The influence of nonparallelism in channel flow stability

Abstract

Considered below are the high Reynolds number flows of an incompressible fluid, and their nonparallel stability properties, in certain plane channels whose widths vary slowly in the streamwise direction. The first approximation to the steady-state flow is governed by the classical boundary layer equations but with the pressure unknown. Solutions, some including separation and reattachment, to this are obtained numerically for a range of the parameters involved, and the stability of the resulting flows is considered using fixed frequency disturbances and taking into account the nonparallel nature of the basic flow by use of a W.K.B. method. The calculations yield critical Reynolds numbers, below which all the disturbances decay downstream, and for various Reynolds numbers above the critical values the growths of the small disturbances are calculated. The results are specialized to a particular class of channels which are straight far upstream and far downstream but vary in between. So the predictions should be much more easily amenable to experimental investigation and comparisons than those of the more idealized, diverging channel, flow problem studied by Eagles & Weissman [1] and the only other basic flow seriously studied from the viewpoint of nonparallel flow stability theory, the Blasius boundary layer. The results also represent the first application of both quasiparallel and slightly non-parallel stability theory to channels involving slowly varying but finite changes in width.