The Effect of Reynolds Number on the Passive Scalar Field in the Turbulent Wake of a Circular Cylinder

In this paper we investigate by experiments the effect of Reynolds number on a passive scalar (temperature) field in the turbulent wake of a slightly heated circular cylinder. The Reynolds number defined by Re≡U _∞ d/ν (see Nomenclature) is varied from Re= 1200 to Re= 8600. Temperature differential above ambient is chosen to be the passive scalar quantity. Present measurements are conducted using a cold wire (0.63 μm) probe. Results obtained suggest that Reynolds number in general has significant influence on the scalar mixing characteristics in the entire wake flow. Specifically, as Re increases, the mean scalar spreads out more rapidly, the scalar fluctuation intensity increases; however, its variance decays at a lower rate with downstream distance. It is also found that an increase of Re accelerates the streamwise evolution of the scalar probability density function from highly non-Gaussianity to near Gaussianity along the wake centreline. This reflects the reduction in length of the Karman-vortex street caused by an increase of Re.     

Spatial resolution effects on the measurement of scalar variance and scalar gradient in turbulent nonpremixed jet flames

The effect of spatial averaging is important for scalar gradient measurements in turbulent nonpremixed flames, especially when the local dissipation length scale is small. Line imaging of Raman, Rayleigh and CO-LIF is used to investigate the effects of experimental resolution on the scalar variance and radial gradient in the near field of turbulent nonpremixed CH₄/H₂/N₂ jet flames at Reynolds numbers of 15,200 and 22,800 (DLR-A and B) and in piloted CH₄/air jet flames at Reynolds numbers of 13,400, 22,400 and 33,600 (Sandia flames C/D/E). The finite spatial resolution effects are studied by applying the Box filter with varying filter widths. The resulting resolution curves for both scalar variance and mean squared-gradient follow nearly the same trends as theoretical curves calculated from the model turbulence kinetic energy spectrum of Pope. The observed collapse of resolution curves of mean squared-gradient for nearly all studied cases implies the shape of the dissipation spectrum is approximately universal. Fluid transport properties are shown to have no effect on the dissipation resolution curve, which implies that the dissipation length scale inferred from the square gradient is equivalent to the length scale for the scalar dissipation rate, which includes the diffusion coefficient. With the Box filter, the required spatial resolution to resolve 98% of the mean dissipation rate is about one−two times of the dissipation cutoff length scale (analogous to the Batchelor scale in turbulent isothermal flows). The effects of resolution on the variances of mixture fraction, temperature, and the inverted Rayleigh signal are also compared. The ratio of the filtered variance to the true variance is shown to depend nearly linearly on the probe resolution. The inverted Rayleigh scattering signal can be used to study the resolution effect on temperature variance even when the Rayleigh scattering cross section is not constant. The experimental results also indicate that these laboratory scale turbulent jet flames have small effective Reynolds numbers, such that there is some direct interaction of the large (energy containing) and small (dissipative) scalar length scales, especially for the near field case at x/d = 7.5 of the piloted Sandia flames C/D/E.     

An Experimental Study of the Near-Field Mixing Characteristics of a Swirling Jet

The present experimental investigation is devoted to the mixing characteristics of a passive scalar in the near-field region of a moderately swirling jet issuing from a fully developed axially rotating pipe flow. Instantaneous streamwise and azimuthal velocity components as well as the temperature were simultaneously accessed by means of a combined X-wire and cold-wire probe. The results indicate a modification of the turbulence structures to that effect that the swirling jet spreads, mixes and evolves faster compared to its non-swirling counterpart. The high correlation between streamwise velocity and temperature fluctuations as well as the streamwise passive scalar flux are even more enhanced due to the addition of swirl, which in turn shortens the distance and hence time needed to mix the jet with the ambient air.     

Characteristics of fluorescein dye and temperature fluctuations in a turbulent near-wake

 The Laser Induced Fluorescence (LIF) technique was used to determine a few characteristics of a high Schmidt number (Sc) passive scalar (fluorescein) in the near-wake of a circular cylinder. The mean and rms concentration indicate that increasing the Reynolds number (Re) improves the large-scale mixing and accelerates the homogenisation of the scalar. As Re increases, the intensity of segregation decreases because of turbulent diffusion but the scale of segregation increases due to dispersion. Comparison between concentration and temperature rms profiles indicates that molecular diffusion has a much smaller effect on the decay of the scalar variance than the Reynolds number. The ratio of mean-squared values of lateral and streamwise spatial derivatives of the scalar fluctuation deviates from isotropy, the departure increasing with Re. This reflects more the effect of dispersion by the turbulent velocity field rather than any molecular diffusion effect. At a given Re, the ratio decreases as the distance from the cylinder increases. This trend is more accentuated near the edge of the wake than at the centreline. Received: 16 March 1999/Accepted: 10 June 1999     

Velocity and Passive Scalar Characteristics in a Round Jet with Grids at the Nozzle Exit

Velocity and passive scalar (temperature) measurements have been made in the near field of a round jet with and without obstructing grids placed at the jet exit. The Reynolds number Re _D (based on the exit centreline velocity and nozzle diameter) is 4.9 × 10⁴ and the flow is incompressible, while the temperature rise does not affect the velocity behaviour. The streamwise development and radial spreading of the passive scalar are attenuated, relative to the unobstructed jet. Close to the jet outlet, the spatial similarity of the moments (up to the third-order) of velocity fluctuations is improved, when the jet is perturbed. An explanation, based on the reduced effect of the large coherent structures in the developing region, is provided.     

Visualization of coherent structure in scalar fields of unsteady jet flows with interferometric tomography and proper orthogonal decomposition

Proper orthogonal decomposition (POD) is a method of examining spatial coherence in unsteady flow fields from an ensemble of multidimensional measurements. When applied to experimental data, the proper orthogonal decomposition is generally restricted to data sets with low spatial resolution. This is because of the inherent difficulties in generating an ensemble of measurements that contain a large number of data points. In this paper, a system for obtaining a large ensemble of three-dimensional scalar measurements using interferometric tomography is presented. The proper orthogonal decomposition is applied in three spatial dimensions to experimental data of two jet-like flows. The coherent structure present in the near field of a neutrally buoyant, helium–argon jet and the far field of a buoyant helium jet into air is visualized. The POD results of the helium–argon jet clearly reveal the breakdown region of a sequence of vortex rings and a large-scale flapping motion in the jet far field. The POD of the buoyant helium jet shows a number of competing modes with varying degrees of helicity. Received: 14 January 2000/Accepted: 26 September 2000     

Corrections for underresolved scalar measurements in turbulent flows using a DNS database

We estimate the effect of finite spatial resolution of a probe for scalar measurements, using a database from direct numerical simulations (DNS). These are for homogeneous isotropic turbulence in temporal decay, Schmidt number unity, and low Taylor-microscale Reynolds number (≃27–42). The probe could be a cold wire for measuring temperature in a turbulent flow. Correction factors for the scalar variance, scalar dissipation rate, and mixed velocity-scalar derivative skewness are estimated, for a sensor length up to 15 times the Batchelor length scale. It is shown that the lack of resolution yields the largest attenuation on the dissipation rate, followed by the scalar variance. On the contrary, the mixed skewness, which is affected the least, is overestimated. Further, it is shown that if one estimates the mixed skewness via the scalar variance dynamical equation and neglects the term involving the time derivative of the scalar energy spectrum, large errors in the correction factor of the mixed skewness are introduced. Finally, it is found that correction factors obtained assuming Kraichnan scalar model spectrum and following Wyngaard (in Phys Fluids 14:2052–2054, 1971) approach are close to those from the DNS.     

Experimental and numerical investigation of flow control on bluff bodies by passive ventilation

In this work, the so-called natural or passive ventilation drag reduction method is investigated experimentally and numerically. Passive ventilation is performed by directly connecting the high pressure region at the front of a body to the lower pressure in the near wake using a venting duct; in this manner, a net mass flux is established within the wake. In particular, in aerodynamic applications it appears suitable to attain a global reduction in the drag of a body moving in a fluid and a reduction in turbulence levels by means of a global modification of the body wake. Velocity field investigations using particle image velocimetry measurements and a Reynolds averaged numerical code are employed at moderately high Reynolds numbers to clarify the effectiveness of drag reduction on a vented bluff body. The numerical and experimental results agree qualitatively, but the amount of reduction for the vented body (about 10%) is underestimated numerically. The effectiveness of drag reduction has been proved both for smooth and rough (single strip) models. Direct balance measurements are used for comparisons.     

Momentum and heat transport in a finite-length cylinder wake

This paper reports an experimental study of turbulent momentum and heat transport in the wake of a wall-mounted finite-length square cylinder, with its length-to-width ratio L/d = 3–7. The cylinder was slightly heated so that heat produced could be considered as a passive scalar. A moveable three-wire probe (a combination of an X-wire and a cold wire) was used to measure velocity and temperature fluctuations at a Reynolds number of 7,300 based on d and the free-stream velocity. Measurements were performed at 10 and 20d downstream of the cylinder at various spanwise locations. Results indicate that L/d has a pronounced effect on Reynolds stresses, temperature variance and heat fluxes. The downwash flow from the free end of the cylinder acts to suppress spanwise vortices and, along with the upwash flow from the cylinder base, makes the finite-length cylinder wake highly three-dimensional. Reynolds stresses, especially the lateral normal stress, are significantly reduced as a result of suppressed spanwise vortices at a small L/d. The downwash flow acts to separate the two rows of spanwise vortices further apart from the wake centerline, resulting in a twin-peak distribution in temperature variance. While the downwash flow entrains high-speed fluid into the wake, responsible for a small deficit in the time-averaged streamwise velocity near the free end, it does not alter appreciably the distribution of time-averaged temperature. It has been found that the downwash flow gives rise to a counter-gradient transport of momentum about the central region of the wake near the free end of the cylinder, though such a counter-gradient transport does not occur for heat transport.     

Numerical and Experimental Investigation of the Influence of the Wake Behind an Injector Frame on Jet Dilution in a Crossflow

In this paper, a mixing of gases through square Jets issuing normally Into a CrossFlow (JICF) is investigated by means of both numerical simulation and experiment. The jets are emitted by two injectors mounted at the top and bottom of an Injector Frame (IF) which is installed at the center of an Eiffel type wind-tunnel. This jet configuration makes it possible to approximate an industrial gas mixer placed at the center of a pipe. Large Eddy Simulation based on the Smagorinsky model is used, enabling characterization of the mean and fluctuating velocities as well as the oscillating flow frequencies. Different diagnostic techniques, such as Laser Doppler Anemometry and Particle Image Velocimetry are employed for validating the numerical models, and a good agreement between prediction and experiment is obtained. In the numerical simulation, introduction of a passive scalar through the jet makes it possible to show three dilution phenomena. They are generated respectively by the wake of the IF, the jet/wake assemblage and the jets alone in function of the momentum flux ratio between jet and crossflow. Influence of the various parameters on the mixing process between the jets and the crossflow is identified. The numerical results show that if the IF wake is suppressed with the presence of a trailing edge behind the IF, classical formation of Counter-rotating Vortex Pair is found.     

Measurements of Scalar Variance, Scalar Dissipation, and Length Scales in Turbulent Piloted Methane/Air Jet Flames

One-dimensional (line) measurements of mixture fraction, temperature, and scalar dissipation in piloted turbulent partially premixed methane/air jet flames (Sandia flames C, D, and E) are presented. The experimental facility combines line imaging of Raman scattering, Rayleigh scattering, and laser-induced CO fluorescence. Simultaneous single-shot measurements of temperature and the mass fractions of all the major species (N₂, O₂, CH₄, CO₂, H₂O, CO, and H₂) are obtained along 7 mm segments with a nominal spatial resolution of 0.2 mm. Mixture fraction, ξ, is then calculated from the measured mass fractions. Ensembles of instantaneous mixture fraction profiles at several streamwise locations are analyzed to quantify the effect of spatial averaging on the Favre average scalar variance, which is an important term in the modeling of turbulent nonpremixed flames. Results suggest that the fully resolved scalar variance may be estimated by simple extrapolation of spatially filtered measurements. Differentiation of the instantaneous mixture fraction profiles yields the radial contribution to the scalar dissipation, χ _r = 2D _ξ(?ξ/?r)², and radial profiles of the Favre mean and rms scalar dissipation are reported. Scalar length scales, based on autocorrelation of the spatial profiles of ξ and χ _r , are also reported. These new data on this already well-documented series of flames should be useful in the context of validating models for sub-grid scalar variance and for scalar dissipation in turbulent flames.     

Experimental study of simultaneous measurement of velocity and surface topography: in the wake of a circular cylinder at low Reynolds number

A technique to provide simultaneous measurement on both free surface topography and the velocity vector field of free surface flows is further developed and validated. Testing was performed on the topography measurement by imaging static plastic wave samples over a wide range of amplitudes. Analysis on the accuracy of the topography reconstruction, the sensitivity to noise and the dependence on spatial resolution are presented. The displacement of the free surface is insensitive to noisy input and the sensitivity shows a linear dependence with the sample spacing. Simultaneous measurements of the free surface and associated velocity field in the wake of a circular cylinder are presented for Reynolds numbers between 55 and 100.     

Planar measurements of the full three-dimensional scalar dissipation rate in gas-phase turbulent flows

A simultaneous planar Rayleigh scattering and planar laser-induced fluorescence (PLIF) technique is described which allows planar measurement of the full three-dimensional scalar gradient, ∇C (x, t), and scalar energy dissipation rate, χ≡D ∇C·∇C, in gas-phase turbulent flows. The conserved scalar used is the jet fluid concentration, where the jet consists of propane and seeded acetone. The propane serves as the primary Rayleigh scattering medium, while the acetone is used for fluorescence. For a given amount of available laser energy, this planar Rayleigh scattering/PLIF technique yields much higher signals levels than would, for example, a two-plane Rayleigh scattering technique. By applying the current technique to a single spatial plane, the errors incurred in measuring a spatial derivative across distinct planes are quantified. The errors are found to be well described by a random distribution, and the magnitude of these errors is found to be smaller than the magnitude of significant events in the true scalar gradient fields. Sample results for the fields of the three-dimensional scalar gradient and scalar energy dissipation in a planar turbulent jet, with outer scale Reynolds numbers between 3200 and 8400, are shown, demonstrating the applicability of these measurements to analyses of the fine scale mixing in turbulent flows. The application of these measurements to determination of the scaling properties of the dissipation rate is also discussed. Received: 3 June 1998/Accepted: 12 February 1999     

Spatial resolution and noise considerations in determining scalar dissipation rate from passive scalar image data

The effects of photonic shot noise and finite spatial resolution on the scalar dissipation rate were investigated for the analytical profile of a passive scalar layer subjected to a compressive strain, and the results were applied to interpret measured data from spray mixing data from an internal combustion engine. A Monte Carlo approach was employed. The measured scalar dissipation rate is underestimated, and the layer width measured at 20% of the peak height is overestimated by the finite resolution. The ratio of the local scalar spread value to the noise level, the spread-noise ratio, was found to describe the noise effects, which principally results in an overestimation of the scalar dissipation rate, especially at high resolution levels. The Nyquist resolution provides a good compromise between the sampling bias at low resolution and the noise bias at high resolution. Top hat filtering the raw data prior to calculation of the scalar dissipation rate was found to, effectively, reduce spatial resolution, whereas median filtering preserved the resolution. Both filters had a comparable effect on noise reduction. The evaluation of experimental data showed that a significant fraction of data reside at low spread-noise ratio and are biased by noise. The peak scalar dissipation rate is, however, not biased by noise and a method of estimating spatial resolution based on the peak scalar dissipation rate is described.     

Passive Scalar Transport in a Turbulent Cylinder Wake in the Presence of a Downstream Cylinder

This work aims to investigate how the presence of a downstream cylinder affects the passive scalar transport in a cylinder wake. The wake was generated by two tandem brass circular cylinders of the same diameter (d). The cylinder centre-to-centre spacing L/d was 1.3, 2.5 and 4.0, respectively, covering the three typical flow regimes of this flow. The upstream cylinder was slightly heated. Measurements were conducted at x/d= 10 and Re (≡ dU _∞/ν, where U _∞ is the free-stream velocity and ν is the kinematic viscosity of fluid) = 7000. A three-wire probe consisting of an X-wire and a cold wire was used to measure the velocity and temperature fluctuations, while an X-wire provided a phase reference. The phase-averaged velocity vectors and vorticity display single vortex street behind the downstream cylinder, irrespective of the flow regimes. However, the detailed flow structure exhibits strong dependence on L/d in terms of the Strouhal number, the vortex strength and its downstream evolution. This naturally affects passive scalar transport. The coherent and incoherent heat flux vectors show significant variation for different L/d.     

How to get spatial resolution inside probe volumes of commercial 3D LDA systems

In laser Doppler anemometry (LDA) it is often the aim to determine the velocity profile for a given fluid flow. The spatial resolution of such velocity profiles is limited in principal by the size of the probe volume. The method of using time of flight data from two probe volumes allows improvements of the spatial resolution by at least one order of magnitude and measurements of small-scale velocity profiles inside the measuring volume along the optical axis of commercial available 3D anemometers without moving the probe. No change of the optical set-up is necessary. An increased spatial resolution helps to acquire more precise data in areas where the flow velocity changes rapidly as shown in the vicinity of the stagnation point of a cuboid. In the overlapping region of three measuring volumes a spatially resolved 3D velocity vector profile is obtained in the direction of the optical axis in near plane flow conditions. In plane laminar flows the probe volume is extended by a few millimetres. The limitation of the method to a plane flow is that it would require a two-component LDA in a very special off-axis arrangement, but this arrangement is available in most commercial 3D systems.     

High-resolution measurements of the spatial and temporal scalar structure of a turbulent plume

 Two techniques are described for measuring the scalar structure of turbulent flows. A planar laser-induced fluorescence technique is used to make highly resolved measurements of scalar spatial structure, and a single-point laser-induced fluorescence probe is used to make highly resolved measurements of scalar temporal structure. The techniques are used to measure the spatial and temporal structure of an odor plume released from a low-momentum, bed-level source in a turbulent boundary layer. For the experimental setup used in this study, a spatial resolution of 150 μm and a temporal resolution of 1,000 Hz are obtained. The results show a wide range of turbulent structures in rich detail; the nature of the structure varies significantly in different regions of the plume. Received: 8 May 2000/Accepted: 15 November 2000     

Planar velocity measurements of a two-dimensional compressible wake

The present study describes the application of particle image velocimetry (PIV) to investigate the compressible flow in the wake of a two-dimensional blunt base at a freestream Mach number M_X=2. The first part of the study addresses specific issues related to the application of PIV to supersonic wind tunnel flows, such as the seeding particle flow-tracing fidelity and the measurement spatial resolution. The seeding particle response is assessed through a planar oblique shock wave experiment. The measurement spatial resolution is enhanced by means of an advanced image-interrogation algorithm. In the second part, the experimental results are presented. The PIV measurements yield the spatial distribution of mean velocity and turbulence. The mean velocity distribution clearly reveals the main flow features such as expansion fans, separated shear layers, flow recirculation, reattachment, recompression and wake development. The turbulence distribution shows the growth of turbulent fluctuations in the separated shear layers up to the reattachment location. Increased velocity fluctuations are also present downstream of reattachment outside of the wake due to unsteady flow reattachment and recompression. The instantaneous velocity field is analyzed seeking coherent flow structures in the redeveloping wake. The instantaneous planar velocity and vorticity measurements return evidence of large-scale turbulent structures detected as spatially coherent vorticity fluctuations. The velocity pattern consistently shows large masses of fluid in vortical motion. The overall instantaneous wake flow is organized as a double row of counter-rotating structures. The single structures show vorticity contours of roughly elliptical shape in agreement with previous studies based on spatial correlation of planar light scattering. Peak vorticity is found to be five times higher than the mean vorticity value, suggesting that wake turbulence is dominated by the activity of large-scale structures. The unsteady behavior of the reattachment phenomenon is studied. Based on the instantaneous flow topology, the reattachment is observed to fluctuate mostly in the streamwise direction suggesting that the unsteady separation is dominated by a pumping-like motion.     

Vortex dynamics and scalar transport in the wake of a flat-plate controlled by a vibrating trailing-edge flap

We investigate the onset and development of vortical flow disturbances introduced into the wake of a horizontally fixed flat-plate by means of the controlled motion of a trailing edge flap. The vibrating mechanics of the flap allows for the introduction of both impulsive and harmonic weak amplitude velocity disturbances which are propagated downstream into the wake flow of the flat-plate. Quantitative experimental and numerical predictions of both steady and unsteady wake flow velocity resulting from different flapping frequencies are made at low Reynolds numbers (Re < 10⁴). Frequency response tests of the wake confirmed the existence of two dominant frequencies where the wake flow organises with a particular arrangement of downstream moving vortex structures. Numerical predictions of steady (unforced) and forced wake velocity profiles and kinetic energy profiles are in good agreement with the experimental results. In order to understand practical implications of the dominant vortex structures in scalar transport, we have extended the numerical part of the study solving for the concentration equation of a passive scalar being injected in particular regions of the physical domain. A spatial correlation between the trajectory of vortex structures and the scalar concentration downstream the wake is observed. Moreover, the onset of tip vortex structures produced during the forcing cycle seems to be responsible of a local increase of scalar concentration near the span wise flap ends.     

横流冲击射流尾迹涡结构的实验研究

本文采用LIF（激光诱导荧光）流动显示和PIV（粒子图像速度场仪）测量对横流冲击射流的尾迹涡结构进行了实验研究。水槽实验是在三种流速比和两种冲击高度实验工况下进行的。由实验结果可得到两种明显的尾迹涡结构、，即射流尾迹涡和横流尾迹涡。横流冲击射流中形成的主要尾迹涡结构主要依赖于流速比。本文还对横流冲击射流近区范围内射流尾迹涡和横流尾迹涡的形成机理和演化特征进行了分析。