Particle image velocimetry measurements of a backward-facing step flow

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

Measuring turbulence energy with PIV in a backward-facing step flow

Turbulence energy is estimated in a backward-facing step flow with three-component (3C, stereo) particle image velocimetry (PIV). Estimates of turbulence energy transport equation for convection, turbulence transport, turbulence production, viscous diffusion, and viscous dissipation in addition to Reynolds stresses are computed directly from PIV data. Almost all the turbulence energy terms in the backward-facing step case can be measured with 3C PIV, except the pressure-transport term, which is obtained by difference of the other turbulence energy terms. The effect of the velocity spatial sampling resolution in derivative estimations is investigated with four two-dimensional PIV measurement sets. This sampling resolution information is used to calibrate the turbulence energies estimated by 3C PIV measurements. The focus of this study is on the separated shear layer of the backward-facing step. The measurements with 3C PIV are carried out in a turbulent water flow at Reynolds number of about 15,000, based on the step height h and the inlet streamwise maximum mean velocity U₀. The expansion ratio (ER) is 1.5. Turbulence energy budget profiles in locations x/h=4, x/h=6, and x/h=10 are compared with DNS data of a turbulent flow. The shapes of profiles agree well with each other. Different ERs between the PIV case (1.5) and the DNS case (1.2) cause higher values for the turbulence energies measured by PIV than the energies by DNS when x/h=10 is approached. PIV results also show that the turbulence energy level in these experiments is generally higher than that of the DNS data.     

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.     

Phase-resolved PIV measurements of the flow between a pair of corotating disks in a cylindrical enclosure

This paper presents the measurements of the flow in the space between an enclosed corotating disk pair using particle image velocimetry (PIV) and laser doppler velocimetry (LDV). LDV gives the time history of velocity for time-domain analysis, while PIV provides the spatial distribution of the instantaneous velocity. A flow visualization technique displaying the concentration distribution of seeding particles was also employed to visualize the flow patterns. Experiments were conducted on the interdisk midplane with a Reynolds number of 5.25×10⁵. Based on the LDV measured rotating frequency of the vortices around the hub, the phase-resolved PIV measurements were achieved, and a rotating reference coordinate system was employed to represent the flow patterns. The phase-resolved measurements reveal that the circumferential flow velocity oscillates periodically in both the inner and outer regions but in opposite trends. Based on the phase averaged data, the contributions of the periodic and random motions to the Reynolds stresses were evaluated, and the spatial distributions of the periodic Reynolds stresses were displayed. It is found that, the local rotation of the fluid induced by the deformation of the inner region contribute to a significant portion of the momentum transport.     

PIV–LES analysis of channel flow rotating about the streamwise axis

The flow field of a channel rotating about the streamwise axis is analyzed experimentally and numerically. The current investigations were carried out at a bulk velocity based Reynolds number of Re_m = 2850 and a friction velocity based Reynolds number of Re_τ = 180, respectively. Particle-image velocimetry (PIV) measurements are compared with large-eddy simulation data to show earlier direct numerical simulation findings to generate too large a reverse flow region in the center region of the spanwise flow. The development of the mean spanwise velocity distribution and the influence of the rotation on the turbulent properties, i.e., the Reynolds stresses and the two-point correlations of the flow, are confirmed in both investigations. The rotation primarily influences those components of the Reynolds shear stresses, which contain the spanwise velocity component. The size of the correlation areas and thus the length scales of the flow generally grow in all three coordinate directions leading to longer structures. Furthermore, experimental results of the same channel flow at a significantly lower bulk Reynolds number of Re_{m, l} = 665, i.e., a laminar flow in a non-rotating channel, are introduced. The experiments show the low Reynolds number flow to become turbulent under rotation and to develop the same characteristics as the high Reynolds number flow.     

PIV measurements in a weakly separating and reattaching turbulent boundary layer

A high Reynolds number flat plate turbulent boundary layer was studied in a wind-tunnel experiment using particle image velocimetry (PIV). The flow is subjected to an adverse pressure gradient (APG) which is designed such that the boundary layer separates and reattaches, forming a weak separation bubble. With PIV we are able to get a more complete picture of this complex flow phenomenon. The view of a separation bubble being composed of large scale coherent regions of instantaneous backflow occurring randomly in a three-dimensional manner in space and time is verified by the present PIV measurements. The PIV database was used to test the applicability of various velocity scalings around the separation bubble. We found that the mean velocity profiles in the outer part of the boundary layer, and to some extent also the Reynolds shear-stress, are self-similar when using a velocity scale based on the local pressure gradient. The same can be said for the so called Perry–Schofield scaling, which suggests that the two velocity scales are connected. This can also be interpreted as an experimental evidence of the claimed relation between the latter velocity scale and the maximum Reynolds shear-stress.     

4D Magnetic resonance velocimetry for mean velocity measurements in complex turbulent flows

An adaptation of a medical magnetic resonance imaging system to the noninvasive measurement of three-component mean velocity fields in complex turbulent engineering flows is described. The aim of this paper is to evaluate the capabilities of the technique with respect to its accuracy, time efficiency and applicability as a design tool for complex turbulent internal geometries. The technique, called 4D magnetic resonance velocimetry (4D-MRV), is used to measure the mean flow in fully developed low-Reynolds number turbulent pipe flow, Re=6400 based on bulk mean velocity and diameter, and in a model of a gas turbine blade internal cooling geometry with four serpentine passages, Re=10,000 and 15,000 based on bulk mean velocity and hydraulic diameter. 4D-MRV is capable of completing full-field measurements in three-dimensional volumes with sizes on the order of the magnet bore diameter in less than one hour. Such measurements can include over 2 million independent mean velocity vectors. Velocities measured in round pipe flow agreed with previous experimental results to within 10%. In the turbulent cooling passage flow, the average flow rates calculated from the 4D-MRV velocity profiles agreed with ultrasonic flowmeter measurements to within 7%. The measurements lend excellent qualitative insight into flow structures even in the highly complex 180° bends. Accurate quantitative measurements were obtained throughout the Re=10,000 flow and in the Re=15,000 flow except in the most complex regions, areas just downstream of high-speed bends, where velocities and velocity fluctuations exceeded MRV capabilities for the chosen set of scan parameters. General guidelines for choosing scanning parameters and suggestions for future development are presented.     

Experimental investigation of turbulent natural convection flow in a channel

This paper presents the results of velocity measurements of natural convection in symmetrically heated vertical channel using the particle image velocimetry (PIV) system. Velocity measurements were conducted at three different sections on the horizontal plane to validate the flow two-dimensionality and at three different heights in the vertical plane to establish vertical mean velocity profiles. The results indicate a considerable influence of the Rayleigh number and aspect ratio on the mean velocity profile. The results also indicate significant diffusion rates of the vertical mean velocity component and normal Reynolds stresses towards the center of the channel.     

PIV measurements of a turbulent jet issuing from round sharp-edged plate

An experimental investigation is presented of a turbulent jet issuing from a round sharp-edged orifice plate (OP) into effectively unbounded surroundings. Planar measurements of velocity were conducted using Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) in the near and transition regions. The Reynolds number, based on the jet initial diameter and velocity, is approximately 72,000. The instantaneous and mean velocities, Reynolds normal and shear stresses were obtained. The centerline velocity decay and the half-velocity radius were derived from the mean velocity. It is revealed that primary coherent structures occur in the near field of the OP jet and that they are typically distributed asymmetrically with respect to the nozzle axis. Comparison of the present PIV and previous hot-wire measurements for the OP jet suggests that high initial turbulence intensity leads to reduced rates of decay and spread of the mean flow field and moreover a lower rate of variation of the turbulence intensity. Results also show that self-similarity of the mean flow is well established from the transition region while the turbulent statistics are far from self-similar within the measured range to 16 diameters.     

Turbulent flow over a rough backward-facing step

This work characterizes the impacts of the realistic roughness due to deposition of foreign materials on the turbulent flows at surface transition from elevated rough-wall to smooth-wall. High resolution PIV measurements were performed in the streamwise-wall-normal (x–y) planes at two different spanwise positions in both smooth and rough backward-facing step flows. The experiment conditions were set at a Reynolds number of 3450 based on the free stream velocity U_∞ and the mean step height h, expansion ratio of 1.01, and the ratio of incoming boundary layer thickness to the step height, δ/h, of 8. The mean flow structures are observed to be modified by the roughness and they illustrate three-dimensional features in rough backward-facing step flows. The mean reattachment length X_r is significantly reduced by the roughness at one PIV measurement position while is slightly increased by the different roughness topography at the other measurement position. The mean velocity profiles at the reattachment point indicate that the studied roughness weakens the perturbation of the step to the incoming turbulent flow. Comparisons of Reynolds normal and shear stresses, productions of normal stresses, quadrant analysis of the instantaneous shear-stress contributing events, and mean spanwise vorticity reveal that the turbulence in the separated shear layer is reduced by the studied roughness. The results also indicate an earlier separation of the turbulent boundary layer over the current rough step, probably due to the adverse pressure gradient produced by the roughness topography even before the step.     

Volumetric intake flow measurements of an IC engine using magnetic resonance velocimetry

Magnetic resonance velocimetry (MRV) measurements are performed in a 1:1 scale model of a single-cylinder optical engine to investigate the volumetric flow within the intake and cylinder geometry during flow induction. The model is a steady flow water analogue of the optical IC-engine with a fixed valve lift of $9.21$  mm to simulate the induction flow at crank-angle $270^{\circ }$ bTDC. This setup resembles a steady flow engine test bench configuration. MRV measurements are validated with phase-averaged particle image velocimetry (PIV) measurements performed within the symmetry plane of the optical engine. Differences in experimental operating parameters between MRV and PIV measurements are well addressed. Comparison of MRV and PIV measurements is demonstrated using normalized mean velocity component profiles and showed excellent agreement in the upper portion of the cylinder chamber (i.e., $y \ge -20$  mm). MRV measurements are further used to analyze the ensemble average volumetric flow within the 3D engine domain. Measurements are used to describe the 3D overflow and underflow behavior as the annular flow enters the cylinder chamber. Flow features such as the annular jet-like flows extending into the cylinder, their influence on large-scale in-cylinder flow motion, as well as flow recirculation zones are identified in 3D space. Inlet flow velocities are analyzed around the entire valve curtain perimeter to quantify percent mass flow rate entering the cylinder. Recirculation zones associated with the underflow are shown to reduce local mass flow rates up to 50 %. Recirculation zones are further analyzed in 3D space within the intake manifold and cylinder chamber. It is suggested that such recirculation zones can have large implications on cylinder charge filling and variations of the in-cylinder flow pattern. MRV is revealed to be an important diagnostic tool used to understand the volumetric induction flow within engine geometries and is potentially suited to evaluate flow changes due to intake geometry modifications.     

On the effects of dilute polymers on driven cavity turbulent flows

Effects of dilute polymer solutions on a lid-driven cubical cavity turbulent flow are studied via particle image velocimetry (PIV). This canonical flow is a combination of a bounded shear flow, driven at constant velocity and vortices that change their spatial distribution as a function of the lid velocity. From the two-dimensional PIV data we estimate the time averaged spatial fields of key turbulent quantities. We evaluate a component of the vorticity–velocity correlation, namely 〈ω₃v〉, which shows much weaker correlation, along with the reduced correlation of the fluctuating velocity components, u and v. There are two contributions to the reduced turbulent kinetic energy production −〈u v〉S_uv, namely the reduced Reynolds stresses, −〈u v〉, and strongly modified pointwise correlation of the Reynolds stress and the mean rate-of-strain field, S_uv. The Reynolds stresses are shown to be affected because of the derivatives of the Reynolds stresses, ∂〈u v〉/∂y that are strongly reduced in the same regions as the vorticity–velocity correlation. The results, combined with the existing evidence, support the phenomenological model of polymer effects propagating from the polymer scale to the velocity derivatives and through the mixed-type correlations and Reynolds stress derivatives up to the turbulent velocity fields. The effects are shown to be qualitatively similar in different flows regardless of forcing type, homogeneity or presence of liquid–solid boundaries.     

PIV measurements of turbulent flow in planar mixing layer

A turbulent mixing layer consists of two different flow types, i.e. shear layer (shear-flow turbulence) and free stream regions (nearly homogeneous turbulence). The inherent non-uniform seeding tracer distributions observed around the interfaces between the shear layer and two free stream regions usually lead to a difficulty in particle image velocimetry (PIV) measurements. A parametric study on the application of PIV to the measurement of velocity field in a planar mixing layer is made by means of six factors, including interrogation window size, aspect ratio of interrogation window, interrogation window offset, threshold of data validation, sharpening spatial filters (Prewitt and Sobel masks), and smoothing spatial filter (median mask). The objective of this study is to obtain accurate turbulent measurements in both mean and fluctuating velocities using PIV under an appropriate parametric setting. The optimal levels, which are trade-off in between the accuracy and fine spatial resolution of velocity field measurements, are determined with the aid of the Taguchi method. It is shown that the PIV measurements made with this optimal set of parameters are in good agreement with the measurements made by a two-component hot-wire anemometer. Case independency of the proposed optimal set of parameters on the flow condition of the mixing layer is validated through the applications to two additional tests under the different experimental conditions in changing solely either velocity ratio of high-speed to low-speed free stream velocities or Reynolds number.     

Measurement of fully-developed turbulent pipe flow with digital particle image velocimetry

A new and unique high-resolution image acquisition system for digital particle image velocimetry (DPIV) in turbulent flows is used for the measurement of fully-developed turbulent pipe flow at a Reynolds number of 5300. The flow conditions of the pipe flow match those of a direct numerical simulation (DNS) and of measurements with conventional (viz., photographic) PIV and with laser-Doppler velocimetry (LDV). This experiment allows a direct and detailed comparison of the conventional and digital implementations of the PIV method for a non-trivial unsteady flow. The results for the turbulence statistics and power spectra show that the level of accuracy for DPIV is comparable to that of conventional PIV, despite a considerable difference in the interrogation pixel resolution, i.e. 32 × 32 (DPIV) versus 256 × 256 (PIV). This result is in agreement with an earlier analytical prediction for the measurement accuracy. One of the advantages of DPIV over conventional PIV is that the interrogation of the DPIV images takes only a fraction of the time needed for the interrogation of the PIV photographs.     

Flow statistics in plate and shell heat exchangers measured with PTV

Particle tracking velocimetry (PTV) measurements have provided inner flow features within plate and shell heat exchangers (PSHE). Measurements have been performed at Reynolds number 3450, based on the bulk velocity and the PSHE geometry at the channel mid-section. Particle trajectories have been measured. Organized flow features prevail in the channel inlet, whereas a highly turbulent flow field occurs at the channel outlet. A recirculation zone characterizes the turbulent flow field at the outlet. Gravity has been shown not to affect flow and heat transfer at this Reynolds number. The mean velocity profile is non-uniform at a given channel cross section. Friction factors developed for Plate Heat Exchanger (PHE) applied to the PSHE geometry with the bulk velocity at the channel mid-plane were found appropriate for design purposes. Furthermore, friction factor, Nusselt number and forces due to shear stresses were locally estimated for the whole channel area. Potential break-down locations have been identified.     

The turbulent/non-turbulent interface at the outer boundary of a self-similar turbulent jet

The flow at the outer boundary of a submerged self-similar turbulent jet at Re=2᎒³ is investigated experimentally by means of combined particle image velocimetry (PIV) laser-induced fluorescence (LIF) measurements. The jet fluid contains a fluorescent dye so that the LIF data can be used to discriminate between the jet fluid and the ambient fluid. The axial velocity, Reynolds stress, and vorticity are determined relative to the jet boundary. The results are compared against the conventional profiles, and the results of a direct numerical simulation of the turbulent far-wake behind a flat plate. The results show a sharp transition between rotational and irrotational fluid at the fluid interface, and the existence of a layer of irrotational velocity fluctuations outside the turbulent region.     

波浪环境中垂直射流紊动特性的实验研究

利用粒子图像测速技术PIV(particle imagevelocimetry)对有限水深规则波浪环境下垂直射流紊动特性进行了实验研究. 应用相位分析法从测量数据中分离出速度脉动项,用4种不同波高的波浪研究波高对射流紊动特性的影响,对紊动量的分布以及大小进行了分析. 结果表明波高对射流的紊动特性有显著影响,并且对流项对波高的变化较紊动扩散项更为敏感,紊动扩散项量值约是对流项的$1/8\sim1/3$, 在时均化的N-S方程中起的作用不可忽略.      

Dissipation rate estimation from PIV in zero-mean isotropic turbulence

Measuring the turbulent kinetic energy dissipation rate in an enclosed turbulence chamber that produces zero-mean flow is an experimental challenge. Traditional single-point dissipation rate measurement techniques are not applicable to flows with zero-mean velocity. Particle image velocimetry (PIV) affords calculation of the spatial derivative as well as the use of multi-point statistics to determine the dissipation rate. However, there is no consensus in the literature as to the best method to obtain dissipation rates from PIV measurements in such flows. We apply PIV in an enclosed zero-mean turbulent flow chamber and investigate five methods for dissipation rate estimation. We examine the influence of the PIV interrogation cell size on the performance of different dissipation rate estimation methods and evaluate correction factors that account for errors related to measurement uncertainty, finite spatial resolution, and low Reynolds number effects. We find the Re _λ corrected, second-order, longitudinal velocity structure function method to be the most robust method to estimate the dissipation rate in our zero-mean, gaseous flow system.