Analyzing the influence of compressibility on the rapid pressure–strain rate correlation in turbulent shear flows

The influence of compressibility on the rapid pressure–strain rate tensor is investigated using the Green’s function for the wave equation governing pressure fluctuations in compressible homogeneous shear flow. The solution for the Green’s function is obtained as a combination of parabolic cylinder functions; it is oscillatory with monotonically increasing frequency and decreasing amplitude at large times, and anisotropic in wave-vector space. The Green’s function depends explicitly on the turbulent Mach number M _t , given by the root mean square turbulent velocity fluctuations divided by the speed of sound, and the gradient Mach number M _g , which is the mean shear rate times the transverse integral scale of the turbulence divided by the speed of sound. Assuming a form for the temporal decorrelation of velocity fluctuations brought about by the turbulence, the rapid pressure–strain rate tensor is expressed exactly in terms of the energy (or Reynolds stress) spectrum tensor and the time integral of the Green’s function times a decaying exponential. A model for the energy spectrum tensor linear in Reynolds stress anisotropies and in mean shear is assumed for closure. The expression for the rapid pressure–strain correlation is evaluated using parameters applicable to a mixing layer and a boundary layer. It is found that for the same range of M _t there is a large reduction of the pressure–strain correlation in the mixing layer but not in the boundary layer. Implications for compressible turbulence modeling are also explored.      

An aeroacoustic hybrid approach for non‐isothermal flows at low Mach number

This paper presents an aeroacoustic hybrid technique for the study of non‐isothermal flows at low Mach number. The flow dynamics and the acoustic production and propagation are computed separately. The fully compressible Navier–Stokes equations are modified through an expansion of the physical quantities using a low Mach number approximation. Compressibility effects are thus removed in the CFD while inhomogeneities of the flow related to heat transfer are preserved. One advantage is a reduction of the time step constraint. Another advantage is that the Mach number does not appear explicitly and a simple rescaling allows a study over a relatively wide band of subsonic Mach number flows with a single dynamic simulation. Compatible acoustic source terms for LEE based propagation have been defined and the procedure is implemented in the case of a temporal mixing layer. Compressible simulations for Mach numbers of 0.2, 0.3 and 0.4 are compared with the numerical results obtained using the proposed method. Very good agreement is obtained even at relatively high subsonic Mach number demonstrating the efficiency of the proposed technique. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Wall Effect on the Convective–Absolute Boundary for the Compressible Shear Layer

The linear stability of inviscid compressible shear layers is studied. When the layer develops at the vicinity of a wall, the two parallel flows can have a velocity of the same sign or of opposite signs. This situation is examined in order to obtain first hints on the stability of separated flows in the compressible regime. The shear layer is described by a hyperbolic tangent profile for the velocity component and the Crocco relation for the temperature profile. Gravity effects and the superficial tension are neglected. By examining the temporal growth rate at the saddle point in the wave-number space, the flow is characterized as being either absolutely unstable or convectively unstable. This study principally shows the effect of the wall on the convective–absolute transition in compressible shear flow. Results are presented, showing the amount of the backflow necessary to have this type of transition for a range of primary flow Mach numbers M ₁ up to 3.0. The boundary of the convective–absolute transition is defined as a function of the velocity ratio, the temperature ratio and the Mach number. Unstable solutions are calculated for both streamwise and oblique disturbances in the shear layer. Received 9 May 2001 and accepted 21 August 2001     

Prediction of resolvent mode shapes in supersonic turbulent boundary layers

This work applies resolvent analysis to compressible zero-pressure-gradient turbulent boundary layers with freestream Mach numbers between 2 and 4, focusing exclusively on large scale motions in the outer region of the boundary layer. We investigate the effects of Mach number on predicted flow structures, and in particular, look at how such effects may be attributed to changes in mean properties. By leveraging the similarity between the compressible and incompressible resolvent operators, we show that the shape of the streamwise velocity and temperature components of resolvent response modes in the compressible regime can be approximated by applying ideas from wavepacket pseudospectral theory to a simple scalar operator. This gives a means of predicting the shape of resolvent mode components for compressible flows without requiring the singular value decompositions of discretized operators. At a Mach number of 2, we find that accurate results are obtained from this approximation when using the compressible mean velocity profile. At Mach numbers of 3 and 4, the quantitative accuracy of these predictions is improved by also considering a local effective Reynolds number based on the local mean density and viscosity.     

Numerical prediction of turbulent boundary layer noise from a sharp-edged flat plate

An efficient hybrid uncorrelated wall plane waves–boundary element method (UWPW-BEM) technique is proposed to predict the flow-induced noise from a structure in low Mach number turbulent flow. Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes equations are used to estimate the turbulent boundary layer parameters such as convective velocity, boundary layer thickness, and wall shear stress over the surface of the structure. The spectrum of the wall pressure fluctuations is evaluated from the turbulent boundary layer parameters and by using semi-empirical models from literature. The wall pressure field underneath the turbulent boundary layer is synthesized by realizations of uncorrelated wall plane waves (UWPW). An acoustic BEM solver is then employed to compute the acoustic pressure scattered by the structure from the synthesized wall pressure field. Finally, the acoustic response of the structure in turbulent flow is obtained as an ensemble average of the acoustic pressures due to all realizations of uncorrelated plane waves. To demonstrate the hybrid UWPW-BEM approach, the self-noise generated by a flat plate in turbulent flow with Reynolds number based on chord Re_c = 4.9 × 10⁵ is predicted. The results are compared with those obtained from a large eddy simulation (LES)-BEM technique as well as with experimental data from literature.     

Simulation of supersonic turbulent flow in the vicinity of an inclined backward-facing step

Large eddy simulation (LES) is a viable and powerful tool to analyse unsteady three-dimensional turbulent flows. In this article, the method of LES is used to compute a plane turbulent supersonic boundary layer subjected to different pressure gradients. The pressure gradients are generated by allowing the flow to pass in the vicinity of an expansion–compression ramp (inclined backward-facing step with leeward-face angle of 25°) for an upstream Mach number of 2.9. The inflow boundary condition is the main problem for all turbulent wall-bounded flows. An approach to solve this problem is to extract instantaneous velocities, temperature and density data from an auxiliary simulation (inflow generator). To generate an appropriate realistic inflow condition to the inflow generator itself the rescaling technique for compressible flows is used. In this method, Morkovin's hypothesis, in which the total temperature fluctuations are neglected compared with the static temperature fluctuations, is applied to rescale and generate the temperature profile at inlet. This technique was successfully developed and applied by the present author for an LES of subsonic three-dimensional boundary layer of a smooth curved ramp. The present LES results are compared with the available experimental data as well as numerical data. The positive impact of the rescaling formulation of the temperature is proven by the convincing agreement of the obtained results with the experimental data compared with published numerical work and sheds light on the quality of the developed compressible inflow generator.     

The interaction of a shock wave with the boundary layer in a reflected shock tunnel

The influence of a nontotal reflection on the interaction of a reflected shock wave with the boundary layer in a reflected shock tunnel has been investigated. The calculating method of the velocity, the temperature and the Mach number profiles in the boundary layer in reflected shock fixed coordinates has been obtained. To account for equilibrium real gas effects of nitrogen, the numerical results show that the minimum Mach number in the boundary layer has been moved from the wall into the boundary layer with the increasing of the incident shock Mach number. The minimum Mach number, the shock angle in the bifurcated foot and the jet velocity along the wall to the end plate are reduced owing to the increasing of the area of nozzle throat. The numerical results are in good agreement with measurements.     

Flow-thermodynamics interactions in decaying anisotropic compressible turbulence with imposed temperature fluctuations

The fundamental nature of the non-linear flow-thermodynamics interactions in a compressible turbulent flow with imposed temperature fluctuations is investigated. Direct numerical simulations (DNS) of decaying anisotropic compressible turbulence (turbulent Mach number 0.06–0.6) with imposed temperature fluctuations are performed to examine: (i) interactions between solenoidal and dilatational kinetic energy; (ii) partition between dilatational kinetic energy and thermodynamic potential energy; and (iii) redistribution of solenoidal and dilatational kinetic energy among the various Reynolds stress components. It is found that solenoidal kinetic energy levels and return-to-isotropy are weakly dependent on Mach number but independent of imposed temperature fluctuations in the parameter range studied. The dilatational kinetic energy generated is proportional to the square of the pressure fluctuations associated with the initial solenoidal and temperature fluctuations and thus a strong function of Mach number and heat release intensity. The energy exchange between dilatational kinetic and potential energy is driven by a strong proclivity toward equipartition. Consequently, the dynamics of pressure-dilatation ( ${\overline{pd}}$ ), which is the mechanism of this energy exchange between dilatational and potential energies, is dictated entirely by the requirement to impose energy equipartition. Based on the results, we provide a physical picture of the solenoidal–dilatational–potential energy interactions and the action of pressure-dilatation. The identification of the fundamental precepts underlying the various interactions is of great utility for turbulence closure model development.     

Convective-Absolute Transition of Non-Isothermal Compressible Shear Layer

The linear stability of inviscid compressible shear layers is studied. When the layer develops at the vicinity of a wall, the two parallel flows can have velocity of the same sign or of opposite sign. This situation is examined in order to obtain first hints on the stability of separated flows in the compressible regime. The shear layer is described by an hyperbolic tangent profile for the velocity component and the Crocco relation for the temperature profile. The gravity effects and the superficial tension are neglected. By examining the temporal growth rate at the saddle point in the wave number space, the flow is characterized as being either absolutely unstable or convectively unstable. This study principally shows the non-isothermal effect on the absolute-convective transition in compressible shear flow. Results are presented, showing the amount of the backflow necessary to have this type of transition for a range of primary flow Mach number M ₁ up to 3.0. The boundary of the absolute-convective transition is defined as a function of the velocity ratio, the temperature ratio and the Machnumber.     

Modelling of pressure–strain correlation in compressible turbulent flow

Previous studies carried out in the early 1990s conjectured that the main compressible effects could be associated with the dilatational effects of velocity fluctuation. Later, it was shown that the main compressibility effect came from the reduced pressure-strain term due to reduced pressure fluctuations. Although better understanding of the compressible turbulence is generally achieved with the increased DNS and experimental research effort, there are still some discrepancies among these recent findings. Analysis of the DNS and experimental data suggests that some of the discrepancies are apparent if the compressible effect is related to the turbulent Mach number, Mt. From the comparison of two classes of compressible flow, homogenous shear flow and inhomogeneous shear flow （mixing layer）, we found that the effect of compressibility on both classes of shear flow can be characterized in three categories corresponding to three regions of turbulent Mach numbers： the low-Mr, the moderate-Mr and high-Mr regions. In these three regions the effect of compressibility on the growth rate of the turbulent mixing layer thickness is rather different. A simple approach to the reduced pressure-strain effect may not necessarily reduce the mixing-layer growth rate, and may even cause an increase in the growth rate. The present work develops a new second-moment model for the compressible turbulence through the introduction of some blending functions of Mt to account for the compressibility effects on the flow. The model has been successfully applied to the compressible mixing layers.     

Numerical analysis of wall pressure and heat flux fluctuations in shock-turbulent-boundary-layer interaction

The unsteady, compressible, Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes equations are solved numerically for an oblique shock-wave-induced turbulent boundary layer sepration. For the freestream Mach number 6 and the freestream Reynolds number 66·1 × 10⁶ m^?1, a time-dependent computation is performed, using MacCormack's explicit-implicit finite difference method with 82 × 42 grid points. A two-layer eddy viscosity turbulence model is employed in conjunction with a relaxation modification. Comparisons of the mean wall pressure and the mean heat transfer coefficient with the available experimental results are made and the evaluation of unsteady data for surface pressure and heat flux fluctuations is presented. It is found that the fluctuations in heat flux have qualitatively the same features as those of wall pressure but are different quantitatively.     

Acoustic receptivity of Mach 4.5 boundary layer with leading-edge bluntness

Boundary layer receptivity to two-dimensional slow and fast acoustic waves is investigated by solving Navier–Stokes equations for Mach 4.5 flow over a flat plate with a finite-thickness leading edge. Higher order spatial and temporal schemes are employed to obtain the solution whereby the flat-plate leading edge region is resolved by providing a sufficiently refined grid. The results show that the instability waves are generated in the leading edge region and that the boundary-layer is much more receptive to slow acoustic waves (by almost a factor of 20) as compared to the fast waves. Hence, this leading-edge receptivity mechanism is expected to be more relevant in the transition process for high Mach number flows where second mode instability is dominant. Computations are performed to investigate the effect of leading-edge thickness and it is found that bluntness tends to stabilize the boundary layer. Furthermore, the relative significance of fast acoustic waves is enhanced in the presence of bluntness. The effect of acoustic wave incidence angle is also studied and it is found that the receptivity of the boundary layer on the ‘windward’ side (with respect to the acoustic forcing) decreases by more than a factor of four when the incidence angle is increased from 0° to 45°. However, the receptivity coefficient for the ‘leeward’ side is found to vary relatively weakly with the incidence angle.      

Improvements to compressible Euler methods for low‐Mach number flows

In the present study improvements to numerical algorithms for the solution of the compressible Euler equations at low Mach numbers are investigated. To solve flow problems for a wide range of Mach numbers, from the incompressible limit to supersonic speeds, preconditioning techniques are frequently employed. On the other hand, one can achieve the same aim by using a suitably modified acoustic damping method. The solution algorithm presently under consideration is based on Roe's approximate Riemann solver [Roe PL. Approximate Riemann solvers, parameter vectors and difference schemes. Journal of Computational Physics 1981; 43 : 357–372] for non‐structured meshes. The numerical flux functions are modified by using Turkel's preconditioning technique proposed by Viozat [Implicit upwind schemes for low Mach number compressible flows. INRIA, Rapport de Recherche No. 3084, January 1997] for compressible Euler equations and by using a modified acoustic damping of the stabilization term proposed in the present study. These methods allow the compressible Euler equations at low‐Mach number flows to be solved, and they are consistent in time. The efficiency and accuracy of the proposed modifications have been assessed by comparison with experimental data and other numerical results in the literature. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Development of an Intermittency Equation for the Modeling of the Supersonic/Hypersonic Boundary Layer Flow Transition

An intermittency transport equation is developed in this study to model the laminar-turbulence boundary layer transition at supersonic and hypersonic conditions. The model takes into account the effects of different instability modes associated with the variations in Mach numbers. The model equation is based on the intermittency factor γ concept and couples with the well-known SST k–ω eddy-viscosity model in the solution procedures. The particular features of the present model approach are that: (1) the fluctuating kinetic energy k includes the non-turbulent, as well as turbulent fluctuations; (2) the proposed transport equation for the intermittency factor γ triggers the transition onset through a source term; (3) through the introduction of a new length scale normal to wall, the present model employs the local variables only avoiding the use of the integral parameters, like the boundary layer thickness δ, which are often cost-ineffective with the modern CFD methods; (4) in the fully turbulent region, the model retreats to SST model. This model is validated with a number of available experiments on boundary layer transition including the incompressible, supersonic and hypersonic flows past flat plates, straight/flared cones at zero incidences, etc. It is demonstrated that the present model can be successfully applied to the engineering calculations of a variety of aerodynamic flow transition with a reasonably wide range of Mach numbers.     

Numerical modeling of the receptivity of a supersonic boundary layer to entropy disturbances

Numerical modeling of the receptivity of a two-dimensional flat-plate boundary layer to entropy disturbances is carried out at the freestream Mach number M_∞ = 6. Low-intensity perturbations considered are in the form of temperature spots of various shapes and with different initial positions downstream of the shock. They are shown to be able to generate unstable disturbances in the boundary layer. This receptivity mechanism is relatively weak as compared with the receptivity to acoustic waves. When the entropy perturbations are introduced upstream of the bow shock, they first pass across the shock. Downstream of the shock this interaction generates acoustic waves which, in turn, penetrate into the boundary layer thus exciting unstable disturbances of a considerably greater amplitude than the temperature spots. Thus, the bow shock can change the receptivity mechanism.     

可压缩各向同性衰减湍流直接数值模拟研究

采用五阶有限差分WENO格式直接模拟了高初始湍流Mach数的可压缩均匀各向同性湍流,主要分析了湍流的统计特性 和压缩性的影响,包括能谱特征、激波串、耗散率、标度律等. 研究表明,湍动能主要来自于速度场螺旋分量的贡献;各向同性湍流的小尺度脉动对压缩性更为敏感,并且压缩性的增强加快了湍流大 尺度脉动向小尺度脉动的湍动能输运;随着湍流Mach数的升高,胀量(压缩)耗散率所占比率也显著增长. 标度律分析表明,强可压缩湍流的横向速度结构函数仍然具有扩展自相似性;当阶数较高(p ≥ 5)时,纵向速度结构函数的扩展自相似性则不再成立. 对于压缩性较弱的湍流,与不可压缩湍流一致,横向湍流脉动的间歇性要强于纵向湍流脉动;而对于强可压缩湍流,纵向湍流脉动的 间歇性要强于横向湍流脉动.     

Comparison of low Mach number models for natural convection problems

 We investigate in this paper two numerical methods for solving low Mach number compressible flows and their application to single-phase natural convection flow problems. The first method is based on an asymptotic model of the Navier–Stokes equations valid for small Mach numbers, whereas the second is based on the full compressible Navier–Stokes equations with particular care given to the discretization at low Mach numbers. These models are more general than the Boussinesq incompressible flow model, in the sense that they are valid even for cases in which the fluid is subjected to large temperature differences, that is when the compressibility of the fluid manifests itself through low Mach number effects. Numerical solutions are computed for a series of test problems with fixed Rayleigh number and increasing temperature differences, as well as for varying Rayleigh number for a given temperature difference. Numerical difficulties associated with low Mach number effects are discussed, as well as the accuracy of the approximations. Received on 17 January 2000     

Investigation of the heat transfer mechanism in supersonic turbulent boundary layers

A method is described for calculating turbulent Prandtl numbers from Mach number and total temperature profiles in supersonic boundary layers. The calculations are based on boundary layer measurements in the Mach number range from 3.5 to 5. The investigations clearly indicate that in addition to accurate profile measurements reliable values of shear stress and heat flux at the wall must exist, in order to be able to calculate the turbulent Prandtl number in the viscous regime of the boundary layer. For flow conditions with and without heat transfer, the derived turbulent Prandtl numbers indicate that the turbulent transport of heat decreases much faster towards the wall than the turbulent transport of momentum. The results of the analysis show that only the unequivocal qualitative result of increasing turbulent Prandtl numbers in the viscous region of the boundary layer, can be expected. The variation of the turbulent Prandtl number can be described successfully using a simple approximation, based on the mixing length concept, and is applied to the calculation of total temperature distribution using the law of the wall for compressible flow.     

Measurements of a supersonic turbulent boundary layer by focusing schlieren deflectometry

 Some novel, non-intrusive, high-frequency, localized optical measurements of turbulence in compressible flows are described. The technique is based upon focusing schlieren optics coupled with high-speed quantitative measurement of light intensity fluctuations in the schlieren image. Measurements of density gradient fluctuations confined to a thin slice of the flowfield are thus obtained. The new instrument was used to investigate the structure of a two-dimensional, adiabatic, wind tunnel wall boundary layer at a Mach number of 3. The measurements were compared to data obtained using hot-wire anemometry and good agreement was found between the two. Distributions of broadband convection velocity of large-scale structures through the boundary later were also measured. In marked contrast to earlier results, it is shown here that the convection velocity is essentially identical to the local mean velocity. Further, results obtained using the VITA conditional sampling technique shed new light on the turbulent boundary layer structure. Overall, the data presented herein serve to validate the new measurement technique. Received: 12 February 1997/Accepted: 31 January 1998     

平板湍流边界层的声辐射

基于平板湍流边界层的壁压起伏波数—频率谱 ,给出了一种湍流边界层声辐射的估算方法 ,并对光滑平板湍流边界层和平板表面粗糙度引起的湍流边界层声辐射进行了分析。结果表明 :湍流边界层声辐射是一种四极子声辐射 ,且其辐射声能集中于平板表面粗糙度引起的湍流边界层声辐射 ;光滑平板湍流边界层的声辐射也不可忽略。