A PIV study of the laminar axisymmetric sudden expansion flow

The laminar flow through an axisymmetric sudden expansion was investigated experimentally using real-time digital particle image velocimetry. An expansion ratio (downstream-to-upstream pipe diameter ratio) of 2 was selected for the study. The measurements covered the regions of separation, reattachment and re-development. Two dimensional velocity maps were obtained on the vertical center plane for six Reynolds numbers between 20 and 211, based on the upstream pipe diameter and bulk velocity. The stream function distributions are calculated and presented from the streamwise and radial velocity maps. The dependence of reattachment length, redevelopment length and recirculating flow strength on the Reynolds number are determined. Results show that not only the reattachment length but also the redevelopment length downstream of reattachment is a linear function of the Reynolds number. The recirculation eddy strength, on the other hand, has a non-linear dependence on the Reynolds number which becomes weaker as the Reynolds number is increased. The results indicate no instability- or buoyancy-driven flow asymmetry in the range 20?Re? 211.     

Verification of higher-order discontinuous Galerkin method for hexahedral elements

A high-order implementation of the Discontinuous Galerkin (dg) method is presented for solving the three-dimensional Linearized Euler Equations on an unstructured hexahedral grid. The method is based on a quadrature free implementation and the high-order accuracy is obtained by employing higher-degree polynomials as basis functions. The present implementation is up to fourth-order accurate in space. For the time discretization a four-stage Runge–Kutta scheme is used which is fourth-order accurate. Non-reflecting boundary conditions are implemented at the boundaries of the computational domain.The method is verified for the case of the convection of a 1D compact acoustic disturbance. The numerical results show that the rate of convergence of the method is of order $p+1$ in the mesh size, with p the order of the basis functions. This observation is in agreement with analysis presented in the literature. To cite this article: H. Özdemir et al., C. R. Mecanique 333 (2005).     

Linear stability analysis in compressible, flat-plate boundary-layers

The stability problem of two-dimensional compressible flat-plate boundary layers is handled using the linear stability theory. The stability equations obtained from three-dimensional compressible Navier–Stokes equations are solved simultaneously with two-dimensional mean flow equations, using an efficient shoot-search technique for adiabatic wall condition. In the analysis, a wide range of Mach numbers extending well into the hypersonic range are considered for the mean flow, whereas both two- and three-dimensional disturbances are taken into account for the perturbation flow. All fluid properties, including the Prandtl number, are taken as temperature-dependent. The results of the analysis ascertain the presence of the second mode of instability (Mack mode), in addition to the first mode related to the Tollmien–Schlichting mode present in incompressible flows. The effect of reference temperature on stability characteristics is also studied. The results of the analysis reveal that the stability characteristics remain almost unchanged for the most unstable wave direction for Mach numbers above 4.0. The obtained results are compared with existing numerical and experimental data in the literature, yielding encouraging agreement both qualitatively and quantitatively.      

An Experimental Study of the Near-Field Mixing Characteristics of a Swirling Jet

The present experimental investigation is devoted to the mixing characteristics of a passive scalar in the near-field region of a moderately swirling jet issuing from a fully developed axially rotating pipe flow. Instantaneous streamwise and azimuthal velocity components as well as the temperature were simultaneously accessed by means of a combined X-wire and cold-wire probe. The results indicate a modification of the turbulence structures to that effect that the swirling jet spreads, mixes and evolves faster compared to its non-swirling counterpart. The high correlation between streamwise velocity and temperature fluctuations as well as the streamwise passive scalar flux are even more enhanced due to the addition of swirl, which in turn shortens the distance and hence time needed to mix the jet with the ambient air.     

Are there “prompt” like-sign dimuons?

From exposures of the CDHS detector at the CERN SPS we have obtained 367μ ⁺ μ ^? events in neutrino beams and 73μ ⁺ μ ⁺ events in an antineutrino beam. The magnitude of a prompt like-sign signal has been controversial in the past and moreover could not be explained by known production mechanisms. A critical discussion of the experimental situation is given. We have tried to reduce the systematic uncertainties of previous experiments and to get more information on the dependence of the signal with energy and the muon momentum cut-off. This experiment yields a signal of 2.8σ (2.4σ) of prompt like-sign dimuon events in the case of neutrinos (antineutrinos). The rate to charged current events is of the order of 10^?4 forp _μ<9GeV andE>100 GeV. The prompt signal has all the properties expected from the production and decay of charm-anticharm events. The magnitude, however, is substantially higher then the prediction of perturbative QCD but lower than some other experiments.     

Particle creation if a cosmic string snaps

We calculate the Bogolubov coefficients for aC ⁽⁰⁾ metric which describes the snapping of a cosmic string. In this background, we show that there are noregular solutions with particle interpretation, but we find ageneralized solution with integrable discontinuity, which exhibits particle creation. We also find a regular solution if we allow wave packets.