Unsteady Cavity Flow around a Rectangular Cylinder.

Abstract

Unsteady cavity flow around a rectangular cylinder was observed using a high-speed camera. To clarify the correlation between the cavity behavior and fluid dynamic characteristics in the transitional region and supercavitation, fluctuating forces and surface pressures on the cylinder surface were recorded simultaneously. The tested cylinder has a critical width-to-height ration 2.8, in which the shear layer separated from the leading edge intermittently reattaches near the trailing edge. Bubbly cloud originating from the separated region near the leading edge causes fluctuation of cavity termination and induces large oscillations of fluid forces and pressures. As the cavitation number decreases, the low-frequency fluctuation of the cavity developing downstream of the rear surface increases in the fluid dynamic behavior.