Effect of novel synthetic jet on wake vortex shedding modes of a circular cylinder

A novel actuator signal achieved by changing the ratio of the suction duty cycle to the blowing duty cycle is adopted to enhance the control effect of the synthetic jet for the flow around a circular cylinder. The suction duty cycle factor k defined as the ratio between the time duration of the suction cycle and the blowing cycle and the equivalent momentum coefficient C_μ are introduced as the determining parameters. The synthetic jet is positioned at the rear stagnation point in order to introduce symmetric perturbations upon the flow field. The proper orthogonal decomposition (POD) technique is applied for the analysis of the spanwise vorticity field. Increasing the suction duty cycle factor, the momentum coefficient is enhanced, and thus a stronger and larger scale synthetic jet vortex pair with a higher convection velocity is generated. The synthetic jet vortex pair interacts with the spanwise vorticity shear layers behind both sides of the cylinder, resulting in the variations of the wake vortex shedding modes at Re=950: for k=0.25, C_μ=0.148, vortex synchronization at the subharmonic excitation frequency with antisymmetric shedding mode; for 0.50≤k≤1.00, 0.213≤C_μ≤0.378, vortex synchronization at the excitation frequency with the symmetric or antisymmetric shedding modes; for 2.00≤k≤4.00, 0.850≤C_μ≤2.362, vortex synchronization at the excitation frequency with symmetric shedding mode. Hence, the control effect of the synthetic jet upon the wake vortex of a circular cylinder can be enhanced by increasing the suction duty cycle factor so as to increase the momentum coefficient. This is also validated at a higher Reynolds number Re=1600.     

The effect of a splitter plate on the flow around a finite prism

The effect of a wake-mounted splitter plate on the flow around a surface-mounted finite-height square prism was investigated experimentally in a low-speed wind tunnel. Measurements of the mean drag force and vortex shedding frequency were made at Re=7.4×10⁴ for square prisms of aspect ratios AR=9, 7, 5 and 3. Measurements of the mean wake velocity field were made with a seven-hole pressure probe at Re=3.7×10⁴ for square prisms of AR=9 and 5. The relative thickness of the boundary layer on the ground plane was δ/D=1.5–1.6 (where D is the side length of the prism). The splitter plates were mounted vertically from the ground plane on the wake centreline, with a negligible gap between the leading edge of the plate and rear of the prism. The splitter plate heights were always the same as the heights of prisms, while the splitter plate lengths ranged from L/D=1 to 7. Compared to previously published results for an “infinite” square prism, a splitter plate is less effective at drag reduction, but more effective at vortex shedding suppression, when used with a finite-height square prism. Significant reduction in drag was realized only for short prisms (of AR≤5) when long splitter plates (of L/D≥5) were used. In contrast, a splitter plate of length L/D=3 was sufficient to suppress vortex shedding for all aspect ratios tested. Compared to previous results for finite-height circular cylinders, finite-height square prisms typically need longer splitter plates for vortex shedding suppression. The effect of the splitter plate on the mean wake was to narrow the wake width close to the ground plane, stretch and weaken the streamwise vortex structures, and increase the lateral entrainment of ambient fluid towards the wake centreline. The splitter plate has little effect on the mean downwash. Long splitter plates resulted in the formation of additional streamwise vortex structures in the upper part of the wake.     

Wake modes of rotationally oscillating cylinders at Re=150

The wake structure of a circular cylinder undergoing forced rotary oscillations is studied at Re=150. Cylinder forcing conditions range between 0.17≤θ_PP≤5.58, where θ_PP is the peak-to-peak oscillation amplitude in radians and 0.67≤F_R≤3.5, where F_R is the ratio of forcing frequency to natural shedding frequency. DPIV and spectral analysis are used to obtain quantitative data about the wake structure. Wake modes and their dependence on forcing conditions are identified. These include previously unknown wake modes present at higher frequencies. Wake mode boundaries are identified on the parameter space. These lead to a better understanding of wake formation at low Re.     

Modes of vortex formation and transition to three-dimensionality in the wake of a freely vibrating cylinder

The present work is aimed to give some insight into the relation between vortex shedding modes and transition to three-dimensionality in the wake of a freely vibrating cylinder by establishing a numerical model and analyzing the relevant results of two- and three-dimensional simulations. The compressible flow past an elastically-mounted cylinder is solved by using the immersed boundary method (IB method). The cylinder is free to vibrate in the transverse direction with zero structure damping. The response of displacement amplitude is studied with the variation of reduced velocity. Whether P+S mode exists in three-dimensional flow and the occurrence of 2P mode is caused by flow transition from two-dimensional to three-dimensional are problems of concern. Both 2P and P+S wake modes are observed in two- and three-dimensional simulations. The numerical results indicate that the flow transition from two-dimensional to three-dimensional is coupled with the cylinder vibration in the synchronization/lock-in regime. The wake formation given by three-dimensional simulations suggests that the P+S mode might exist in reality when the flow is reverted to two-dimensional by vortex induced vibration (VIV) at Re=300–350. When Reynolds number increases to 425, the wake formation undergoes transition to three-dimensionality and 2P mode is observed. The effect of mass ratio on the flow transition to three-dimensionality is studied. The relationship between wake modes and aerodynamic forces is discussed.     

On vortex shedding from low aspect ratio dual step cylinders

A dual-step cylinder is comprised of two cylinders of different diameters. A large diameter cylinder (D) with low aspect ratio (L/D) is attached to the mid-span of a small diameter cylinder (d). The present study investigates the effect of Reynolds number (Re_D) and L/D on dual step cylinder wake development for D/d=2, 0.2≤L/D≤3, and two Reynolds numbers, Re_D=1050 and 2100. Experiments have been performed in a water flume facility utilizing flow visualization, Laser Doppler Velocimetry (LDV), and Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV). The results show that vortex shedding occurs from both the large and small diameter cylinders for 1≤L/D≤3 at Re_D=2100 and 2≤L/D≤3 at Re_D=1050. At these conditions, large cylinder vortices predominantly form vortex loops in the wake and small cylinder vortices form half-loop vortex connections. At lower aspect ratios, vortex shedding from the large cylinder ceases, with the dominant frequency in the large cylinder wake attributed to the passage of vortex filaments connecting small cylinder vortices. At these lower aspect ratios, the presence of the large cylinder induces periodic vortex dislocations. Increasing L/D increases the frequency of occurrence of vortex dislocations and decreases the dominant frequency in the large cylinder wake. The identified changes in wake topology are related to substantial variations in the location of boundary layer separation on the large cylinder, and, consequently, changes in the size of the vortex formation region. The results also show that the Reynolds number has a substantial effect on wake vortex shedding frequency, which is more profound than that expected for a uniform cylinder.     

Numerical simulation of flow around a square cylinder in uniform-shear flow

This paper presents results obtained from a numerical simulation of a two-dimensional (2-D) incompressible linear shear flow over a square cylinder. Numerical simulations are performed, using the lattice Boltzmann method, in the ranges of 50⩽Re⩽200 and 0⩽K⩽0.5, where Re and K are the Reynolds number and the shear rate, respectively. The effect of the shear rate on the frequency of vortex shedding from the cylinder, and the lift and drag forces exerted on the cylinder are quantified together with the flow patterns around the cylinder. The present results show that vortex structure behind the cylinder is strongly dependant on both the shear rate and Reynolds number. When Re=50, a small K can disturb the steady state and cause an alternative vortex shedding with uneven intensity. In contrast, a large value of K will suppress the vortex shedding from the cylinder. When Re>50, the differences in the strength and size of vortices shed from the upper and lower sides of the cylinder become more pronounced as K increases. Vortex shedding disappears when K is larger than a critical value, which depends on Re. The flow patterns around the cylinder for different Re tend towards self-similarity with increasing K. The lift and drag forces exerted on the cylinder, in general, decrease with increasing K. Unlike a shear flow past a circular cylinder, the vortex shedding frequency past a square cylinder decreases with increasing the shear rate. A significant reduction of the drag force occurs in the range 0.15<K<0.3.     

Wake-induced vibrations of an elastically mounted cylinder located downstream of a stationary larger cylinder at low Reynolds numbers

Two-dimensional numerical simulations of flow past two unequal-sized circular cylinders in tandem arrangement are performed at low Reynolds numbers (Re). The upstream larger cylinder is stationary, while the downstream cylinder has both one (transverse-only) and two (transverse and in-line) degrees of freedom (1-dof and 2-dof, respectively). The Re, based on the free stream velocity U_∞ and the downstream cylinder diameter d, varies between 50 and 200 with a wide range of reduced velocities U_r. The diameter of the upstream cylinder is twice that of the downstream cylinder, and the center-to-center spacing is 5.5d. In general, for the 1-dof case, the calculations show that the wake-induced vibrations (WIV) of the downstream cylinder are greatly amplified when compared to the case of a single cylinder or two equal-sized cylinders. The transverse amplitudes build up to a significantly higher level within and beyond the lock-in region, and the U_r associated with the peak amplitude shifts toward a higher value. The dominant wake pattern is 2S mode for Re=50 and 100, while with the increase of Re to 150 and 200, the P+S mode can be clearly observed at some lower U_r. For the 2-dof vibrations, the transverse response characteristics are similar to those presented in the corresponding 1-dof case. The in-line responses are generally much smaller, except for several significant vibrations resulting from in-line resonance. The obvious in-line vibration may induce a C (chaotic) vortex shedding mode for higher Re (Re=200). With regard to the 2-dof motion trajectories, besides the typical figure-eight pattern, several odd patterns such as figure-double eight and single-looped trajectories are also obtained due to the wake interference effect.     

Vortex shedding flow behind a slowly rotating circular cylinder

This paper investigates flow past a rotating circular cylinder at 3600?Re?5000 and α?2.5. The flow parameter α is the circumferential speed at the cylinder surface normalized by the free-stream velocity of the uniform cross-flow. With particle image velocimetry (PIV), vortex shedding from the cylinder is clearly observed at α<1.9. The vortex pattern is very similar to the vortex street behind a stationary circular cylinder; but with increasing cylinder rotation speed, the wake is observed to become increasing narrower and deflected sideways. Properties of large-scale vortices developed from the shear layers and shed into the wake are investigated with the vorticity field derived from the PIV data. The vortex formation length is found to decrease with increasing α. This leads to a slow increase in vortex shedding frequency with α. At α=0.65, vortex shedding is found to synchronize with cylinder rotation, with one vortex being shed every rotation cycle of the cylinder. Vortex dynamics are studied at this value of α with the phase-locked eduction technique. It is found that although the shear layers at two different sides of the cylinder possess unequal vorticity levels, alternating vortices subsequently shed from the cylinder to join the two trains of vortices in the vortex street pattern exhibit very little difference in vortex strength.     

Numerical simulation of cross-flow around four cylinders in an in-line square configuration

Successful numerical simulations can reveal important flow characteristics and information which are extremely difficult to obtain experimentally. Two- and three-dimensional (3-D) numerical simulations of cross-flow around four cylinders in an in-line square configuration are performed using a finite-volume method. For 2-D studies, the Reynolds numbers (Re) are chosen to be Re=100 and 200 and the spacing ratio L/D is set at 1.6, 2.5, 3.5, 4.0 and 5.0. For the 3-D investigation, the simulation is only performed at a Re=200, a spacing ratio L/D=4.0 and an aspect ratio H/D=16. The 2-D studies reveal three distinct flow patterns: (I) a stable shielding flow; (II) a wiggling shielding flow and (III) a vortex shedding flow. A transformation of the flow pattern from (I) to (II) at Re=100 will increase the amplitude of the maximum fluctuating pressure on the downstream cylinder surface by 4–12 times, while a transformation of the flow pattern from (II) to (III) will enhance the maximum fluctuating pressure amplitude by 2–3 times. There is a large discrepancy between 2-D simulation and flow visualization results at L/D=4.0 and Re=200. A probable cause could be the strong 3-D effect at the ends of the cylinder at low H/D. It was found that, for an in-line square configuration at critical L/D and when H/D is lower than a certain value, 3-D effects are very significant at the ends of the cylinders. In such cases, a time-consuming 3-D numerical simulation will have to be performed if full replication of the flow phenomenon were to be achieved.     

Unsteady Laminar to Turbulent Flow in a Spacer-Filled Channel

A combined numerical and experimental investigation has been carried out to study the flow behaviour in a spacer-filled channel, representative of those used in spiral-wound membrane modules. Direct numerical simulation and particle image velocimetry were used to investigate the fluid flow characteristics inside a 2 × 2 cell at Reynolds numbers that range between 100 and 1000. It was found that the flow in this geometry moves parallel to and also rotates between the spacer filaments and that the rate of rotation increases with Reynolds number. The flow mechanisms, transition process and onset of turbulence in a spacer-filled channel are investigated including the use of the velocity spectra at different Reynolds numbers. It is found that the flow is steady for Re < 200 and oscillatory at Re ～ 250 and increasingly unsteady with further increases in Re before the onset of turbulent flow at Re ～ 1000.     

Effects of aspect ratio and orientation on the wake characteristics of low Reynolds number flow over a triangular prism

The wake characteristics of unconfined flows over triangular prisms of different aspect ratios have been numerically analysed in the present work. For this purpose, a fixed Cartesian-grid based numerical technique that involves the porous medium approach to mimic the effect of solid blockage has been utilised. Correspondingly, laminar flow simulations ranging from the sub-critical regime (before the onset of vortex shedding) to the super-critical regime have been considered here within the limits of two-dimensionality. In the sub-critical regime, correlations relating the wake bubble length with Reynolds number (Re) have been proposed for various aspect ratios. Also, the effects of aspect ratio and Reynolds Number on the drag force coefficient (C_D) have been characterised for two different geometrical orientations of the prism (base or apex facing the flow). Subsequently, the critical Reynolds number at the onset of vortex shedding has been predicted for each of the aspect ratio considered, by an extrapolation procedure. The unsteady flow characteristics of the super-critical regime are finally highlighted for different aspect ratios and triangular orientations considered in the study.     

Wake flow pattern modified by small control cylinders at low Reynolds number

Passive wake control behind a circular cylinder in uniform flow is studied by numerical simulation for Re_D ranging from 80 to 300. Two small control cylinders, with diameter d/D=1/8, are placed at x/D=0.5 and y/D=±0.6. Unlike the 1990 results of Strykowski and Sreenivasan, in the present study, the vortex street behind the main cylinder still exists but the fluctuating lift and the form drag on the main cylinder reduces significantly and monotonously as the Reynolds number increases from 80 to 300. Obstruction of the control cylinders to the incoming flow deflects part of the fluid to pass through the gap between the main and control cylinders, forming two symmetric streams. These streams not only eliminate the flow separation along the rear surface of the main cylinder, they also merge toward the wake centerline to create an advancing momentum in the immediate near-wake region. These two effects significantly reduce the wake width behind the main cylinder and lead to monotonous decrease of the form drag as the Reynolds number increases. As the Reynolds number gets higher, a large amount of the downstream advancing momentum significantly delays the vortex formation farther downstream, leading to a more symmetric flow structure in the near-wake region of the main cylinder. As the Reynolds number increases from 80 to 300, both increasing symmetry of the flow structure in the near-wake and significant delay of the vortex formation are the main reasons for the fluctuating lift to decrease monotonously.     

Dependence of flow classification on the Reynolds number for a two-cylinder wake

This work aims to investigate the dependence of flow classification on the Reynolds number (Re) for the wake of two staggered cylinders. The Re examined ranges from 1.5×10³ to 2.0×10⁴. The pitch ratio, P^⁎=P/d examined is 1.2–6.0 (d is the cylinder diameter), and angle (α) is 0–90°, where P is the center-to-center spacing between two cylinders and α is the angle between the incident flow and the line through the cylinder centers. Two single hotwires were used to measure simultaneously the fluctuating streamwise velocities (u) in the vortex streets generated by the two cylinders. The power spectral density functions and the Strouhal numbers were then obtained from the u signals, based on which the flow structure pattern or mode could be determined. Over two hundred configurations of two staggered cylinders have been examined for each Re. It is found that Re has an appreciable effect on the dependence of the flow mode on P^⁎ and α. The observation is connected to the Re effect on the generic features of a two-cylinder wake such as flow separation, boundary layer thickness, gap flow deflection and vortex formation length.     

Computation of three‐dimensional flow around square and circular piers

The aim of the present study is to investigate, by numerical simulation, the three‐dimensional turbulent flow field around square and circular piers. The numerical model employs a finite volume method based on MacCormack's explicit predictor–corrector scheme to solve weakly compressible hydrodynamic equations for turbulent flow. Computed results are compared with Dargahi's experimental measurements to assess the validity of the proposed model. Very good agreements are obtained. The results of flow simulation indicate that near the upstream face of the pier there exists a downflow, which joins the separated flow to form the horseshoe vortex stretched around the pier. This horseshoe vortex interacts with the wake vortex to create the upflow behind the pier. These phenomena appear to be very important to the mechanism of scouring around the pier. In general, the flow patterns for the square and circular piers are similar. However, the strengths of the downflow and horseshoe vortex are greater in the case of the square pier. The position of the horseshoe vortex around the circular pier is closer to the front face than that around the square pier. In the meantime, the domain of the wake flow in the case of the square pier is greater than that in the case of the circular one. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

On the development of lift and drag in a rotating and translating cylinder

The two-dimensional flow around a rotating cylinder is investigated numerically using a vorticity forces formulation with the aim of analyzing quantitatively the flow structures, and their evolutions, that contribute to the lift and drag forces on the cylinder. The Reynolds number considered, based on the cylinder diameter and steady free stream speed, is Re=200, while the non-dimensional rotation rate (ratio of the surface speed and free stream speed) selected was α=1 and 3. For α=1 the wake behind the cylinder for the fully developed flow is oscillatory due to vortex shedding, and so are the lift and drag forces. For α=3 the fully developed flow is steady with constant (high) lift and (low) drag. Each of these cases is considered in two different transient problems, one with angular acceleration of the cylinder and constant speed, and the other one with translating acceleration of the cylinder and constant rotation. We characterize quantitatively the contributions of individual fluid elements (vortices) to aerodynamic forces, explaining and quantifying the mechanisms by which the lift is generated in each case. In particular, for high rotation (when α=3), we explain the relation between the mechanisms of vortex shedding suppression and those by which the lift is enhanced and the drag is almost suppressed when the fully developed flow is reached.     

Direct numerical simulation of three-dimensional flow past a yawed circular cylinder of infinite length

Direct numerical simulation of flow past a stationary circular cylinder at yaw angles (α) in the range of 0–60° was conducted at Reynolds number of 1000. The three-dimensional (3-D) Navier–Stokes equations were solved using the Petrov–Galerkin finite element method. The transition of the flow from 2-D to 3-D was studied. The phenomena that were observed in flow visualization, such as the streamwise vortices, the vortex dislocation and the instability of the shear layer, were reproduced numerically. The effects of the yaw angle on wake structures, vortex shedding frequency and hydrodynamic forces of the cylinder were investigated. It was found that the Strouhal number at different yaw angles (α) follows the independence principle. The mean drag coefficient agrees well with the independence principle. It slightly increases with the increase of α and reaches a maximum value at α=60°, which is about 10% larger than that when α=0°. The root-mean-square (r.m.s.) values of the lift coefficient are noticeably dependent on α.     

Numerical investigations into effects of three-dimensional wake patterns on unsteady aerodynamic characteristics of a circular cylinder at Re=1.3×105

In contrast with a wide range of applications concerning flows around a circular cylinder at upper subcritical Reynolds numbers (Re), there is no systematic understanding about the fundamentals of so-called random flow patterns, and their effects on intermittent modulations in the time history of pressure or force, and the decrease in their spanwise correlations. This paper employed the large-eddy simulation (LES) technique to predict flows past a circular cylinder at Re=1.3×10⁵ and to provide images based on flow visualization that can clarify the physical mechanism responsible for these outcomes. A reasonably sufficient spanwise length was adopted for the numerical model by taking into consideration the effect of aspect ratios (the spanwise length to the diameter). We found that even at such high Res, a three-dimensional pattern of vortical field is present in the wake resulting in total force modulation and weak spanwise correlation, e.g., obvious oblique shedding. The whole development process of the three-dimensional wake is exhibited as a universal. The results revealed that local phase variations in primary vortex shedding are the starting points of three-dimensional wake patterns, which are induced by the “irregular” streamwise vortex. The three-dimensional near wake following local phase variations is associated with a successive evolution composed of certain stages in order. Quantitative analyses based on the time series of sectional lift coefficients show that intermittent increase in primary shedding periods and sectional lift streak divisions are closely related to local phase variations and vortex division in the development process of the three-dimensional pattern. In addition to the phase difference along the span, the three-dimensional pattern also weakens vortex shedding in cross sections perpendicular to the axis of the cylinder, resulting in modulation of the sectional lift coefficient.     

双旋转附属圆柱对主圆柱尾流控制的影响

基于Fluent软件平台,采用数值模拟方法对非稳态圆柱体结构尾流流动特性进行了研究。对在Re=50～200范围内,双旋转附属圆柱的转速对主圆柱体尾流流动特性的影响进行了分析。研究结果表明:随着附属圆柱旋转速率的增加,主圆柱体表面所受阻力系数平均值与均方根值、升力系数均方根值均会减小。同时,旋转速率的变化对柱体结构表面压力分布的影响显著,压力系数在附属圆柱的位置产生了跳跃性变化。另外,当附属圆柱转速达到临界值时,尾流涡街变窄,涡脱落现象消失,并且系统的能量效率到达最佳状态。     

Numerical simulation of Reynolds number effects on velocity shear flow around a circular cylinder

Three-dimensional Direct Numerical Simulation (DNS) and Large Eddy Simulation (LES) are performed to investigate the shear effects on flow around a circular cylinder at Reynolds numbers of Re=60–1000. The shear parameter, β, which is based on the velocity gradient, cylinder diameter and upstream mean velocity at the center plane of the cylinder, varies from 0 to 0.30. Variations of Strouhal number, drag and lift coefficients, and unsteady wake structures with shear parameter are studied, along with their dependence on Reynolds number. The presented simulation provides detailed information for the flow field around a circular cylinder in shear flow. This study shows that the Strouhal number exhibits no significant variation with shear parameter. The stagnation point moves to the high-velocity side almost linearly with shear parameter, and this result mainly influences the aerodynamic forces acting on a circular cylinder in shear flow. Both the Reynolds number and shear parameter influence the movement of the stagnation point and separation point. Mode A wake instability is suppressed into parallel vortex shedding mode at a certain shear parameter. The lift force increases with increasing shear parameter and acts from the high-velocity side to the low-velocity side. In addition, a simple method to estimate the lift force coefficient in shear flow is provided.