skip to main content
OSTI.GOV title logo U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information

Title: Phenomenology treatment of magnetohydrodynamic turbulence with non-equipartition and anisotropy

Abstract

Magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) turbulence theory, often employed satisfactorily in astrophysical applications, has often focused on parameter ranges that imply nearly equal values of kinetic and magnetic energies and length scales. However, MHD flow may have disparity magnetic Prandtl number, dissimilar kinetic and magnetic Reynolds number, different kinetic and magnetic outer length scales, and strong anisotropy. Here a phenomenology for such ''non-equipartitioned'' MHD flow is discussed. Two conditions are proposed for a MHD flow to transition to strong turbulent flow, extensions of (1) Taylor's constant flux in an inertial range, and (2) Kolmogorov's scale separation between the large and small scale boundaries of an inertial range. For this analysis, the detailed information on turbulence structure is not needed. These two conditions for MHD transition are expected to provide consistent predictions and should be applicable to anisotropic MHD flows, after the length scales are replaced by their corresponding perpendicular components. Second, it is stressed that the dynamics and anisotropy of MHD fluctuations is controlled by the relative strength between the straining effects between eddies of similar size and the sweeping action by the large-eddies, or propagation effect of the large-scale magnetic fields, on the small scales, and analysis of this balance in principlemore » also requires consideration of non-equipartition effects.« less

Authors:
;
Publication Date:
Research Org.:
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)
Sponsoring Org.:
US Department of Energy (US)
OSTI Identifier:
15016027
Report Number(s):
UCRL-JRNL-209624
Journal ID: ISSN 1070-664X; PHPAEN; TRN: US0501787
DOE Contract Number:  
W-7405-ENG-48
Resource Type:
Journal Article
Journal Name:
Physics of Plasmas
Additional Journal Information:
Other Information: Publication date is May 1, 2005; PDF-FILE: 27 ; SIZE: 0.2 MBYTES; PBD: 7 Feb 2005; Journal ID: ISSN 1070-664X
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Subject:
71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSICS; 75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND SUPERFLUIDITY; ANISOTROPY; FLUCTUATIONS; KINETICS; MAGNETIC FIELDS; MAGNETIC REYNOLDS NUMBER; MAGNETOHYDRODYNAMICS; PRANDTL NUMBER; TURBULENCE; TURBULENT FLOW

Citation Formats

Zhou, Y, and Matthaeus, W H. Phenomenology treatment of magnetohydrodynamic turbulence with non-equipartition and anisotropy. United States: N. p., 2005. Web. doi:10.1063/1.1887187.
Zhou, Y, & Matthaeus, W H. Phenomenology treatment of magnetohydrodynamic turbulence with non-equipartition and anisotropy. United States. https://doi.org/10.1063/1.1887187
Zhou, Y, and Matthaeus, W H. 2005. "Phenomenology treatment of magnetohydrodynamic turbulence with non-equipartition and anisotropy". United States. https://doi.org/10.1063/1.1887187. https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/15016027.
@article{osti_15016027,
title = {Phenomenology treatment of magnetohydrodynamic turbulence with non-equipartition and anisotropy},
author = {Zhou, Y and Matthaeus, W H},
abstractNote = {Magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) turbulence theory, often employed satisfactorily in astrophysical applications, has often focused on parameter ranges that imply nearly equal values of kinetic and magnetic energies and length scales. However, MHD flow may have disparity magnetic Prandtl number, dissimilar kinetic and magnetic Reynolds number, different kinetic and magnetic outer length scales, and strong anisotropy. Here a phenomenology for such ''non-equipartitioned'' MHD flow is discussed. Two conditions are proposed for a MHD flow to transition to strong turbulent flow, extensions of (1) Taylor's constant flux in an inertial range, and (2) Kolmogorov's scale separation between the large and small scale boundaries of an inertial range. For this analysis, the detailed information on turbulence structure is not needed. These two conditions for MHD transition are expected to provide consistent predictions and should be applicable to anisotropic MHD flows, after the length scales are replaced by their corresponding perpendicular components. Second, it is stressed that the dynamics and anisotropy of MHD fluctuations is controlled by the relative strength between the straining effects between eddies of similar size and the sweeping action by the large-eddies, or propagation effect of the large-scale magnetic fields, on the small scales, and analysis of this balance in principle also requires consideration of non-equipartition effects.},
doi = {10.1063/1.1887187},
url = {https://www.osti.gov/biblio/15016027}, journal = {Physics of Plasmas},
issn = {1070-664X},
number = ,
volume = ,
place = {United States},
year = {Mon Feb 07 00:00:00 EST 2005},
month = {Mon Feb 07 00:00:00 EST 2005}
}

Works referenced in this record:

Dissipative, forced turbulence in two-dimensional magnetohydrodynamics
journal, June 1977


Control of star formation by supersonic turbulence
journal, January 2004


The mixing transition in turbulent flows
journal, April 2000


Models of inertial range spectra of interplanetary magnetohydrodynamic turbulence
journal, January 1990


Magnetohydrodynamic Turbulence in the Solar Wind
journal, January 1995


Alfvenic Turbulence in the Extended Solar Corona: Kinetic Effects and Proton Heating
journal, September 2003


MHD structures, waves and turbulence in the solar wind: Observations and theories
journal, July 1995


Interacting scales and energy transfer in isotropic turbulence
journal, October 1993


Reynolds number dependence of skewness and flatness factors of turbulent velocity derivatives
journal, January 1980


Energy dissipation rate and energy spectrum in high resolution direct numerical simulations of turbulence in a periodic box
journal, February 2003


Magnetohydrodynamic Turbulence Revisited
journal, August 1997


Magnetohydrodynamic turbulence in the solar wind
journal, November 1999


Coronal Expansion and Solar Wind
book, January 1972


Extended inertial range phenomenology of magnetohydrodynamic turbulence
journal, September 1989


Fully developed MHD turbulence near critical magnetic Reynolds number
journal, March 1981


Transport and turbulence modeling of solar wind fluctuations
journal, January 1990


Scaling of anisotropic spectra due to the weak interaction of shear-Alfvén wave packets
journal, March 1997


Observational constraints on the dynamics of the interplanetary magnetic field dissipation range
journal, March 1998


Colloquium: Magnetohydrodynamic turbulence and time scales in astrophysical and space plasmas
journal, December 2004


Kinematic turbulent dynamo in the large Prandtl number regime
journal, January 2004


An update on the energy dissipation rate in isotropic turbulence
journal, February 1998


Inertial-Range Spectrum of Hydromagnetic Turbulence
journal, January 1965


On the scaling of the turbulence energy dissipation rate
journal, January 1984


Turbulent magnetic Prandtl number and magnetic diffusivity quenching from simulations
journal, November 2003


High-beta turbulence in two-dimensional magnetohydrodynamics
journal, October 1976


Toward a theory of interstellar turbulence. 2: Strong alfvenic turbulence
journal, January 1995


Measurement of the rugged invariants of magnetohydrodynamic turbulence in the solar wind
journal, January 1982


A weak turbulence theory for incompressible magnetohydrodynamics
journal, June 2000


Dynamical length scales for turbulent magnetized flows
journal, February 1998


The Nonlinear Magnetic Cascade
journal, March 2004


Degrees of locality of energy transfer in the inertial range
journal, May 1993


The Small‐Scale Structure of Magnetohydrodynamic Turbulence with Large Magnetic Prandtl Numbers
journal, September 2002


Instability, turbulence, and enhanced transport in accretion disks
journal, January 1998


On the Statistical Theory of Isotropic Turbulence
journal, January 1938


Strong MHD helical turbulence and the nonlinear dynamo effect
journal, September 1976


Turbulent cascades in anisotropic magnetohydrodynamics
journal, June 1998