Lock-in of the vortex-induced vibrations of a long tensioned beam in shear flow

The occurrence of lock-in, defined as the local synchronization between the vortex shedding frequency and the cross-flow structural vibration frequency, is investigated in the case of a tensioned beam of length to diameter ratio 200, free to move in both the in-line and cross-flow directions, and immersed in a linear shear current. Direct numerical simulation is employed at three Reynolds numbers, from 110 to 1100, so as to include the transition to turbulence in the wake. The Reynolds number influences the response amplitudes, but in all cases we observed similar fluid-structure interaction mechanisms, resulting in high-wavenumber vortex-induced vibrations consisting of a mixture of standing and traveling wave patterns. Lock-in occurs in the high oncoming velocity region, over at least 30% of the cylinder length. In the case of multi-frequency response, at any given spanwise location lock-in is principally established at one of the excited vibration frequencies, usually the locally predominant one. The spanwise patterns of the force and added mass coefficients exhibit different behaviors within the lock-in versus the non-lock-in region. The spanwise zones where the flow provides energy to excite the structural vibrations are located mainly within the lock-in region, while the flow damps the structural vibrations in the non-lock-in region

Distributed lock-in drives broadband vortex-induced vibrations of a long flexible cylinder in shear flow

A slender flexible body immersed in sheared cross-flow may exhibit vortex-induced vibrations (VIVs) involving a wide range of excited frequencies and structural wavenumbers. The mechanisms of broadband VIVs of a cylindrical tensioned beam of length-to-diameter aspect ratio 200 placed in shear flow, with an exponentially varying profile along the span, are investigated by means of direct numerical simulation. The Reynolds number is equal to 330 based on the maximum velocity, for comparison with previous work on narrowband vibrations in linear shear flow. The flow is found to excite the structure at a number of different locations under a condition of wake–body synchronization, or lock-in. Broadband responses are associated with a distributed occurrence of the lock-in condition along the span, as opposed to the localized lock-in regions limited to the high inflow velocity zone, reported for narrowband vibrations in sheared current. Despite the instantaneously multi-frequency nature of broadband responses, the lock-in phenomenon remains a locally mono-frequency event, since the vortex formation is generally synchronized with a single vibration frequency at a given location. The spanwise distribution of the excitation zones induces travelling structural waves moving in both directions; this contrasts with the narrowband case where the direction of propagation toward decreasing inflow velocity is preferred. A generalization of the mechanism of phase-locking between the in-line and cross-flow responses is proposed for broadband VIVs under the lock-in condition. A spanwise drift of the in-line/cross-flow phase difference is identified for the high-wavenumber vibration components; this drift is related to the strong travelling wave character of the corresponding structural waves

Multi-frequency vortex-induced vibrations of a long tensioned beam in linear and exponential shear flows

The multi-frequency vortex-induced vibrations of a cylindrical tensioned beam of aspect ratio 200, free to move in the in-line and cross-flow directions within first a linearly and then an exponentially sheared current are investigated by means of direct numerical simulation, at a Reynolds number equal to 330. The shape of the inflow profile impacts the spectral content of the mixed standing traveling wave structural responses: narrowband vibrations are excited within the lock-in area, which is limited to a single region lying in the high flow velocity zone, for the linear shear case; in contrast, the lock-in condition occurs at several spanwise locations in the exponential shear case, resulting in broadband responses, containing a wide range of excited frequencies and spatial wavenumbers. The broadband in-line and cross-flow vibrations occurring for the exponential shear current have a phase difference that lies within a specific range along the entire span; this differs from the phase drift noted for narrowband responses in linear shear flow. Lower vibration amplitudes, time-averaged and fluctuating in-line force coefficients are observed for the exponential shear current. The cross-flow force coefficient has comparable magnitude for both inflow profiles along the span, except in zones where the broadband vibrations are under the lock-in condition but not the narrowband ones. As in the narrowband case, the fluid forces associated with the broadband responses are dominated by high frequencies related to high-wavenumber vibration components. Considerable variability of the effective added mass coefficients along the span is noted in both cases

On the validity of the independence principle applied to the vortex-induced vibrations of a flexible cylinder inclined at 60 degrees

The vortex-induced vibrations (VIV) of a flexible cylinder inclined at 60 degrees are investigated by means of direct numerical simulation, at a Reynolds number equal to 500, based on the cylinder diameter and inflow velocity. The cylinder has a circular cross-section and a length to diameter aspect ratio equal to 50; it is modeled as a tension-dominated structure which is free to oscillate in the in-line and cross-flow directions. The behavior of the coupled fluid–structure system is examined for two values of the tension. Particular attention is paid to the validity of the independence principle (IP) which states that the inclined and normal-incidence body cases are comparable if the inflow velocity normal component is used to scale the physical quantities. The flexible cylinder exhibits regular VIV for both values of the tension. In the high tension configuration, where the in-line bending of the structure remains small, the IP is shown to be valid for the prediction of the cylinder responses and the fluid forces. In contrast, in the lower-tension configuration, the behavior of the fluid–structure system deviates from the IP. It is shown that this deviation is connected to the larger in-line bending of the structure which leads to considerably different profiles of the flow velocity locally perpendicular to the body in the inclined and normal cylinder cases. Since the system behavior appears to be mainly driven by this component of the flow, the profile modification induced by the larger in-line bending results in distinct responses: multi-frequency vibrations are observed in the inclined cylinder case whereas mono-frequency oscillations of larger amplitudes develop at normal incidence

Lipids in liver failure syndromes: a focus on eicosanoids, specialized pro-resolvinglipid mediators and lysophospholipids.

Lipids are organic compounds insoluble in water with a variety of metabolic and non-metabolic functions. They not only represent an efficient energy substrate but can also act as key inflammatory and anti-inflammatory molecules as part of a network of soluble mediators at the interface of metabolism and the immune system. The role of endogenous bioactive lipid mediators has been demonstrated in several inflammatory diseases (rheumatoid arthritis, inflammatory bowel disease, atherosclerosis, cancer). The liver is unique in providing balanced immunotolerance to the exposure of bacterial components from the gut transiting through the portal vein and the lymphatic system. This balance is abruptly deranged in liver failure syndromes such as acute liver failure and acute-on-chronic liver failure. In these syndromes, researchers have recently focused on bioactive lipid mediators by global metabonomic profiling and uncovered the pivotal role of these mediators in the immune dysfunction observed in liver failure syndromes explaining the high occurrence of sepsis and subsequent organ failure. Among endogenous bioactive lipids, the mechanistic actions of three classes (eicosanoids, pro-resolving lipid mediators and lysophospholipids) in the pathophysiological modulation of liver failure syndromes will be the topic of this narrative review. Furthermore, the therapeutic potential of lipid-immune pathways will be described

Macrophages in Chronic Liver Failure: Diversity, Plasticity and Therapeutic Targeting

Chronic liver injury results in immune-driven progressive fibrosis, with risk of cirrhosis development and impact on morbidity and mortality. Persistent liver cell damage and death causes immune cell activation and inflammation. Patients with advanced cirrhosis additionally experience pathological bacterial translocation, exposure to microbial products and chronic engagement of the immune system. Bacterial infections have a high incidence in cirrhosis, with spontaneous bacterial peritonitis being the most common, while the subsequent systemic inflammation, organ failure and immune dysregulation increase the mortality risk. Tissue-resident and recruited macrophages play a central part in the development of inflammation and fibrosis progression. In the liver, adipose tissue, peritoneum and intestines, diverse macrophage populations exhibit great phenotypic and functional plasticity determined by their ontogeny, epigenetic programming and local microenvironment. These changes can, at different times, promote or ameliorate disease states and therefore represent potential targets for macrophage-directed therapies. In this review, we discuss the evidence for macrophage phenotypic and functional alterations in tissue compartments during the development and progression of chronic liver failure in different aetiologies and highlight the potential of macrophage modulation as a therapeutic strategy for liver disease