Skip to main content
U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information

The effect of boundary conditions and shear rate on streak formation and breakdown in turbulent channel flows

Journal Article · · Physics of Fluids A; (USA)
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1063/1.857656· OSTI ID:6185446
;  [1]
  1. Department of Chemical and Nuclear Engineering, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA (USA)

Experiments in a horizontal channel indicate that low-speed/high-speed streaks form in the region very close to the interface if shear is imposed on the liquid surface by the motion of a gas. They also form at the wall. Even though the boundary conditions at the wall and at the interface are different (no slip versus nearly free slip with regard to fluctuations), the main characteristics of the streaks appear similar. The spanwise spacing of the streaks when nondimensionalized using the local shear stress and kinematic viscosity is about 100 units whether the streaks are at the wall or at the liquid surface. The ejection and breakdown of the streaks also show qualitatively similar features. For example, the burst frequency appears to scale on local inner variables and the numerical values in nondimensionalized frequency units are about the same whether the bursts originate near the interface or the wall. A number of experiments have been done varying the shear rate at the interface to determine its role in streak formation and breakdown. From the present experiments it is concluded that the shear rate has the main influence on the phenomena and the effect of the boundary conditions is much less important.

DOE Contract Number:
FG03-85ER13314
OSTI ID:
6185446
Journal Information:
Physics of Fluids A; (USA), Journal Name: Physics of Fluids A; (USA) Vol. 2:10; ISSN 0899-8213; ISSN PFADE
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

Similar Records

On the condition of streak formation in a bounded turbulent flow
Journal Article · Fri Jan 31 23:00:00 EST 1992 · Physics of Fluids A; (United States) · OSTI ID:5589999

Direct numerical simulation of near-interface turbulence in coupled gas-liquid flow
Journal Article · Sat Jun 01 00:00:00 EDT 1996 · Physics of Fluids (1994) · OSTI ID:284279

Direct numerical simulation of turbulent flow over a wavy wall
Journal Article · Fri Aug 01 00:00:00 EDT 1997 · Physics of Fluids (1994) · OSTI ID:549285