218 research outputs found
Cross-waves induced by the vertical oscillation of a fully immersed vertical plate
Capillary waves excited by the vertical oscillations of a thin elongated
plate below an air-water interface are analyzed using time-resolved
measurements of the surface topography. A parametric instability is observed
above a well defined acceleration threshold, resulting in a so-called
cross-wave, a staggered wave pattern localized near the wavemaker and
oscillating at half the forcing frequency. This cross-wave, which is stationary
along the wavemaker but propagative away from it, is described as the
superposition of two almost anti-parallel propagating parametric waves making a
small angle of the order of with the wavemaker edge. This
contrasts with the classical Faraday parametric waves, which are exactly
stationnary because of the homogeneity of the forcing. Our observations suggest
that the selection of the cross-wave angle results from a resonant mechanism
between the two parametric waves and a characteristic length of the surface
deformation above the wavemaker.Comment: to appear in Physics of Fluid
Instability patterns between counter-rotating disks
International audienceThe instability patterns in the flow between counter-rotating disks (radius to height ratio R/h from 3.8 to 20.9) are investigated experimentally by means of visualization and Particle Image Velocimetry. We restrict ourselves to the situation where the boundary layers remain stable, focusing on the shear layer instability that occurs only in the counter-rotating regime. The associated pattern is a combination of a circular chain of vortices, as observed by Lopez et al. (2002) at low aspect ratio, surrounded by a set of spiral arms, first described by Gauthier et al. (2002) in the case of high aspect ratio. Stability curve and critical modes are measured for the whole range of aspect ratios. From the measurement of a local Reynolds number based on the shear layer thickness, evidence is given that a free shear layer instability, with only weak curvature effect, is responsible for the observed patterns. Accordingly, the number of vortices is shown to scale as the shear layer radius, which results from the competition between the centrifugal effects of each disk
Wind-wave growth over a viscous liquid
Experimental and theoretical studies on wind-wave generation have focused
primarily on the air-water interface, where viscous effects are small. Here we
characterize the influence of the liquid viscosity on the the growth of
mechanically generated waves. In our experiment, wind is blowing over a layer
of silicon oil, of viscosity 20 and 50 times that of water, and waves of small
amplitude are excited by an immersed wave-maker. We measure the spatial
evolution of the wave slope envelope using Free-Surface Synthetic Schlieren, a
refraction-based optical method. Through spatiotemporal band-pass filtering of
the surface slope, we selectively determine the spatial growth rate for each
forcing frequency, even when the forced wave is damped and coexists with
naturally amplified waves at other frequencies. Systematic measurements of the
growth rate for various wind velocities and wave frequencies are obtained,
enabling precise determination of the onset of wave growth and the marginal
stability curve. From these measurements, we show that Miles' model, which is
commonly applied to water waves, offers a reasonable description of the growth
rate for more viscous liquids. We finally discuss the scaling of the growth
rate of the most amplified wave and the critical friction velocity with the
liquid viscosity.Comment: subm. to Phys Rev Fluid
Wall effects on granular heap stability
We investigate the effects of lateral walls on the angle of movement and on
the angle of repose of a granular pile. Our experimental results for beads
immersed in water are similar to previous results obtained in air and to recent
numerical simulations. All of these results, showing an increase of pile angles
with a decreasing gap width, are explained by a model based on the redirection
of stresses through the granular media. Two regimes are observed depending on
the bead diameter. For large beads, the range of wall effects corresponds to a
constant number of beads whereas it corresponds to a constant characteristic
length for small beads as they aggregate via van der Waals forces
Dynamics of grain ejection by sphere impact on a granular bed
The dynamics of grain ejection consecutive to a sphere impacting a granular
material is investigated experimentally and the variations of the
characteristics of grain ejection with the control parameters are
quantitatively studied. The time evolution of the corona formed by the ejected
grains is reported, mainly in terms of its diameter and height, and favourably
compared with a simple ballistic model. A key characteristic of the granular
corona is that the angle formed by its edge with the horizontal granular
surface remains constant during the ejection process, which again can be
reproduced by the ballistic model. The number and the kinetic energy of the
ejected grains is evaluated and allows for the calculation of an effective
restitution coefficient characterizing the complex collision process between
the impacting sphere and the fine granular target. The effective restitution
coefficient is found to be constant when varying the control parameters.Comment: 9 page
Granular Avalanches in Fluids
Three regimes of granular avalanches in fluids are put in light depending on
the Stokes number St which prescribes the relative importance of grain inertia
and fluid viscous effects, and on the grain/fluid density ratio r. In gas (r >>
1 and St > 1, e.g., the dry case), the amplitude and time duration of
avalanches do not depend on any fluid effect. In liquids (r ~ 1), for
decreasing St, the amplitude decreases and the time duration increases,
exploring an inertial regime and a viscous regime. These regimes are described
by the analysis of the elementary motion of one grain
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