Formoreinformationonthetopicscoveredinthis

Lecture
PleaseseeIntroductiontoCFD FiniteVolume
Method
by
Malalasekera andVersteeg

1
1.

F
Free
turbulent
b l
fl
flows:
mixing
i i layers,
l
j
jets
and
d wakes.
k

2.

g layer
y forms at the interface of two regions:
g
Mixing
one with fast and the other with slow moving fluid.

3.

Jet A

region of highspeed flow completely

surrounded by stationary fluid.

fluid
4.

Wake formed behind an object in a flow slow

moving region is surrounded by fast moving fluid.

1.

Velocity changes across an initially thin layer are important

in all three flows.

2
2.

Transition to turbulence occurs after a very short distance

in the flow direction from the point where the different
streams initially meet

3
3.

Turbulence causes vigorous mixing of adjacent fluid layers

and rapid widening of the region across which the velocity
changes take place.

4
4.

Turbulent part of the flow contains a wide range of length

scales. Large eddies with a size comparable to the width
across the flow are occurring alongside eddies of very
small size.
size

Visualisation of a jet flow : Source: Van Dyke (1982)

1.

The flow inside the jet region is fully turbulent, but the flow
in the outer region far away from the jet is smooth and
largely unaffected by the turbulence.
turbulence

2.

The position of the edge of the turbulent zone is determined

by the (timedependent) passage of individual large eddies.

3.

Close to the edge the eddies will occasionally penetrate into

the surrounding region. During the resulting bursts of
turbulent activity in the outer region called intermittency
fluid from the surroundings is drawn into the turbulent
zone.

4.

This process is termed entrainment and is the main cause of

the spreading of turbulent flows (including wall boundary
layers) in the flow direction.

1.

Initially fast moving jet fluid will lose momentum to speed up the
stationary surrounding fluid.

2
2.

Due to the entrainment of surrounding fluid the velocity gradients

decrease in magnitude in the flow direction.

3
3.

Thi causes the

This
h decrease
d
off the
h mean speed
d off the
h jet
j at its
i centreline.
li

4.

Similarly the difference between the speed of the wake fluid and its fast
moving surroundings will decrease in the flow direction.

5.

In mixing layers the width of the layer containing the velocity change
continues to increase in the flow direction but the overall velocity
difference between the two outer regions is unaltered.

1.

Experimental observations show that after a certain distance their

structure becomes independent of the exact nature of the flow source.
source

2.

Only the local environment appears to control the turbulence in the flow.

3
3.

Th appropriate
The
i t length
l
th scale
l is
i the
th half
h lf width
idth b.
b

4.

We find that if y is the distance in the crossstream direction

Umax and Umin represent the maximum & minimum mean velocity at a distance x
downstream of the source.
If these local mean velocity scales are chosen and x is large enough,
enough the functions f,
f
g and h are independent of distance x in the flow direction.
S h flows
Such
fl
are called
ll d selfpreserving.
lf
i

The turbulence structure also reaches a selfpreserving state, although

after a greater distance from the flow source than the mean velocity.
Then

The velocity scale Uref is, as above, (Umax Umin) for a mixing layer and
wakes and Umax for jets.
The precise form of functions f, g, h and f1, f2, and f3 varies from flow
to flow.
flow

Mixing Layer

Jet

Wake

Flat p
plate boundary
y layer
y and p
pipe
p flow
1.

Due to the presence of the solid boundary, the flow

behaviour and turbulence structure are considerably
different from free turbulent flows.

2.

Dimensional analysis has greatly assisted in correlating the

experimental data.

3.

In turbulent thin shear layer

y flows a Reynolds
y
number based
on a length scale L in the flow direction (or pipe radius) ReL
is always very large (e.g. U = 1 m/s, L = 0.1 m and = 1066
m2/
/s g
gives ReL = 105)).

4.

This implies that the inertia forces are overwhelmingly

l
larger
than
h the
h viscous forces
f
at these
h
scales.
l

1. Consider Rey = Uy/. If y

y is of the order of L inertia forces
dominate in the flow far away from the wall. As y is
decreased to zero, Reynolds number based on y will also
decrease to zero.
2. Just before y reaches zero there will be a range of values of y
for which Rey is of the order of 1.
3. In this region
g
0<y<1,
y , viscous forces will be equal
q
in order of
magnitude to inertia forces or larger.
4. To sum up, in flows along solid boundaries there is usually a
substantial region
g
of inertiadominated flow far away
y from
the wall and a thin layer within which viscous effects are
important.

1
1.

Close to the wall the flow is influenced by viscous effects

and does not depend on free stream parameters.

2.

The mean flow velocity only depends on the distance y

from the wall,
wall fluid density
and viscosity
and the wall
shear stress w.