Shear Reynolds Number Reτ Research Articles

Dynamics of semi- and neutrally-buoyant particles in thermally stratified turbulent channel flow

Stably-stratified flows are characterised by the presence of internal gravity waves (IGWs), which constitute a barrier for mass, heat, momentum and species vertical transport. In this paper, the dynamics of semi- and neutrally-buoyant particles in three-dimensional, stably-stratified turbulent channel flow is investigated, using direct numerical simulations (DNS), one-way coupled with a Lagrangian particle tracking (LPT) routine. The fluid is characterised by a shear Reynolds number Reτ=1000 and a shear Richardson number Riτ=200, such that the turbulence is sustained only in the near-wall region; whereas IGWs are observed at the core of the channel. Four sets of particles with a Stokes number St=0.044 or 0.0044 and a particle-to-fluid density ratio ρr=1.0 or 0.8, are released into the system from eleven wall-parallel planes. The particle number for each set is one million. A qualitative analysis of the particle trajectories confirms that particles released in the near-wall region are significantly influenced by the near-wall vortices and show chaotic pathlines. In contrast, particles released at the channel core exhibit smooth oscillating movements which are determined by IGWs. These different qualitative behaviours correspond to different evolution of the particle swarms: swarms of particles released at the channel core are characterised by a narrow distribution of accelerations, a slower-growing pair dispersion and an almost stationary vertical position of the swarm centre of mass compared to those released in the near-wall region.

Two‐Point Velocity Correlations in Fully Developed Turbulent Pipe Flow at Shear Reynolds Number of Reτ ≈ 4000

AbstractThe aim of this study is to report about the large‐scale pipe flow structures using the two‐point velocity correlations at a radial location of y/R = 0.5 and 41 azimuthal positions for shear Reynolds number Reτ ≈ 4000. The streamwise velocity component was measured, utilizing two single‐wire probes, simultaneously, based on various azimuthal probe separations. One dimensional pre‐multiplied energy spectra, and two‐point joint statistics were adopted. Both the low and the high wavenumber motions were highlighted using the pre‐multiplied cross‐spectral density. The cross‐power spectral analysis for all the 41 measurement points indicates strong correlation between the hot‐wire signals with small azimuthal separation, on contrary, the peak of the spectrum is getting damped as the azimuthal distance increases. For present shear Reynolds number, the large and the very large scale motions showed wavelengths of ≈ 3R and 14R, respectively, at half of the pipe radius.

Simulation of deterministic energy-balance particle agglomeration in turbulent liquid-solid flows

An efficient technique to simulate turbulent particle-laden flow at high mass loadings within the four-way coupled simulation regime is presented. The technique implements large-eddy simulation, discrete particle simulation, a deterministic treatment of inter-particle collisions, and an energy-balanced particle agglomeration model. The algorithm to detect inter-particle collisions is such that the computational costs scale linearly with the number of particles present in the computational domain. On detection of a collision, particle agglomeration is tested based on the pre-collision kinetic energy, restitution coefficient, and van der Waals’ interactions. The performance of the technique developed is tested by performing parametric studies on the influence of the restitution coefficient (en = 0.2, 0.4, 0.6, and 0.8), particle size (dp = 60, 120, 200, and 316 μm), Reynolds number (Reτ = 150, 300, and 590), and particle concentration (αp = 5.0 × 10−4, 1.0 × 10−3, and 5.0 × 10−3) on particle-particle interaction events (collision and agglomeration). The results demonstrate that the collision frequency shows a linear dependency on the restitution coefficient, while the agglomeration rate shows an inverse dependence. Collisions among smaller particles are more frequent and efficient in forming agglomerates than those of coarser particles. The particle-particle interaction events show a strong dependency on the shear Reynolds number Reτ, while increasing the particle concentration effectively enhances particle collision and agglomeration whilst having only a minor influence on the agglomeration rate. Overall, the sensitivity of the particle-particle interaction events to the selected simulation parameters is found to influence the population and distribution of the primary particles and agglomerates formed.

Simulation of inertial fibre orientation in turbulent flow

The spatial and orientational behaviour of fibres within a suspension influences the rheological and mechanical properties of that suspension. An Eulerian-Lagrangian framework to simulate the behaviour of fibres in turbulent flows is presented. The framework is intended for use in simulations of non-spherical particles with high Reynolds numbers, beyond the Stokesian regime, and is a computationally efficient alternative to existing Stokesian models for fibre suspensions in turbulent flow. It is based on modifying available empirical drag correlations for the translation of non-spherical particles to be orientation dependent, accounting for the departure in shape from a sphere. The orientational dynamics of a particle is based on the framework of quaternions, while its rotational dynamics is obtained from the solution of the Euler equation of rotation subject to external torques on the particle. The fluid velocity and turbulence quantities are obtained using a very high-resolution large eddy simulation with dynamic calibration of the sub-grid scale energy containing fluid motions. The simulation matrix consists of four different fibre Stokes numbers (St = 1, 5, 25, and 125) and five different fibre aspect ratios (λ = 1.001, 3, 10, 30, and 50), with results considered at four distances from a channel wall (in the viscous sub-layer, buffer, and fully turbulent regions), which are taken as a measure of the flow velocity gradient, all at a constant fibre to fluid density ratio (ρp/ρ = 760) and shear Reynolds number Reτ = 150. The simulated fibre orientation, concentration, and streakiness confirm previous experimentally observed characteristics of fibre behaviour in turbulence, and that of direct numerical simulations of fibres in Stokesian, or creeping flow, regimes. The fibres exhibit translational motion similar to spheres, where they tend to accumulate in the near-wall (viscous sub-layer and buffer) region and preferentially concentrate in regions of low-speed streaks. The current results further demonstrate that the fibres’ translational dynamics, in terms of preferential concentration, is strongly dependent on their inertia and less so on their aspect ratio. However, the contrary is the case for the fibre alignment distribution as this is strongly dependent on the fibre aspect ratio and velocity gradient, and only moderately dependent on particle inertia. The fibre alignment with the flow direction is found to be mostly anisotropic where the velocity gradient is large (i.e., viscous sub-layer and buffer regions), but is virtually non-existent and isotropic where the turbulence is near-isotropic (i.e., channel centre). The present investigation highlights that the level of fibre alignment with the flow direction reduces as a fibre’s inertia decreases, and as the shape of the fibre approaches that of a sphere. Short fibres, and especially near-spherical λ = 1.001 particles, are found to exhibit isotropic orientation with respect to all directions, whilst sufficiently long fibres align themselves parallel to the flow direction, and orthogonal to the other two co-ordinate directions, and the vorticity and flow velocity gradient directions.

Analysis of Turbulence Suppression in Sediment-laden Saline Currents

The present work extends the results of Cantero et al.[1] and Shringarpure et al.[2] to the cases of sediment-laden saline currents. The flow is modeled as a channel flow where the forcing is exerted by salinity and suspended sediments. The resulting set of equations are solved by direct numerical simulation (DNS) for shear Reynolds number Reτ = 180. The DNS results show that by increasing the forcing due salinity, the flow can be held in a turbulent state whereby large sediment particles can be maintained in suspension. Typically, such large sediment particles would not be able to sustain the flow by themselves. The DNS results also show that for large sediment loads there is a transition to total turbulence suppression. This transition is abrupt and is caused by small changes in the sediment load. Here, salinity can be interpreted as a fraction of sediments that are fine enough that their settling velocity is negligible. Thus, the case of sediment-laden saline currents is physically equivalent to a simplified bi-disperse model where the fine sediments do not settle. Finally, this work shows that the original results by Cantero et al.[1] and Shringarpure et al.[2] hold when they are reinterpreted under the light on an effective settling velocity.

Dynamics of single, non-spherical ellipsoidal particles in a turbulent channel flow

Using disk, spherical and needle-like particles with equal equivalent volume diameters, the orientational dynamics of non-spherical particles is studied in a turbulent channel flow. An Eulerian–Lagrangian approach based on large eddy simulation with a dynamic sub-grid scale model is used to predict a fully developed gas–solid flow at a shear Reynolds number Reτ=300. Particle shape and orientation are accounted for by the coupling between Newton׳s law of translational motion and Euler׳s law of rotational motion, both in a Lagrangian framework. The particle shapes are simulated using the super-quadrics form, with the dynamically relevant parameters being the particle aspect ratio, equivalent volume diameter and response time. The translational and orientational behaviour of single particles initially released at three different locations in the wall-normal direction are monitored, with analysis showing a clear distinction between the behaviour of the different particle shapes. The results show that turbulent dispersion forces non-spherical particles to have a broad orientation distribution. The orientational states observed include periodic, steady rotation, tumbling, precessing and nutating. Velocity gradient, aspect ratio and particle inertia all have an effect on the alignment of the particle principal axis to the inertial axes. Unlike spherical particles, the disk and needle-like particles display a transition from one orientational state to another, especially when their initial position is in the near-wall region, with the frequency of this transition highest for the disk-like particle. Overall, this study leads to an improved understanding of the significance of shape on particle behaviour which is of relevance to many practical flows.

Rotation statistics of fibers in wall shear turbulence

In this paper, the rotation of rigid fibers is investigated for the reference case of turbulent channel flow. The aim of the study is to examine the effect of local shear and turbulence anisotropy on the rotational dynamics of fibers with different elongation and inertia. To this aim, statistics of the fiber angular velocity, Ω, are extracted from direct numerical simulation of turbulence at shear Reynolds number Reτ = 150 coupled with Lagrangian tracking of prolate ellipsoidal fibers with Stokes number, St, ranging from 3 to 100 and aspect ratio, λ, ranging from 1 to 50. Accordingly, the fiber-to-fluid density ratio ranges from \({S \simeq 7}\) (for St = 1, λ = 50) to \({S \simeq 3, 470}\) (for St = 100, λ = 1). Statistics are compared one to one with those obtained for spherical particles to highlight effects due to elongation. Results for mean and fluctuating angular velocities show that elongation is important for fibers with small inertia (St ≤ 5 in the present flow-fiber combination). For fibers with larger inertia, elongation has an impact on fiber rotation only in the streamwise and wall-normal directions, where mean values of Ω are zero. It is also shown that, in the center of the channel, the Lagrangian autocorrelation coefficients of Ω and corresponding rotational turbulent diffusivities match the exponential behavior predicted by the theory of homogeneous dispersion. In this region of the channel, the probability density function of fiber angular velocities is generally close to Gaussian, indicating that particle rotation away from solid walls can be modeled as a diffusion process of the Ornstein–Uhlenbeck type at stationary state. In the strong shear region (comprised within a distance of 50 viscous units from the wall in the present simulations), fiber anisotropy adds to flow anisotropy to induce strong deviations on fiber rotational dynamics with respect to spherical particles. The database produced in this study is available to all interested users at https://www.fp1005.cism.it.

Anisotropy in pair dispersion of inertial particles in turbulent channel flow

The rate at which two particles separate in turbulent flows is of central importance to predict the inhomogeneities of particle spatial distribution and to characterize mixing. Pair separation is analyzed for the specific case of small, inertial particles in turbulent channel flow to examine the role of mean shear and small-scale turbulent velocity fluctuations. To this aim an Eulerian-Lagrangian approach based on pseudo-spectral direct numerical simulation (DNS) of fully developed gas-solid flow at shear Reynolds number Reτ = 150 is used. Pair separation statistics have been computed for particles with different inertia (and for inertialess tracers) released from different regions of the channel. Results confirm that shear-induced effects predominate when the pair separation distance becomes comparable to the largest scale of the flow. Results also reveal the fundamental role played by particles-turbulence interaction at the small scales in triggering separation during the initial stages of pair dispersion. These findings are discussed examining Lagrangian observables, including the mean square separation, which provide prima facie evidence that pair dispersion in non-homogeneous anisotropic turbulence has a superdiffusive nature and may generate non-Gaussian number density distributions of both particles and tracers. These features appear to persist even when the effects of shear dispersion are filtered out, and exhibit strong dependency on particle inertia. Application of present results is discussed in the context of modelling approaches for particle dispersion in wall-bounded turbulent flows.

Turbulence modulation and microbubble dynamics in vertical channel flow

In this paper we examine the mutual interactions between microbubbles and turbulence in vertical channel flow. An Eulerian–Lagrangian approach based on pseudo-spectral direct numerical simulation is used: bubbles are momentum coupled with the fluid and are treated as pointwise spheres subject to gravity, drag, added mass, pressure gradient, Basset and lift forces. Two different flow configurations (upward and downward channel flow of water at shear Reynolds number Reτ=150) and four different bubble diameters are considered, assuming that bubbles are non-deformable (i.e. small Eotvos number) and contaminated by surfactants (i.e. no-slip condition applies at bubble surface). Confirming previous knowledge, we find macroscopically different bubble distribution in the two flow configurations, with lift segregating bubbles at the wall in upflow and preventing bubbles from reaching the near-wall region in downflow. Due to local momentum exchange with the carrier fluid and to the differences in bubble distribution, we also observe significant increase (resp. decrease) of both wall shear and liquid flowrate in upflow (resp. downflow). We propose a novel force scaling to examine results in vertical turbulent bubbly flows, which can help to judge differences in the turbulence features due to bubble presence. By examining two-phase flow energy spectra, we show that bubbles determine an enhancement (resp. attenuation) of energy at small (resp. large) flow scales, a feature already observed in homogeneous isotropic turbulence. Bubble-induced flow field modifications, in turn, alter significantly the dynamics of the bubbles and lead to different trends in preferential concentration and wall deposition. In this picture, a crucial role is played by the lift force, which is a delicate issue when accurate models of shear flows with bubbles are sought. We analyze and discuss all the observed trends emphasizing the impact that the lift force model has on the simulations.

Some issues concerning large-eddy simulation of inertial particle dispersion in turbulent bounded flows

The problem of accurate Eulerian–Lagrangian modeling of inertial particle dispersion in large-eddy simulation (LES) of turbulent wall-bounded flows is addressed. We run direct numerical simulation (DNS) of turbulent channel flow at shear Reynolds number Reτ=150 and corresponding a priori and a posteriori LES on two coarser grids. For each flow field, we tracked swarms of particles with different inertia to examine the behavior of particle statistics, specifically focusing on particle preferential segregation and accumulation at the wall. Our object is to discuss the necessity of a closure model for the particle equations when using LES and we verify if the influence of the subgrid turbulence filtered by LES is an important effect on particle motion according to particle size. The results show that well-resolved LES gives particle velocity statistics in satisfactory agreement with DNS. However, independent of the grid, quantitatively inaccurate predictions are obtained for local particle preferential segregation, particularly in the near-wall region. Inaccuracies are observed for the entire range of particle size considered in this study, even when the particle response time is much larger than the flow time scales not resolved in LES. The satisfactory behavior of LES in reproducing particle velocity statistics is thus counterbalanced by the inaccurate representation of local segregation phenomena, indicating that closure models supplying the particle motion equation with an adequate rendering of the flow field might be needed. Finally, we remark that recovering the level of fluid and particle velocity fluctuations in the particle equations does not ensure a quantitative replica of the subgrid turbulence effects, thus implying that accurate subgrid closure models for particles may require information also proportional to the higher-order moments of the velocity fluctuations.

Mechanisms for particle transfer and segregation in a turbulent boundary layer

Particle transfer in the wall region of turbulent boundary layers is dominated by the coherent structures which control the turbulence regeneration cycle. Coherent structures bring particles toward and away from the wall and favour particle segregation in the viscous region, giving rise to non-uniform particle distribution profiles which peak close to the wall. The object of this work is to understand the reasons for higher particle concentration in the wall region by examining turbulent transfer of heavy particles to and away from the wall in connection with the coherent structures of the boundary layer. We will examine the behaviour of a dilute dispersion of heavy particles – flyashes in air – in a vertical channel flow, using pseudo-spectral direct numerical simulation to calculate the turbulent flow field at a shear Reynolds number Reτ = 150, and Lagrangian tracking to describe the dynamics of particles. Drag force, gravity and Saffman lift are used in the equation of motion for the particles, which are assumed to have no influence on the flow field. Particle interaction with the wall is fully elastic. As reported in several previous investigations, we found that particles are transferred by sweeps – Q2 type events – in the wall region, where they preferentially accumulate in the low-speed streak environments, whereas ejections – Q4 type events – transfer particles from the wall region to the outer flow. We quantify the efficiency of the instantaneous realizations of the Reynolds stresses events in transferring different size particles to the wall and away from the wall, respectively. Our findings confirm that sweeps and ejections are efficient transfer mechanisms for particles. In particular, we find that only those sweep and ejection events with substantial spatial coherence are effective in transferring particles. However, the efficiency of the transfer mechanisms is conditioned by the presence of particles to be transferred. In the case of ejections, particles are more rarely available since, when in the viscous wall layer, they are concentrated under the low-speed streaks. Even though the low-speed streaks are ejection-like environments, particles remain trapped for a long time. This phenomenon, which causes accumulation of particles in the near-wall region, can be interpreted in terms of overall fluxes toward and away from the wall by the theory of turbophoresis. This theory, proposed initially by Caporaloni et al. (1975) and re-examined later by Reeks (1983), can help to explain the existence of net particle fluxes toward the wall as a manifestation of the skewness in the velocity distribution of the particles (Reeks 1983). To understand the local and instantaneous mechanisms which give rise to the phenomenon of turbophoresis, we focus on the near-wall region of the turbulent boundary layer. We examine the role of the rear-end of a quasistreamwise vortex very near to the wall in preventing particles in the proximity of the wall from being re-entrained by the pumping action of the large, farther from the wall, forward-end of a following quasi-streamwise vortex. We examine several mechanisms for turbulence structures near the wall and we find that the mechanism based on the archetypal quasi-streamwise structures identified by Schoppa & Hussain (1997), the parent–offspring regeneration cycle for near-wall quasi-streamwise vortices discussed by Brooke & Hanratty (1993), and the mechanism based on coherent packets of hairpin vortices, the fundamental super-structure characterized by Adrian, Meinhart & Tomkins (2000), all depict the same characteristic pattern which is responsible for particle trapping very near to the wall.

4918386 Method for simultaneously obtaining three-dimensional NMR angiograms and stationary tissue NMR images

Using disk, spherical and needle-like particles with equal equivalent volume diameters, the orientational dynamics of non-spherical particles is studied in a turbulent channel flow. An Eulerian–Lagrangian approach based on large eddy simulation with a dynamic sub-grid scale model is used to predict a fully developed gas–solid flow at a shear Reynolds number Reτ=300. Particle shape and orientation are accounted for by the coupling between Newton׳s law of translational motion and Euler׳s law of rotational motion, both in a Lagrangian framework. The particle shapes are simulated using the super-quadrics form, with the dynamically relevant parameters being the particle aspect ratio, equivalent volume diameter and response time. The translational and orientational behaviour of single particles initially released at three different locations in the wall-normal direction are monitored, with analysis showing a clear distinction between the behaviour of the different particle shapes. The results show that turbulent dispersion forces non-spherical particles to have a broad orientation distribution. The orientational states observed include periodic, steady rotation, tumbling, precessing and nutating. Velocity gradient, aspect ratio and particle inertia all have an effect on the alignment of the particle principal axis to the inertial axes. Unlike spherical particles, the disk and needle-like particles display a transition from one orientational state to another, especially when their initial position is in the near-wall region, with the frequency of this transition highest for the disk-like particle. Overall, this study leads to an improved understanding of the significance of shape on particle behaviour which is of relevance to many practical flows.