Particle image velocimetry with optical flow

 An optical Flow technique based on the use of Dynamic Programming has been applied to Particle Image Velocimetry thus yielding a significant increase in the accuracy and spatial resolution of the velocity field. Results are presented for calibrated synthetic sequences of images and for sequences of real images taken for a thermally driven flow of water with a freezing front. The accuracy remains better than 0.5 pixel/frame for tested two-image sequences and 0.2 pixel/frame for four-image sequences, even with a 10% added noise level and allowing 10% of particles of appear or disappear. A velocity vector is obtained for every pixel of the image. Received: 18 July 1997/Accepted: 5 December 1997     

Particle image velocimetry measurements of a backward-facing step flow

Particle image velocimetry (PIV) measurements were carried out on a backward-facing step flow at a Reynolds number of Re_h=U_Xh/9=4,660 (based on step height and freestream velocity). In-plane velocity, out-of-plane vorticity, Reynolds stress and turbulent kinetic energy production measurements in the x-y and x-z planes of the flow are presented. Proper orthogonal decomposition was performed on both the fluctuating velocity and vorticity fields of the x-y plane PIV data using the method of snapshots. Low-order representations of the instantaneous velocity fields were reconstructed using the velocity modes. These reconstructions provided insight into the contribution that the various length scales make to the spatial distribution of mean and turbulent flow quantities such as Reynolds stress and turbulent kinetic energy production. Large scales are found to contribute to the Reynolds stresses and turbulent kinetic energy production downstream of reattachment, while small scales contribute to the intense Reynolds stresses in the vicinity of reattachment.     

Particle image velocimetry of active flow control on a compressor cascade

AFC (Active Flow Control) experiments have been performed by means of steady and pulsed blowing out of the sidewalls as well as out of the blade’s suction surface in a highly loaded compressor cascade. PIV (Particle Image Velocimetry) was used to evaluate the fully three-dimensional internal flow field and the impact of AFC methods. The aim was to observe the secondary flow structures and flow instabilities by PIV, to tune the AFC device operation parameters. This paper summarizes the different PIV measurements performed at the stator cascade to give an overview of the dominant flow features in the passage flow field and to obtain a detailed view of control mechanisms. In addition, a new vortex detection method is presented, based on a 2D-wavelet which is applicable in two-dimensional velocity data fields.     

Particle image velocimetry measurements of the separated flow behind a rearward facing step

Particle image velocimetry (PIV) was used to measure mean flow and turbulence characteristics in the separated flow behind a rearward facing step. The confidence limits characterising estimates of mean velocity and turbulence intensity obtained by PIV are discussed. The relevance of background turbulence levels and sample size in determining these limits is considered.     

Particle image velocimetry of a low-Reynolds-number separation bubble

Boundary-layer separation at a backward-facing step of a flat plate has been investigated in a low-turbulence wind tunnel with high-speed Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV). The experiments focused on the flow pattern behind the step at the Reynolds number based on its height of about 1,000. Under quiet environmental and low-Re-number conditions, laminar-flow separation was observed behind the step subjected to a small amount of the shear-layer instability. Examination of natural and controlled velocity perturbations in the separation region indicated that the version of PIV used in the present study is an appropriate tool to deal with linear instability details that is normally done through hot-wire measurements.     

Particle image velocimetry measurements in complex geometries

 One of the advantages of Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) is its ability to determine the instantaneous flow field over two- or three-dimensional domains. Yet PIV has had limited application to complex flow passages because of the difficulty in replicating these geometries with optically transparent materials. In this work, we describe a method for overcoming this difficulty using rapid prototyping techniques. As an illustrative example, the technique has been used to characterize flow in a model of the human nasal cavity. Received: 12 January 1999/Accepted: 30 September 1999     

Particle image velocimetry investigation of flow over unsteady airfoil with trailing-edge strip

The flow over a flapped NACA 0012 airfoil, oscillated slightly through the static-stall angle, was investigated by using particle image velocimetry, and was supplemented by surface pressure and dynamic-load measurements. A significant increase in the dynamic lift force and nose-down pitching moment was observed. The most pronounced flow phenomenon was the formation and detachment of an energetic leading-edge vortex compared to the no-flapped airfoil. The details of the underlying physical mechanisms responsible for the various light-stall flow processes were provided via the instantaneous velocity and vorticity fields measurements. In contrast to the Gurney flap, the inverted trailing-edge strip led to an improved negative damping while a reduced lift force. The addition of an inverted strip always led to the appearance of a Karman-type vortex shedding street immediately downstream of the strip over the entire oscillation cycle.     

Stereo particle image velocimetry applied to a vortex pipe flow

Stereo particle image velocimetry (PIV) has been employed to study a vortex generated via tangential injection of water in a 2.25 inch (57 mm) diameter pipe for Reynolds numbers ranging from 1,118 to 63,367. Methods of decreasing pipe-induced optical distortion and the PIV calibration technique are addressed. The mean velocity field analyses have shown spatial similarity and revealed four distinct flow regions starting from the central axis of rotation to the pipe wall in the vortex flows. Turbulence statistical data and vortex core location data suggest that velocity fluctuations are due to the axis of the in-line vortex distorting in the shape of a spiral.     

Particle image velocimetry investigation of a finite amplitude pressure wave

Particle image velocimetry is used to study the motion of gas within a duct subject to the passage of a finite amplitude pressure wave. The wave is representative of the pressure waves found in the exhaust systems of internal combustion engines. Gas particles are accelerated from stationary to 150 m/s and then back to stationary in 8 ms. It is demonstrated that gas particles at the head of the wave travel at the same velocity across the duct cross section at a given point in time. Towards the tail of the wave viscous effects are plainly evident causing the flow profile to tend towards parabolic. However, the instantaneous mean particle velocity across the section is shown to match well with the velocity calculated from a corresponding measured pressure history using 1D gas dynamic theory. The measured pressure history at a point in the duct was acquired using a high speed pressure transducer of the type typically used for engine research in intake and exhaust systems. It is demonstrated that these are unable to follow the rapid changes in pressure accurately and that they are prone to resonate under certain circumstances.     

Combined application of pressure sensitive paint and particle image velocimetry to the flow above a delta wing

The pressure sensitive paint (PSP) and particle image velocimetry (PIV) techniques are applied to the flow around a delta wing. These investigations are a contribution to the International Vortex Flow Experiment 2 (VFE-2). The delta wing is equipped with rounded as well as with sharp leading edges. To demonstrate the advantages of a combined application of PSP and PIV for flow investigation the results of a specific case are discussed, where an inner and outer primary vortex above the delta wing with rounded leading edges develop.     

Dual-plane stereoscopic particle image velocimetry: system set-up and its application on a lobed jet mixing flow

 The technical basis and system set-up of a dual-plane stereoscopic particle image velocimetry (PIV) system, which can obtain the flow velocity (all three components) fields at two spatially separated planes simultaneously, is summarized. The simultaneous measurements were achieved by using two sets of double-pulsed Nd:Yag lasers with additional optics to illuminate the objective fluid flow with two orthogonally linearly polarized laser sheets at two spatially separated planes, as proposed by Kaehler and Kompenhans in 1999. The light scattered by the tracer particles illuminated by laser sheets with orthogonal linear polarization were separated by using polarizing beam-splitter cubes, then recorded by high-resolution CCD cameras. A three-dimensional in-situ calibration procedure was used to determine the relationships between the 2-D image planes and three-dimensional object fields for both position mapping and velocity three-component reconstruction. Unlike conventional two-component PIV systems or single-plane stereoscopic PIV systems, which can only get one-component of vorticity vectors, the present dual-plane stereoscopic PIV system can provide all the three components of the vorticity vectors and various auto-correlation and cross-correlation coefficients of flow variables instantaneously and simultaneously. The present dual-plane stereoscopic PIV system was applied to measure an air jet mixing flow exhausted from a lobed nozzle. Various vortex structures in the lobed jet mixing flow were revealed quantitatively and instantaneously. In order to evaluate the measurement accuracy of the present dual-plane stereoscopic PIV system, the measurement results were compared with the simultaneous measurement results of a laser Doppler velocimetry (LDV) system. It was found that both the instantaneous data and ensemble-averaged values of the stereoscopic PIV measurement results and the LDV measurement results agree well. For the ensemble-averaged values of the out-of-plane velocity component at comparison points, the differences between the stereoscopic PIV and LDV measurement results were found to be less than 2%. Received: 18 April 2000/Accepted: 2 February 2001     

Particle image velocimetry and infrared thermography in a levitated droplet with nanosilica suspensions

Preferential accumulation and agglomeration kinetics of nanoparticles suspended in an acoustically levitated water droplet under radiative heating has been studied. Particle image velocimetry performed to map the internal flow field shows a single cell recirculation with increasing strength for decreasing viscosities. Infrared thermography and high speed imaging show details of the heating process for various concentrations of nanosilica droplets. Initial stage of heating is marked by fast vaporization of liquid and sharp temperature rise. Following this stage, aggregation of nanoparticles is seen resulting in various structure formations. At low concentrations, a bowl structure of the droplet is dominant, maintained at a constant temperature. At high concentrations, viscosity of the solution increases, leading to rotation about the levitator axis due to the dominance of centrifugal motion. Such complex fluid motion inside the droplet due to acoustic streaming eventually results in the formation of a ring structure. This horizontal ring eventually reorients itself due to an imbalance of acoustic forces on the ring, exposing larger area for laser absorption and subsequent sharp temperature rise.     

Particle image velocimetry experiments on a macro-scale model for bacterial flagellar bundling

Escherichia coli (E. coli) and other bacteria are propelled through water by several helical flagella, which are rotated by motors embedded at random points on the cell wall. Depending on the handedness and rotation sense, the motion of the flagella induces a flow field that causes them to wrap around each other and form a bundle. Our objective is to understand and model the mechanics of this process. Full-scale flagella are 10 m in length, 20 nm in diameter, and turn at a rate of 100 Hz. To accurately simulate bundling at a more easily observable scale, we built a scale model in which 20-cm-long helices are rotated in 100,000 cp silicone oil (Poly-di-methyl-siloxane). The highly viscous oil ensures an appropriately low Reynolds number. We developed a macro-scale particle image velocimetry (PIV) system to measure the full-field velocity distribution for rotating rigid helices and rotating flexible helices. In the latter case, the helices were made from epoxy-filled plastic tubing to give approximately the same ratio of elastic to viscous stresses as in the full-scale flagella. Comparison between PIV measurements and slender-body calculations shows good agreement for the case of rigid helices. For the flexible helices, we find that the flow field generated by a bundle in the steady state is well approximated by the flow generated by a single rigid helix with twice the filament radius.     

Particle image velocimetry studies of a boundary layer perturbed by localized suction

Difference experiments were carried out in a low-Reynolds number (490 based on momentum thickness) flat-plate boundary layer. Particle image velocimetry (PIV) was used to measure the two velocity components parallel to the plate in the boundary layer with and without weak localized suction through two holes at suction speeds of less than 1% of the free-stream value under otherwise identical conditions. The results from the preliminary PIV data show that suction does not affect the mean streamwise velocity profile, but decelerates the boundary layer in the vicinity of the suction holes. This deceleration is on average 6% of the mean speed at 13 viscous length scales above the plate and persists for at least 10 hole diameters downstream of the suction holes. Two-dimensional correlations of streamwise velocity fluctuations imply that even these low suction levels reduce the cross-stream and streamwise length scales in the boundary layer. Received: 22 December 1998/Accepted: 17 April 2000     

Use of holography in particle image velocimetry measurements of a swirling flow

 Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) is now a well established experimental technique to measure two components of the velocity in a planar region of a flow field. This paper shows how its proven capabilities can be further extended by using holographic recording to register the particle displacements. Among other unique characteristics, holography enables the acquisition of multiple images on a single plate, and the recording of three dimensional images. These features are used to circumvent some of the limitations of conventional PIV. Some of these possibilities are demonstrated in this study by applying the technique to a high Reynolds number swirling flow using a lens-less off-axis orthogonal recording geometry. Received: 25 February 1998/ Accepted: 2 September 1998     

Particle image velocimetry measurements of a shock wave/turbulent boundary layer interaction

Particle image velocimetry is used to investigate the interaction between an incident shock wave and a turbulent boundary layer at Mach 2.1. A particle response assessment establishes the fidelity of the tracer particles. The undisturbed boundary layer is characterized in detail. The mean velocity field of the interaction shows the incident and reflected shock wave pattern, as well as the boundary layer distortion. Significant reversed flow is measured instantaneously, although, on average no reversed flow is observed. The interaction instantaneously exhibits a multi-layered structure, namely, a high-velocity outer region and a low-velocity inner region. Flow turbulence shows the highest intensity in the region beneath the impingement of the incident shock wave. The turbulent fluctuations are found to be highly anisotropic, with the streamwise component dominating. A distinct streamwise-oriented region of relatively large kinematic Reynolds shear stress magnitude appears within the lower half of the redeveloping boundary layer. Boundary layer recovery towards initial equilibrium conditions appears to be a gradual process.     

Particle tracking velocimetry of the flow field around a collapsing cavitation bubble

The velocity field in the vicinity of a laser-generated cavitation bubble in water is investigated by means of particle tracking velocimetry (PTV). Two situations are explored: a bubble collapsing spherically and a bubble collapsing aspherically near a rigid wall. In the first case, the accuracy of the PTV method is assessed by comparing the experimental data with the flow field around the bubble as obtained from numerical simulations of the radial bubble dynamics. The numerical results are matched to the experimental radius–time curve extracted from high-speed photographs by tuning the model parameters. Trajectories of tracer particles are calculated and used to model the experimental process of the PTV measurement. For the second case of a bubble collapsing near a rigid wall, both the bubble shape and the velocity distribution in the fluid around the bubble are measured for different standoff parameters γ at several instants in time. The results for γ > 1 are compared with the corresponding results of a boundary-integral simulation. For both cases, good agreement between simulation and experiment is found.     

Stereoscopic particle image velocimetry measurements of the flow around a surface-mounted block

The advantages of 3D measurement techniques and the accuracy of the backward projection algorithm are discussed. The 3D calibration reconstruction used is based on an analytical relation between real and image co-ordinates. The accuracy of the stereoscopic particle image velocimetry (PIV) system is assessed by taking measurements of the flow in angular displacement configuration with prisms. A comparison is made with 2D PIV measurements and the accuracy of this stereo PIV algorithm is evaluated. By using this 3D measurement technique, the topology and the main 3D features of the flow around a surface-mounted block are investigated.     

Stereoscopic particle image velocimetry measurements of the flow around a Rushton turbine

 The principles of stereoscopic particle image velocimetry (PIV), including distortion compensation, were applied to the turbulent flow in a vessel stirred by a Rushton turbine. An angular offset configuration was used and tilt-axis lens mounts were incorporated in order to satisfy the Scheimpflug condition, significantly reducing the ordinarily large depth of field requirements of such configurations. A distortion compensation procedure, or in situ calibration, was utilized in place of the ray tracing, or mechanical registration, used in previous studies. The calibration procedure was validated using two tests, one a rigid translation of a speckle target, the other the viscous flow between two concentric cylinders. The results of the tests suggest the success with which the distortion compensation procedure may be applied to real fluid flows. Phase-locked instantaneous data were ensemble averaged and interpolated in order to obtain mean 3-D velocity fields on a cylindrical shell enclosing the turbine blade. From these fields, the tip vortex pairs and the radial jet documented in previous studies of mixer flows were easily identified. Received: 5 February 1999/Accepted: 1 December 1999