Influence of freestream turbulence on the near-field growth of a turbulent cylinder wake: Turbulent entrainment and wake meandering

he effect of freestream turbulence on the spreading of the near wake of a circular cylinder (<11 cylinder diameters from the rear face of the cylinder) is investigated through particle image velocimetry data. Different “flavors” of freestream turbulence, in which the turbulence intensity and integral length scale are independently varied, are subjected to the cylinder. The time-averaged spreading of the near wake is decoupled into the growth through entrainment of background fluid and the envelope of the spatial extent of the instantaneous wake due to wake “meandering,” induced by the presence of large-scale vortical coherent structures, i.e., the von Kármán vortex street. Unlike for the far-field of a turbulent wake, examined by Kankanwadi and Buxton [J. Fluid Mech. 905, A35 (2020)], it is shown that freestream turbulence enhances the entrainment rate into the wake in comparison to a nonturbulent background. Furthermore, both the turbulence intensity and the integral length scale of the background turbulence are important in this regard, further contrasting to the far wake where only the turbulence intensity is important. Additionally, wake meandering is enhanced by the presence of background turbulence, and here the integral length scale is the dominant parameter. Combining these findings yields the oft-reported result that background turbulence enhances the time-averaged near-wake growth rate. The influence of wake meandering is isolated by conducting similar experiments in which a splitter plate is mounted to the rear face of the cylinder, thereby eliminating the von Kármán vortex street. These results show that when large-scale vortices are not present within the turbulent wake then freestream turbulence actually suppresses the entrainment rate, relative to a nonturbulent background, in results that mirror Kankanwadi and Buxton [J. Fluid Mech. 905, A35 (2020)]. We therefore postulate that freestream turbulence has the effect to enhance large-scale entrainment via engulfment, but suppress entrainment via small-scale nibbling. Finally, we observe that the presence of freestream turbulence occasionally leads to a transient elimination of vortex shedding, an effect that is bound to have consequences on the instantaneous entrainment rate as outlined above

An assessment of the scalings for the streamwise evolution of turbulent quantities in wakes produced by porous objects

Experimental results are presented for the evolution of three turbulent quantities in the wake of a porous object, analogous to a wind-turbine wake. These are the mean velocity deficit, the turbulence intensity, and the characteristic wake width. It is noted that characteristic wake widths can be defined both in terms of the mean velocity deficit profile and the profile of turbulence intensity. Both definitions of wake width are observed to grow linearly, although not at the same rate, with that defined by turbulence intensity growing more rapidly than velocity deficit. The streamwise scaling of both wake width, and velocity deficit is found to conform to a non-equilibrium dissipation scaling in which the dissipation rate within the wake is out of equilibrium with the inter-scale energy flux within the mean cascade of turbulent kinetic energy. The cumulative effect of turbulence intensity produced by Ν upstream porous objects is also considered. It is shown that when the object spacing is sufficiently large that the wake-added turbulence decays substantially only consideration of the most immediately upstream wake is important. Contrastingly, when the spacing between adjacent objects is small then summing the contributions from all upstream wakes in the array is necessary

Turbulent entrainment into a cylinder wake from a turbulent background

The effects of background turbulence on the entrainment process, as well as the nature of the interfacial region between two bodies of turbulent fluid, was examined through an investigation of the far-wake of a circular cylinder that is subjected to free-stream turbulence. Simultaneous particle image velocimetry and planar laser induced fluorescence measurements were conducted 40 diameters downstream of the cylinder. Despite the availability of turbulent, rotational fluid in the background, the outer interface between the wake and the ambient fluid exhibits an enstrophy jump akin to the classical result of a turbulent/non-turbulent interface. This jump at the wake boundary persists even when the intensity of the background turbulence is greater than the turbulence intensity of the wake itself. Analysis on the structure of the wake boundary reveals that an increase in background turbulence intensity, results in an increased interfacial surface area relative to the non-turbulent case. However, instead of the intuitive result of increased entrainment as a result of increased surface area, a reduction in mean entrainment mass flux is observed with increased background turbulence intensity. Through the analysis of the flux probability density functions, the reduction in mean entrainment can be attributed to a tip in balance of extreme entrainment and detrainment events to the detrainment side in the presence of background turbulence. Lastly, a scale by scale analysis of entrainment behaviour revealed that free-stream turbulence affects entrainment behaviour across all length scales and isn’t just limited to the energy containing scales

Effects of multiscale geometry on the large-scale coherent structures of an axisymmetric turbulent jet

In this study, the effect of multiscale geometry on the near-field structure of an axisymmetric turbulent jet is examined at a global Reynolds number of ReG=10,000. With the aid of tomographic particle image velocimetry, the suppression of the coherent structures due to this fractal geometry is analysed and the changes to the near-field vorticity are evaluated. This particular geometry leads to the breakup of the azimuthal vortex rings present for round jets and to the formation of radial and streamwise opposite-signed patches of vorticity. The latter are found to be responsible for the axis switching of the jet, a phenomenon observed for some noncircular jets where the major axis shrinks and the minor one expands in the near field, effectively switching the two axes of the jet. This was the first time, to the knowledge of the authors, that axis switching has been observed for a jet where the coherent structures have been suppressed. Following the significant differences found in the near field, the far field is examined. There, the integral lengthscale of the large scale eddies Lur and the size of the jet evaluated in terms of the jet half-width r1/2 are found to evolve in a similar fashion, whilst the ratio Lur/r1/2 is found to be higher for the fractal jet than for the round jet, for which the near-field structures have not been suppressed

Bio-activities of Powders four plants against Prostephanus truncatus Horn. (Coleoptera: Bostrichidae) and Tribolium Castaneum Herbst (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae)

The effect of the dry powders of the roots and leaves of Ocimum canum, Zanthoxylum xanthoxyloides, Moringa oleifera and Securidaca  longipedunculata on the survival of Prostephanus truncatus (Horn)  (Coleoptera: Bostrichidae) and Tribolium castaneum Herbst (Coleoptera:  Tenebrionidae) was determined in the laboratory. Generally, all the plant  materials exhibited various levels of bio efficacies, with Z. xanthoxyloides and S. longipedunculata exhibiting the highest potency. Percentage survivorship of 35% and 40% were recorded for the roots and leaves, respectively, of Z.  xanthoxyloides against T. casteeneum while 20% and 30% were recorded for roots and leaves of S. longipedunculata, respectively, against P.tuncatus

Optimization of triangular airfoils for Martian helicopters using direct numerical simulations

Mars has a lower atmospheric density than Earth, and the speed of sound is lower due to its atmospheric composition and lower surface temperature. Consequently, Martian rotor blades operate in a low-Reynolds-number compressible regime that is atypical for terrestrial helicopters. Nonconventional airfoils with sharp edges and flat surfaces have shown improved performance under such conditions, and second-order-accurate Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes (RANS) and unsteady RANS (URANS) solvers have been combined with genetic algorithms to optimize them. However, flow over such airfoils is characterized by unsteady roll-up of coherent vortices that subsequently break down/transition. Accordingly, RANS/URANS solvers have limited predictive capability, especially at higher angles of attack where the aforementioned physics are more acute. To overcome this limitation, we undertake optimization using high-order direct numerical simulations (DNSs). Specifically, a triangular airfoil is optimized using DNSs. Multi-objective optimization is performed to maximize lift and minimize drag, yielding a Pareto front. Various quantities, including lift spectra and pressure distributions, are analyzed for airfoils on the Pareto front to elucidate flow physics that yield optimal performance. The optimized airfoils that form the Pareto front achieve up to a 48% increase in lift or a 28% reduction in drag compared to a reference triangular airfoil studied in the Mars Wind Tunnel at Tohoku University. The work constitutes the first use of DNSs for aerodynamic shape optimization

Invariants of the velocity gradient tensor in a spatially developing inhomogeneous turbulent flow

Tomographic PIV experiments were performed in the near-fiel d of the turbulent flow past a square cylinder. A classical Reynolds decomposition was p erformed on the resulting velocity fields into a time invariant mean flow and a fluctuatin g velocity field. This fluc- tuating velocity field was then further decomposed into cohe rent and residual/stochastic fluctuations. The statistical distributions of the second a nd third invariants of the ve- locity gradient tensor were then computed at various stream wise locations, along the centre line of the flow and within the shear layers. These inva riants were calculated from both the Reynolds-decomposed fluctuating velocity fields an d the coherent and stochas- tic fluctuating velocity fields. The range of spatial locatio ns probed incorporates regions of contrasting flow physics, including a mean recirculation region and separated shear layers, both upstream and downstream of the location of peak turbulence intensity along the centre line. These different flow physics are also reflecte d in the velocity gradients themselves with different topologies, as characterised by t he statistical distributions of the constituent enstrophy and strain-rate invariants, for the three different fluctuating velocity fields. Despite these differing flow physics the ubiq uitous self-similar “tear drop”- shaped joint probability density function between the seco nd and third invariants of the velocity gradient tensor is observed along the centre line a nd shear layer when calcu- lated from both the Reynolds decomposed and the stochastic v elocity fluctuations. These “tear drop”-shaped joint probability density functions ar e not, however, observed when calculated from the coherent velocity fluctuations. This “t ear drop” shape is classically associated to the statistical distribution of the velocity gradient tensor invariants in fully developed turbulent flows in which there are no coherent dyna mics present, and hence spectral peaks at low wavenumbers. The results presented in this manuscript, however, show that such “tear drops” also exist in spatially developi ng inhomogeneous turbulent flows. This suggests that the “tear drop” shape may not just be a universal feature of fully developed turbulence but of turbulent flows in general

Internal layers in turbulent free-shear flows

The characteristics of the internal layers of intense shear are examined in a mixing layer and in a jet, in the range of Reynolds numbers 134<Reλ<275. Conditionally averaged profiles of streamwise velocity conditioned on the identified internal layers present strong velocity jumps, which account for approximately 10% of the characteristic large-scale velocity of the flow. The thickness ⟨δw⟩ of the internal layers from the combined analysis of both the mixing layer and the jet scales with ⟨δw⟩/λ∼Re−1/2λ, which suggests a scaling with the Kolmogorov length scale (η), analogous to recent observations on the turbulent/nonturbulent interface (TNTI). The thickness of the internal shear layers within the mixing layer is found to be between 9η and 11η. The concentration of a passive scalar across the internal layers is also examined, at the Schmidt number Sc=1.4. The scalar concentration does not show any jumps across the internal layers, which is an important difference between the internal layers and the TNTI. This can be explained from the analysis of the internal layers of intense scalar gradient, where the flow topology node/saddle/saddle dominates, associated with strain, whereas the internal layers of intense shear are characterized by a prevalence of focus/stretching. A topological content analogous to that obtained in layers of intense scalar gradient is found in proximity to the TNTI, at the boundary between the viscous superlayer and the turbulent sublayer. These observations evidence that the TNTI and the internal layers of intense scalar gradient are similar in several respects

Near field development of artificially generated high Reynolds number turbulent boundary layers

Particle image velocimetry is conducted in the near field of two distinct wall-mounted trips for the artificial generation of a high Reynolds number turbulent boundary layer. The first of these trips consists of high aspect ratio obstacles, which are supposed to minimize the influence of their wakes on the near-wall region, contrasting with low aspect ratio trips, which would enhance this influence. A comprehensive study involving flow description, turbulent-nonturbulent interface detection, a low-order model description of the flow and an exploration of the influence of the wake in the near-wall region is conducted and two different mechanisms are clearly identified and described. First, high aspect ratio trips generate a wall-driven mechanism whose characteristics are a thinner, sharper, and less tortuous turbulent-nonturbulent interface and a reduced influence of the trips' wake in the near-wall region. Second, low aspect ratio trips generate a wake-driven mechanisms in which their turbulent-nonturbulent interface is thicker, less sharply defined, and with a higher tortuosity and the detached wake of the obstacles presents a significant influence on the near-wall region. Study of the low-order modeling of the flow field suggests that these two mechanisms may not be exclusive to the particular geometries tested in the present study but, on the contrary, can be explained based on the predominant flow features. In particular, the distinction of these two mechanisms can explain some of the trends that have appeared in the literature in the past decades

Scale dependence of the alignment between strain rate and rotation in turbulent shear flow

The scale dependence of the statistical alignment tendencies of the eigenvectors of the strain-rate tensor ei, with the vorticity vector ω, is examined in the self-preserving region of a planar turbulent mixing layer. Data from a direct numerical simulation are filtered at various length scales and the probability density functions of the magnitude of the alignment cosines between the two unit vectors |ei⋅ˆω| are examined. It is observed that the alignment tendencies are insensitive to the concurrent large-scale velocity fluctuations, but are quantitatively affected by the nature of the concurrent large-scale velocity-gradient fluctuations. It is confirmed that the small-scale (local) vorticity vector is preferentially aligned in parallel with the large-scale (background) extensive strain-rate eigenvector e1, in contrast to the global tendency for ω to be aligned in parallel with the intermediate strain-rate eigenvector [Hamlington et al., Phys. Fluids 20, 111703 (2008)]. When only data from regions of the flow that exhibit strong swirling are included, the so-called high-enstrophy worms, the alignment tendencies are exaggerated with respect to the global picture. These findings support the notion that the production of enstrophy, responsible for a net cascade of turbulent kinetic energy from large scales to small scales, is driven by vorticity stretching due to the preferential parallel alignment between ω and nonlocal e1 and that the strongly swirling worms are kinematically significant to this process.Fluid Mechanic