D periodic box. The target real flow is an axisymmetric jet with passive scalars on its centerline. The velocity and scalar information of turbulent jets on the centerline is applied to the momentum equation and scalar transport equation in physical space. The result is the combination of a mean gradient term and a linear forcing term in the scalar equation. These new forcing terms are derived to replicate the scalar mixing properties of jets in a triply periodic DNS. The present analysis differs from other forcing schemes for their derivation process did not involve any use of the velocity or scalar information of a real turbulent flow. A set of DNS has been performed with the new forcing term, and various turbulent parameters and spectral relations are compared against experiments.

Modeling the dissipation rate in rotating turbulent flows

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Speziale, Charles G.; Raj, Rishi; Gatski, Thomas B.

1990-01-01

A variety of modifications to the modeled dissipation rate transport equation that have been proposed during the past two decades to account for rotational strains are examined. The models are subjected to two crucial test cases: the decay of isotropic turbulence in a rotating frame and homogeneous shear flow in a rotating frame. It is demonstrated that these modifications do not yield substantially improved predictions for these two test cases and in many instances give rise to unphysical behavior. An alternative proposal, based on the use of the tensor dissipation rate, is made for the development of improved models.

Reconnection Dynamics and Mutual Friction in Quantum Turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Laurie, Jason; Baggaley, Andrew W.

2015-07-01

We investigate the behaviour of the mutual friction force in finite temperature quantum turbulence in He, paying particular attention to the role of quantized vortex reconnections. Through the use of the vortex filament model, we produce three experimentally relevant types of vortex tangles in steady-state conditions, and examine through statistical analysis, how local properties of the tangle influence the mutual friction force. Finally, by monitoring reconnection events, we present evidence to indicate that vortex reconnections are the dominant mechanism for producing areas of high curvature and velocity leading to regions of high mutual friction, particularly for homogeneous and isotropic vortex tangles.

Drift wave turbulence simulations in LAPD

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Popovich, P.; Umansky, M.; Carter, T. A.; Auerbach, D. W.; Friedman, B.; Schaffner, D.; Vincena, S.

2009-11-01

We present numerical simulations of turbulence in LAPD plasmas using the 3D electromagnetic code BOUT (BOUndary Turbulence). BOUT solves a system of fluid moment equations in a general toroidal equlibrium geometry near the plasma boundary. The underlying assumptions for the validity of the fluid model are well satisfied for drift waves in LAPD plasmas (typical plasma parameters ne˜1x10^12cm-3, Te˜10eV, and B ˜1kG), which makes BOUT a perfect tool for simulating LAPD. We have adapted BOUT for the cylindrical geometry of LAPD and have extended the model to include the background flows required for simulations of recent bias-driven rotation experiments. We have successfully verified the code for several linear instabilities, including resistive drift waves, Kelvin-Helmholtz and rotation-driven interchange. We will discuss first non-linear simulations and quasi-stationary solutions with self-consistent plasma flows and saturated density profiles.

Direct and inverse energy cascades in a forced rotating turbulence experiment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Campagne, Antoine; Gallet, Basile; Moisy, Frédéric; Cortet, Pierre-Philippe

2014-11-01

Turbulence in a rotating frame provides a remarkable system where 2D and 3D properties may coexist, with a possible tuning between direct and inverse cascades. We present here experimental evidence for a double cascade of kinetic energy in a statistically stationary rotating turbulence experiment. Turbulence is generated by a set of vertical flaps which continuously injects velocity fluctuations towards the center of a rotating water tank. The energy transfers are evaluated from two-point third-order three-component velocity structure functions, which we measure using stereoscopic PIV in the rotating frame. Without global rotation, the energy is transferred from large to small scales, as in classical 3D turbulence. For nonzero rotation rates, the horizontal kinetic energy presents a double cascade: a direct cascade at small horizontal scales and an inverse cascade at large horizontal scales. By contrast, the vertical kinetic energy is always transferred from large to small horizontal scales, a behavior reminiscent of the dynamics of a passive scalar in 2D turbulence. At the largest rotation rate, the flow is nearly 2D and a pure inverse energy cascade is found for the horizontal energy.

Scaling Laws in Turbulence: Their Manifestation and Utility.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Juneja, Anurag

1995-01-01

ideas from turbulence physics underlying the observed scaling features, we outline a family of schemes for generating artificial velocity fields, dubbed synthetic turbulence, which mimic velocity fluctuations in high-Reynolds -number turbulence to various degrees of detail. In the case of one-dimensional implementation of these schemes, we provide comparisons with experimental turbulence data and note that analytical predictions from the model allow us to relate the parameters of synthetic turbulence to those of real turbulence. Finally, we show that, compared to random initial conditions, an artificial velocity field in three-dimensions generated using a simplified synthetic turbulence scheme may be better suited for use as the initial condition for direct numerical simulation of homogeneous isotropic turbulence.

Gyrotropic Guiding-Center Fluid Theory for the Turbulent Heating of Magnetospheric Ions in Downward Birkeland Current Regions

DTIC Science & Technology

2006-11-20

Doppler -shifted, quasistatic turbulence from the real, time- mogeneous medium,18 we can then estimate that k - k1 and dependent turbulence near the...ground is due to Doppler -shifted, spatially irregular, electric- field structures that are stationary in the ion frame. Sub- we have determined that the...erpnding cn ar ion tepeoratre- 18F J. Crary, M. V. Goldman , R. E. Ergun, and D. L. Newman, Geophys. sented in this paper gives the perpendicular ion

Improved measurements of turbulence in the hot gaseous atmospheres of nearby giant elliptical galaxies

DOE PAGES

Ogorzalek, A.; Zhuravleva, I.; Allen, S. W.; ...

2017-08-12

Here, we present significantly improved measurements of turbulent velocities in the hot gaseous haloes of nearby giant elliptical galaxies. Using deep XMM–NewtonReflection Grating Spectrometer ( RGS) observations and a combination of resonance scattering and direct line broadening methods, we obtain well bounded constraints for 13 galaxies. Assuming that the turbulence is isotropic, we obtain a best-fitting mean 1D turbulent velocity of 110 km s -1. This implies a typical 3D Mach number ~0.45 and a typical non-thermal pressure contribution of ~6 per cent in the cores of nearby massive galaxies. The intrinsic scatter around these values is modest – consistentmore » with zero, albeit with large statistical uncertainty – hinting at a common and quasi-continuous mechanism sourcing the velocity structure in these objects. Using conservative estimates of the spatial scales associated with the observed turbulent motions, we find that turbulent heating can be sufficient to offset radiative cooling in the inner regions of these galaxies (<10 kpc, typically 2–3 kpc). The full potential of our analysis methods will be enabled by future X-ray micro-calorimeter observations.« less

Onset of turbulence in accelerated high-Reynolds-number flow

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhou, Ye; Robey, Harry F.; Buckingham, Alfred C.

2003-05-01

A new criterion, flow drive time, is identified here as a necessary condition for transition to turbulence in accelerated, unsteady flows. Compressible, high-Reynolds-number flows initiated, for example, in shock tubes, supersonic wind tunnels with practical limitations on dimensions or reservoir capacity, and high energy density pulsed laser target vaporization experimental facilities may not provide flow duration adequate for turbulence development. In addition, for critical periods of the overall flow development, the driving background flow is often unsteady in the experiments as well as in the physical flow situations they are designed to mimic. In these situations transition to fully developed turbulence may not be realized despite achievement of flow Reynolds numbers associated with or exceeding stationary flow transitional criteria. Basically our transitional criterion and prediction procedure extends to accelerated, unsteady background flow situations the remarkably universal mixing transition criterion proposed by Dimotakis [P. E. Dimotakis, J. Fluid Mech. 409, 69 (2000)] for stationary flows. This provides a basis for the requisite space and time scaling. The emphasis here is placed on variable density flow instabilities initiated by constant acceleration Rayleigh-Taylor instability (RTI) or impulsive (shock) acceleration Richtmyer-Meshkov instability (RMI) or combinations of both. The significant influences of compressibility on these developing transitional flows are discussed with their implications on the procedural model development. A fresh perspective for predictive modeling and design of experiments for the instability growth and turbulent mixing transitional interval is provided using an analogy between the well-established buoyancy-drag model with applications of a hierarchy of single point turbulent transport closure models. Experimental comparisons with the procedural results are presented where use is made of three distinctly different types

Weakened Magnetization and Onset of Large-scale Turbulence in the Young Solar Wind—Comparisons of Remote Sensing Observations with Simulation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chhiber, Rohit; Usmanov, Arcadi V.; DeForest, Craig E.; Matthaeus, William H.; Parashar, Tulasi N.; Goldstein, Melvyn L.

2018-04-01

Recent analysis of Solar-Terrestrial Relations Observatory (STEREO) imaging observations have described the early stages of the development of turbulence in the young solar wind in solar minimum conditions. Here we extend this analysis to a global magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) simulation of the corona and solar wind based on inner boundary conditions, either dipole or magnetogram type, that emulate solar minimum. The simulations have been calibrated using Ulysses and 1 au observations, and allow, within a well-understood context, a precise determination of the location of the Alfvén critical surfaces and the first plasma beta equals unity surfaces. The compatibility of the the STEREO observations and the simulations is revealed by direct comparisons. Computation of the radial evolution of second-order magnetic field structure functions in the simulations indicates a shift toward more isotropic conditions at scales of a few Gm, as seen in the STEREO observations in the range 40–60 R ⊙. We affirm that the isotropization occurs in the vicinity of the first beta unity surface. The interpretation based on early stages of in situ solar wind turbulence evolution is further elaborated, emphasizing the relationship of the observed length scales to the much smaller scales that eventually become the familiar turbulence inertial range cascade. We argue that the observed dynamics is the very early manifestation of large-scale in situ nonlinear couplings that drive turbulence and heating in the solar wind.

Stationary and non-stationary occurrences of miniature end plate potentials are well described as stationary and non-stationary Poisson processes in the mollusc Navanax inermis.

PubMed

Cappell, M S; Spray, D C; Bennett, M V

1988-06-28

Protractor muscles in the gastropod mollusc Navanax inermis exhibit typical spontaneous miniature end plate potentials with mean amplitude 1.71 +/- 1.19 (standard deviation) mV. The evoked end plate potential is quantized, with a quantum equal to the miniature end plate potential amplitude. When their rate is stationary, occurrence of miniature end plate potentials is a random, Poisson process. When non-stationary, spontaneous miniature end plate potential occurrence is a non-stationary Poisson process, a Poisson process with the mean frequency changing with time. This extends the random Poisson model for miniature end plate potentials to the frequently observed non-stationary occurrence. Reported deviations from a Poisson process can sometimes be accounted for by the non-stationary Poisson process and more complex models, such as clustered release, are not always needed.

Propagation of radially polarized multi-cosine Gaussian Schell-model beams in non-Kolmogorov turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tang, Miaomiao; Zhao, Daomu; Li, Xinzhong; Wang, Jingge

2018-01-01

Recently, we introduced a new class of radially polarized beams with multi-cosine Gaussian Schell-model(MCGSM) correlation function based on the partially coherent theory (Tang et al., 2017). In this manuscript, we extend the work to study the statistical properties such as the spectral density, the degree of coherence, the degree of polarization, and the state of polarization of the beam propagating in isotropic turbulence with a non-Kolmogorov power spectrum. Analytical formulas for the cross-spectral density matrix elements of a radially polarized MCGSM beam in non-Kolmogorov turbulence are derived. Numerical results show that lattice-like intensity pattern of the beam, which keeps propagation-invariant in free space, is destroyed by the turbulence when it passes at sufficiently large distances from the source. It is also shown that the polarization properties are mainly affected by the source correlation functions, and change in the turbulent statistics plays a relatively small effect. In addition, the polarization state exhibits self-splitting property and each beamlet evolves into radially polarized structure upon propagation.

Direct Numerical Simulations of a Full Stationary Wind-Turbine Blade

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Qamar, Adnan; Zhang, Wei; Gao, Wei; Samtaney, Ravi

2014-11-01

Direct numerical simulation of flow past a full stationary wind-turbine blade is carried out at Reynolds number, Re = 10,000 placed at 0 and 5 (degree) angle of attack. The study is targeted to create a DNS database for verification of solvers and turbulent models that are utilized in wind-turbine modeling applications. The full blade comprises of a circular cylinder base that is attached to a spanwise varying airfoil cross-section profile (without twist). An overlapping composite grid technique is utilized to perform these DNS computations, which permits block structure in the mapped computational space. Different flow shedding regimes are observed along the blade length. Von-Karman shedding is observed in the cylinder shaft region of the turbine blade. Along the airfoil cross-section of the blade, near body shear layer breakdown is observed. A long tip vortex originates from the blade tip region, which exits the computational plane without being perturbed. Laminar to turbulent flow transition is observed along the blade length. The turbulent fluctuations amplitude decreases along the blade length and the flow remains laminar regime in the vicinity of the blade tip. The Strouhal number is found to decrease monotonously along the blade length. Average lift and drag coefficients are also reported for the cases investigated. Supported by funding under a KAUST OCRF-CRG grant.

Effects of turbulence on the collision rate of cloud droplets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ayala, Orlando

This dissertation concerns effects of air turbulence on the collision rate of atmospheric cloud droplets. This research was motivated by the speculation that air turbulence could enhance the collision rate thereby help transform cloud droplets to rain droplets in a short time as observed in nature. The air turbulence within clouds is assumed to be homogeneous and isotropic, and its small-scale motion (1 mm to 10 cm scales) is computationally generated by direct numerical integration of the full Navier-Stokes equations. Typical droplet and turbulence parameters of convective warm clouds are used to determine the Stokes numbers (St) and the nondimensional terminal velocities (Sv) which characterize droplet relative inertia and gravitational settling, respectively. A novel and efficient methodology for conducting direct numerical simulations (DNS) of hydrodynamically-interacting droplets in the context of cloud microphysics has been developed. This numerical approach solves the turbulent flow by the pseudo-spectral method with a large-scale forcing, and utilizes an improved superposition method to embed analytically the local, small-scale (10 mum to 1 mm) disturbance flows induced by the droplets. This hybrid representation of background turbulent air motion and the induced disturbance flows is then used to study the combined effects of hydrodynamic interactions and airflow turbulence on the motion and collisions of cloud droplets. Hybrid DNS results show that turbulence can increase the geometric collision kernel relative to the gravitational geometric kernel by as much as 42% due to enhanced radial relative motion and preferential concentration of droplets. The exact level of enhancements depends on the Taylor-microscale Reynolds number, turbulent dissipation rate, and droplet pair size ratio. One important finding is that turbulence has a relatively dominant effect on the collision process between droplets close in size as the gravitational collision mechanism

LACIS-T - A moist air wind tunnel for investigating the interactions between cloud microphysics and turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Niedermeier, Dennis; Voigtländer, Jens; Siebert, Holger; Desai, Neel; Shaw, Raymond; Chang, Kelken; Krueger, Steven; Schumacher, Jörg; Stratmann, Frank

2017-11-01

Turbulence - cloud droplet interaction processes have been investigated primarily through numerical simulation and field measurements over the last ten years. However, only in the laboratory we can be confident in our knowledge of initial and boundary conditions, and are able to measure for extended times under statistically stationary and repeatable conditions. Therefore, the newly built turbulent wind tunnel LACIS-T (Turbulent Leipzig Aerosol Cloud Interaction Simulator) is an ideal facility for pursuing mechanistic understanding of these processes. Within the tunnel we are able to adjust precisely controlled turbulent temperature and humidity fields so as to achieve supersaturation levels allowing for detailed investigations of the interactions between cloud microphysical processes (e.g., cloud droplet activation) and the turbulent flow, under well-defined and reproducible laboratory conditions. We will present the fundamental operating principle, first results from ongoing characterization efforts, numerical simulations as well as first droplet activation experiments.

Reynolds number scaling of straining motions in turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Elsinga, Gerrit; Ishihara, T.; Goudar, M. V.; da Silva, C. B.; Hunt, J. C. R.

2017-11-01

Strain is an important fluid motion in turbulence as it is associated with the kinetic energy dissipation rate, vorticity stretching, and the dispersion of passive scalars. The present study investigates the scaling of the turbulent straining motions by evaluating the flow in the eigenframe of the local strain-rate tensor. The analysis is based on DNS of homogeneous isotropic turbulence covering a Reynolds number range Reλ = 34.6 - 1131. The resulting flow pattern reveals a shear layer containing tube-like vortices and a dissipation sheet, which both scale on the Kolmogorov length scale, η. The vorticity stretching motions scale on the Taylor length scale, while the flow outside the shear layer scales on the integral length scale. These scaling results are consistent with those in wall-bounded flow, which suggests a quantitative universality between the different flows. The overall coherence length of the vorticity is 120 η in all directions, which is considerably larger than the typical size of individual vortices, and reflects the importance of spatial organization at the small scales. Transitions in flow structure are identified at Reλ 45 and 250. Below these respective Reynolds numbers, the small-scale motions and the vorticity stretching motions appear underdeveloped.

Copepod behavior response to Burgers' vortex treatments mimicking turbulent eddies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Elmi, D.; Webster, D. R.; Fields, D. M.

2017-11-01

Copepods detect hydrodynamic cues in the water by their mechanosensory setae. We expect that copepods sense the flow structure of turbulent eddies in order to evoke behavioral responses that lead to population-scale distribution patterns. In this study, the copepods' response to the Burgers' vortex is examined. The Burgers' vortex is a steady-state solution of three-dimensional Navier-Stokes equations that allows us to mimic turbulent vortices at the appropriate scale and eliminate the stochastic nature of turbulence. We generate vortices in the laboratory oriented in the horizontal and vertical directions each with four intensity levels. The objective of including vortex orientation as a parameter in the study is to quantify directional responses that lead to vertical population distribution patterns. The four intensity levels correspond to target vortex characteristics of eddies corresponding to the typical dissipative vortices in isotropic turbulence with mean turbulent dissipation rates in the range of 0.002 to 0.25 cm2/s3. These vortices mimic the characteristics of eddies that copepods most likely encounter in coastal zones. We hypothesize that the response of copepods to hydrodynamic features depends on their sensory architecture and relative orientation with respect to gravity. Tomo-PIV is used to quantify the vortex circulation and axial strain rate for each vortex treatment. Three-dimensional trajectories of the copepod species Calanus finmarchicus are analyzed to examine their swimming kinematics in and around the vortex to quantify the hydrodynamic cues that trigger their behavior.

Large eddy simulation of orientation and rotation of ellipsoidal particles in isotropic turbulent flows

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Jincai; Jin, Guodong; Zhang, Jian

2016-03-01

The rotational motion and orientational distribution of ellipsoidal particles in turbulent flows are of significance in environmental and engineering applications. Whereas the translational motion of an ellipsoidal particle is controlled by the turbulent motions at large scales, its rotational motion is determined by the fluid velocity gradient tensor at small scales, which raises a challenge when predicting the rotational dispersion of ellipsoidal particles using large eddy simulation (LES) method due to the lack of subgrid scale (SGS) fluid motions. We report the effects of the SGS fluid motions on the orientational and rotational statistics, such as the alignment between the long axis of ellipsoidal particles and the vorticity, the mean rotational energy at various aspect ratios against those obtained with direct numerical simulation (DNS) and filtered DNS. The performances of a stochastic differential equation (SDE) model for the SGS velocity gradient seen by the particles and the approximate deconvolution method (ADM) for LES are investigated. It is found that the missing SGS fluid motions in LES flow fields have significant effects on the rotational statistics of ellipsoidal particles. Alignment between the particles and the vorticity is weakened; and the rotational energy of the particles is reduced in LES. The SGS-SDE model leads to a large error in predicting the alignment between the particles and the vorticity and over-predicts the rotational energy of rod-like particles. The ADM significantly improves the rotational energy prediction of particles in LES.

Theoretical Calculation of the Power Spectra of the Rolling and Yawing Moments on a Wing in Random Turbulence

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Eggleston, John M; Diederich, Franklin W

1957-01-01

The correlation functions and power spectra of the rolling and yawing moments on an airplane wing due to the three components of continuous random turbulence are calculated. The rolling moments to the longitudinal (horizontal) and normal (vertical) components depend on the spanwise distributions of instantaneous gust intensity, which are taken into account by using the inherent properties of symmetry of isotropic turbulence. The results consist of expressions for correlation functions or spectra of the rolling moment in terms of the point correlation functions of the two components of turbulence. Specific numerical calculations are made for a pair of correlation functions given by simple analytic expressions which fit available experimental data quite well. Calculations are made for four lift distributions. Comparison is made with the results of previous analyses which assumed random turbulence along the flight path and linear variations of gust velocity across the span.

A novel VLES model accounting for near-wall turbulence: physical rationale and applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jakirlic, Suad; Chang, Chi-Yao; Kutej, Lukas; Tropea, Cameron

2014-11-01

A novel VLES (Very Large Eddy Simulation) model whose non-resolved residual turbulence is modelled by using an advanced near-wall eddy-viscosity model accounting for the near-wall Reynolds stress anisotropy influence on the turbulence viscosity by modelling appropriately the velocity scale in the relevant formulation (Hanjalic et al., 2004) is proposed. It represents a variable resolution Hybrid LES/RANS (Reynolds-Averaged Navier-Stokes) computational scheme enabling a seamless transition from RANS to LES depending on the ratio of the turbulent viscosities associated with the unresolved scales corresponding to the LES cut-off and the `unsteady' scales pertinent to the turbulent properties of the VLES residual motion, which varies within the flow domain. The VLES method is validated interactively in the process of the model derivation by computing fully-developed flow in a plane channel (important representative of wall-bounded flows, underlying the log-law for the velocity field, for studying near-wall Reynolds stress anisotropy) and a separating flow over a periodic arrangement of smoothly-contoured 2-D hills. The model performances are also assessed in capturing the natural decay of the homogeneous isotropic turbulence. The model is finally applied to swirling flow in a vortex tube, flow in an IC-engine configuration and flow past a realistic car model.

Approximate isotropic cloak for the Maxwell equations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ghosh, Tuhin; Tarikere, Ashwin

2018-05-01

We construct a regular isotropic approximate cloak for the Maxwell system of equations. The method of transformation optics has enabled the design of electromagnetic parameters that cloak a region from external observation. However, these constructions are singular and anisotropic, making practical implementation difficult. Thus, regular approximations to these cloaks have been constructed that cloak a given region to any desired degree of accuracy. In this paper, we show how to construct isotropic approximations to these regularized cloaks using homogenization techniques so that one obtains cloaking of arbitrary accuracy with regular and isotropic parameters.

Cosmological models with homogeneous and isotropic spatial sections

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Katanaev, M. O.

2017-05-01

The assumption that the universe is homogeneous and isotropic is the basis for the majority of modern cosmological models. We give an example of a metric all of whose spatial sections are spaces of constant curvature but the space-time is nevertheless not homogeneous and isotropic as a whole. We give an equivalent definition of a homogeneous and isotropic universe in terms of embedded manifolds.

The Effect of Low Energy Turbulence in Estuary Margins on Fine Sediment Settling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Allen, R. M.; MacVean, L. J.; Tse, I.; Mazzaro, L. J.; Stacey, M. T.; Variano, E. A.

2014-12-01

Sediment dynamics in estuaries and near shore regions control the growth or erosion of the bed and fringing wetlands, determine the spread of sediment-associated contaminants, and limit the light availability for primary productivity through turbidity. In estuaries such as San Francisco Bay, this sediment is often cohesive, and can flocculate. Changes to the composition of the sediment and waters, the suspended sediment concentration, and the turbulence can all affect the flocculation of suspended sediment. In turn, flocculation controls the particle diameter, settling velocity, density, and particle inertia. These sediment properties drive the turbulent diffusivity, which balances with the settling velocity to impact the vertical distribution of sediment in the water column. The vertical profile strongly affects how sediment is transported through the estuary by lateral flow. Turbulence may also impact settling velocity in non-cohesive particles. In turbulence, dense particles may get trapped in convergent flow regions, thus particles are more likely to get swept along the downward side of a turbulent eddy than the upward side, resulting in enhanced settling velocities. We isolated the impacts of turbulence level, particle size and type, and suspended sediment concentration on particle settling velocities using uniform grain size particles in homogeneous isotropic turbulence. Controlling the turbulence in a well-defined turbulence tank, we used Two Acoustic Doppler Velocimeters, separated vertically, to measure turbulent velocities (w') and suspended sediment concentrations (C), which yield condition dependent settling velocities (ws), via equation 1. Lab characterization of particle settling velocities help to validate the method for measuring settling velocities in the field, and will serve as a foundation for an extensive field experiment in San Francisco Bay. Characterizing the velocity enhancement relative to the Stokes number, the Rouse number, and the

The Interaction of Coronal Mass Ejections with Alfvénic Turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Manchester, Ward, IV; Van Der Holst, Bart

2017-09-01

We provide a first attempt to understand the interaction between Alfvén wave turbulence, kinetic instabilities and temperature anisotropies in the environment of a fast coronal mass ejection (CME) near the Sun. The impact of a fast CME on the solar corona causes turbulent energy, thermal energy and dissipative heating to increase by orders of magnitude, and produces conditions suitable for a host of kinetic instabilities. We study these CME-induced effects with the recently developed Alfvén Wave Solar Model, with which we are able to self-consistently simulate the turbulent energy transport and dissipation as well as isotropic electron heating and anisotropic proton heating. Furthermore, the model also offers the capability to address the effects of fire hose, mirror mode, and cyclotron kinetic instabilities on proton energy partitioning all in a global-scale numerical simulation. We find amplified turbulent energy in the CME sheath, along with strong wave reflection at the shock combine to cause wave dissipation rates to increase by more than a factor of 100. In contrast, wave energy is greatly diminished by adiabatic expansion in the flux rope. Finally, we find proton temperature anisotropies are limited by kinetic instabilities to a level consistent with solar wind observations.

Hairpin vortices in the outer and near wall regions of the canonical turbulent boundary layer

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wallace, James; Wu, Xiaohua; Moin, Parviz

2016-11-01

While the dominance of hairpin vortices and their significance for transport processes in the transitional and early turbulent regions of the canonical turbulent boundary layer has been widely accepted, opinion is divided about the developed flow downstream. Here we investigate the representative vortical structures in the outer and near wall regions for the momentum thickness Reynolds number, Reθ , of up to 3000 using the DNS database described in. This boundary layer grows spatially from a laminar state at Reθ = 80 beneath a freestream of continuous and nearly isotropic turbulence decaying from an intensity of 3 to 0.8%. The vortical structures are visualized with the swirling strength, λci. In the outer region hairpin vortices appear and are advected over distances corresponding to about 300 - 400 in Reθ within the fully turbulent region, demonstrating that they are not remnants of transitional structures. The near wall vortical structures are more difficult to visualize and require careful tuning of the swirling strength and making invisible the flow above the near wall region of the flow. The hairpins in this region occur in intermittent clusters that have features remarkably similar to transitional turbulent spots.

Evaluation of the topological characteristics of the turbulent flow in a `box of turbulence' through 2D time-resolved particle image velocimetry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lian, Huan; Soulopoulos, Nikolaos; Hardalupas, Yannis

2017-09-01

The experimental evaluation of the topological characteristics of the turbulent flow in a `box' of homogeneous and isotropic turbulence (HIT) with zero mean velocity is presented. This requires an initial evaluation of the effect of signal noise on measurement of velocity invariants. The joint probability distribution functions (pdfs) of experimentally evaluated, noise contaminated, velocity invariants have a different shape than the corresponding noise-free joint pdfs obtained from the DNS data of the Johns Hopkins University (JHU) open resource HIT database. A noise model, based on Gaussian and impulsive Salt and Pepper noise, is established and added artificially to the DNS velocity vector field of the JHU database. Digital filtering methods, based on Median and Wiener Filters, are chosen to eliminate the modeled noise source and their capacity to restore the joint pdfs of velocity invariants to that of the noise-free DNS data is examined. The remaining errors after filtering are quantified by evaluating the global mean velocity, turbulent kinetic energy and global turbulent homogeneity, assessed through the behavior of the ratio of the standard deviation of the velocity fluctuations in two directions, the energy spectrum of the velocity fluctuations and the eigenvalues of the rate-of-strain tensor. A method of data filtering, based on median filtered velocity using different median filter window size, is used to quantify the clustering of zero velocity points of the turbulent field using the radial distribution function (RDF) and Voronoï analysis to analyze the 2D time-resolved particle image velocimetry (TR-PIV) velocity measurements. It was found that a median filter with window size 3 × 3 vector spacing is the effective and efficient approach to eliminate the experimental noise from PIV measured velocity images to a satisfactory level and extract the statistical two-dimensional topological turbulent flow patterns.

Renormalization Group Theory of Bolgiano Scaling in Boussinesq Turbulence

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rubinstein, Robert

1994-01-01

Bolgiano scaling in Boussinesq turbulence is analyzed using the Yakhot-Orszag renormalization group. For this purpose, an isotropic model is introduced. Scaling exponents are calculated by forcing the temperature equation so that the temperature variance flux is constant in the inertial range. Universal amplitudes associated with the scaling laws are computed by expanding about a logarithmic theory. Connections between this formalism and the direct interaction approximation are discussed. It is suggested that the Yakhot-Orszag theory yields a lowest order approximate solution of a regularized direct interaction approximation which can be corrected by a simple iterative procedure.

Changes in divergence-free grid turbulence interacting with a weak spherical shock wave

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kitamura, T.; Nagata, K.; Sakai, Y.; Sasoh, A.; Ito, Y.

2017-06-01

The characteristics of divergence-free grid turbulence interacting with a weak spherical shock wave with a Mach number of 1.05 are experimentally investigated. Turbulence-generating grids are used to generate nearly isotropic, divergence-free turbulence. The turbulent Reynolds number based on the Taylor microscale R eλ and the turbulent Mach number Mt are 49 ≤R eλ≤159 and 0.709 × 1 0-3≤Mt≤2.803 ×1 0-3, respectively. A spherical shock wave is generated by a diaphragmless shock tube. The instantaneous streamwise velocity before and after the interaction is measured by a hot wire probe. The results show that the root-mean-square value of streamwise velocity fluctuations (r.m.s velocity) increases and the streamwise integral length scale decreases after the interaction. The changes in the r.m.s velocity become small with the increase in R eλ and Mt for the same strength of the shock wave. This tendency is similar to that of the streamwise integral length scale. The continuous wavelet analysis shows that high intensity appears mainly in the low-frequency region and positive and negative wavelet coefficients appear periodically in time before the interaction, whereas such high intensity appears in both the low- and high-frequency regions after the interaction. The spectral analysis reveals that the energy at high wavenumbers increases after the interaction. The change in turbulence after the interaction is explained from the viewpoint of the initial turbulent Mach number. It is suggested that the change is more significant for initial divergence-free turbulence than for curl-free turbulence.

Synchrotron X-Ray Interrogation of Turbulent Gas–Liquid Mixing in Cryogenic Rocket Sprays

DOE PAGES

Radke, Christopher D.; McManamen, J. Patrick; Kastengren, Alan L.; ...

2017-07-31

The atomization and vaporization of liquid jets within turbulent gaseous flows are characterized by the mixing phenomena occurring over a wide range of spatiotemporal scales. This creates a complex, turbid medium that is not easily interrogated using conventional optical-measurement techniques. In the current study, the optically dense, multiphase flow created by a cryogenic liquid jet injected into a turbulent gaseous coflow is probed using high-speed (MHz) X-ray radiography from a focused, narrowband synchrotron source to resolve the internal cascade of scales and the evolution to isotropic, homogeneous turbulence. Changes in the spectral characteristics for different flow conditions are furthermore correlatedmore » with changes in the spatial distributions of the liquid and gas phases within the spray using simultaneous X-ray radiography and tracer (krypton) fluorescence. It is found that an increase in entrainment and mixing infers an evolution in spectral characteristics toward the well-known -5/3 law of energy dissipation in the context of the classical Kolmogorov theory. Finally, these data demonstrate the utility of the synchrotron-based X-ray radiography and fluorescence for uncovering the internal, turbulent mixing processes in multiphase and optically dense flows.« less

Synchrotron X-Ray Interrogation of Turbulent Gas–Liquid Mixing in Cryogenic Rocket Sprays

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Radke, Christopher D.; McManamen, J. Patrick; Kastengren, Alan L.

The atomization and vaporization of liquid jets within turbulent gaseous flows are characterized by the mixing phenomena occurring over a wide range of spatiotemporal scales. This creates a complex, turbid medium that is not easily interrogated using conventional optical-measurement techniques. In the current study, the optically dense, multiphase flow created by a cryogenic liquid jet injected into a turbulent gaseous coflow is probed using high-speed (MHz) X-ray radiography from a focused, narrowband synchrotron source to resolve the internal cascade of scales and the evolution to isotropic, homogeneous turbulence. Changes in the spectral characteristics for different flow conditions are furthermore correlatedmore » with changes in the spatial distributions of the liquid and gas phases within the spray using simultaneous X-ray radiography and tracer (krypton) fluorescence. It is found that an increase in entrainment and mixing infers an evolution in spectral characteristics toward the well-known -5/3 law of energy dissipation in the context of the classical Kolmogorov theory. Finally, these data demonstrate the utility of the synchrotron-based X-ray radiography and fluorescence for uncovering the internal, turbulent mixing processes in multiphase and optically dense flows.« less

Direct and inverse energy cascades in a forced rotating turbulence experiment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Campagne, Antoine; Gallet, Basile; Moisy, Frédéric; Cortet, Pierre-Philippe

2014-12-01

We present experimental evidence for a double cascade of kinetic energy in a statistically stationary rotating turbulence experiment. Turbulence is generated by a set of vertical flaps, which continuously injects velocity fluctuations towards the center of a rotating water tank. The energy transfers are evaluated from two-point third-order three-component velocity structure functions, which we measure using stereoscopic particle image velocimetry in the rotating frame. Without global rotation, the energy is transferred from large to small scales, as in classical three-dimensional turbulence. For nonzero rotation rates, the horizontal kinetic energy presents a double cascade: a direct cascade at small horizontal scales and an inverse cascade at large horizontal scales. By contrast, the vertical kinetic energy is always transferred from large to small horizontal scales, a behavior reminiscent of the dynamics of a passive scalar in two-dimensional turbulence. At the largest rotation rate, the flow is nearly two-dimensional, and a pure inverse energy cascade is found for the horizontal energy. To describe the scale-by-scale energy budget, we consider a generalization of the Kármán-Howarth-Monin equation to inhomogeneous turbulent flows, in which the energy input is explicitly described as the advection of turbulent energy from the flaps through the surface of the control volume where the measurements are performed.

Poissonian steady states: from stationary densities to stationary intensities.

PubMed

Eliazar, Iddo

2012-10-01

Markov dynamics are the most elemental and omnipresent form of stochastic dynamics in the sciences, with applications ranging from physics to chemistry, from biology to evolution, and from economics to finance. Markov dynamics can be either stationary or nonstationary. Stationary Markov dynamics represent statistical steady states and are quantified by stationary densities. In this paper, we generalize the notion of steady state to the case of general Markov dynamics. Considering an ensemble of independent motions governed by common Markov dynamics, we establish that the entire ensemble attains Poissonian steady states which are quantified by stationary Poissonian intensities and which hold valid also in the case of nonstationary Markov dynamics. The methodology is applied to a host of Markov dynamics, including Brownian motion, birth-death processes, random walks, geometric random walks, renewal processes, growth-collapse dynamics, decay-surge dynamics, Ito diffusions, and Langevin dynamics.

Poissonian steady states: From stationary densities to stationary intensities

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Eliazar, Iddo

2012-10-01

Markov dynamics are the most elemental and omnipresent form of stochastic dynamics in the sciences, with applications ranging from physics to chemistry, from biology to evolution, and from economics to finance. Markov dynamics can be either stationary or nonstationary. Stationary Markov dynamics represent statistical steady states and are quantified by stationary densities. In this paper, we generalize the notion of steady state to the case of general Markov dynamics. Considering an ensemble of independent motions governed by common Markov dynamics, we establish that the entire ensemble attains Poissonian steady states which are quantified by stationary Poissonian intensities and which hold valid also in the case of nonstationary Markov dynamics. The methodology is applied to a host of Markov dynamics, including Brownian motion, birth-death processes, random walks, geometric random walks, renewal processes, growth-collapse dynamics, decay-surge dynamics, Ito diffusions, and Langevin dynamics.

Dynamics of motile phytoplankton in turbulence: Laboratory investigation of microscale patchiness

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Crimaldi, J. P.; True, A.; Stocker, R.

2016-02-01

Phytoplankton represent the basis of oceanic life and play a critical role in biogeochemical cycles. While phytoplankton are traditionally studied in bulk, their collective impact stems from cell-level processes and interactions at the microscale. A fundamental element that determines these interactions is the small-scale spatial distribution of individual cells: this directly determines the local cell concentration and the probability that two cells contact or interact with each other. The traditional, bulk perspective on phytoplankton distributions is that turbulence acts to smear out patchiness and locally homogenizes the distributions. However, recent numerical simulations suggest that the action of turbulence on motile phytoplankton may be precisely the opposite: by biasing the swimming direction of cells through the action of viscous torques, turbulence is predicted to generate strong patchiness at small scales. Flow-mediated patch formation has been demonstrated experimentally in simple laminar flows, but has never been tested experimentally in turbulence. In this talk we report on preliminary laboratory experiments performed in a purpose-built flow facility that uses a pair of computer-controlled oscillating grids to generate approximately homogenous isotropic 3D turbulence. Turbulent flow characteristics and dissipation rates are first quantified using particle image velocimetry (PIV). Then, 2D distributions of the motile dinoflagellate Heterosigma akashiwo are imaged using planar laser-induced fluorescence (PLIF). Analysis of imaged phytoplankton distributions for patchiness is performed using a Voronoi tessellation approach. Results suggest that motile phytoplankton distributions differ from those of passive particles. Furthermore, computed values for the patch enhancement factor are shown to be roughly consistent with those of previous DNS predictions.

Sound radiation from a high speed axial flow fan due to the inlet turbulence quadrupole interaction

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Goldstein, M. E.; Rosenbaum, B. M.; Albers, L. U.

1974-01-01

A formula is obtained for the total acoustic power spectra radiated out the front of the fan as a function of frequency. The formula involves the design parameters of the fan as well as the statistical properties of the incident turbulence. Numerical results are calculated for values of the parameters in the range of interest for quiet fans tested at the Lewis Research Center. As in the dipole analysis, when the turbulence correlation lengths become equal to the interblade spacing, the predicted spectra exhibit peaks around the blade passing frequency and its harmonics. There has recently been considerable conjecture about whether the stretching of turbulent eddies as they enter a stationary fan could result in the inlet turbulence being the dominant source of pure tones from nontranslating fans. The results of the current analysis show that, unless the turbulent eddies become quite elongated, this noise source contributes predominantly to the broadband spectrum.

Schneefernerhaus as a mountain research station for clouds and turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Risius, S.; Xu, H.; Di Lorenzo, F.; Xi, H.; Siebert, H.; Shaw, R. A.; Bodenschatz, E.

2015-08-01

Cloud measurements are usually carried out with airborne campaigns, which are expensive and are limited by temporal duration and weather conditions. Ground-based measurements at high-altitude research stations therefore play a complementary role in cloud study. Using the meteorological data (wind speed, direction, temperature, humidity, visibility, etc.) collected by the German Weather Service (DWD) from 2000 to 2012 and turbulence measurements recorded by multiple ultrasonic sensors (sampled at 10 Hz) in 2010, we show that the Umweltforschungsstation Schneefernerhaus (UFS) located just below the peak of Zugspitze in the German Alps, at a height of 2650 m, is a well-suited station for cloud-turbulence research. The wind at UFS is dominantly in the east-west direction and nearly horizontal. During the summertime (July and August) the UFS is immersed in warm clouds about 25 % of the time. The clouds are either from convection originating in the valley in the east, or associated with synoptic-scale weather systems typically advected from the west. Air turbulence, as measured from the second- and third-order velocity structure functions that exhibit well-developed inertial ranges, possesses Taylor microscale Reynolds numbers up to 104, with the most probable value at ~ 3000. In spite of the complex topography, the turbulence appears to be nearly as isotropic as many laboratory flows when evaluated on the "Lumley triangle".

Turbulent Kinetic Energy (TKE) Budgets Using 5-beam Doppler Profilers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Guerra, M. A.; Thomson, J. M.

2016-12-01

Field observations of turbulence parameters are important for the development of hydrodynamic models, understanding contaminant mixing, and predicting sediment transport. The turbulent kinetic energy (TKE) budget quantifies where turbulence is being produced, dissipated or transported at a specific site. The Nortek Signature 5-beam AD2CP was used to measure velocities at high sampling rates (up to 8 Hz) at Admiralty Inlet and Rich Passage in Puget Sound, WA, USA. Raw along-beam velocity data is quality controlled and is used to estimate TKE spectra, spatial structure functions, and Reynolds stress tensors. Exceptionally low Doppler noise in the data enables clear observations of the inertial sub-range of isotropic turbulence in both the frequency TKE spectra and the spatial structure functions. From these, TKE dissipation rates are estimated following Kolmogorov's theory of turbulence. The TKE production rates are estimated using Reynolds stress tensors together with the vertical shear in the mean flow. The Reynolds stress tensors are estimated following the methodology of Dewey and Stinger (2007), which is significantly improved by inclusion of the 5th beam (as opposed to the conventional 4). These turbulence parameters are used to study the TKE budget along the water column at the two sites. Ebb and flood production and dissipation rates are compared through the water column at both sites. At Admiralty Inlet, dissipation exceeds production during ebb while the opposite occurs during flood because the proximity to a lateral headland. At Rich Passage, production exceeds dissipation through the water column for all tidal conditions due to a vertical sill in the vicinity of the measurement site.

The effects of streamwise concave curvature on turbulent boundary layer structure

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jeans, A. H.; Johnston, J. P.

1982-06-01

Concave curvature has a relatively large, unpredictable effect on turbulent boundary layers. Some, but not all previous studies suggest that a large-scale, stationary array of counter-rotating vortices exists within the turbulent boundary layer on a concave wall. The objective of the present study was to obtain a qualitative model of the flow field in order to increase our understanding of the underlying physics. A large free-surface water channel was constructed in order to perform a visual study of the flow. Streamwise components of mean velocity and turbulence intensity were measured using a hot film anemometer. The upstream boundary was spanwise uniform with a momentum thickness to radius of curvature of 0.05. Compared to flat wall flow, large-scale, randomly distributed sweeps and ejections were seen in the boundary layer on the concave wall. The sweeps appear to suppress the normal mechanism for turbulence production near the wall by inhibiting the bursting process. The ejections appear to enhance turbulence production in the outer layers as the low speed fluid convected from regions near the wall interacts with the higher speed fluid farther out. The large-scale structures did not occur at fixed spanwise locations, and could not be called roll cells or vortices.

Sheared E×B flow and plasma turbulence viscosity in a Reversed Field Pinch

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vianello, N.; Antoni, V.; Spada, E.; Spolaore, M.; Serianni, G.; Regnoli, G.; Zuin, M.; Cavazzana, R.; Bergsåker, H.; Cecconello, M.; Drake, J. R.

2004-11-01

The relationship between electromagnetic turbulence and sheared plasma flow in Reversed Field Pinch configuration is addressed. The momentum balance equation for a compressible plasma is considered and the terms involved are measured in the outer region of Extrap-T2R RFP device. It results that electrostatic fluctuations determine the plasma flow through the electrostatic component of Reynolds Stress tensor. This term involves spatial and temporal scales comparable to those of MHD activity. The derived experimental perpendicular viscosity is consistent with anomalous diffusion, the latter being discussed in terms of electrostatic turbulence background and coherent structures emerging from fluctuations. The results indicate a dynamical interplay between turbulence, anomalous transport and mean E×B profiles. The momentum balance has been studied also in non-stationary condition during the application of Pulsed Poloidal Current Drive, which is known to reduce the amplitude of MHD modes.

Effect of particle inertia on turbulence in a suspension.

PubMed

L'vov, Victor S; Ooms, Gijs; Pomyalov, Anna

2003-04-01

We propose a one-fluid analytical model for a turbulently flowing dilute suspension, based on a modified Navier-Stokes equation with a k-dependent effective density of suspension rho(eff)(k) and an additional damping term proportional, variant gamma(p)(k), representing the fluid-particle friction (described by Stokes law). The statistical description of turbulence within the model is simplified by a modification of the usual closure procedure based on the Richardson-Kolmogorov picture of turbulence with a differential approximation for the energy transfer term. The resulting ordinary differential equation for the energy budget is solved analytically for various important limiting cases and numerically in the general case. In the inertial interval of scales, we describe analytically two competing effects: the energy suppression due to the fluid-particle friction and the energy enhancement during the cascade process due to decrease of the effective density of the small-scale motions. An additional suppression or enhancement of the energy density may occur in the viscous subrange, caused by the variation of the extent of the inertial interval due to the combined effect of the fluid-particle friction and the decrease of the kinematic viscosity of the suspensions. The analytical description of the complicated interplay of these effects supported by numerical calculations is presented. Our findings allow one to rationalize the qualitative picture of the isotropic homogeneous turbulence of dilute suspensions as observed in direct numerical simulations.

The Impact of Natural Hazards such as Turbulent Wind Gusts on the Wind Energy Conversion Process

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wächter, M.; Hölling, M.; Milan, P.; Morales, A.; Peinke, J.

2012-12-01

Wind turbines operate in the atmospheric boundary layer, where they are exposed to wind gusts and other types of natural hazards. As the response time of wind turbines is typically in the range of seconds, they are affected by the small scale intermittent properties of the turbulent wind. We show evidence that basic features which are known for small-scale homogeneous isotropic turbulence, and in particular the well-known intermittency problem, have an important impact on the wind energy conversion process. Intermittent statistics include high probabilities of extreme events which can be related to wind gusts and other types of natural hazards. As a summarizing result we find that atmospheric turbulence imposes its intermittent features on the complete wind energy conversion process. Intermittent turbulence features are not only present in atmospheric wind, but are also dominant in the loads on the turbine, i.e. rotor torque and thrust, and in the electrical power output signal. We conclude that profound knowledge of turbulent statistics and the application of suitable numerical as well as experimental methods are necessary to grasp these unique features and quantify their effects on all stages of wind energy conversion.

Applications of the Lattice Boltzmann Method to Complex and Turbulent Flows

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Luo, Li-Shi; Qi, Dewei; Wang, Lian-Ping; Bushnell, Dennis M. (Technical Monitor)

2002-01-01

We briefly review the method of the lattice Boltzmann equation (LBE). We show the three-dimensional LBE simulation results for a non-spherical particle in Couette flow and 16 particles in sedimentation in fluid. We compare the LBE simulation of the three-dimensional homogeneous isotropic turbulence flow in a periodic cubic box of the size 1283 with the pseudo-spectral simulation, and find that the two results agree well with each other but the LBE method is more dissipative than the pseudo-spectral method in small scales, as expected.

KARHUNEN-LOÈVE Basis Functions of Kolmogorov Turbulence in the Sphere

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mathar, Richard J.

In support of modeling atmospheric turbulence, the statistically independent Karhunen-Loève modes of refractive indices with isotropic Kolmogorov spectrum of the covariance are calculated inside a sphere of fixed radius, rendered as series of 3D Zernike functions. Many of the symmetry arguments of the well-known associated 2D problem for the circular input pupil remain valid. The technique of efficient diagonalization of the eigenvalue problem in wavenumber space is founded on the Fourier representation of the 3D Zernike basis, and extensible to the von-Kármán power spectrum.

Relationship of strength of turbulence to received power

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rottger, J.

1983-01-01

Because of contributions due to reflection, the determination of the turbulence refractive index structure constant may be affected. For pure scattering from turbulence in the inertial subrange, the radar echo power can be used to calculate the refractive index structure constant. The radar power is determined by a convolution integral. If the antenna beam is swung to sufficiently large off-zenith angles ( 12.5 deg) so that a quasi-isotropic response from the tail ends of the Gaussian angular distribution can be anticipated, the evaluation of the convolution integral depends only on the known antenna pattern of the radar. This procedure, swinging the radar beam to attenuate the reflected component, may be called angular or direction filtering. The tilted antenna also may be pick up reflected components from near the zenith through the sidelobes. This can be tested by the evaluation of the correlation function. This method applies a time domain filtering of the intensity time series but needs a very careful selection of the high pass filters.

Wavelet investigation of preferential concentration in particle-laden turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bassenne, Maxime; Urzay, Javier; Schneider, Kai; Moin, Parviz

2017-11-01

Direct numerical simulations of particle-laden homogeneous-isotropic turbulence are employed in conjunction with wavelet multi-resolution analyses to study preferential concentration in both physical and spectral spaces. Spatially-localized energy spectra for velocity, vorticity and particle-number density are computed, along with their spatial fluctuations that enable the quantification of scale-dependent probability density functions, intermittency and inter-phase conditional statistics. The main result is that particles are found in regions of lower turbulence spectral energy than the corresponding mean. This suggests that modeling the subgrid-scale turbulence intermittency is required for capturing the small-scale statistics of preferential concentration in large-eddy simulations. Additionally, a method is defined that decomposes a particle number-density field into the sum of a coherent and an incoherent components. The coherent component representing the clusters can be sparsely described by at most 1.6% of the total number of wavelet coefficients. An application of the method, motivated by radiative-heat-transfer simulations, is illustrated in the form of a grid-adaptation algorithm that results in non-uniform meshes refined around particle clusters. It leads to a reduction of the number of control volumes by one to two orders of magnitude. PSAAP-II Center at Stanford (Grant DE-NA0002373).

Application of a Reynolds stress turbulence model to the compressible shear layer

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sarkar, S.; Balakrishnan, L.

1990-01-01

Theoretically based turbulence models have had success in predicting many features of incompressible, free shear layers. However, attempts to extend these models to the high-speed, compressible shear layer have been less effective. In the present work, the compressible shear layer was studied with a second-order turbulence closure, which initially used only variable density extensions of incompressible models for the Reynolds stress transport equation and the dissipation rate transport equation. The quasi-incompressible closure was unsuccessful; the predicted effect of the convective Mach number on the shear layer growth rate was significantly smaller than that observed in experiments. Having thus confirmed that compressibility effects have to be explicitly considered, a new model for the compressible dissipation was introduced into the closure. This model is based on a low Mach number, asymptotic analysis of the Navier-Stokes equations, and on direct numerical simulation of compressible, isotropic turbulence. The use of the new model for the compressible dissipation led to good agreement of the computed growth rates with the experimental data. Both the computations and the experiments indicate a dramatic reduction in the growth rate when the convective Mach number is increased. Experimental data on the normalized maximum turbulence intensities and shear stress also show a reduction with increasing Mach number.

A simple dynamic subgrid-scale model for LES of particle-laden turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Park, George Ilhwan; Bassenne, Maxime; Urzay, Javier; Moin, Parviz

2017-04-01

In this study, a dynamic model for large-eddy simulations is proposed in order to describe the motion of small inertial particles in turbulent flows. The model is simple, involves no significant computational overhead, contains no adjustable parameters, and is flexible enough to be deployed in any type of flow solvers and grids, including unstructured setups. The approach is based on the use of elliptic differential filters to model the subgrid-scale velocity. The only model parameter, which is related to the nominal filter width, is determined dynamically by imposing consistency constraints on the estimated subgrid energetics. The performance of the model is tested in large-eddy simulations of homogeneous-isotropic turbulence laden with particles, where improved agreement with direct numerical simulation results is observed in the dispersed-phase statistics, including particle acceleration, local carrier-phase velocity, and preferential-concentration metrics.

Monte-Carlo computation of turbulent premixed methane/air ignition

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Carmen, Christina Lieselotte

The present work describes the results obtained by a time dependent numerical technique that simulates the early flame development of a spark-ignited premixed, lean, gaseous methane/air mixture with the unsteady spherical flame propagating in homogeneous and isotropic turbulence. The algorithm described is based upon a sub-model developed by an international automobile research and manufacturing corporation in order to analyze turbulence conditions within internal combustion engines. Several developments and modifications to the original algorithm have been implemented including a revised chemical reaction scheme and the evaluation and calculation of various turbulent flame properties. Solution of the complete set of Navier-Stokes governing equations for a turbulent reactive flow is avoided by reducing the equations to a single transport equation. The transport equation is derived from the Navier-Stokes equations for a joint probability density function, thus requiring no closure assumptions for the Reynolds stresses. A Monte-Carlo method is also utilized to simulate phenomena represented by the probability density function transport equation by use of the method of fractional steps. Gaussian distributions of fluctuating velocity and fuel concentration are prescribed. Attention is focused on the evaluation of the three primary parameters that influence the initial flame kernel growth-the ignition system characteristics, the mixture composition, and the nature of the flow field. Efforts are concentrated on the effects of moderate to intense turbulence on flames within the distributed reaction zone. Results are presented for lean conditions with the fuel equivalence ratio varying from 0.6 to 0.9. The present computational results, including flame regime analysis and the calculation of various flame speeds, provide excellent agreement with results obtained by other experimental and numerical researchers.

Large eddy simulation study of turbulent kinetic energy and scalar variance budgets and turbulent/non-turbulent interface in planar jets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Watanabe, Tomoaki; Sakai, Yasuhiko; Nagata, Koji; Ito, Yasumasa

2016-04-01

Spatially developing planar jets with passive scalar transports are simulated for various Reynolds (Re = 2200, 7000, and 22 000) and Schmidt numbers (Sc = 1, 4, 16, 64, and 128) by the implicit large eddy simulation (ILES) using low-pass filtering as an implicit subgrid-scale model. The budgets of resolved turbulent kinetic energy k and scalar variance < {φ }\\prime 2> are explicitly evaluated from the ILES data except for the dissipation terms, which are obtained from the balance in the transport equations. The budgets of k and < {φ }\\prime 2> in the ILES agree well with the DNS and experiments for both high and low Re cases. The streamwise decay of the mean turbulent kinetic energy dissipation rate obeys the power low obtained by the scaling argument. The mechanical-to-scalar timescale ratio C ϕ is evaluated in the self-similar region. For the high Re case, C ϕ is close to the isotropic value (C ϕ = 2) near the jet centerline. However, when Re is not large, C ϕ is smaller than 2 and depends on the Schmidt number. The T/NT interface is also investigated by using the scalar isosurface. The velocity and scalar fields near the interface depend on the interface orientation for all Re. The velocity toward the interface is observed near the interface facing in the streamwise, cross-streamwise, and spanwise directions in the planar jet in the resolved velocity field.

Turbulence Generation Using Localized Sources of Energy: Direct Numerical Simulations and the Effects of Thermal Non-Equilibrium

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Maqui, Agustin Francisco

Turbulence in high-speed flows is an important problem in aerospace applications, yet extremely difficult from a theoretical, computational and experimental perspective. A main reason for the lack of complete understanding is the difficulty of generating turbulence in the lab at a range of speeds which can also include hypersonic effects such as thermal non-equilibrium. This work studies the feasibility of a new approach to generate turbulence based on laser-induced photo-excitation/dissociation of seeded molecules. A large database of incompressible and compressible direct numerical simulations (DNS) has been generated to systematically study the development and evolution of the flow towards realistic turbulence. Governing parameters and the conditions necessary for the establishment of turbulence, as well as the length and time scales associated with such process, are identified. For both the compressible and incompressible experiments a minimum Reynolds number is found to be needed for the flow to evolve towards fully developed turbulence. Additionally, for incompressible cases a minimum time scale is required, while for compressible cases a minimum distance from the grid and limit on the maximum temperature introduced are required. Through an extensive analysis of single and two point statistics, as well as spectral dynamics, the primary mechanisms leading to turbulence are shown. As commonly done in compressible turbulence, dilatational and solenoidal components are separated to understand the effect of acoustics on the development of turbulence. Finally, a large database of forced isotropic turbulence has been generated to study the effect of internal degrees of freedom on the evolution of turbulence.

Investigation of electric charge on inertial particle dynamics in turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lu, Jiang; Shaw, Raymond

2014-11-01

The behavior of electrically charged, inertial particles in homogeneous, isotropic turbulence is investigated. Both like-charged and oppositely-charged particle interactions are considered. Direct numerical simulations (DNS) of turbulence in a periodic box using the pseudospectral numerical method are performed, with Lagrangian tracking of the particles. We study effects of mutual electrostatic repulsion and attraction on the particle dynamics, as quantified by the radial distribution function (RDF) and the radial relative velocity. For the like-charged particle case, the Coulomb force leads to a short range repulsion behavior and an RDF reminiscent of that for a dilute gas. For the oppositely-charged particle case, the Coulomb force increases the RDF beyond that already occurring for neutral inertial particles. For both cases, the relative velocities are calculated as a function of particle separation distance and show distinct deviations from the expected scaling within the dissipation range. This research was supported by NASA Grant NNX113AF90G.

Non-equilibrium thermodynamics, heat transport and thermal waves in laminar and turbulent superfluid helium

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mongiovì, Maria Stella; Jou, David; Sciacca, Michele

2018-01-01

This review paper puts together some results concerning non equilibrium thermodynamics and heat transport properties of superfluid He II. A one-fluid extended model of superfluid helium, which considers heat flux as an additional independent variable, is presented, its microscopic bases are analyzed, and compared with the well known two-fluid model. In laminar situations, the fundamental fields are density, velocity, absolute temperature, and heat flux. Such a theory is able to describe the thermomechanical phenomena, the propagation of two sounds in liquid helium, and of fourth sound in superleak. It also leads in a natural way to a two-fluid model on purely macroscopical grounds and allows a small amount of entropy associated with the superfluid component. Other important features of liquid He II arise in rotating situations and in superfluid turbulence, both characterized by the presence of quantized vortices (thin vortex lines whose circulation is restricted by a quantum condition). Such vortices have a deep influence on the transport properties of superfluid helium, as they increase very much its thermal resistance. Thus, heat flux influences the vortices which, in turn, modify the heat flux. The dynamics of vortex lines is the central topic in turbulent superfluid helium. The model is generalized to take into account the vortices in different cases of physical interest: rotating superfluids, counterflow superfluid turbulence, combined counterflow and rotation, and mass flow in addition to heat flow. To do this, the averaged vortex line density per unit volume L, is introduced and its dynamical equations are considered. Linear and non-linear evolution equations for L are written for homogeneous and inhomogeneous, isotropic and anisotropic situations. Several physical experiments are analyzed and the influence of vortices on the effective thermal conductivity of turbulent superfluid helium is found. Transitions from laminar to turbulent flows, from diffusive to

Stanley Corrsin Award Lecture: Lagrangian Measurements in Turbulence: From Fundamentals to Applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bodenschatz, Eberhard

2014-11-01

In my talk I shall present results from particle tracking experiments in turbulence. After a short review of the history of the field, I shall summarize the most recent technological advances that range form low and high-density particle tracking to direct measurements of the Lagrangian evolution of vorticity. I shall embark on a journey that describes the discoveries made possible by this new technology in the last 15 years. I present results that challenge our understanding of turbulence and show how Lagrangian particle tracking can help us ask questions on turbulent flows that so far were hidden. I shall show how Lagrangian particle tracking may provide important insights into the reversibility of turbulent flows, on vorticity generation, the energy cascade and turbulent mixing. I shall describe the consequences of inertial particle transport on rain formation and end with an outlook on how Lagrangian particle tracking experiments on non-stationary flows in real-world situations may provide high quality data that can support real world engineering problems. I am very thankful for the support by Cornell University, the National Science Foundation, the Research Corporation, the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, the Kavli Institute for Theoretical Physics, the German Research Foundation, the European Union and the Max Planck Society. I very gratefully acknowledge the excellent partnership with many colleagues in the field of fluid mechanics and turbulence.

Scalewise invariant analysis of the anisotropic Reynolds stress tensor for atmospheric surface layer and canopy sublayer turbulent flows

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brugger, Peter; Katul, Gabriel G.; De Roo, Frederik; Kröniger, Konstantin; Rotenberg, Eyal; Rohatyn, Shani; Mauder, Matthias

2018-05-01

Anisotropy in the turbulent stress tensor, which forms the basis of invariant analysis, is conducted using velocity time series measurements collected in the canopy sublayer (CSL) and the atmospheric surface layer (ASL). The goal is to assess how thermal stratification and surface roughness conditions simultaneously distort the scalewise relaxation towards isotropic state from large to small scales when referenced to homogeneous turbulence. To achieve this goal, conventional invariant analysis is extended to allow scalewise information about relaxation to isotropy in physical (instead of Fourier) space to be incorporated. The proposed analysis shows that the CSL is more isotropic than its ASL counterpart at large, intermediate, and small (or inertial) scales irrespective of the thermal stratification. Moreover, the small (or inertial) scale anisotropy is more prevalent in the ASL when compared to the CSL, a finding that cannot be fully explained by the intensity of the mean velocity gradient acting on all scales. Implications to the validity of scalewise Rotta and Lumley models for return to isotropy as well as advantages to using barycentric instead of anisotropy invariant maps for such scalewise analysis are discussed.

Scale disparity and spectral transfer in anisotropic numerical turbulence

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zhou, YE; Yeung, P. K.; Brasseur, James G.

1994-01-01

To study the effect of cancellations within long-range interactions on local isotropy at the small scales, we calculate explicitly the degree of cancellation in distant interactions in the simulations of Yeung & Brasseur and Yeung, Brasseur & Wang using the single scale disparity parameter 's' developed by Zhou. In the simulations, initially isotropic simulated turbulence was subjected to coherent anisotropic forcing at the large scales and the smallest scales were found to become anisotropic as a consequence of direct large-small scale couplings. We find that the marginally distant interactions in the simulation do not cancel out under summation and that the development of small-scale anisotropy is indeed a direct consequence of the distant triadic group, as argued by Yeung, et. al. A reduction of anisotropy at later times occurs as a result of the isotropizing influences of more local energy-cascading triadic interactions. Nevertheless, the local-to-nonlocal triadic group persists as an isotropizing influence at later times. We find that, whereas long-range interactions, in general, contribute little to net energy transfer into or out of a high wavenumber shell k, the anisotropic transfer of component energy within the shell increases with increasing scale separations. These results are consistent with results by Zhou, and Brasseur & Wei, and suggest that the anisotropizing influences of long range interactions should persist to higher Reynolds numbers. The residual effect of the forced distant group in this low-Reynolds number simulation is found to be forward cascading, on average.

The evolution equation for the flame surface density in turbulent premixed combustion

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Trouve, Arnaud

1993-01-01

The mean reaction rate in flamelet models for turbulent premixed combustion depends on two basic quantities: a mean chemical rate, called the flamelet speed, and the flame surface density. Our previous work had been primarily focused on the problem of the structure and topology of turbulent premixed flames, and it was then determined that the flamelet speed, when space-averaged, is only weakly sensitive to the turbulent flow field. Consequently, the flame surface density is the key quantity that conveys most of the effects of the turbulence on the rate of energy release. In flamelet models, this quantity is obtained via a modeled transport equation called the Sigma-equation. Past theoretical work has produced a rigorous approach that leads to an exact but unclosed formulation for the turbulent Sigma-equation. In the exact Sigma-equation, it appears that the dynamical properties of the flame surface density are determined by a single parameter, namely the turbulent flame stretch. Unfortunately, the turbulent flame stretch as well as the flame surface density is not available from experiments, and, in the absence of experimental data, little is known on the validity of the closure assumptions used in current flamelet models. Direct Numerical Simulation (DNS) is the alternative approach to get basic information on these fundamental quantities. In the present work, three-dimensional DNS of premixed flames in isotropic turbulent flow is used to estimate the different terms appearing in the Sigma-equation. A new methodology is proposed to provide the source and sink terms for the flame surface density, resolved both temporally and spatially throughout the turbulent flame brush. Using this methodology, our objective is to extract the turbulent flame stretch from the DNS data base and then perform extensive comparisons with flamelet models. Thanks to the detailed information produced by the DNS-based analysis, it is expected that this type of comparison will not only

Rotational motion of elongated particles in isotropic turbulent flow: statistical perspective

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhao, Lihao; Andersson, Helge; Variano, Evan

2014-11-01

We consider the rotational motion of non-spherical particles in turbulent flow, comparing the statistics of particles' angular velocity to the corresponding quantities computed in the fluid phase. We use numerical (DNS) and laboratory measurements for particles that are both larger and smaller than the Kolmogorov lengthscale. The particles are spheroids or rods, with aspect ratios between 1 and 10. We will discuss the subtleties of defining a meaningful Stokes number for these particles, focusing on the effect of asphericity and the fact that our interest is in rotation and not translation. Comparing the probability density function of angular velocity between fluid and particle phase indicates that the angular velocity of particles has a narrower distribution than that of the fluid phase, and that. particles do respond to extreme events in the fluid phase. The first four moments of the PDFs are analyzed, and these show that the ``filtering'' effect is very similar between DNS and lab experiments, despite differences in particle sizes and mass. We propose a nondimensional curve for predicting the magnitude of the filtering effect, and discuss the implications of this curve for the definition of Stokes number, as discussed earlier. This work has been supported by grants from the Peder Sather Center for Advanced Study at UC Berkeley and from the Research Council of Norway (Contract No. 213917/F20).

Wavelet synthetic method for turbulent flow.

PubMed

Zhou, Long; Rauh, Cornelia; Delgado, Antonio

2015-07-01

Based on the idea of random cascades on wavelet dyadic trees and the energy cascade model known as the wavelet p model, a series of velocity increments in two-dimensional space are constructed in different levels of scale. The dynamics is imposed on the generated scales by solving the Euler equation in the Lagrangian framework. A dissipation model is used in order to cover the shortage of the p model, which only predicts in inertial range. Wavelet reconstruction as well as the multiresolution analysis are then performed on each scales. As a result, a type of isotropic velocity field is created. The statistical properties show that the constructed velocity fields share many important features with real turbulence. The pertinence of this approach in the prediction of flow intermittency is also discussed.

Spherical 3D isotropic wavelets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lanusse, F.; Rassat, A.; Starck, J.-L.

2012-04-01

Context. Future cosmological surveys will provide 3D large scale structure maps with large sky coverage, for which a 3D spherical Fourier-Bessel (SFB) analysis in spherical coordinates is natural. Wavelets are particularly well-suited to the analysis and denoising of cosmological data, but a spherical 3D isotropic wavelet transform does not currently exist to analyse spherical 3D data. Aims: The aim of this paper is to present a new formalism for a spherical 3D isotropic wavelet, i.e. one based on the SFB decomposition of a 3D field and accompany the formalism with a public code to perform wavelet transforms. Methods: We describe a new 3D isotropic spherical wavelet decomposition based on the undecimated wavelet transform (UWT) described in Starck et al. (2006). We also present a new fast discrete spherical Fourier-Bessel transform (DSFBT) based on both a discrete Bessel transform and the HEALPIX angular pixelisation scheme. We test the 3D wavelet transform and as a toy-application, apply a denoising algorithm in wavelet space to the Virgo large box cosmological simulations and find we can successfully remove noise without much loss to the large scale structure. Results: We have described a new spherical 3D isotropic wavelet transform, ideally suited to analyse and denoise future 3D spherical cosmological surveys, which uses a novel DSFBT. We illustrate its potential use for denoising using a toy model. All the algorithms presented in this paper are available for download as a public code called MRS3D at http://jstarck.free.fr/mrs3d.html

Lagrangian and Eulerian statistics obtained from direct numerical simulations of homogeneous turbulence

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Squires, Kyle D.; Eaton, John K.

1991-01-01

Direct numerical simulation is used to study dispersion in decaying isotropic turbulence and homogeneous shear flow. Both Lagrangian and Eulerian data are presented allowing direct comparison, but at fairly low Reynolds number. The quantities presented include properties of the dispersion tensor, isoprobability contours of particle displacement, Lagrangian and Eulerian velocity autocorrelations and time scale ratios, and the eddy diffusivity tensor. The Lagrangian time microscale is found to be consistently larger than the Eulerian microscale, presumably due to the advection of the small scales by the large scales in the Eulerian reference frame.

Transitional-turbulent spots and turbulent-turbulent spots in boundary layers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wu, Xiaohua; Moin, Parviz; Wallace, James M.; Skarda, Jinhie; Lozano-Durán, Adrián; Hickey, Jean-Pierre

2017-07-01

Two observations drawn from a thoroughly validated direct numerical simulation of the canonical spatially developing, zero-pressure gradient, smooth, flat-plate boundary layer are presented here. The first is that, for bypass transition in the narrow sense defined herein, we found that the transitional-turbulent spot inception mechanism is analogous to the secondary instability of boundary-layer natural transition, namely a spanwise vortex filament becomes a ΛΛ vortex and then, a hairpin packet. Long streak meandering does occur but usually when a streak is infected by a nearby existing transitional-turbulent spot. Streak waviness and breakdown are, therefore, not the mechanisms for the inception of transitional-turbulent spots found here. Rather, they only facilitate the growth and spreading of existing transitional-turbulent spots. The second observation is the discovery, in the inner layer of the developed turbulent boundary layer, of what we call turbulent-turbulent spots. These turbulent-turbulent spots are dense concentrations of small-scale vortices with high swirling strength originating from hairpin packets. Although structurally quite similar to the transitional-turbulent spots, these turbulent-turbulent spots are generated locally in the fully turbulent environment, and they are persistent with a systematic variation of detection threshold level. They exert indentation, segmentation, and termination on the viscous sublayer streaks, and they coincide with local concentrations of high levels of Reynolds shear stress, enstrophy, and temperature fluctuations. The sublayer streaks seem to be passive and are often simply the rims of the indentation pockets arising from the turbulent-turbulent spots.

Short wavelength turbulence generated by shear in the quiescent H-mode edge on DIII–D

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Rost, J. C.; Porkolab, M.; Dorris, J.

2014-06-15

A region of turbulence with large radial wavenumber (k{sub r}ρ{sub s}>1) is found in the high-shear portion of the plasma edge in Quiescent H-mode (QH-mode) on DIII–D using the Phase Contrast Imaging (PCI) diagnostic. At its peak outside the minimum of the E{sub r} well, the turbulence exhibits large amplitude n{sup ~}/n∼40%, with large radial wavenumber |k{sup ¯}{sub r}/k{sup ¯}{sub θ}|∼11 and short radial correlation length L{sub r}/ρ{sub i}∼0.2. The turbulence inside the E{sub r} well minimum is characterized by the opposite sign in radial wavenumber from that of turbulence outside the minimum, consistent with the expected effects of velocitymore » shear. The PCI diagnostic provides a line-integrated measurement of density fluctuations, so data are taken during a scan of plasma position at constant parameters to allow the PCI to sample a range in k{sub r}/k{sub θ}. Analysis of the Doppler shift and plasma geometry allows the turbulence to be localized to a narrow region 3 mm inside the last closed flux surface, outside the minimum of the E{sub r} well. The turbulence amplitude and radial wavenumber and correlation length are determined by fitting the PCI results with a simple non-isotropic turbulence model with two regions of turbulence. These PCI observations, made in QH-mode, are qualitatively similar to those made in standard edge localized modes (ELM)-free H-mode and between ELMs, suggesting a similar role for large k{sub r} turbulence there.« less

Stationary variational estimates for the effective response and field fluctuations in nonlinear composites

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ponte Castañeda, Pedro

2016-11-01

This paper presents a variational method for estimating the effective constitutive response of composite materials with nonlinear constitutive behavior. The method is based on a stationary variational principle for the macroscopic potential in terms of the corresponding potential of a linear comparison composite (LCC) whose properties are the trial fields in the variational principle. When used in combination with estimates for the LCC that are exact to second order in the heterogeneity contrast, the resulting estimates for the nonlinear composite are also guaranteed to be exact to second-order in the contrast. In addition, the new method allows full optimization with respect to the properties of the LCC, leading to estimates that are fully stationary and exhibit no duality gaps. As a result, the effective response and field statistics of the nonlinear composite can be estimated directly from the appropriately optimized linear comparison composite. By way of illustration, the method is applied to a porous, isotropic, power-law material, and the results are found to compare favorably with earlier bounds and estimates. However, the basic ideas of the method are expected to work for broad classes of composites materials, whose effective response can be given appropriate variational representations, including more general elasto-plastic and soft hyperelastic composites and polycrystals.

Radiation Hydrodynamical Turbulence in Protoplanetary Disks: Numerical Models and Observational Constraints

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Flock, Mario; Nelson, Richard P.; Turner, Neal J.; Bertrang, Gesa H.-M.; Carrasco-González, Carlos; Henning, Thomas; Lyra, Wladimir; Teague, Richard

2017-12-01

Planets are born in protostellar disks, which are now observed with enough resolution to address questions about internal gas flows. Magnetic forces are possibly drivers of the flows, but ionization state estimates suggest that much of the gas mass decouples from magnetic fields. Thus, hydrodynamical instabilities could play a major role. We investigate disk dynamics under conditions typical for a T Tauri system, using global 3D radiation-hydrodynamics simulations with embedded particles and a resolution of 70 cells per scale height. Stellar irradiation heating is included with realistic dust opacities. The disk starts in joint radiative balance and hydrostatic equilibrium. The vertical shear instability (VSI) develops into turbulence that persists up to at least 1600 inner orbits (143 outer orbits). Turbulent speeds are a few percent of the local sound speed at the midplane, increasing to 20%, or 100 m s-1, in the corona. These are consistent with recent upper limits on turbulent speeds from optically thin and thick molecular line observations of TW Hya and HD 163296. The predominantly vertical motions induced by the VSI efficiently lift particles upward. Grains 0.1 and 1 mm in size achieve scale heights greater than expected in isotropic turbulence. We conclude that while kinematic constraints from molecular line emission do not directly discriminate between magnetic and nonmagnetic disk models, the small dust scale heights measured in HL Tau and HD 163296 favor turbulent magnetic models, which reach lower ratios of the vertical kinetic energy density to the accretion stress.

Limit regimes of ice formation in turbulent supercooled water.

PubMed

De Santi, Francesca; Olla, Piero

2017-10-01

A study of ice formation in stationary turbulent conditions is carried out in various limit regimes of crystal growth, supercooling, and ice entrainment at the water surface. Analytical expressions for the temperature, salinity, and ice concentration mean profiles are provided, and the role of fluctuations in ice production is numerically quantified. Lower bounds on the ratio of sensible heat flux to latent heat flux to the atmosphere are derived and their dependence on key parameters such as salt rejection in freezing and ice entrainment in the water column is elucidated.

THE EFFECTS OF KINETIC INSTABILITIES ON SMALL-SCALE TURBULENCE IN EARTH’S MAGNETOSHEATH

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Breuillard, H.; Yordanova, E.; Vaivads, A.

2016-09-20

The Earth's magnetosheath is the region delimited by the bow shock and the magnetopause. It is characterized by highly turbulent fluctuations covering all scales from MHD down to kinetic scales. Turbulence is thought to play a fundamental role in key processes such as energy transport and dissipation in plasma. In addition to turbulence, different plasma instabilities are generated in the magnetosheath because of the large anisotropies in plasma temperature introduced by its boundaries. In this study we use high-quality magnetic field measurements from Cluster spacecraft to investigate the effects of such instabilities on the small-scale turbulence (from ion down tomore » electron scales). We show that the steepening of the power spectrum of magnetic field fluctuations in the magnetosheath occurs at the largest characteristic ion scale. However, the spectrum can be modified by the presence of waves/structures at ion scales, shifting the onset of the small-scale turbulent cascade toward the smallest ion scale. This cascade is therefore highly dependent on the presence of kinetic instabilities, waves, and local plasma parameters. Here we show that in the absence of strong waves the small-scale turbulence is quasi-isotropic and has a spectral index α ≈ −2.8. When transverse or compressive waves are present, we observe an anisotropy in the magnetic field components and a decrease in the absolute value of α . Slab/2D turbulence also develops in the presence of transverse/compressive waves, resulting in gyrotropy/non-gyrotropy of small-scale fluctuations. The presence of both types of waves reduces the anisotropy in the amplitude of fluctuations in the small-scale range.« less

Impact of subgrid fluid turbulence on inertial particles subject to gravity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rosa, Bogdan; Pozorski, Jacek

2017-07-01

Two-phase turbulent flows with the dispersed phase in the form of small, spherical particles are increasingly often computed with the large-eddy simulation (LES) of the carrier fluid phase, coupled to the Lagrangian tracking of particles. To enable further model development for LES with inertial particles subject to gravity, we consider direct numerical simulations of homogeneous isotropic turbulence with a large-scale forcing. Simulation results, both without filtering and in the a priori LES setting, are reported and discussed. A full (i.e. a posteriori) LES is also performed with the spectral eddy viscosity. Effects of gravity on the dispersed phase include changes in the average settling velocity due to preferential sweeping, impact on the radial distribution function and radial relative velocity, as well as direction-dependent modification of the particle velocity variance. The filtering of the fluid velocity, performed in spectral space, is shown to have a non-trivial impact on these quantities.

Influence of anisotropic turbulence on the orbital angular momentum modes of Hermite-Gaussian vortex beam in the ocean.

PubMed

Li, Ye; Yu, Lin; Zhang, Yixin

2017-05-29

Applying the angular spectrum theory, we derive the expression of a new Hermite-Gaussian (HG) vortex beam. Based on the new Hermite-Gaussian (HG) vortex beam, we establish the model of the received probability density of orbital angular momentum (OAM) modes of this beam propagating through a turbulent ocean of anisotropy. By numerical simulation, we investigate the influence of oceanic turbulence and beam parameters on the received probability density of signal OAM modes and crosstalk OAM modes of the HG vortex beam. The results show that the influence of oceanic turbulence of anisotropy on the received probability of signal OAM modes is smaller than isotropic oceanic turbulence under the same condition, and the effect of salinity fluctuation on the received probability of the signal OAM modes is larger than the effect of temperature fluctuation. In the strong dissipation of kinetic energy per unit mass of fluid and the weak dissipation rate of temperature variance, we can decrease the effects of turbulence on the received probability of signal OAM modes by selecting a long wavelength and a larger transverse size of the HG vortex beam in the source's plane. In long distance propagation, the HG vortex beam is superior to the Laguerre-Gaussian beam for resisting the destruction of oceanic turbulence.

The effect of the polymer relaxation time on the nonlinear energy cas- cade and dissipation of statistically steady and decaying homogeneous isotropic turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Valente, Pedro C.; da Silva, Carlos B.; Pinho, Fernando T.

2013-11-01

We report a numerical study of statistically steady and decaying turbulence of FENE-P fluids for varying polymer relaxation times ranging from the Kolmogorov dissipation time-scale to the eddy turnover time. The total turbulent kinetic energy dissipation is shown to increase with the polymer relaxation time in both steady and decaying turbulence, implying a ``drag increase.'' If the total power input in the statistically steady case is kept equal in the Newtonian and the viscoelastic simulations the increase in the turbulence-polymer energy transfer naturally lead to the previously reported depletion of the Newtonian, but not the overall, kinetic energy dissipation. The modifications to the nonlinear energy cascade with varying Deborah/Weissenberg numbers are quantified and their origins investigated. The authors acknowledge the financial support from Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia under grant PTDC/EME-MFE/113589/2009.

The evolution equation for the flame surface density in turbulent premixed combustion

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Trouve, A.; Poinsot, T.

1992-01-01

One central ingredient in flamelet models for turbulent premixed combustion is the flame surface density. This quantity conveys most of the effects of the turbulence on the rate of energy release and is obtained via a modeled transport equation, called the Sigma-equation. Past theoretical work has produced a rigorous approach that leads to an exact, but unclosed, formulation for the turbulent Sigma-equation. In this exact Sigma-equation, it appears that the dynamical properties of the flame surface density are determined by a single parameter, namely the turbulent flame stretch. Unfortunately, the flame surface density and the turbulent flame stretch are not available from experiments and, in the absence of experimental data, little is known on the validity of the closure assumptions used in current flamelet models. Direct Numerical Simulation (DNS) is the obvious, complementary approach to get basic information on these fundamental quantities. Three-dimensional DNS of premixed flames in isotropic turbulent flow is used to estimate the different terms appearing in the Sigma-equation. A new methodology is proposed to provide the source and sink terms for the flame surface density, resolved both temporally and spatially throughout the turbulent flame brush. Using this methodology, the effects of the Lewis number on the rate of production of flame surface area are described in great detail and meaningful comparisons with flamelet models can be performed. The analysis reveals in particular the tendency of the models to overpredict flame surface dissipation as well as their inability to reproduce variations due to thermo-diffusive phenomena. Thanks to the detailed information produced by a DNS-based analysis, this type of comparison not only underscores the shortcomings of current models but also suggests ways to improve them.

On the spatial distribution of small heavy particles in homogeneous shear turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nicolai, C.; Jacob, B.; Piva, R.

2013-08-01

We report on a novel experiment aimed at investigating the effects induced by a large-scale velocity gradient on the turbulent transport of small heavy particles. To this purpose, a homogeneous shear flow at Reλ = 540 and shear parameter S* = 4.5 is set-up and laden with glass spheres whose size d is comparable with the Kolmogorov lengthscale η of the flow (d/η ≈ 1). The particle Stokes number is approximately 0.3. The analysis of the instantaneous particle fields by means of Voronoï diagrams confirms the occurrence of intense turbulent clustering at small scales, as observed in homogeneous isotropic flows. It also indicates that the anisotropy of the velocity fluctuations induces a preferential orientation of the particle clusters. In order to characterize the fine-scale features of the dispersed phase, spatial correlations of the particle field are employed in conjunction with statistical tools recently developed for anisotropic turbulence. The scale-by-scale analysis of the particle field clarifies that isotropy of the particle distribution is tendentially recovered at small separations, even though the signatures of the mean shear persist down to smaller scales as compared to the fluid velocity field.

Alfvenic turbulence generated by the interstellar pickup protons in the outer heliosphere

DOE PAGES

Gamayunov, K.; Zhang, M.; Pogorelov, N.; ...

2013-06-13

Here a self-consistent model of the interstellar pickup protons, slab component of the Alfvénic turbulence, and core solar wind protons is presented for r ≤ 1 AU along with the initial results and comparison with the Voyager 2 (V2) observations. A fraction of the pickup proton free energy, f D, which is actually released in the wave form during isotropization, is taken from the quasi-linear consideration without preexisting turbulence. Whereas we use observations to specify a strength of the large scale driving, C sh, for turbulence. Our results show that for C sh ≈ 1 - 1.5 and f Dmore » ≈ 0.7 - 1, the model slab component agrees well with the V2 observations of the total transverse magnetic fluctuations starting from ~8 AU. Finally, this finding agrees with the result by Oughton et al. [17] where they also showed that the slab component dominates the two-dimensional component at the heliocentric distances beyond ~ 10 AU. So it is likely that the slab component at low-latitudes makes up a majority of the transverse magnetic fluctuations beyond 8 - 10 AU.« less

Heating and scattering of ring-beam distributions by turbulence

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gray, P. C.; Pontius, D. H., Jr.; Matthaeus, W. H.

1995-01-01

Pickup ions in the solar wind are initially are born in ring-beam distributions, i.e. f(v) varies as delta(v(sub perpendicular) - V(sub sw)sin(Theta)) delta(v(sub parallel) - V(sub sw)cos(Theta)), where Theta is the angle between the solar wind velocity and the IMF(Interplanetary Magnetic Field), and V(sub sw) is the solar wind speed. Often the distribution has been presumed to relax to a distribution that is isotropic in Theta and essentially mono-energetic, a shell or a 'bi-spherical distribution.' However solar wind turbulence is capable of heating the ring distribution on the timescale of a few tens of gyroperiods, a timescale not greatly distinct from that required for pitch angle scattering to a shell. To describe this effect, we have performed test-particle studies of the heating/scattering of the ring beam distribution by MHD turbulence, adopting various models for the MHD fluctuations, including slab and fully dynamic 2D and 3D incompressible turbulence. Furthermore, a system composed of a cold ion ring and a background plasma is unstable to several kinetic plasma instabilities. We carried out kinetic simulations of the ring beam distribution, showing that plasma instabilities also rapidly energize and scatter particles. Results will be presented comparing relaxation and heating rates of the ring-beam distribution by the various mechanisms.

Kinetic Alfven turbulence: Electron and ion heating by particle-in-cell simulations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gary, S. P.; Hughes, R. S.; Wang, J.; Parashar, T. N.

2017-12-01

Three-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations of the forward cascade of decaying kinetic Alfvén turbulence have been carried out as an initial-value problem on a collisionless, homogeneous, magnetized, electron-ion plasma model with betae = betai =0.50 and mi/me=100 where subscripts e and i represent electrons and ions respectively. Initial anisotropic narrowband spectra of relatively long wavelength modes with approximately gyrotropic distributions in kperp undergo a forward cascade to broadband spectra of magnetic fluctuations at shorter wavelengths. Maximum electron and ion heating rates are computed as functions of the initial fluctuating magnetic field energy density eo on the range 0.05 < eo < 0.50. In contrast to dissipation by whistler turbulence, the maximum ion heating rate due to kinetic Alfvén turbulence is substantially greater than the maximum electron heating rate. Furthermore, ion heating as well as electron heating due to kinetic Alfvén turbulence scale approximately with eo. Finally, electron heating leads to anisotropies of the type T||e> Tperpe where the parallel and perpendicular symbols refer to directions parallel and perpendicular, respectively, to the background magnetic field, whereas the heated ions remain relatively isotropic. This implies that, for the range of eo values considered, the Landau wave-particle resonance is a likely heating mechanism for the electrons and may also contribute to ion heating.

Discovery of stationary operation of quiescent H-mode plasmas with net-zero neutral beam injection torque and high energy confinement on DIII-D

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Burrell, K. H.; Chen, X.; Garofalo, A. M.

Recent experiments in DIII-D [J. L. Luxon et al., in Plasma Physics and Controlled Nuclear Fusion Research 1996 (International Atomic Energy Agency, Vienna, 1987), Vol. I, p. 159] have led to the discovery of a means of modifying edge turbulence to achieve stationary, high confinement operation without Edge Localized Mode (ELM) instabilities and with no net external torque input. Eliminating the ELM-induced heat bursts and controlling plasma stability at low rotation represent two of the great challenges for fusion energy. By exploiting edge turbulence in a novel manner, we achieved excellent tokamak performance, well above the H{sub 98y2} international tokamakmore » energy confinement scaling (H{sub 98y2} = 1.25), thus meeting an additional confinement challenge that is usually difficult at low torque. The new regime is triggered in double null plasmas by ramping the injected torque to zero and then maintaining it there. This lowers E × B rotation shear in the plasma edge, allowing low-k, broadband, electromagnetic turbulence to increase. In the H-mode edge, a narrow transport barrier usually grows until MHD instability (a peeling ballooning mode) leads to the ELM heat burst. However, the increased turbulence reduces the pressure gradient, allowing the development of a broader and thus higher transport barrier. A 60% increase in pedestal pressure and 40% increase in energy confinement result. An increase in the E × B shearing rate inside of the edge pedestal is a key factor in the confinement increase. Strong double-null plasma shaping raises the threshold for the ELM instability, allowing the plasma to reach a transport-limited state near but below the explosive ELM stability boundary. The resulting plasmas have burning-plasma-relevant β{sub N} = 1.6–1.8 and run without the need for extra torque from 3D magnetic fields. To date, stationary conditions have been produced for 2 s or 12 energy confinement times, limited only by external hardware

Turbulent fluctuations during pellet injection into a dipole confined plasma torus

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Garnier, D. T.; Mauel, M. E.; Roberts, T. M.; Kesner, J.; Woskov, P. P.

2017-01-01

We report measurements of the turbulent evolution of the plasma density profile following the fast injection of lithium pellets into the Levitated Dipole Experiment (LDX) [Boxer et al., Nat. Phys. 6, 207 (2010)]. As the pellet passes through the plasma, it provides a significant internal particle source and allows investigation of density profile evolution, turbulent relaxation, and turbulent fluctuations. The total electron number within the dipole plasma torus increases by more than a factor of three, and the central density increases by more than a factor of five. During these large changes in density, the shape of the density profile is nearly "stationary" such that the gradient of the particle number within tubes of equal magnetic flux vanishes. In comparison to the usual case, when the particle source is neutral gas at the plasma edge, the internal source from the pellet causes the toroidal phase velocity of the fluctuations to reverse and changes the average particle flux at the plasma edge. An edge particle source creates an inward turbulent pinch, but an internal particle source increases the outward turbulent particle flux. Statistical properties of the turbulence are measured by multiple microwave interferometers and by an array of probes at the edge. The spatial structures of the largest amplitude modes have long radial and toroidal wavelengths. Estimates of the local and toroidally averaged turbulent particle flux show intermittency and a non-Gaussian probability distribution function. The measured fluctuations, both before and during pellet injection, have frequency and wavenumber dispersion consistent with theoretical expectations for interchange and entropy modes excited within a dipole plasma torus having warm electrons and cool ions.

Aspects of Turbulent / Non-Turbulent Interfaces

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bisset, D. K.; Hunt, J. C. R.; Rogers, M. M.; Koen, Dennis (Technical Monitor)

1999-01-01

A distinct boundary between turbulent and non-turbulent regions in a fluid of otherwise constant properties is found in many laboratory and engineering turbulent flows, including jets, mixing layers, boundary layers and wakes. Generally, the flow has mean shear in at least one direction within t he turbulent zone, but the non-turbulent zones have no shear (adjacent laminar shear is a different case, e.g. transition in a boundary layer). There may be purely passive differences between the turbulent and non-turbulent zones, e.g. small variations in temperature or scalar concentration, for which turbulent mixing is an important issue. The boundary has several major characteristics of interest for the present study. Firstly, the boundary advances into the non-turbulent fluid, or in other words, nonturbulent fluid is entrained. Secondly, the change in turbulence properties across the boundary is remarkably abrupt; strong turbulent motions come close to the nonturbulent fluid, promoting entrainment. Thirdly, the boundary is irregular with a continually changing convoluted shape, which produces statistical intermittency. Its shape is contorted at all scales of the turbulent motion.

SIMULATIONS OF THE KELVIN–HELMHOLTZ INSTABILITY DRIVEN BY CORONAL MASS EJECTIONS IN THE TURBULENT CORONA

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Gómez, Daniel O.; DeLuca, Edward E.; Mininni, Pablo D.

Recent high-resolution Atmospheric Imaging Assembly/Solar Dynamics Observatory images show evidence of the development of the Kelvin–Helmholtz (KH) instability, as coronal mass ejections (CMEs) expand in the ambient corona. A large-scale magnetic field mostly tangential to the interface is inferred, both on the CME and on the background sides. However, the magnetic field component along the shear flow is not strong enough to quench the instability. There is also observational evidence that the ambient corona is in a turbulent regime, and therefore the criteria for the development of the instability are a priori expected to differ from the laminar case. To studymore » the evolution of the KH instability with a turbulent background, we perform three-dimensional simulations of the incompressible magnetohydrodynamic equations. The instability is driven by a velocity profile tangential to the CME–corona interface, which we simulate through a hyperbolic tangent profile. The turbulent background is generated by the application of a stationary stirring force. We compute the instability growth rate for different values of the turbulence intensity, and find that the role of turbulence is to attenuate the growth. The fact that KH instability is observed sets an upper limit on the correlation length of the coronal background turbulence.« less

Generation and evolution of anisotropic turbulence and related energy transfer in drifting proton-alpha plasmas

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Maneva, Y. G.; Poedts, S.

2018-05-01

The power spectra of magnetic field fluctuations in the solar wind typically follow a power-law dependence with respect to the observed frequencies and wave-numbers. The background magnetic field often influences the plasma properties, setting a preferential direction for plasma heating and acceleration. At the same time the evolution of the solar-wind turbulence at the ion and electron scales is influenced by the plasma properties through local micro-instabilities and wave-particle interactions. The solar-wind-plasma temperature and the solar-wind turbulence at sub- and sup-ion scales simultaneously show anisotropic features, with different components and fluctuation power in parallel with and perpendicular to the orientation of the background magnetic field. The ratio between the power of the magnetic field fluctuations in parallel and perpendicular direction at the ion scales may vary with the heliospheric distance and depends on various parameters, including the local wave properties and nonthermal plasma features, such as temperature anisotropies and relative drift speeds. In this work we have performed two-and-a-half-dimensional hybrid simulations to study the generation and evolution of anisotropic turbulence in a drifting multi-ion species plasma. We investigate the evolution of the turbulent spectral slopes along and across the background magnetic field for the cases of initially isotropic and anisotropic turbulence. Finally, we show the effect of the various turbulent spectra for the local ion heating in the solar wind.

Spectra of turbulently advected scalars that have small Schmidt number

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hill, Reginald J.

2017-09-01

Exact statistical equations are derived for turbulent advection of a passive scalar having diffusivity much larger than the kinematic viscosity, i.e., small Schmidt number. The equations contain all terms needed for precise direct numerical simulation (DNS) quantification. In the appropriate limit, the equations reduce to the classical theory for which the scalar spectrum is proportional to the energy spectrum multiplied by k-4, which, in turn, results in the inertial-diffusive range power law, k-17 /3. The classical theory was derived for the case of isotropic velocity and scalar fields. The exact equations are simplified for less restrictive cases: (1) locally isotropic scalar fluctuations at dissipation scales with no restriction on symmetry of the velocity field, (2) isotropic velocity field with averaging over all wave-vector directions with no restriction on the symmetry of the scalar, motivated by that average being used for DNS, and (3) isotropic velocity field with axisymmetric scalar fluctuations, motivated by the mean-scalar-gradient-source case. The equations are applied to recently published DNSs of passive scalars for the cases of a freely decaying scalar and a mean-scalar-gradient source. New terms in the exact equations are estimated for those cases and are found to be significant; those terms cause the deviations from the classical theory found by the DNS studies. A new formula for the mean-scalar-gradient case explains the variation of the scalar spectra for the DNS of the smallest Schmidt-number cases. Expansion in Legendre polynomials reveals the effect of axisymmetry. Inertial-diffusive-range formulas for both the zero- and second-order Legendre contributions are given. Exact statistical equations reveal what must be quantified using DNS to determine what causes deviations from asymptotic relationships.

Entropic multirelaxation lattice Boltzmann models for turbulent flows

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bösch, Fabian; Chikatamarla, Shyam S.; Karlin, Ilya V.

2015-10-01

We present three-dimensional realizations of a class of lattice Boltzmann models introduced recently by the authors [I. V. Karlin, F. Bösch, and S. S. Chikatamarla, Phys. Rev. E 90, 031302(R) (2014), 10.1103/PhysRevE.90.031302] and review the role of the entropic stabilizer. Both coarse- and fine-grid simulations are addressed for the Kida vortex flow benchmark. We show that the outstanding numerical stability and performance is independent of a particular choice of the moment representation for high-Reynolds-number flows. We report accurate results for low-order moments for homogeneous isotropic decaying turbulence and second-order grid convergence for most assessed statistical quantities. It is demonstrated that all the three-dimensional lattice Boltzmann realizations considered herein converge to the familiar lattice Bhatnagar-Gross-Krook model when the resolution is increased. Moreover, thanks to the dynamic nature of the entropic stabilizer, the present model features less compressibility effects and maintains correct energy and enstrophy dissipation. The explicit and efficient nature of the present lattice Boltzmann method renders it a promising candidate for both engineering and scientific purposes for highly turbulent flows.

Characterization and prediction of extreme events in turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fonda, Enrico; Iyer, Kartik P.; Sreenivasan, Katepalli R.

2017-11-01

Extreme events in Nature such as tornadoes, large floods and strong earthquakes are rare but can have devastating consequences. The predictability of these events is very limited at present. Extreme events in turbulence are the very large events in small scales that are intermittent in character. We examine events in energy dissipation rate and enstrophy which are several tens to hundreds to thousands of times the mean value. To this end we use our DNS database of homogeneous and isotropic turbulence with Taylor Reynolds numbers spanning a decade, computed with different small scale resolutions and different box sizes, and study the predictability of these events using machine learning. We start with an aggressive data augmentation to virtually increase the number of these rare events by two orders of magnitude and train a deep convolutional neural network to predict their occurrence in an independent data set. The goal of the work is to explore whether extreme events can be predicted with greater assurance than can be done by conventional methods (e.g., D.A. Donzis & K.R. Sreenivasan, J. Fluid Mech. 647, 13-26, 2010).

Transport and Lagrangian Statistics in Rotating Stratified Turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rosenberg, D. L.

2015-12-01

Transport plays a crucial role in geophysical flows, both in theatmosphere and in the ocean. Transport in such flows is ultimatelycontrolled by small-scale turbulence, although the large scales arein geostrophic balance between pressure gradient, gravity and Coriolisforces. As a result of the seemingly random nature of the flow, singleparticles are dispersed by the flow and on time scales significantlylonger than the eddy turn-over time, they undergo a diffusive motionwhose diffusion coefficient is the integral of the velocity correlationfunction. On intermediate time scales, in homogeneous, isotropic turbuilence(HIT) the separation between particle pairs has been argued to grow withtime according to the Richardson law: <(Δ x)2(t)> ~ t3, with aproportionality constant that depends on the initial particleseparation. The description of the phenomena associated withthe dispersion of single particles, or of particle pairs, ultimatelyrests on relatively simple statistical properties of the flowvelocity transporting the particles, in particular on its temporalcorrelation function. In this work, we investigate particle dispersionin the anisotropic case of rotating stratified turbulence examining whetherthe dependence on initial particle separation differs from HIT,particularly in the presence of an inverse cascade.

Coherent clusters of inertial particles in homogeneous turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Baker, Lucia; Frankel, Ari; Mani, Ali; Coletti, Filippo

2016-11-01

Clustering of heavy particles in turbulent flows manifests itself in a broad spectrum of physical phenomena, including sediment transport, cloud formation, and spray combustion. However, a clear topological definition of particle cluster has been lacking, limiting our ability to describe their features and dynamics. Here we introduce a definition of coherent cluster based on self-similarity, and apply it to the distribution of heavy particles in direct numerical simulations of homogeneous isotropic turbulence. We consider a range of particle Stokes numbers, with and without the effect of gravity. Clusters show self-similarity at length scales larger than twice the Kolmogorov length, with a specific fractal dimension. In the absence of gravity, clusters demonstrate a tendency to sample regions of the flow where strain is dominant over vorticity, and to align themselves with the local vorticity vector; when gravity is present, the clusters tend to align themselves with gravity, and their fall speed is different from the average settling velocity. This approach yields observations which are consistent with findings obtained from previous studies while opening new avenues for analysis of the topology and evolution of particle clusters in a wealth of applications.

Soap film flows: Statistics of two-dimensional turbulence

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Vorobieff, P.; Rivera, M.; Ecke, R.E.

1999-08-01

Soap film flows provide a very convenient laboratory model for studies of two-dimensional (2-D) hydrodynamics including turbulence. For a gravity-driven soap film channel with a grid of equally spaced cylinders inserted in the flow, we have measured the simultaneous velocity and thickness fields in the irregular flow downstream from the cylinders. The velocity field is determined by a modified digital particle image velocimetry method and the thickness from the light scattered by the particles in the film. From these measurements, we compute the decay of mean energy, enstrophy, and thickness fluctuations with downstream distance, and the structure functions of velocity,more » vorticity, thickness fluctuation, and vorticity flux. From these quantities we determine the microscale Reynolds number of the flow R{sub {lambda}}{approx}100 and the integral and dissipation scales of 2D turbulence. We also obtain quantitative measures of the degree to which our flow can be considered incompressible and isotropic as a function of downstream distance. We find coarsening of characteristic spatial scales, qualitative correspondence of the decay of energy and enstrophy with the Batchelor model, scaling of energy in {ital k} space consistent with the k{sup {minus}3} spectrum of the Kraichnan{endash}Batchelor enstrophy-scaling picture, and power-law scalings of the structure functions of velocity, vorticity, vorticity flux, and thickness. These results are compared with models of 2-D turbulence and with numerical simulations. {copyright} {ital 1999 American Institute of Physics.}« less