No Arabic abstract
Turbulence structure resulting from multi-fluid or multi-species, variable-density isotropic turbulence interaction with a Mach 2 shock is studied using turbulence-resolving shock-capturing simulations and Eulerian (grid) and Lagrangian (particle) methods. The complex roles density play in the modification of turbulence by the shock wave are identified. Statistical analyses of the velocity gradient tensor (VGT) show that the density variations significantly change the turbulence structure and flow topology. Specifically, a stronger symmetrization of the joint probability density function (PDF) of second and third invariants of the anisotropic velocity gradient tensor, PDF$(Q^ast, R^ast)$, as well as the PDF of the vortex stretching contribution to the enstrophy equation, are observed in the multi-species case. Furthermore, subsequent to the interaction with the shock, turbulent statistics also acquire a differential distribution in regions having different densities. This results in a nearly symmetrical PDF$(Q^ast, R^ast)$ in heavy fluid regions, while the light fluid regions retain the characteristic tear-drop shape. To understand this behavior and the return to standard turbulence structure as the flow evolves away from the shock, Lagrangian dynamics of the VGT and its invariants are studied by considering particle residence times and conditional particle variables in different flow regions. The pressure Hessian contributions to the VGT invariants transport equations are shown to be not only affected by the shock wave, but also by the density in the multi-fluid case, making them critically important to the flow dynamics and turbulence structure.
We perform direct numerical simulation (DNS) and large eddy simulation (LES) of an initially spherical region of turbulence evolving in free space. The computations are performed with a lattice Greens function method, which allows the exact free-space boundary conditions to be imposed on a compact vortical region. LES simulations are conducted with the stretched vortex sub-grid stress model. The initial condition is spherically windowed, isotropic homogeneous incompressible turbulence. We study the spectrum and statistics of the decaying turbulence and compare the results with decaying isotropic turbulence, including cases representing different low wavenumber behavior of the energy spectrum (i.e. k^2 versus k^4). At late times the turbulent sphere expands with both mean radius and integral scale showing similar time-wise growth exponents. The low wavenumber behavior has little effect on the inertial scales, and we find that decay rates follow Saffman (1967) predictions in both cases, at least until about 400 initial eddy turnover times. The boundary of the spherical region develops intermittency and features ejections of vortex rings. These are shown to occur at the integral scale of the initial turbulence field and are hypothesized to occur due to a local imbalance of impulse on this scale.
We survey a number of moment hierarchies and test their performances in computing one-dimensional shock structures. It is found that for high Mach numbers, the moment hierarchies are either computationally expensive or hard to converge, making these methods questionable for the simulation of highly non-equilibrium flows. By examining the convergence issue of Grads moment methods, we propose a new moment hierarchy to bridge the hydrodynamic models and the kinetic equation, allowing nonlinear moment methods to be used as a numerical tool to discretize the velocity space for high-speed flows. For the case of one-dimensional velocity, the method is formulated for odd number of moments, and it can be extended seamlessly to the three-dimensional case. Numerical tests show that the method is capable of predicting shock structures with high Mach numbers accurately, and the results converge to the solution of the Boltzmann equation as the number of moments increases. Some applications beyond the shock structure problem are also considered, indicating that the proposed method is suitable for the computation of transitional flows.
The sensitizing effect of cavities in the form of microbubbles on the shock initiation of a homogeneous liquid explosive is studied computationally. While the presence of voids in an explosive has long been known to induce so-called hot spots that greatly accelerate the global reaction rate, the ability to computationally resolve the details of the interaction of the shock front with heterogeneities existing on the scale of the detonation reaction zone has only recently become feasible. In this study, the influence of the spatial distribution of air-filled cavities has been examined, enabled by the use of graphic processing unit (GPU) accelerated computations that can resolve shock initiation and detonation propagation through an explosive while fully resolving features at the mesoscale. Different spatial distributions of cavities are examined in two-dimensional simulations, including regular arrays of cavities, slightly perturbed arrays, random arrays (with varying minimum spacing being imposed on the cavities), and randomly distributed clusters of cavities. The presence of the cavities is able to reduce the time required to initiate detonation---for a given input shock strength---by greater than 50%, in agreement with previous experimental results. Randomly distributing the cavities results in a 15-20% decrease in detonation initiation time in comparison to a regular array of cavities. Clustering the cavities---as would occur in the case of agglomeration---results in an additional 10% decrease in detonation initiation time in comparison to random arrays. The effect of clustering is shown not to be a result of the clusters forming an effectively larger cavity, but rather due to interactions between clusters upon shock loading occurring on the microscale.
A public database system archiving a direct numerical simulation (DNS) data set of isotropic, forced turbulence is described in this paper. The data set consists of the DNS output on $1024^3$ spatial points and 1024 time-samples spanning about one large-scale turn-over timescale. This complete $1024^4$ space-time history of turbulence is accessible to users remotely through an interface that is based on the Web-services model. Users may write and execute analysis programs on their host computers, while the programs make subroutine-like calls that request desired parts of the data over the network. The users are thus able to perform numerical experiments by accessing the 27 Terabytes of DNS data using regular platforms such as laptops. The architecture of the database is explained, as are some of the locally defined functions, such as differentiation and interpolation. Test calculations are performed to illustrate the usage of the system and to verify the accuracy of the methods. The database is then used to analyze a dynamical model for small-scale intermittency in turbulence. Specifically, the dynamical effects of pressure and viscous terms on the Lagrangian evolution of velocity increments are evaluated using conditional averages calculated from the DNS data in the database. It is shown that these effects differ considerably among themselves and thus require different modeling strategies in Lagrangian models of velocity increments and intermittency.
The present investigation provides the first field characterization of the influence of turbulent inflow on the blade structural response of a utility-scale wind turbine (2.5MW), using the unique facility available at the Eolos Wind Energy Research Station of the University of Minnesota. A representative one-hour dataset under a stable atmosphere is selected for the characterization, including the inflow turbulent data measured from the meteorological tower, high-resolution blade strain measurement at different circumferential and radiation positions along the blade, and the wind turbine operational conditions. The results indicate that the turbulent inflow modulates the turbine blade structural response in three representative frequency ranges: a lower frequency range (corresponding to modulations due to large eddies in the atmosphere), a higher frequency range (corresponding to flow structures in scales smaller than the rotor diameter), and an intermediate-range in between. The blade structure responds strongly to the turbulent inflow in the lower and intermediate ranges, while it is primarily dominated by the rotation effect and other high-frequency characteristics of wind turbines in the higher frequency range. Moreover, the blade structural behaviors at different azimuth angles, circumferential and radial locations along the blade are also compared, suggesting the comparatively high possibility of structural failure at certain positions. Further, the present study also uncovers the linkage between the turbulent inflow and blade structural response using temporal correlation. The derived findings provide insights into the development of advanced control strategies or blade design to mitigate the structural impact and increase blade longevity for the safer and more efficient operation of large-scale wind turbines.