Numerical experiments on stability and transition in plane channel flow

Various secondary and tertiary instabilities in plane channel flow are explored via time-dependent numerical simulations using the incompressible Navier-Stokes equations. Comparisons are made between transitional flows at Reynolds numbers 1500, 5000, and 8000. The lambda vortex, detached shear layer, and inverted vortex regions are identified and the origin of the latter is explained. The laminar breakdown of the Re=1500 flow is computed with high resolution and the nature of its ensuing hairpin eddies is clarified by numerical particle paths. The potential of center-mode rather than wall-mode transitions is proposed and the resulting flow structure is described.     

Stereoscopic multi-planar PIV measurements of in-cylinder tumbling flow

The non-reacting flow field within the combustion chamber of a motored direct-injection spark-ignition engine with tumble intake port is measured. The three-dimensionality of the flow necessitates the measurement of all three velocity components via stereoscopic particle-image velocimetry in multiple planes. Phase-locked stereoscopic PIV is applied at 15 crank angles during the intake and compression strokes, showing the temporal evolution of the flow field. The flow fields are obtained within a set of 14 axial planes, covering nearly the complete cylinder volume. The stereoscopic PIV setup applied to engine in-cylinder flow and the arising problems and solutions are discussed in detail. The three-dimensional flow field is reconstructed and analyzed using vortex criteria. The tumble vortex is the dominant flow structure, and this vortex varies significantly regarding shape, strength, and position throughout the two strokes. The tumble vortex center moves clockwise through the combustion chamber. At first, the tumble has a c-shape which turns into an almost straight tube at the end of the compression. Small-scale structures are analyzed by the distribution of the turbulent kinetic energy. It is evident that the symmetry plane only represents the 3D flow field after 100 CAD. For earlier crank angles, both kinetic energy (KE) and turbulent kinetic energy (TKE) in the combustion chamber are well below the KE and TKE in the symmetry plane. This should be taken into account when the injection and breakup of the three-dimensional fuel jet are studied. The mean kinetic energy is conserved until late compression by the tumble motion. This conservation ensures through the excited air motion an enhancement of the initial air-fuel mixture which is of interest for direct-injection gasoline engines.     

Entropy generation in flow field subjected to a porous block in a vertical channel

Entropy generation in the flow field subjected to a porous block situated in a vertical channel is examined. The effects of channel inlet port height (vertical height between channel inlet port and the block center), porosity, and block aspect ratio on the entropy generation rate due to fluid friction and heat transfer in the fluid are examined. The governing equations of flow, heat transfer, and entropy are solved numerically using a control volume approach. Air is used as the flowing fluid in the channel. A uniform heat flux is considered in the block and natural convection is accommodated in the analysis. It is found that entropy generation rate due to fluid friction increases with increasing inlet port height, while this increase becomes gradual for entropy generation rate due to heat transfer for the inlet port height exceeding 0.03 m. The porosity lowers entropy generation rate due to fluid friction and heat transfer. The effect of block aspect ratio on entropy generation rate is notable; in which case, entropy generation rate increases for the block aspect ratio of 1:2.     

LES of Chemical and Acoustic Forcing of a Premixed Dump Combustor

This paper describes the first steps in the development of a large eddy simulation (LES) code able to compute combustion instabilities in gas turbines. This code was used to compute the forcing of an experimentally investigated premixed dump combustor. It is shown that the main effect of acoustic waves entering the combustion chamber is to create large vortices and unsteady heat release when these vortices burn. Another effect of waves entering the combustor is to modulate the fuel and air flow rates produced by the feeding lines. In this case the equivalence ratio of the mixture entering the combustor may also vary. This was investigated in a “chemical effect” simulation where the inlet equivalence ratio fluctuates but the total flow rate remains constant. For perturbations from stoichiometric burning, this mechanism was shown to induce less destabilizing effects than the purely aerodynamical mechanism due to vortex formation and combustion. It is shown that the LES methodology developed is able to reproduce the experimentally observed phase shift between acoustic excitation and total reaction rate in the chamber. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Numerical study of an inviscid incompressible flow through a channel of finite length

A two‐dimensional inviscid incompressible flow in a rectilinear channel of finite length is studied numerically. Both the normal velocity and the vorticity are given at the inlet, and only the normal velocity is specified at the outlet. The flow is described in terms of the stream function and vorticity. To solve the unsteady problem numerically, we propose a version of the vortex particle method. The vorticity field is approximated using its values at a set of fluid particles. A pseudo‐symplectic integrator is employed to solve the system of ordinary differential equations governing the motion of fluid particles. The stream function is computed using the Galerkin method. Unsteady flows developing from an initial perturbation in the form of an elliptical patch of vorticity are calculated for various values of the volume flux of fluid through the channel. It is shown that if the flux of fluid is large, the initial vortex patch is washed out of the channel, and when the flux is reduced, the initial perturbation evolves to a steady flow with stagnation regions. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Instabilities in viscoelastic flow past a square cavity

Elastic flow transitions in viscoelastic flow past a square cavity adjacent to a channel are reported. The critical conditions for the onset of flow transitions and the qualitative and quantitative characterization of the secondary flows generated by the instability have been examined using streakline photography and instantaneous pressure measurements. Cellular type of instabilities inside the cavity is observed for flow rates beyond a critical value. Small and large scale eddies are observed at high flow rates. The flow inside the cavity and in the channel upstream and downstream of the cavity becomes weakly time-dependent for high flow rates.     

ON THE STRUCTURE OF STEADY FLOW THROUGH DUAL-INTAKE ENGINE PORTS

The influence of intake port design on the flow field in a dual-intake valve engine was investigated using computational fluid dynamics, in order to study the effect of inlet port design on the in-cylinder flow. A detailed 3D computational grid incorporating all the features of the Ford Zetec production engine inlet ports, valves and cylinder head was initially created and the flow structure modelled at 5 and 10 mm valve lifts under steady flow conditions. Comparisons of computational results with experimental data obtained by laser Doppler anemometry indicate that the flow characteristics have been predicted well in most regions. Flow generated by different intake port designs was also simulated by introducing air into the cylinder at different directions to the inlet valve axes and the effects of port deactivation, throttling and exhaust gas recirculation were examined. The implications of the results for intake port design are discussed.     

Experimental study of the three-dimensional flow field in cross-flow fans

High-resolution PIV measurements of the flow field inside cross-flow fans have been performed in planes normal and parallel to the fan axis, both outside and inside the impeller. The well known difficulties in obtaining the optical access inside the impeller have been overcome by allowing the internal flow planes to be illuminated by the laser light sheet or shot by the CCD camera through the moving blade vanes. Measurements have been performed in two cross-flow fans having the same two-module impeller but casing geometries based on very different design concepts. PIV data in planes normal to the rotor axis show a strong correlation between vorticity distribution and turbulent shear stresses inside the eccentric vortex of each fan. Furthermore, they provide useful elements to explain the very different performance of the two fans evidenced by their characteristic curves. Measurements in planes parallel to the impeller axis show that wide three-dimensional recirculation structures develop near the casing end walls at the discharge of the fans. These mean flow structures are responsible for the backflow into the end portions of the impeller of part of the discharged fluid, which is then transported axially by the eccentric vortex towards the rotor central disc before being discharged once again outside the impeller. In the case of cross-flow fans including few rotor modules, the existence of significant axial velocity components inside the eccentric vortex can alter substantially the flow picture, common in the current literature, resulting from 2-D numerical models or measurements performed in a single transverse plane of the fan.     

Influence of vent positions on smoke clearance from a room

Results of solutions to the equations governing the clearance of smoke in laminar and in turbulent flow from a single rectilinear room are presented fof five different vent arrangements. These results show that the average smoke concentration in the room decreases in an approximately exponential manner with time at a rate that depdends much more on room geometry (vent positions in the present case) than on whether the flow is laminar or turbulent. The benefit of this observation is that, provided the clearance air jet is disrupted by impingement on a solid surface within the room, the analysis of smoke movement can for many practical purposes be limited to consideration of laminar flow only. An exceptional case is when the jet is allowed to take a straight line path between the inlet and outlet vents. Here in the absence of the large scale eddies caused by jet impingement, the smaller scale eddies of turbulent flow become relatively important as a mixing mechanism and give higher clearance rates than in laminar flow. Even so, this type of geometry is best avoided. The appearance of the jet is shown in a graphic presentation of the numerical results for laminar flow.     

Analysis of Unsteady Motion with Respect to Noise Sources in a Gas Turbine Combustor: Isothermal Flow Case

In order to evaluate the direct and indirect contributions to the total combustion noise emission, a combustion chamber consisting of a swirl burner and an exit nozzle of Laval-shape, representing a gas turbine combustor, is investigated by means of experiments and large eddy simulation. Focused on the isothermal flow case first and encouraged by a good overall agreement between the LES and the experimental data for the flow field, a first characterisation of the flow with respect to noise sources is performed. To analyse acoustic properties of the flow, time and length scales are evaluated inside the combustor. Furthermore, the evidence for the existence of a precessing vortex core (PVC), typical for configurations with swirl, is revealed. Finally, the effect of the PVC on the flow inside the Laval nozzle is discussed.     

In-cylinder tumble flows and performance of a motorcycle engine with circular and elliptic intake ports

The temporal and spatial evolution processes of the flows in the cylinder of a four-valve, four-stroke, single cylinder, reciprocating motorcycle engine installed with the elliptic and circular intake ports were experimentally studied by using the particle image velocimetry (PIV). The engine was modified to fit the requirements of PIV measurement. The velocity fields measured by the PIV were analyzed and quantitatively presented as the tumble ratio and turbulence intensity. In the symmetry plane, both the circular and elliptic intake ports could initiate a vortex around the central region during the intake stroke. During the compression stroke, the central vortex created in the cylinder of the engine with the circular intake port disappeared, while that in the engine cylinder with the elliptic intake port further developed into the tumble motion. In the offset plane, weak vortical structures were initiated by the bluff-body effect of the intake valves during the intake stroke. The vortical structures induced by the elliptic intake port were more coherent than those generated by the circular intake port; besides, this feature extends to the compression stroke. The cycle-averaged tumble ratio and the turbulence intensity of the engine with the elliptic intake port were dramatically larger than those of the engine with the circular intake port. The measured engine performance was improved a lot by installing the elliptic intake port. The correlation between the flow features and the enhancement of the engine performance were argued and discussed.     

The effects of inlet conditions and expansion ratio on the onset of flow reversal in swirling flow in a sudden expansion

Experiments are reported in which the minimum swirl intensity required to produce a central recirculation zone in a swirling sudden expansion flow is determined as a function of expansion ratio and inlet conditions. Using a swirl generator which allows for independent variation of velocity profile shape and swirl number, it is shown that an inlet tangential velocity distribution with a large solid body vortex core or an axial velocity profile with a maximum on the axis will lead to a higher critical swirl.     

Particle removal from a surface by a bounded vortex flow

A bounded vortex flow consists of an axisymmetric vortex that is confined top and bottom between two plates (the “confinement plate” and “impingement plate”, respectively) and surrounded laterally by a swirling annular slot jet. The bottom of the vortex terminates on the boundary layer along the impingement plate and the top of the vortex is drawn into a suction port positioned at the center of the confinement plate. The circumferential flow within the annular jet is important for supplying circulation to the central wall-normal vortex. This flow field is proposed as a method for mitigation of dust build-up on a surface, where the vortex–jet combination supplements the more traditional vacuum port by enhancing the surface shear stress and related particle transport rate. The paper reports on a computational study of the velocity field and particle transport by a bounded vortex flow. Fluid flow computations are performed using a finite-volume approach for an incompressible fluid and particle transport is simulated using a discrete-element method. Computations are performed for different values of two dimensionless parameters – the ratio of the plate separation distance and the average radial location of the jet inlet (the dimensionless confinement height) and the ratio of flow rate withdrawn at the suction outlet and that injected by the jet (the flow rate ratio). For small values of the flow rate ratio, the impinging jet streamlines pass down to the boundary layer along the bottom surface and then travel up the vortex core. By contrast, for large values of flow rate ratio, the annular jet is quickly entrained into the suction outlet and no wall-normal vortex is formed. Particles are observed to roll along the impingement surface in a direction determined by the fluid shear stress lines. Particles roll outward when they lie beyond a separatrix curve of the surface shear stress lines, where particles within this separatrix curve roll inward, piling up at the center of the flow field. A toroidal vortex ring forms for the small confinement height case with flow rate ratio equal to unity, which yields double separatrix curves in the shear stress lines. The inward rolling particles intermittently lift up due to collision forces and burst away from the impingement surface, eventually to become entrained into the flow out the suction port or resettling back onto the impingement surface.     

Flow in a simple swirl chamber with and without controlled inlet forcing

Results are presented from a swirl chamber with and without controlled inlet forcing. The controlled inlet forcing is induced using arrays of vortex generators placed along one wall of the swirl chamber inlet duct. Flow visualization results are given, along with surveys of circumferential mean velocity, static pressure, and total pressure, at Reynolds numbers (based on inlet duct characteristics) as high as 8000. The controlled inlet forcing provides means to alter and control: (i) the spacing and number of Görtler vortices across the span of the swirl chamber, (ii) the amount of vortex development at a particular Reynolds number and circumferential location, (iii) the circumferential location and Reynolds number of initial Görtler vortex development, and (iv) the circumferential location and Reynolds number of Görtler vortex breakup into more chaotic flow.     

Effect of the conical-shape on the performance of vortex tube

The present study focuses on the effect of conical shape in the cold side of the Ranque-Hilsch vortex tube which is shown to have a considerable influence on the system performance. A vortex tube is a simple circular tube with no moving parts which is capable to divide a high pressure flow into two relatively lower pressure flows with temperatures higher and lower than the incoming flow. A three-dimensional computational fluid dynamic model is used to analyse the mechanisms of flow inside a vortex tube. The SST turbulence model is used to predict the turbulent flow behaviour inside the vortex tube. The geometry of a vortex tube with circumferential inlet slots as well as axial cold and hot outlet is considered. Performance curves temperature separation versus cold outlet mass fraction are calculated for a given inlet mass flow rate and varying outlet mass flow rates.     

Sensitivity of an asymmetric 3D diffuser to vortex-generator induced inlet condition perturbations

Modifications of the turbulent separated flow in an asymmetric three-dimensional diffuser due to inlet condition perturbations were investigated using conventional static pressure measurements and velocity data acquired using magnetic resonance velocimetry (MRV). Previous experiments and simulations revealed a strong sensitivity of the diffuser performance to weak secondary flows in the inlet. The present, more detailed experiments were conducted to obtain a better understanding of this sensitivity. Pressure data were acquired in an airflow apparatus at an inlet Reynolds number of 10,000. The diffuser pressure recovery was strongly affected by a pair of longitudinal vortices injected along one wall of the inlet channel using either dielectric barrier discharge plasma actuators or conventional half-delta wing vortex generators. MRV measurements were obtained in a water flow apparatus at matched Reynolds number for two different cases with passive vortex generators. The first case had a pair of counter-rotating longitudinal vortices embedded in the boundary layer near the center of the expanding wall of the diffuser such that the flow on the outsides of the vortices was directed toward the wall. The MRV data showed that the three-dimensional separation bubble initially grew much slower causing a rapid early reduction in the core flow velocity and a consequent reduction of total pressure losses due to turbulent mixing. This produced a 13% increase in the overall pressure recovery. For the second case, the vortices rotated in the opposite sense, and the image vortices pushed them into the corners. This led to a very rapid initial growth of the separation bubble and formation of strong swirl at the diffuser exit. These changes resulted in a 17% reduction in the overall pressure recovery for this case. The results emphasize the extreme sensitivity of 3D separated flows to weak perturbations.     

Vortex generating jets; effects of jet-hole inlet geometry

An experimental study of flow downstream of round, pitched and skewed wall-jets (vortex generating jets) is presented to illustrate the effects of changing the geometric inlet conditions of the jet-holes. In one case the jet-hole has a smoothly contoured inlet, and in the other the inlet was a sharp-edged, sudden contraction. The test region geometry, mean jet flow and cross-flow conditions were otherwise identical. In both cases, dominant streamwise vortex structures are seen in the boundary layer downstream; the flow and turbulence is nearly the same in the far-field starting downstream of x/D=5. In the near-field, for x/D<5, there are significant differences; turbulence levels are higher, and the start of the dominant vortex shape is less clear for the sharp-edged case. This is believed to be the result of flow separation and free shear layer instability inside the jet-hole which are not present for the smoothly contoured case.     

On the Evolution of the Flow Field in a Spark Ignition Engine

The development of the turbulent flow field inside a spark ignition engine is examined by large-eddy simulation (LES), from the intake flow to the tumble break-down. Ten consecutive cold flow engine cycles on a coarse and twenty cycles on a fine grid are simulated and compared to experiments of the same engine. The turbulent subgrid scales are modeled by the standard Smagorinsky and by the recently developed Sigma model. A comparison of the intake flow is made against Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) measurements along horizontal and vertical lines and to an LES simulation performed by the Darmstadt group. Furthermore, we show the first LES comparison to Magnetic Resonance Velocimetry (MRV conducted by Freudenhammer et al.) measurements, which provided the 3D flow field inside a full scale dummy of the entire upper cylinder head including the valve seat region, at a time which mimics inflow conditions of the corresponding engine. Our LES is in good qualitative and quantitative agreement with the simulation and the experiments, with the notable exception of the measured in-cylinder pressure, which is discussed in detail and compared to 0D simulations and simulations from other groups. A criterion is proposed for estimating the number of cycles needed in a simulation, if experimental data is available. We put emphasis on the flow in the valve seat region, where turbulence is generated, and discuss the formation of the large scale tumble motion, including a comparison of the radial velocity fields on rolled-up planes around the valve seat. Here, spots of high velocities were found in the under flow region, which cannot been seen by the ensemble averaged MRV measurement. Within the compression stroke, a 2D vortex center identification algorithm is applied on slices inside the combustion chamber, yielding a 3D visualization of the tumble vortex, which is found to have a “croissant-like” shape. The tumble vortex trajectory is plotted on the symmetry plane and compared to measurements. Finally, we consider a modified definition of the (turbulent) integral length scale that provided further insight to the tumble break-down process.     

Investigation of micro-jet active control of a precessing jet using PIV

A circular jet entering an open-ended concentric circular chamber can rotate or precess about the jet axis for certain flow conditions and chamber configurations. Active flow control of a precessing jet provides the ability to influence the flow field inside the chamber and the resulting flow after the chamber exit. Twelve micro-jets surrounding the jet at the chamber inlet are used as actuation. At the chamber exit, four pressure probes and three-component velocity measurement using stereo particle image velocimetry (stereo-PIV) is used to monitor the flow. A phase plane method using signals from the pressure sensors is developed to monitor the location of the jet high-velocity region in real-time. Phase-locked stereo-PIV, triggered by the micro-jet actuation signal, is used to investigate the flow field and validate the pressure phase plane results. The effectiveness of the micro-jet actuation and the validation of the pressure phase plane measurements demonstrate actuation and the sensing needed for future closed-loop control of the precessing jet.     

Reynolds stress modelling of jet and swirl interaction inside a gas turbine combustor

Influences of the inlet swirl levels on the interaction between the dilution air jets and the swirling cross‐flow to the interior flow field inside a gas turbine combustor were investigated numerically by Reynolds stress transport model (RSTM). Due to the intense swirl and jet interaction, a high level of swirl momentum is transported to the centreline and hence, an intense vortex core is formed. The strength of the centreline vortex core was found to depend on the inlet swirl levels. For the higher swirling inlet, the decay of the swirling motion causes strong streamline variation of pressure; and consequently leads to an elevated level of deceleration of its axial velocity. Predictions contrasted with measurements indicate that the stress model reproduces the flow correctly and is able to reflect the influences of inlet swirl levels on the interior flow structure. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.