On secondary instability with respect to three dimensional subharmonic disturbances in boundary layer

The general equations of secondary instability with respect to three-dimensional subharmonic disturbances are derived and applied to Blasius boundary layer in the present paper. The theoretical results of evolution and spatial distribution of subharmonic disturbances are compared with experimental data. The results show the important role of the process of route to transition in low-disturbance environments, and indicate that spatial mode is more rational than temporal mode. Project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China Current address: Graduate School, University of Science and Technology of China, Beijing, 100039     

Flow past a cylinder: shear layer instability and drag crisis

Flow past a circular cylinder for Re=100 to 10⁷ is studied numerically by solving the unsteady incompressible two‐dimensional Navier–Stokes equations via a stabilized finite element formulation. It is well known that beyond Re ～ 200 the flow develops significant three‐dimensional features. Therefore, two‐dimensional computations are expected to fall well short of predicting the flow accurately at high Re. It is fairly well accepted that the shear layer instability is primarily a two‐dimensional phenomenon. The frequency of the shear layer vortices, from the present computations, agree quite well with the Re^0.67 variation observed by other researchers from experimental measurements. The main objective of this paper is to investigate a possible relationship between the drag crisis (sudden loss of drag at Re ～ 2 × 10⁵) and the instability of the separated shear layer. As Re is increased the transition point of shear layer, beyond which it is unstable, moves upstream. At the critical Reynolds number the transition point is located very close to the point of flow separation. As a result, the shear layer eddies cause mixing of the flow in the boundary layer. This energizes the boundary layer and leads to its reattachment. The delay in flow separation is associated with narrowing of wake, increase in Reynolds shear stress near the shoulder of the cylinder and a significant reduction in the drag and base suction coefficients. The spatial and temporal power spectra for the kinetic energy of the Re=10⁶ flow are computed. As in two‐dimensional isotropic turbulence, E(k) varies as k^?5/3 for wavenumbers higher than energy injection scale and as k^?3 for lower wavenumbers. The present computations suggest that the shear layer vortices play a major role in the transition of boundary layer from laminar to turbulent state. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Analysis of the secondary stability of compressible boundary layer flows over a two-dimensional plate

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NUMERICAL STUDY FOR RESONANT TRIAD INTERACTION AND SECONDARY INSTABILITY IN TWO-DIMENSIONAL SUPERSONIC BOUNDARY LAYER

By direct numerical simulation, a supersonic boundary layer was studied to see whether the mechanism for the generation of sub-harmonic waves, similar to those for the incompressible flows, existed in the process of laminar-turbulent transition. The results showed that mechanisms of both resonant triad and secondary instability did exist. Discussions were made on whether these two mechanisms are really important in laminarturbulent transition.     

Secondary instability of large scale structure in free turbulent shear layer

The secondary instability theory is used to study the behavior of spatially growingdisturbance in free turbulent shear layer.The numerical results indicate that secondaryinstability of subharmonic mode shows a strong choice of spanwise wavenumber andthe maximum growth two dimensional case.In contrast to that secondary instabilities of the fundamental mode occur in a wide scope of spanwise wavenumber.We have found so called translative at β=0 and bifurcation phenomenon for an amplitude of the KH wave larger than 0.06.Dey words instability,large scale structure,bifurcation     

On separated shear layer of blunt circular cylinder

Separated shear layer of blunt circular cylinder has been experimentally investigated for the Reynolds numbers (based on the diameter) ranging from 2.8×10³ to 1.0×10⁵, with emphasis on evolution of separated shear layer, its structure and distribution of Reynolds shear stress and turbulence kinetic energy. The results demonstrate that laminar separated shear layer experiences 2–3 times vortex merging before it reattaches, and turbulence separated shear layer takes 5–6 times vortex merging. In addition, relationship between dimensionless initial frequencies of K-H instability and Reynolds numbers is identified, and reasons for the decay of turbulence kinetic energy and Reynolds shear stress in reattachment region are discussed. The project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China and the Key Laboratory for Hydrodynamics of NDCST.     

Nonlinear evolution of Klebanoff type second mode disturbances in supersonic flat-plate boundary layer简

Studying the evolution of 3D disturbances is of crucial theoretical importance for understanding the transition process. The present study concerns the nonlinear evolution of second mode unstable disturbances in a supersonic boundary layer by the numerical simulation, and discusses the selectivity of 3D disturbances and possibility to transition. The results indicate that a Klebanoff type nonlinear interaction between 2D and 3D disturbances with the same frequency may amplify a band of 3D disturbances centered at a finite spanwise wavenumber. That is, certain 3D disturbances can be selectively and rapidly amplified by the unstable 2D disturbances, and certain small-scale 3D structures will appear.     

Eigenmode decomposition of the turbulent shear layer above a square rib

1D, 2D and fully 3D structural information is extracted from a large-eddy simulation of turbulent flow over a square rib, using Proper Orthogonal Decomposition. In this paper, we focus on the shear layer separating at the leading edge and developing above and behind the top face of the flow obstacle. The two-point correlation tensor, required for the solution of the related eigenvalue problem, is provided from a large-eddy simulation for a Reynolds number of about 50 000 (based on obstacle height and incoming bulk velocity). The results indicate that the eigenmode decomposition is a very useful tool to extract organized structures even from very complex turbulent velocity fields at high Reynolds numbers. A significant amount of turbulent energy can still be captured by a relatively small number of modes.     

Instability of the separated shear layer in flow past a cylinder: Forced excitation

The receptivity of the separated shear layer for Re = 300 flow past a cylinder is investigated by forced excitation via an unsteady inflow. In order to isolate the shear layer instability, a numerical experiment is set up that suppresses the primary wake instability. Computations are carried out for one half of the cylinder, in two dimensions. The flow past half a cylinder with steady inflow is found to be stable for Re = 300. However, an inlet flow with pulsatile perturbations, of amplitude 1% of the mean, results in the excitation of the shear layer mode. The frequency of the perturbation of the inlet flow determines the frequency associated with the shear layer vortices. For a certain range of forced frequencies the recirculation region undergoes a low‐frequency longitudinal contraction and expansion. An attempt is made to relate this instability to a global mode of the wake determined from a linear stability analysis. Interestingly, this phenomenon disappears when the outflow boundary of the computational domain is shifted sufficiently downstream. This study demonstrates the need of carefully investigating the effect of the location of outflow boundaries if the computational results indicate the presence of low‐frequency fluctuations. The effect of Re and amplitude of unsteadiness at the inlet are also presented. All computations have been carried out using a stabilized finite element formulation of the incompressible flow equations. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Flow modulation of a planar free shear layer with large bubbles—direct numerical simulations

The flow of a planar free shear layer with cylindrical bubbles is simulated using a finite difference/front tracking scheme. This approach allows direct numerical simulation of the multiphase flow by wholly incorporating the local bubble flow field in conjunction with the large scale vortical structures of the liquid. The role of large bubbles in modifying low Reynolds number ( 250) shear flow structures is investigated, specifically for bubbles whose diameter approaches the scale of the largest liquid eddies. The results indicate that duration of eddy crossing is the main mechanism for flow modulation, which is typically characterized by decreased vortex coherency and size, modified fluctuation statistics and significant variations in pairing/merging phenomena. The comparison of fluctuating statistics and flow field visualization also allowed qualitative discrimination between the modulation of the non-linear eddy dynamics and fluctuations due simply to the random bubble induced perturbations.     

Numerical studies on evolution of secondary streamwise vortices in transitional boundary layers

Formation and evolution of secondary streamwise vortices in the compressible transitional boundary layers over a flat plate are studied using a direct numerical simulation method with high-order accuracy and highly effective non-reflecting characteristic boundary conditions. Generation and development processes of the secondary streamwise vortices in the complicated transitional boundary flow are clearly analyzed based on the of numerical results, and the effects on the formation of the ring-like vortex that is vital to the boundary layer transition are explored. A new mechanism forming the ring-like vortex through the mutual effect of the primary and secondary streamwise vortices is expressed.     

Numerical study on the instability of premixed plane flames in the three-dimensional field

The instability of premixed plane flames in the three-dimensional (3-D) field is investigated by means of the numerical simulation. We show numerically that infinitesimal disturbances superimposed on the flames grow exponentially with time, as predicted in the linear analysis, and obtain the growth rates of disturbances depending on the absolute values of the wave-number vectors. The growth rates of the 3-D flames are consistent with those of the two-dimensional (2-D) flames. The hydrodynamic effect has a destabilizing influence on the instability of flames, and the diffusive-thermal effect has a destabilizing/stabilizing influence for Le < 1/Le > 1. Moreover, we produce the hexagonal cellular structure of the flame front not only for Le < 1 but also for Le > 1, where the spacing between cells in flames for Le < 1 is small compared to that for Le > 1. The spacing of the 3-D flames is 2/√3 times as long as the cell size of the 2-D flames.     

Numerical analysis of secondary instabilities of the incompressible boundary layer flow with suction

Based on the Euler–Maclaurin formula, a compact finite difference scheme is employed to solve a two-point boundary value problem for studying the secondary instabilities of the boundary layer flow. The parametric resonance of unstable waves is explored using the Floquet method. For both subharmonic and fundamental modes, two additional Fourier terms are added in the analysis, and the spatial growth rates are determined. The effect of suction mechanism on the secondary instability waves is also investigated. From numerical experiments, it is shown that the proposed numerical scheme is very promising. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Global instability of Stokes layer for whole wave numbers

The study on the global instability of a Stokes layer,which is a typical unsteady flow,is usually a paradigm for understanding the instability and transition of unsteady flows.Previous studies suggest that the neutral curve of the global instability obtained by the Floquet theory is only mapped out in a limited range of wave numbers(0.2 α 0.5).In this paper,the global instability is investigated with numerical simulations for all wave numbers.It is revealed that the peak of the disturbances displays irregularity rather than the periodic evolution while the wave number is beyond the above range.A "neutral point" is redefined,and a neutral curve of the global instability is presented for the whole wave numbers with this new definition.This work provides a deeper understanding of the global instability of unsteady flows.     

Convective instability in a rapidly rotating fluid layer in the presence of a non-uniform magnetic field

Magnetoconvective instabilities in a rapidly rotating, electrically conducting fluid layer heated from below in the presence of a non-uniform, horizontal magnetic field are investigated. It was first shown by Chandrasekhar that an overall minimum of the Rayleigh number may be reached at the onset of magnetoconvection when a uniform basic magnetic field is imposed. In this paper, we show that the properties of instability can be quite different when a non-uniform basic magnetic field is applied. It is shown that there is an optimum value of the Elsasser number provided that the basic magnetic field is a monotonically decreasing or increasing function of the vertical coordinate. However, there exist no optimum values of the Elsasser number that can give rise to an overall minimum of the Rayleigh number at the onset of magnetoconvection if the imposed basic magnetic field has an inflexion point. The project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (40174026 and 40074041)     

An experimental research on the instability of natural convection boundary layer around a vertical heated flat plate

Experimental results on the instability of the isothermal naturalconvection boundary layer around a vertical heated flat plate are presented. It is demonstrated that the characteristics of the instability wave in the outer layer is consistent with the calculation of Brewster & Gebhart. After an initial growth of its low frequency components at the downstream side of the turning point of the neutral curve (Gr≈120) its comparatively higher frequency components develop and become turbulent subsequently with a buoyancy subrange in its power spectra. Simultaneously, in the measurement at the inner layer near the wall a viscous instability signal the same as the Tollmien-Schlichting waves in ordinary boundary layer and its subharmonics in a much higher frequency domain is discovered and an inertial subrange can be observed in the spectra atGr≈378.6. The project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (19572004)     

Non-linear study of electrohydrodynamic Rayleigh-Taylor instability in a composite fluid-porous layer

The non-linear electrohydrodynamic RTI in presence of electric field bounded above by porous layer and below by a rigid surface, have been studied based on electrohydrodynamic approximations in the effect similar to the Stokes and lubrication approximations. The non-linear problem is studied numerically in the present paper using the Adams-Bashforth predictor and Adams-Moulton corrector numerical techniques. In the conclusion, the non-linear problem discussed here is quite different from that of Babchin et al. (1983) [10] considering the plane Couette flow. The present problem is greatly influenced by the slip velocity at the interface between porous layer and thin film. It is not amenable to analytical treatment as that of Babchin et al. [10]. Therefore, numerical solutions have to be found. Fourth-order accurate central differences are used for spatial discretization using predictor and corrector numerical technique.     

An experimental study of a turbulent shear layer at a clean and contaminated free-surface

An experimental study was performed to measure the flow properties of a vertically-orientated shear layer in the vicinity of a free-surface. The effect of surface contamination on the near surface flow field was also determined. Digital Particle Image Velocimetry was used to measure instantaneous and averaged velocity, vorticity, and Reynolds stresses. Results show that the presence of surfactants can cause directional shifts of the shear layer, as well as an overall damping of the turbulence in the vicinity of the free-surface, except in the vicinity of a Reynolds ridge where an increase in Reynolds stress was observed.