Large-Eddy Simulation of Subsonic Turbulent Jets and Their Radiated Sound

Abstract

Large-Eddy Simulations (LES) of a compressible nozzle/jet configuration have been carried out. Two jets were simulated, an isothermal jet and a jet with a higher temperature than the quiescent surrounding air. The Mach number was in both cases 0.75 and the jet Reynolds number was 50,000. Sound pressure levels in far-field observer locations were evaluated using Kirchhoff surface integration. The Favre filtered Navier-Stokes equations were solved using a finite volume method solver with a low-dissipation third-order upwind scheme for the convective fluxes, a second-order centered difference approach for the viscous fluxes and a three-stage second-order Runge-Kutta technique in time. The computational domain was discretized using a block structured boundary fitted mesh with approximately 3,000,000 cells. The calculations were performed on a parallel computer, using message-passing interface (MPI). A compressible form of Smagorinsky's subgrid scale model was used for computation of the subgrid scale stresses. Absorbing boundary conditions based on characteristic variables were adopted for all free boundaries. Velocity components specified at the entrainment boundaries were estimated from corresponding Reynolds Averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) calculations, which enable the use of a rather narrow domain. This, furthermore, ensures that the correct amount of fluid is entrained into the domain. Two-point space-time correlations were obtained for locations in the shear layer center, from which length and time scales of turbulence structures were evaluated. Predicted near-field flow statistics and far-field sound pressure levels (SPL) are both in good agreement with experiments. Predicted (SPL) are for all observers locations, where evaluated, within a 3.0 [dB] deviation from measured levels and for most locations within a 1.0 [dB] deviation. Experimental data used for validation were provided by Laboratoire d’Etude Aerodynamiques, Poiters, France.