Mechanical Engineering - Research Publications

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    Some predictions of the attached eddy model for a high Reynolds number boundary layer
    Nickels, T. B. ; Marusic, I. ; Hafez, S. ; Hutchins, N. ; Chong, M. S. (Royal Society Publishing, 2007-01)
    Many flows of practical interest occur at high Reynolds number, at which the flow inmost of the boundary layer is turbulent, showing apparently random fluctuations invelocity across a wide range of scales. The range of scales over which these fluctuationsoccur increases with the Reynolds number and hence high Reynolds number flows aredifficult to compute or predict. In this paper, we discuss the structure of these flows anddescribe a physical model, based on the attached eddy hypothesis, which makespredictions for the statistical properties of these flows and their variation with Reynoldsnumber. The predictions are shown to compare well with the results from recentexperiments in a new purpose-built high Reynolds number facility. The model is alsoshown to provide a clear physical explanation for the trends in the data. The limits ofapplicability of the model are also discussed.
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    Large-scale amplitude modulation of the small-scale structures in turbulent boundary layers
    Mathis, R ; Hutchins, N ; Marusic, I (CAMBRIDGE UNIV PRESS, 2009-06-10)
    In this paper we investigate the relationship between the large- and small-scale energy-containing motions in wall turbulence. Recent studies in a high-Reynolds-number turbulent boundary layer (Hutchins & Marusic, Phil. Trans. R. Soc. Lond. A, vol. 365, 2007a, pp. 647–664) have revealed a possible influence of the large-scale boundary-layer motions on the small-scale near-wall cycle, akin to a pure amplitude modulation. In the present study we build upon these observations, using the Hilbert transformation applied to the spectrally filtered small-scale component of fluctuating velocity signals, in order to quantify the interaction. In addition to the large-scale log-region structures superimposing a footprint (or mean shift) on the near-wall fluctuations (Townsend, The Structure of Turbulent Shear Flow, 2nd edn., 1976, Cambridge University Press; Metzger & Klewicki, Phys. Fluids, vol. 13, 2001, pp. 692–701.), we find strong supporting evidence that the small-scale structures are subject to a high degree of amplitude modulation seemingly originating from the much larger scales that inhabit the log region. An analysis of the Reynolds number dependence reveals that the amplitude modulation effect becomes progressively stronger as the Reynolds number increases. This is demonstrated through three orders of magnitude in Reynolds number, from laboratory experiments at Reτ ~ 103–104 to atmospheric surface layer measurements at Reτ ~ 106.