Evidence of imbedded vortices in a three-dimensional shear flow

Abstract

Vortex phenomena encountered in an investigation of the streamwise development of the three-dimensional wake region behind the tip of a three-dimensional wedge model are reported. Pressure profiles were measured by pitot probes downstream of a tip with a nearly constant surface pressure level and a nearly continuous surface curvature in a blowdown air tunnel operating at Mach 6. Rather than the simple three-dimensional quasi-parallel shear flow expected, the measurements indicated the presence of a flow with large deficits in longitudinal pitot pressure, which are usually associated with the core region of quasi-steady longitudinal vortices. Vapor screen flow visualizations also support the presence of longitudinal vortices located primarily in the tip region and evidently forming in the vicinity of the wake neck. An increase in overall wake thickness by 100% is also observed. The origin of the vortices as quasi-steady Taylor-Gortler vortices generated in the concavely curved shear layer near the wake neck is considered. It is pointed out that the existence of longitudinal vortexes suggests that three-dimensional turbulence modeling may be much more difficult than previously supposed.