A model of stratified entrainment using vortex persistence

A new model is proposed for the entrainment rate by vortices across stratified interfaces. In the model, different entrainment regimes are distinguished by the conventional parameters Richardson, Reynolds, and Schmidt number as well as a new parameter, the “vortex persistence”. Vortex persistence is defined as the number of rotations a vortex makes during the time it moves its own diameter with respect to the interface. It is further proposed that the concept of vortex persistence is important whenever a vortex is near any kind of surface, either stratified or solid. The model is in accord with most field and laboratory observations in a variety of stratified and bounded flows, including measurements of wall heat transfer and vortex formation in starting jets.