Rollup region of a turbulent trailing vortex issued from a blade with flow separation

This paper presents the results of an experimental investigation on the near field of a tip vortex generated by a blade at moderate incidence. The experiments were conducted at Re=15 000 and the boundary layer over the blade separated around midchord on the upper surface. Laser-Doppler measurements of the turbulent flow (Tu=1.5%) were performed at various stations downstream of the blade. The three components of the mean velocity field and turbulent attributes were quantified at cross-planes, characterizing both the blade wake and the tip vortex structure. This allowed the analysis of the rollup and initial stages of decay of the tip vortex in the light of known theories and models. The axial velocity defect at the center of the vortex core evolved as x⁻¹ log x, without displaying any significant outgrowth imposed by the separated flow upstream. Momentum balances were also carried out at a station downstream to the conclusion of vortex rollup. The approximate axisymmetry of the flow field in the trailing vortex was used to formulate the balances in a cylindrical coordinate system. Among other observations, it was seen that an adverse axial pressure gradient developed in the vortex core, which reinforced the tenacity of the axial velocity defect. In contrast, an area influenced by a favorable pressure gradient was found outside the core.     

Supersonic flow around the trailing edge of a thin profile

The method of mergeable asymptotic expansions has recently been used effectively in investigations devoted to the study of boundary layer interaction with an external inviscid flow at high subcritical Reynolds numbers Re. The asymptotic analysis permits obtaining a limit pattern of the flow around a solid as Re þ, and determining the similarity and quantitative regularity laws which are in good agreement with experimental results. Thus by using the method of mergeable asymptotic expansions it is shown in [1–4] that near sites with high local curvature of the body contour and flow separation and attachment points, an interaction domain appears that has a small length on the order of Re^-3/8. In this flow domain, which has a three-layer structure, the pressure distribution in a first approximation already depends on the change in boundary-layer displacement thickness, while the induced pressure gradient, in turn, influences the flow in the boundary layer. An analogous situation occurs in the neighborhood of the trailing edge of a flat plate where an interaction domain also appears [5, 6]. The flow in the neighborhood of the trailing edge of a flat plate around which a supersonic viscous gas flows was examined in [7]. Numerical results in this paper show that the friction stress on the plate surface remains positive everywhere in the interaction domain, and grows on approaching the trailing edge. The supersonic flow around the trailing edge of a flat plate at a small angle of attack was investigated in [8, 9], Supersonic flow of a viscous gas in the neighborhood of the trailing edge of a flat plate at zero angle of attack is examined in [10], but with different velocity values in the inviscid part of the flow on the upper and lower sides of the plate. The more general problem of the flow around the trailing edge of a profile with small relative thickness is investigated in this paper.Translated from Zhurnal Prikladnoi Mekhaniki i Tekhnicheskoi Fiziki, No. 3, pp. 36–42, May–June, 1981.     

Experimental investigation of a blunt trailing edge flow field with application to sound generation

The unsteady lift generated by turbulence at the trailing edge of an airfoil is a source of radiated sound. The objective of the present research was to measure the velocity field in the near wake region of an asymmetric beveled trailing edge in order to determine the flow mechanisms responsible for the generation of trailing edge noise. Two component velocity measurements were acquired using particle image velocimetry. The chord Reynolds number was 1.9 × 10⁶. The data show velocity field realizations that were typical of a wake flow containing an asymmetric periodic vortex shedding. A phase average decomposition of the velocity field with respect to this shedding process was utilized to separate the large scale turbulent motions that occurred at the vortex shedding frequency (i.e., those responsible for the production of tonal noise) from the smaller scale turbulent motions, which were interpreted to be responsible for the production of broadband sound. The small scale turbulence was found to be dependent on the phase of the vortex shedding process implying a dependence of the broadband sound generated by the trailing edge on the phase of the vortex shedding process.     

Contribution to the theory of thin-profile trailing edge separation

The conditions of nonsymmetric trailing edge flow with separation are investigated. Solutions of the equations for the interaction zone in the neighborhood of the trailing edge of a thin profile at an angle of attack of the order O(Re^–1/16) in the separated flow regime are constructed numerically. It is shown that for this zone a solution exists up to a certain angle of attack. In all the regimes the value of the friction on the upper surface at the very end of the trailing edge remains a positive quantity. The solution of the equations in the separated flow regimes is found to be nonunique. The flow over the leading edge is assumed to be unseparated, and the separation at the trailing edge, if present, is assumed to be localized in the interior of the boundary layer. The flow over a Kutta profile at zero angle of attack is taken as an example. In this case the satisfaction of the Chaplygin-Joukowsky condition at the trailing edge ensures smooth flow over both the trailing and leading edges.Translated from Izvestiya Akademii Nauk SSSR, Mekhanika Zhidkosti i Gaza, No. 4, pp. 55–59, July–August, 1989.     

Hele-Shaw flow with a small obstacle

Asymptotic analysis of the flow passing over a small obstacle in the Hele-Shaw cell is performed. The results are based on the asymptotic formulas for Green’s and Neumann functions recently obtained by Maz’ya and Movchan. Theoretical results are illustrated by the numerical simulations.     

Experimental study of transient forced turbulent separation and reattachment on a bevelled trailing edge

The purpose of this experimental study is to analyze the transient processes of the separation and reattachment of a turbulent boundary layer at the trailing edge of a splitter plate. The separation is driven by a steady pneumatic injection, considered here as an actuator controlling the mixing layer. Particle image velocimetry and hot-film measurements are performed at various stages of the processes. The results highlight the behavior of each transient. Analysis of the time scale of the processes is realized by means of bi-orthogonal decomposition. This gives essential information (e.g., time scale, qualitative features) for future applications using duty cycle mode to excite instabilities of the mixing layer.     

High-lift airfoil trailing edge separation control using a single dielectric barrier discharge plasma actuator

Control of flow separation from the deflected flap of a high-lift airfoil up to Reynolds numbers of 240,000 (15 m/s) is explored using a single dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) plasma actuator near the flap shoulder. Results show that the plasma discharge can increase or reduce the size of the time-averaged separated region over the flap depending on the frequency of actuation. High-frequency actuation, referred to here as quasi-steady forcing, slightly delays separation while lengthening and flattening the separated region without drastically increasing the measured lift. The actuator is found to be most effective for increasing lift when operated in an unsteady fashion at the natural oscillation frequency of the trailing edge flow field. Results indicate that the primary control mechanism in this configuration is an enhancement of the natural vortex shedding that promotes further momentum transfer between the freestream and separated region. Based on these results, different modulation waveforms for creating unsteady DBD plasma-induced flows are investigated in an effort to improve control authority. Subsequent measurements show that modulation using duty cycles of 50–70% generates stronger velocity perturbations than sinusoidal modulation in quiescent conditions at the expense of an increased power requirement. Investigation of these modulation waveforms for trailing edge separation control similarly shows that additional increases in lift can be obtained. The dependence of these results on the actuator carrier and modulation frequencies is discussed in detail.     

Stochastic estimation of flow near the trailing edge of a NACA0012 airfoil

A stochastic estimation technique has been applied to simultaneously acquired data of velocity and surface pressure as a tool to identify the sources of wall-pressure fluctuations. The measurements have been done on a NACA0012 airfoil at a Reynolds number of Re _c  = 2 × 10⁵, based on the chord of the airfoil, where a separated laminar boundary layer was present. By performing simultaneous measurements of the surface pressure fluctuations and of the velocity field in the boundary layer and wake of the airfoil, the wall-pressure sources near the trailing edge (TE) have been studied. The mechanisms and flow structures associated with the generation of the surface pressure have been investigated. The “quasi-instantaneous” velocity field resulting from the application of the technique has led to a picture of the evolution in time of the convecting surface pressure generating flow structures and revealed information about the sources of the wall-pressure fluctuations, their nature and variability. These sources are closely related to those of the radiated noise from the TE of an airfoil and to the vibration issues encountered in ship hulls for example. The NACA0012 airfoil had a 30 cm chord and aspect ratio of 1.     

Structure of the flow of a viscous gas near the trailing edge of a flat plate

Solution of the complete system of Navier-Stokes equations forms the basis for a study of the nature of flow of a viscous heat-conducting gas in the neighborhood of a trailing edge of a flat plate. The problem was solved in accordance with a difference scheme of the third order of accuracy [1]. The calculation was carried out under the same conditions as the experiment of [2], in which a plate of finite dimensions (L = 12 cm) had supersonic M = 2, Re, = 1000 gas flow round it. In order to obtain a thickness of the boundary layer which was acceptable for the purpose of making the measurements (of the order of 2 cm), the unperturbed gas was slightly rarefied. In the study of such problems [3–7] it is necessary to use the complete system of Navier-Stokes equations, since in the immediate neighborhood of the trailing edge one of the important assumptions in the theory of the boundary layer, ²u/y^{2 2}u/x², does not hold. As a result the flow upstream near the trailing edge of the plate will depend on the flow immediately behind the edge, since the perturbations propagate both upstream and downstream in this case. The rarefaction of the gas creates additional difficulties in the formulation of the boundary conditions on the plate with flow round it when this problem is studied numerically.Translated from Izvestiya Akademii Nauk SSSR, Mekhanika Zhidkosti i Gaza, No. 2, pp. 27–30, March–April, 1987.     

Boundary-layer separation on a cooled body and interaction with a hypersonic flow

In previous papers, e.g., [1, 2], boundary-layer separation was investigated by analyzing solutions of the boundary-layer equations with a given external pressure distribution. In general, this kind of solution cannot be continued after the separation point. Study of the asymptotic behavior of solutions of the Navier-Stokes equations [3–5] shows that, in boundarylayer separation in supersonic flow over a smooth surface, the main effect on the flow in the immediate vicinity of the separation point is a large local pressure gradient induced by interaction with the external flow. The solution can be continued beyond the separation point and linked to the solutions in the other regions, located downstream [5]. Similar results for incompressible flow were recently obtained in [6]. We can assume that in general there is always a small region near the separation point in which separation is self-induced, and where the limiting solution of the Navier-Stokes equations does not contain unattainable singular points. However, this limiting slope picture can be more complex and can contain more regions where the behavior of the functions differed from that found in [3–6]. The present paper investigates separation on a body moving at hypersonic speed, where the ratio of the stagnation temperature to the body temperature is large. It is shown that both. for hypersonic and supersonic speeds the flow near the separation point is appreciably affected by the distribution of parameters over the entire unperturbed boundary layer, and not only in a narrow layer near the body, as was true in the flows studied earlier [3–6]. Regions may appear with appreciable transverse pressure drops within the zone occupied by layers of the unperturbed boundary layer. Similarity parameters are given, the boundary problems are formulated, and the results of computer calculation are presented. The concept of subcritical and supercritical boundary layers is refined, and the dependence of pressure coefficients responsible for separation on the temperature factor is established.Translated from Izvestiya Akademii Nauk SSSR, Mekhanika Zhidkosti i Gaza, No. 6, pp. 99–109, November–December 1973.     

Secondary wake instabilities of a blunt trailing edge profiled body as a basis for flow control

Flow in the wake of a blunt trailing edge profiled body, comprised of an elliptical leading edge and a rectangular trailing edge, has been investigated experimentally, to identify and characterize the secondary instabilities accompanying the von Kármán vortices. The experiments, which involve laser-induced fluorescence for visualization and particle image velocimetry for quantitative measurement of the wake instabilities, cover Reynolds numbers ranging from 250 to 2,150 based on thickness of the body, to include the wake transition regime. The dominant secondary instability appears as spanwise undulations in von Kármán vortices, which evolve into pairs of counter-rotating vortices, with features resembling the instability mechanism predicted by Ryan et al. (J Fluid Mech 538:1–29, 2005). Feasibility of a flow control approach based on interaction with the secondary instability using a series of discrete trailing edge injectors has also been investigated. The control approach mitigates the adverse effects of vortex shedding in certain conditions, where it is able to amplify the secondary instability effectively.     

Lift enhancement and flow structure of airfoil with joint trailing-edge flap and Gurney flap

The impact of Gurney flaps (GF), of different heights and perforations, on the aerodynamic and wake characteristics of a NACA 0015 airfoil equipped with a trailing-edge flap (TEF) was investigated experimentally at Re = 2.54 × 10⁵. The addition of the Gurney flap to the TEF produced a further increase in the downward turning of the mean flow (increased aft camber), leading to a significant increase in the lift, drag, and pitching moment compared to that produced by independently deployed TEF or GF. The maximum lift increased with flap height, with the maximum lift-enhancement effectiveness exhibited at the smallest flap height. The near wake behind the joint TEF and GF became wider and had a larger velocity deficit and fluctuations compared to independent GF and TEF deployment. The Gurney flap perforation had only a minor impact on the wake and aerodynamics characteristics compared to TEF with a solid GF. The rapid rise in lift generation of the joint TEF and GF application, compared to conventional TEF deployment, could provide an improved off-design high-lift device during landing and takeoff.     

Measurements with a flow direction boundary-layer probe in a two-dimensional laminar separation bubble

 Measurements with a directional sensitive hot-wire probe have been carried out in a two-dimensional laminar separation bubble caused by an adverse pressure gradient. The probe has three parallel, in plane wires and can be traversed in the boundary layer in all spatial directions. The central wire, operated as a conventional hot-wire in CTA mode, and two surrounding resistance wires measure the instantaneous magnitude and direction of the flow, respectively. The probe is calibrated and operated in a similar way as a single hot-wire probe for boundary layer measurements. The frequency response is high enough for measurements of naturally occurring instability waves in the bubble. The flow direction intermittency was measured inside the bubble and regions with reversed flow were mapped out. Prior to reattachment periodical oscillations of the flow direction are found associated with shedding of vortical structures from the bubble. Received: 13 March 1998/Accepted: 22 April 1998     

Unsteady hydroplaning and motion of a profile with trailing vortices

In the present paper we consider in the Sedov formulation the problems of unsteady motion of a profile with trailing vortices, rebounding, and non-self-similar hydroplaning contact. The basic integral equation for determining the vortex distribution density is reduced to the Abel equation by solving an auxiliary system of ordinary differential equations. The rebounding limit is determined for a flat plate.