662 research outputs found
Spectral imbalance and the normalized dissipation rate of turbulence
The normalized turbulent dissipation rate is studied in decaying
and forced turbulence by direct numerical simulations, large-eddy simulations,
and closure calculations. A large difference in the values of is
observed for the two types of turbulence. This difference is found at moderate
Reynolds number, and it is shown that it persists at high Reynolds number,
where the value of becomes independent of the Reynolds number, but
is still not unique. This difference can be explained by the influence of the
nonlinear cascade time that introduces a spectral disequilibrium for
statistically nonstationary turbulence. Phenomenological analysis yields simple
analytical models that satisfactorily reproduce the numerical results. These
simple spectral models also reproduce and explain the increase of
at low Reynolds number that is observed in the simulations
Coriolis force in Geophysics: an elementary introduction and examples
We show how Geophysics may illustrate and thus improve classical Mechanics
lectures concerning the study of Coriolis force effects. We are then interested
in atmospheric as well as oceanic phenomena we are familiar with, and are for
that reason of pedagogical and practical interest. Our aim is to model them in
a very simple way to bring out the physical phenomena that are involved.Comment: Accepted for publication in European Journal of Physic
Field theory of the inverse cascade in two-dimensional turbulence
A two-dimensional fluid, stirred at high wavenumbers and damped by both
viscosity and linear friction, is modeled by a statistical field theory. The
fluid's long-distance behavior is studied using renormalization-group (RG)
methods, as begun by Forster, Nelson, and Stephen [Phys. Rev. A 16, 732
(1977)]. With friction, which dissipates energy at low wavenumbers, one expects
a stationary inverse energy cascade for strong enough stirring. While such
developed turbulence is beyond the quantitative reach of perturbation theory, a
combination of exact and perturbative results suggests a coherent picture of
the inverse cascade. The zero-friction fluctuation-dissipation theorem (FDT) is
derived from a generalized time-reversal symmetry and implies zero anomalous
dimension for the velocity even when friction is present. Thus the Kolmogorov
scaling of the inverse cascade cannot be explained by any RG fixed point. The
beta function for the dimensionless coupling ghat is computed through two
loops; the ghat^3 term is positive, as already known, but the ghat^5 term is
negative. An ideal cascade requires a linear beta function for large ghat,
consistent with a Pad\'e approximant to the Borel transform. The conjecture
that the Kolmogorov spectrum arises from an RG flow through large ghat is
compatible with other results, but the accurate k^{-5/3} scaling is not
explained and the Kolmogorov constant is not estimated. The lack of scale
invariance should produce intermittency in high-order structure functions, as
observed in some but not all numerical simulations of the inverse cascade. When
analogous RG methods are applied to the one-dimensional Burgers equation using
an FDT-preserving dimensional continuation, equipartition is obtained instead
of a cascade--in agreement with simulations.Comment: 16 pages, 3 figures, REVTeX 4. Material added on energy flux,
intermittency, and comparison with Burgers equatio
Magnetic Fields and Passive Scalars in Polyakov's Conformal Turbulence
Polyakov has suggested that two dimensional turbulence might be described by
a minimal model of conformal field theory. However, there are many minimal
models satisfying the same physical inputs as Polyakov's solution (p,q)=(2,21).
Dynamical magnetic fields and passive scalars pose different physical
requirements. For large magnetic Reynolds number other minimal models arise.
The simplest one, (p,q)=(2,13) makes reasonable predictions that may be tested
in the astrophysical context. In particular, the equipartition theorem between
magnetic and kinetic energies does not hold: the magnetic one dominates at
larger distances.Comment: 12 pages, UR-1296, ER-745-4068
Decay of scalar variance in isotropic turbulence in a bounded domain
The decay of scalar variance in isotropic turbulence in a bounded domain is
investigated. Extending the study of Touil, Bertoglio and Shao (2002; Journal
of Turbulence, 03, 49) to the case of a passive scalar, the effect of the
finite size of the domain on the lengthscales of turbulent eddies and scalar
structures is studied by truncating the infrared range of the wavenumber
spectra. Analytical arguments based on a simple model for the spectral
distributions show that the decay exponent for the variance of scalar
fluctuations is proportional to the ratio of the Kolmogorov constant to the
Corrsin-Obukhov constant. This result is verified by closure calculations in
which the Corrsin-Obukhov constant is artificially varied. Large-eddy
simulations provide support to the results and give an estimation of the value
of the decay exponent and of the scalar to velocity time scale ratio
Intermittency in the Joint Cascade of Energy and Helicity
The statistics of the energy and helicity fluxes in isotropic turbulence are
studied using high resolution direct numerical simulation. The scaling
exponents of the energy flux agree with those of the transverse velocity
structure functions through refined similarity hypothesis, consistent with
Kraichnan's prediction \cite{Kr74}. The helicity flux is even more intermittent
than the energy flux and its scaling exponents are closer to those of the
passive scalar. Using Waleffe's helical decomposition, we demonstrate that the
existence of positive mean helicity flux inhibits the energy transfer in the
negative helical modes, a non-passive effect
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