Stratified Homogeneous Turbulence Research Articles

Detailed investigation of energy transfers in homogeneous stratified turbulence*

This paper investigates some irreversible mechanisms occurring in homogeneous stably stratified turbulent flows. In terms of the eigenmodes of the linear regime, the velocity-temperature field is decomposed into a vortex and two wavy components. Using an eddy-damped quasinormal Markovian (EDQNM) closure with the axisymmetry hypothesis, an analysis of the anisotropic energy transfers between the vortex kinetic energy, the wave kinetic and potential energy is made. Within the light of triadic exchanges, and by analogy of the resonance condition for three linearly interacting gravity waves, the closure model allows one to compute the detailed transfers for eight types of interactions. Results of the calculations include time evolution plots, for the isotropic closure model as well as two different types of the anisotropic closure. The pure vortical interactions are shown to be responsible for the irreversible anisotropic structure created by stable stratification, and this structure prevents the inverse cascade of two-dimensional turbulence.

Subgrid length-scales for large-eddy simulation of stratified turbulence

The influence of buoyancy on the length-scales for the dissipation rate of kinetic energy, and for momentum, heat, and other scalar transport has to be known for subgrid-scale (SGS) models in a large-eddy simulation (LES). For the inertial subrange, Lilly (1967) has shown that grid spacing is the relevant length-scale for SGS effects. Deardorff (1980) proposed to reduce all the length-scales for stable stratification. Numerical and experimental data show, however, that the dissipation length-scale may strongly increase in stable layers with little shear. Lumley's (1964) theory for the energy spectrum in a stratified fluid also suggests such an increase. In this paper we apply the analysis of previous algebraic second-order closure SGS models, parameter studies with different length-scale models in LES, and the analysis of direct simulations of sheared and unsheared stably stratified homogeneous turbulence. These analyses show advantages of first-order closures for LES and suggest that the limiting effect of stratification should only be applied to the length-scales of vertical eddy-diffusivities of heat and scalars but not to those of momentum and dissipation.

Experiments on the transition of homogeneous turbulence to internal waves in a stratified fluid

The evolution of unsheared grid-generated turbulence in a stably stratified fluid was investigated in a closed-loop salt-stratified water channel. Simultaneous single-point measurements of the horizontal and vertical velocity and density fluctuations were obtained, including turbulent mass fluxes central in understanding the energetics of the fluctuating motion. When the buoyancy lengthscale was initially substantially larger than the largest turbulent scales, the initial behaviour of the velocity and density fields was similar to that in the non-stratified case. With further downstream development, the buoyancy lengthscale decreased while the turbulence scale grew. Deviations from neutral behaviour occurred when these two lengthscales became of the same order, after the initially larger inertial forces associated with the initial kinetic energy had become weaker and buoyancy forces became important.Buoyancy forces produced anisotropy in the largest scales first, preventing them from overturning, while smaller-scale isotropic turbulent motions remained embedded within the larger-scale wave motions. These small-scale motions exhibited classical turbulent behaviour and scaled universally with Kolmogorov length and velocity scales. Eventually even the smallest scales of the decaying turbulence were affected by buoyancy, all isotropic motions disappeared, and Kolmogorov scaling failed. The turbulent vertical mass flux decreased to zero for this condition, indicating that the original turbulent field had been completely converted to random internal wave motions.The transition from a fully turbulent state to one of internal waves occurred rapidly in a time less than the characteristic time of the turbulence based on the largest-scale eddies found in the flow at transition. The dissipation rate for complete transition to a wave field was found to be of the order of et = 24.5νN2, where ν is the kinematic viscosity and N the Brunt-Vaisala frequency. This is in fairly good agreement with the value 30νN2 predicted by Gibson (1980, 1981).The present experiments have determined quantitative limits on the range of active turbulent scales in homogeneous stratified turbulence, in terms of an upper limit near the buoyancy lengthscale and a lower limit determined by viscosity in the usual way. This description has been used here to help explain and assimilate the results from the earlier stratified grid-turbulence experiments of Lin & Veenhuizen (1975) and Dickey & Mellor (1980). While some of the features of the present observations may be qualitatively seen in the numerical simulations of the problem of Riley, Metcalfe & Weissman (1981), there are fundamental differences, probably due in part to large differences in initial lengthscale ratios and in the limited range of scales attainable in numerical simulations. The present experiments may serve as a useful test case for future modelling and interpretation of the behaviour of turbulence in stratified flows observed in the oceans and atmosphere.