The production of turbulent stress in a shear flow by irrotational fluctuationsThis paper examines, both theoretically and experimentally, the effect produced by irrotational fluctuations, associated with a nearby turbulent field, in a region where the turbulence is initially very low but where there is a mean shear. Calculations are based on rapid distortion theory and experiments use linearized hot wire anemometers in an open circuit wind tunnel. Turbulent shear stress is observed to grow from zero to significant values in the interaction region. The magnitude and extent of this observed shear stress agree reasonably well with predictions of the analysis, when intermittency effects are included. It is concluded that turbulent stresses can be produced by irrotational fluctuations in a region of mean shear and that this effect can be estimated using rapid distortion theory if the overall strain ratio is not large.
Document ID
19840035570
Acquisition Source
Legacy CDMS
Document Type
Conference Paper
Authors
Gartshore, I. S. (British Columbia, University Vancouver, Canada)
Durbin, P. A. (NASA Lewis Research Center Cleveland, OH, United States)
Hunt, J. C. R. (Cambridge University Cambridge, United Kingdom)