50 research outputs found
Separation between coherent and turbulent fluctuations. What can we learn from the Empirical Mode Decomposition?
The performances of a new data processing technique, namely the Empirical
Mode Decomposition, are evaluated on a fully developed turbulent velocity
signal perturbed by a numerical forcing which mimics a long-period flapping.
First, we introduce a "resemblance" criterion to discriminate between the
polluted and the unpolluted modes extracted from the perturbed velocity signal
by means of the Empirical Mode Decomposition algorithm. A rejection procedure,
playing, somehow, the role of a high-pass filter, is then designed in order to
infer the original velocity signal from the perturbed one. The quality of this
recovering procedure is extensively evaluated in the case of a "mono-component"
perturbation (sine wave) by varying both the amplitude and the frequency of the
perturbation. An excellent agreement between the recovered and the reference
velocity signals is found, even though some discrepancies are observed when the
perturbation frequency overlaps the frequency range corresponding to the
energy-containing eddies as emphasized by both the energy spectrum and the
structure functions. Finally, our recovering procedure is successfully
performed on a time-dependent perturbation (linear chirp) covering a broad
range of frequencies.Comment: 23 pages, 13 figures, submitted to Experiments in Fluid
Mass entrainment-based model for separating flows
Recent studies have shown that entrainment effectively describes the behavior of natural and forced separating flows developing behind bluff bodies, potentially paving the way to new, scalable separation control strategies. In this perspective, we propose a new interpretative framework for separated flows, based on mass entrainment. The cornerstone of the approach is an original model of the mean flow, representing it as a stationary vortex scaling with the mean recirculation length. We test our model on a set of mean separated topologies, obtained by forcing the flow over a descending ramp with a rack of synthetic jets. Our results show that both the circulation of the vortex and its characteristic size scale simply with the intensity of the backflow (the amount of mass going through the recirculation region). This suggests that the vortex model captures the essential functioning of mean mass entrainment, and that it could be used to model and/or predict the mean properties of separated flows. In addition, we use the vortex model to show that the backflow (an integral quantity) can be estimated from a single wall-pressure measurement (a pointwise quantity). This finding encourages further efforts toward industrially deployable control systems based on mass entrainment.French National Research Agency (ANR) through the Investissements d’Avenir program, under the Labex CAPRYSSES Project (ANR-11-LABX-0006-01)
Closed-loop separation control over a sharp edge ramp using Genetic Programming
We experimentally perform open and closed-loop control of a separating
turbulent boundary layer downstream from a sharp edge ramp. The turbulent
boundary layer just above the separation point has a Reynolds number
based on momentum thickness. The goal of the
control is to mitigate separation and early re-attachment. The forcing employs
a spanwise array of active vortex generators. The flow state is monitored with
skin-friction sensors downstream of the actuators. The feedback control law is
obtained using model-free genetic programming control (GPC) (Gautier et al.
2015). The resulting flow is assessed using the momentum coefficient, pressure
distribution and skin friction over the ramp and stereo PIV. The PIV yields
vector field statistics, e.g. shear layer growth, the backflow area and vortex
region. GPC is benchmarked against the best periodic forcing. While open-loop
control achieves separation reduction by locking-on the shedding mode, GPC
gives rise to similar benefits by accelerating the shear layer growth.
Moreover, GPC uses less actuation energy.Comment: 24 pages, 24 figures, submitted to Experiments in Fluid
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The PELskin project: part IV—control of bluff body wakes using hairy filaments
The passive control of bluff body wakes using a sparse layer of elastic hairy filaments has been investigated via a series of numerical simulations and compared to selected experiments under well-controlled boundary conditions. It has been found that a distribution of filaments spaced half of the dominant three dimensional instability and resonating with the main shedding frequency can drastically delay the three dimensional transition of the wake behind a circular cylinder. It will also be shown that when using a pair of rows of filaments symmetrically spaced by an azimuthal angle, the wake topology can be deeply affected as well as the value of the integral force coefficients of the cylinder. In the most favourable case, a coupled three dimensional transition delay and strongly reduced values of the drag and of the lift fluctuation can be simultaneously achieved. These results hold also for higher Reynolds-number flows as shown in experiments on a cylinder with hairy flaps attached to the aft part. The lock-in effect of structural vibration of the flaps with the vortex shedding is assumed to be the reason for a sudden change in the shedding cycle as soon as the motion amplitude is high enough to modify the wake. In line with this hypothesis, it has been demonstrated that a long elastic filament pinned on the centerline of a forced spatially developing mixing layer can interact with the vortex dynamics delaying the pairing process-leading to a reduced thickness of the layer. These findings show that a properly designed fluid structure interaction can indeed lead to technological benefits in terms of wake control: drag reduction, vibration control and possibly palliation of aeroacoustic emissions
The Critical Richardson Number and Limits of Applicability of Local Similarity Theory in the Stable Boundary Layer
Measurements of atmospheric turbulence made over the Arctic pack ice during
the Surface Heat Budget of the Arctic Ocean experiment (SHEBA) are used to
determine the limits of applicability of Monin-Obukhov similarity theory (in
the local scaling formulation) in the stable atmospheric boundary layer. Based
on the spectral analysis of wind velocity and air temperature fluctuations, it
is shown that, when both of the gradient Richardson number, Ri, and the flux
Richardson number, Rf, exceed a 'critical value' of about 0.20 - 0.25, the
inertial subrange associated with the Richardson-Kolmogorov cascade dies out
and vertical turbulent fluxes become small. Some small-scale turbulence
survives even in this supercritical regime, but this is non-Kolmogorov
turbulence, and it decays rapidly with further increasing stability. Similarity
theory is based on the turbulent fluxes in the high-frequency part of the
spectra that are associated with energy-containing/flux-carrying eddies.
Spectral densities in this high-frequency band diminish as the
Richardson-Kolmogorov energy cascade weakens; therefore, the applicability of
local Monin-Obukhov similarity theory in stable conditions is limited by the
inequalities Ri < Ri_cr and Rf < Rf_cr. However, it is found that Rf_cr = 0.20
- 0.25 is a primary threshold for applicability. Applying this prerequisite
shows that the data follow classical Monin-Obukhov local z-less predictions
after the irrelevant cases (turbulence without the Richardson-Kolmogorov
cascade) have been filtered out.Comment: Boundary-Layer Meteorology (Manuscript submitted: 16 February 2012;
Accepted: 10 September 2012
Aerodynamics of the square-back Ahmed body under rainfall conditions
We report an experimental investigation about the aerodynamics of a simplified road vehicle, the so-called square-back Ahmed body, under rainfall conditions. A particular emphasis is put on the evolution of the body base pressure distribution with respect to the operating conditions. It is found that rainfall significantly damps both mean base pressure drag and wake dynamics in comparison to dry conditions
Dynamics of fluidic oscillators and their synchronization for active flow control
International audienceA series of new bi-stable fluidic oscillators which can generate discrete pulsed jets in a wide frequency range (50-300Hz) with maximum velocities of the order of 200 m/s has been developed for flow separation control purposes. A preliminary experimental analysis of the prototypes has been performed and the results have shown that the oscillation frequency has a nearly linear relationship with the length of its feedback loops. Thus, a new function is proposed to estimate the oscillation frequency according to the experimental results. In addition, numerical simulations are carried out in order to better understand the jet switching mechanism inside the oscillator and identify the parameters controlling the dynamics of these oscillations. Then, it is verified that the switching process of the internal jet is not only controlled by the pressure difference between the two control ports, but also by the pressure difference between the two main branches of the oscillator. Finally, two methods of synchronizing the oscillators are proposed and verified both experimentally and numerically. These new finds will be of great help in future design of this kind of fluidic oscillators and their applications in active flow control of separated flows