Turbulent Kinetic Energy Flux Research Articles

Magneto-thermal instability in galaxy clusters – I. Theory and two-dimensional simulations

ABSTRACT Determining the origin of turbulence in galaxy clusters, and quantifying its transport of heat, is an outstanding problem, with implications for our understanding of their thermodynamic history and structure. As the dilute plasma of the intracluster medium (ICM) is magnetized, heat and momentum travel preferentially along magnetic field lines. This anisotropy triggers a class of buoyancy instabilities that destabilize the ICM, and whose turbulent motions can augment or impede heat transport. We focus on the magneto-thermal instability (MTI), which may be active in the periphery of galaxy clusters. We aim to take a fresh look at the problem and construct a general theory that explains the MTI saturation mechanism and provides scalings and estimates for the turbulent kinetic energy, magnetic energy, and heat flux. We simulate MTI turbulence with a Boussinesq code, snoopy, which, in contrast to previous work, allows us to perform an extensive sampling of the parameter space. In two dimensions the saturation mechanism involves an inverse cascade that carries kinetic energy from the short MTI injection scales to larger scales, where it is arrested by the stable entropy stratification; at a characteristic ‘buoyancy scale’, the energy is dumped into large-scale g-modes, which subsequently dissipate. Consequently, the entropy stratification sets an upper limit on the size and strength of turbulent eddies. Meanwhile, the MTI conveys a substantial fraction of heat, despite the tangled geometry of the magnetic field. In a companion paper, these results are extended to three-dimensional flows, and compared to observations of real clusters.

Analysis of turbulence generation and dissipation in shear layers of methane–oxygen diffusion flames using direct numerical simulations

A turbulent methane–oxygen diffusion flame is studied using a direct numerical simulation setup. The operating regime and turbulence characteristics are chosen to resemble those of a modern methane rocket combustor. Local flame characteristics and dimensionless numbers are defined and evaluated, and their relationship with the turbulent kinetic energy transport budget is studied. Positive net turbulence generation is observed in the reaction shear layer. It is found that the underlying mechanisms for these results are similar to those encountered in premixed flames, with pressure terms acting as the primary turbulent kinetic energy sources. Models for predicting turbulent transport through mean pressure gradients, fluctuating pressure gradients, and turbulent flux of turbulent kinetic energy are adapted. The accuracy of the proposed formulations is assessed, and the involved challenges are discussed.

Impacts of wave-induced ocean surface turbulent kinetic energy flux on typhoon characteristics

ABSTRACT The parameterization of the sea surface turbulent kinetic energy (TKE) flux due to wave breaking was revisited using the observed data. It is found that the fraction of wave energy taken up into the ocean as sea surface TKE flux depends on the relative angle between wind and wave direction. The fraction tends to be larger under opposite wind conditions than following wind conditions. Based on the observed results, a new parameterization of TKE flux was proposed. The TKE flux parameterization was implemented into the atmosphere-ocean-wave coupled model. The experiments on typhoon hindcast using the model showed that TKE flux affects weak mixing at the ocean surface, strong mixing at the bottom of the mixed layer, and near-inertial internal waves depending on the thickness of the mixed layer depth (MLD). In the coupled atmosphere-ocean-wave model, the effects of these mixing differences are also fed back to the atmospheric side; the maximum difference in the central pressure of the typhoon depending on TKE flux parameterization is 10 hPa. The results of this study suggest the importance of considering waves in the sea surface TKE flux for typhoon simulations.

Analysis of Turbulent Flow Structure with Its Fluvial Processes around Mid-Channel Bar

Researchers have recognized that the successive growth of mid-channel bar deposits can be entertained as the raison d’être for the initiation of the braiding process, which is closely interlinked with the growth, decay, and vertical distribution of fluvial turbulent kinetic energy (TKE). Thus, focused analysis on the underlying mechanics of turbulent flow structures in the proximity of a bar deposit occurring in the middle of the channel can afford crucial scientific clues for insight into the initiating fluvial processes that give rise to braiding. In the study reported herein, a physical model of a mid-channel bar is constructed in an experimental flume to analyze the turbulence parameters in a region close to the bar. Notably, the flow velocity plays an important role in understanding the flow behavior in the scour-hole location in the upstream flow divergence zone as well as near the downstream zone of flow convergence in a mid-channel bar. Therefore, the fluctuating components of turbulent flow velocity are herein discussed and analyzed for the regions located close to the bar. In the present study, the impact of the mid-channel bar, as well as its growth in turbulent flow, on higher-order velocity fluctuation moments are investigated. For near-bed locations, the results show the dominance of ejection events in upstream zones and the dominance of sweep events at locations downstream of the mid-channel bar. In scour-hole sections, the negative value of the stream-wise flux of turbulent kinetic energy and the positive value of the vertical flux of turbulent kinetic energy indicate energy transport in downward and forward directions, respectively. The downward and forward energy transport processes lead to scouring at these locations. The maximum turbulent production rate occurs in the wake region of the bar. The high rate of turbulence production has occurred in that region, which can be ascribed to the process of shedding turbulent vortices. The results show that the impact of the presence of the bar is mainly restricted to the lower layers of flow. The turbulent dissipation rate monotonically decreases with an increase in the vertical distance from the bed. The turbulent production rate first increases and then decreases with successive increases in the vertical distance from the bed. The paper concludes with suggestions for the future potential use of the present research for the practical purpose of examining braid bar occurrences in alluvial rivers to develop an appropriate response through training measures.

Roles of Atmospheric Turbulence and Stratification in a Regional Pollution Transport Event in the Middle Reaches of the Yangtze River

AbstractAtmospheric turbulence and the planetary boundary layer (PBL) can significantly modulate the fine particulate matter (PM2.5) concentration near the ground surface. However, the mechanism by which they affect the variation in PM2.5 is poorly understood. Using surface‐based meteorological and PM2.5 observations, turbulence measurements, and high‐resolution soundings, this study analyzed the properties of turbulence and PBL stratification during a severe regional pollution transport event in Xiangyang, a city in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River, from January 3 to January 9, 2019. During the growth stage, PM2.5 was observed to increase continuously under a northerly wind of 2–4 m s−1 that brought a polluted air mass to central China. During the entire pollution event, the turbulent kinetic energy and sensible heat flux tended to be lower at high PM2.5 concentrations. This correlation varied greatly depending on the stage of the event. A negative correlation existed in the initial and maintenance stages, whereas the relationship was positive during the growth stage, when regional transport dominated the variation in PM2.5. There was no obvious inversion layer below 500 m during the entire pollution episode, and a weak inversion layer appeared at higher altitudes in the initial and maintenance stages. Vertically homogeneous northerly winds favored the transboundary transport of pollutants, causing a significant increase in ground‐level PM2.5 concentration. By contrast, the presence of wind shear in the prevailing northerly winds suppressed pollutant transport to the ground, resulting in a low‐value gap in PM2.5 concentration between high altitudes and the ground surface.

Hydrodynamics of flow over a gradually varied bed roughness

Turbulence characteristics in a fully developed flow over a gradually varied bed roughness are investigated. The results of the Reynolds stress profiles indicate that they increase with an increase in bed roughness height. Their peaks occur within the wall-shear layer close to the bed. Besides, the bed shear stress rises in accordance with the roughness height. The roughness-induced layer grows as the roughness height increases with the streamwise distance. The velocity profiles fitted with the logarithmic law reveal that the zero-velocity level is elevated as the roughness height increases, but the zero-plane displacement is not influenced by the roughness. The turbulent kinetic energy (TKE) flux results indicate that an inrush of faster moving fluid parcels composing the sweep event is the dominant mechanism in the near-bed flow zone. The magnitude of the sweep event escalates, as the roughness height increases. On the other hand, a process of slowly moving fluid parcels forming the ejection event prevails in the outer flow layer. The TKE flux results agree with those obtained from the bursting analysis. Concerning the TKE budget, the peaks of the TKE production, dissipation, and pressure energy diffusion rates being positive appear near the bed and grow as the roughness height increases, whereas the peak of the TKE diffusion rate being negative behaves in the similar way as the other terms of the TKE budget behave.

Hydrodynamics of flow through a degraded channel bed

This article presents experimental results of turbulent flow measured in a bimodal degraded channel bed consisting of sand-gravel mixture. Sand and gravel of uniform sizes 0.25 and 3.5 mm were mixed in the same proportions (by weight) to create a bimodal sedimentary bed. A three-dimensional Vectrino velocimeter was employed to collect three-dimensional velocities over bimodal degraded bed under equilibrium condition. The streamwise velocity, Reynolds stresses, turbulent kinetic energy (TKE), and TKE fluxes profiles were compared with the literature. However, the advancement of the existing knowledge was done by exploring the laws of turbulence. To this end, the velocity structure function method was applied. Second and third-order streamwise velocity structure functions followed by mixed third-order velocity structure functions revealed the existence of inertial subrange. The TKE dissipation rate was estimated using Kolmogorov’s and Monin–Yaglom’s scaling laws of turbulence. The anisotropy analysis indicated anisotropic turbulence in the near-bed, whereas above the initial bed-level, the anisotropy tends to follow three-dimensional isotropy. The present study notably enhances the understanding of turbulent flow through a degraded bed by demonstrating the legitimacy of laws of turbulence at different locations over the bed and providing a comprehensible acquaintance in TKE budget and Reynolds stress anisotropy.

Sensitivity of large eddy simulations of tropical cyclone to sub-grid scale mixing parameterization

The surface wind structure and vertical turbulent transport processes in the eyewall of hurricane Isabel (2003) are investigated using six large-eddy simulations (LESs) with different horizontal grid spacing and three-dimensional (3D) sub-grid scale (SGS) turbulent mixing models and a convection permitting simulation that uses a coarser grid spacing and one-dimensional vertical turbulent mixing scheme. The mean radius-height distribution of storm tangential wind and radial flow, vertical velocity structure, and turbulent kinetic energy and momentum fluxes in the boundary layer generated by LESs are consistent with those derived from historical dropsonde composites, Doppler radar, and aircraft measurements. Unlike the convection permitting simulation that produces storm wind fields lacking small-scale disturbances, all LESs are able to produce sub-kilometer and kilometer scale eddy circulations in the eyewall. The inter-LES differences generally reduce with the decrease of model grid spacing. At 100-m horizontal grid spacing, the vertical momentum fluxes induced by the model-resolved eddies and the associated eddy exchange coefficients in the eyewall simulated by the LESs with different 3D SGS mixing schemes are fairly consistent. Although with uncertainties, the decomposition in terms of eddy scales suggests that sub-kilometer eddies are mainly responsible for the vertical turbulent transport within the boundary layer (~1 km depth following the conventional definition) whereas eddies greater than 1 km become the dominant contributors to the vertical momentum transport above the boundary layer in the eyewall. The strong dependence of vertical turbulent transport on eddy scales suggests that the vertical turbulent mixing parameterization in mesoscale simulations of tropical cyclones is ultimately a scale-sensitive problem.

A Framework for Simulating the Tropical-Cyclone Boundary Layer Using Large-Eddy Simulation and Its Use in Evaluating PBL Parameterizations

AbstractBoundary layer turbulent processes affect tropical cyclone (TC) structure and intensity change. However, uncertainties in the parameterization of the planetary boundary layer (PBL) under high-wind conditions remain challenging, mostly due to limited observations. This study presents and evaluates a framework of numerical simulation that can be used for a small-domain [O(5 km)] large-eddy simulation (LES) and single-column modeling (SCM) to study the TC boundary layer. The framework builds upon a previous study that uses a few input parameters to represent the TC vortex and adds a simple nudging term for temperature and moisture to account for the complex thermodynamic processes in TCs. The reference thermodynamic profiles at different wind speeds are retrieved from a composite analysis of dropsonde observations of mature hurricanes. Results from LES show that most of the turbulence kinetic energy and vertical momentum flux is associated with resolved processes when horizontal grid spacing is O(10 m). Comparison to observations of turbulence variables such as momentum flux, effective eddy viscosity, and turbulence length scale show that LES produces reasonable results but highlight areas where further observations are necessary. LES results also demonstrate that compared to a classic Ekman-type boundary layer, the TC boundary layer is shallower, develops steady conditions much quicker, and exhibits stronger wind speed near the surface. The utility of this framework is further highlighted by evaluating a first-order PBL parameterization, suggesting that an asymptotic turbulence length scale of 40 m produces a good match to LES results.

Higher-Order Turbulence Around Different Circular Cylinders Using Particle Image Velocimetry

Abstract Wakes and higher-order turbulence around circular cylinders of different diameters are investigated using particle image velocimetry measurements. The cylinder Reynolds number (Red) is defined by the depth-averaged velocity, cylinder diameter, and kinematic viscosity. The influence of Red on third-order moment of velocity fluctuations, turbulent kinetic energy (TKE) flux, TKE budget, and turbulent length scales are presented. The intermittency factor (IF) and quadrant analysis around the cylinders are discussed for Red values ranging from 12,600 to 21,000. The energy budget mostly near free surface upstream and near-bed downstream is changed due to Red. Stream-wise and transverse TKE fluxes decreased significantly with Red, but not the vertical flux. Stream-wise skewness changed sign from positive to negative at a certain critical distance downstream, while vertical skewness showed reversed effect with Red. Negative stream-wise skewness and positive vertical skewness indicate the occurrence of ejection events. On the downstream, the production and dissipation rates increased with Red, whereas an opposite trend was observed for dissipation only on the upstream. Increase of Red led to an increase in the Kolmogorov length-scale much higher on the upstream than the downstream, whereas it showed depleting effect on Taylor's length-scale on the upstream and an increasing effect on the downstream. Ejection and sweep events were more prominent in the downstream near the cylinder than upstream with higher values of shear stress on the downstream. The sum of the shear stress contributions of all quadrant events increased consistently with an increase in Red near the cylinder.

Diurnal Wind Pattern and Climate Condition on the Coastal Region of Qatar

Climate pattern in the Persian Gulf is of great interest due to the strategic geographical location of the gulf as a waterway of major oil transportation and its increasing regional economic importance. However, long term and continues climate observations in this region are rare, especially for high resolution data. High resolution wind pattern and climate conditions were measured at 3 heights on a 9 m tower on the shoreline north of Qatar (26.08 N, 51.36 E) from August 2015 to September 2016. In this work, the annual wind and climate patterns (wind velocity, temperature, relative humidity, and air pressure) are first presented. Drag coefficient, turbulent kinetic energy and sensible heat flux are calculated using the high speed measured data to explain the observed climate pattern. The results show the wind in the southern part of the gulf is dominant by a northwest stream with a diurnal average speed of 4.7 m/s. During the test year, the diurnal average temperature and relative humidity were 27°C and 70%, respectively. The drag coefficient is much higher for the wind from 270o-330o, corresponding to the wind coming mainly from northwest. The Turbulent Kinetic Energy (TKE) is strong during the daytime, especially around noon when the diurnal value is at its peak, and weak during the night. The result of this analysis may be used for better understanding of the local climate, allowing for further assessment of wind energy and pollution diffusion in the region.

Surface effects and turbulent pressure

The application of the full potential of stellar seismology is made difficult by the improper modelling of the upper-most layers of solar-like stars and their influence on the modelled frequencies. Our knowledge of these so-called ‘surface effects’ has improved thanks to the use of 3D hydrodynamical simulations, however, the calculation of eigenfrequencies relies on empirical models for the description of the Lagrangian perturbation of turbulent pressure, namely: the reduced-Γ1 model (RGM) and the gas-Γ1 model (GGM). Starting from the fully compressible turbulence equations, we derived both the GGM and RGM models by using a closure to model the flux of turbulent kinetic energy. We find that both models originate from two terms: the source of turbulent pressure due to compression produced by the oscillations and the divergence of the flux of turbulent pressure. We also demonstrate that they are both compatible with the adiabatic approximation and, additionally, that they imply a number of questionable assumptions, mainly with respect to mode physics. Among other hypotheses, it is necessary to neglect the Lagrangian perturbation of the dissipation of turbulent kinetic energy into heat and the Lagrangian perturbation of buoyancy work.

Rayleigh–Taylor instability with gravity reversal

We present results from Direct Numerical Simulations (DNS) of Rayleigh–Taylor instability at Atwood numbers up to 0.9. After the layer width had developed substantially, additional branched simulations have been run under reversed and zero gravity conditions. We focus on the modifications of the mixing layer structure and turbulence in response to the acceleration change. After the gravity reversal, the flow undergoes a complex transient process in which the vertical mass flux changes sign multiple times and, consequently, the buoyancy term in the turbulent kinetic energy transport equation changes its role back and forth from production to destruction. This behavior is examined in detail using the turbulent kinetic energy and mass flux transport equations and time instances when the vertical mass at the centerline crosses zero and reaches local minima and maxima. While the transient process significantly affects the flow anisotropy at all scales, other turbulence characteristics, like the alignment between the vorticity and eigenvectors of the strain rate tensor, retain their fully developed turbulence behavior in the interior of the layer. In addition, after the gravity reversal, the edges of the layer also exhibit characteristics closer to those of the turbulent interior, even as the fluids become more mixed. None of these changes affects the mean density profile, which still collapses among various cases. Such significant changes in some turbulence quantities and not others are difficult to capture with existing turbulence models.

Alluvial channel hydrodynamics around tandem piers with downward seepage

In this paper, we report the turbulent flow structures and the scour geometry around two piers with different diameters. An experiment was conducted on a non-uniform sand bed with two types of tandem arrangements, namely, pier (T1) with a 75 mm front and 90 mm rear, and pier (T2) with a 90 mm front and 75 mm rear, with and without-seepage flows, respectively. A strong wake region was observed behind the piers, but the vortex strength diminished with downward seepage. Streamwise velocity was found to be maximum near the bed downstream of the piers and at the edge of the scour hole upstream of the piers. Quadrant analysis was used to recognize the susceptible region for sediment entrainment and deposition. Upstream of the piers near the bed, the moments, turbulent kinetic energy (TKE), and TKE fluxes were found to decrease with downward seepage, in contrast to those in a plane mobile bed without piers. The reduction percentages of scour depth at the rear pier compared with the front one were approximately 40% for T1 and 60% for T2. Downward seepage also resulted in restrained growth of scouring with time.

Flow and pollution concentration large-Eddy simulation and transition conditions for different street canyons and wind speeds: Environmental pollution reduction approach

Effects of different ambient wind speeds and aspect ratios on turbulence and pollutant concentration in and above street canyons are numerically investigated and compared using parallelized LES model (PALM) and ((Transition Conditions)) are introduced for the first time. The results show that, increasing of ambient wind speed does not change the shape of streamlines but increases the magnitude of time- and area-averaged turbulent kinetic energy with the rate of square of speed ratios resulting in better ventilation of pollutants. As aspect ratio increases, the magnitude of turbulent kinetic energy and turbulent fluxes especially in lower depths of the canyon decrease sharply causing decreased pollution transport to higher levels. An applied case is between 2 and 4 aspect ratios in which there are two vortices along the depths of the canyon. As the width of the canyon increases, the rate of the upper vortex penetration increases and eventually at aspect ratio 2 makes a transition from two to one vortex; we call such conditions as transition conditions. In transition conditions increasing of less than half a meter of street canyon width will drastically decrease the pollution concentration inside the canyon; this is useful in optimizing canyon dimensions for better ventilation.

Influence of Weak Bed-Load Transport on Mean Flow Characteristics over Immobile Smooth Bed Surface under Dynamic Equilibrium Flow Conditions

Flow-stream-bed interaction has received substantial interest in the field of fluvial hydraulics since few decades and the present study aims to explore the influenece of weak bed-load transport on near-bed flow characteristics under dynamic equilibrium flow conditions. The experimental conditions were tackled in two folds: (1) flow over immobile bed without bed-load transport and (2) weak bed-load transport over the immobile bed. A layer of well-sorted sand grains was glued on the flume bottom to develop an immobile sand bed surface. Uniformly graded sediments were injected into the flows for sediment motion in the form of weak bed-load transport. Nineteen dynamic equilibrium flow conditions were established and an acoustic Doppler velocimeter was used to measure the instanteneous velocity. The weak bed-load transport induced massive damping in Reynolds shear stress distributions and enhanced streamwise velocity gradients. Most significantly, turbulent kinetic energy flux components showed positive streamwise and negative vertical fluxes in the near-bed flow region corroborating an accelerating effect on the inertia of flowing fluid. The results associated to turbulent parts of kinetic energy components are further illustrated in the light of turbulent kinetic energy budget concept to elucidate the influence of weak bed-load transport on mean flow characteristics.

Comparison of the Atmospheric and Oceanic Boundary Layers During Convection and their Latitudinal Dependence

AbstractThe boundary layers of the atmosphere and the ocean are compared during convection, and their latitudinal dependence is investigated. The results are applied to examine the parameterization of the boundary layer depth in the K‐profile parameterization (KPP) model. The bulk Richardson number Rib varies excessively with time in the high‐latitude (HL) oceanic boundary layer (OBL) without unresolved shear , as a result of inertial oscillation. Inclusion of is also necessary in the atmospheric boundary layer (ABL) to mitigate the large variation of Rib with wind stress. Stratification and velocity shear near the boundary layer height/depth are stronger and thicker at low latitudes (LLs), where the Ekman length scale is larger and the inertial time scale is longer. This enhanced shear makes the entrainment buoyancy flux larger at LL. Analysis of the turbulent kinetic energy (TKE) budget in the entrainment zone is carried out to explain the variation of Rib depending on the boundary layer and the latitude. This analysis shows that the TKE production in the entrainment zone is dominated by shear production at LL, but by the TKE flux at HL, and that represents the contribution from the TKE flux to the entrainment zone. The enhancement of vertical TKE by Langmuir circulation (LC) does not depend on the latitude, but it decreases with depth faster at LL. The result suggests that the parameterization of the boundary layer depth in the KPP model should be different depending on whether it is the ABL or the OBL and depending on the latitude.

Improved Length Scales for Turbulence Kinetic Energy–Based Planetary Boundary Layer Scheme for the Convective Atmospheric Boundary Layer

AbstractBased on a priori analysis of large-eddy simulations (LESs) of the convective atmospheric boundary layer, improved turbulent mixing and dissipation length scales are proposed for a turbulence kinetic energy (TKE)-based planetary boundary layer (PBL) scheme. The turbulent mixing length incorporates surface similarity and TKE constraints in the surface layer, and makes adjustments for lateral entrainment effects in the mixed layer. The dissipation length is constructed based on balanced TKE budgets accounting for shear, buoyancy, and turbulent mixing. A nongradient term is added to the TKE flux to correct for nonlocal turbulent mixing of TKE. The improved length scales are implemented into a PBL scheme, and are tested with idealized single-column convective boundary layer (CBL) cases. Results exhibit robust applicability across a broad CBL stability range, and are in good agreement with LES benchmark simulations. It is then implemented into a community atmospheric model and further evaluated with 3D real-case simulations. Results of the new scheme are of comparable quality to three other well-established PBL schemes. Comparisons between simulated and radiosonde-observed profiles show favorable performance of the new scheme on a clear day.

Conditional spatially averaged turbulence and dispersion characteristics in flow over two-dimensional dunes

Conditional turbulence and dispersion characteristics in flow over a series of two-dimensional dunes are analyzed by applying the spatial averaging methodology. To this end, the flow data measured over an array of points on the vertical central plane were used. The manifestation of the wake-interference flow over dunes, including the boundary layer diffusion, flow separation, and flow reattachment, is demonstrated by overlapping the vorticity contours on the velocity vector diagram. The vertical distributions of the spatially averaged (SA) streamwise velocity, Reynolds shear and normal stresses, dispersive shear and normal stresses, turbulent kinetic energy (TKE) fluxes, and dispersive kinetic energy (DKE) fluxes are analyzed. It is recognized that the dominance of the conditional SA streamwise velocity associated with the temporal sweep events causes the flow to accelerate temporally. The conditional SA Reynolds stresses and TKE fluxes associated with the temporal ejection events are dominant above the dune crest, whereas those associated with the temporal sweep events are the governing mechanism below the crest. An examination of the conditional dispersive normal stresses and the DKE fluxes reveals that within the upper portion of the roughness sublayer, the dispersive ejection events are the key flow dispersion mechanism, whereas near the dune trough, the dispersive outward interaction events prevail. Furthermore, the temporal ejection events are found to be more persistent, but less frequent, than the temporal sweep events. Besides, the frequencies of the occurrences of the temporal bursting events are higher below the crest than those above it, suggesting the flow to be more turbulent below the crest.

Effects of aspect ratio on higher-order moments, conditional statistics, TKE budget and anisotropy in narrow open channel flow

The purpose of the present study is to investigate the influence of aspect ratio on the higher- order statistics of velocity fluctuations, conditional statistics, turbulent kinetic energy (TKE) fluxes, TKE budget, and Reynolds stress anisotropy in hydraulically rough narrow open channel flow (OCF). In the experiments, the aspect ratios were maintained low and varied between 2.5 and 4. The velocities were measured with an acoustic Doppler velocimeter (ADV). The higher-order moments, quadrant analysis, and TKE budget from the present experiments were compared with available literature data in wide and narrow OCFs to elucidate the effect of the aspect ratio. In this analysis, the third-order moments of velocity fluctuations were found to be sensitive to the aspect ratio in the outer region. The fractional contributions of all quadrant events are approximately equal in magnitude in lower aspect ratio flows, whereas ejections and sweeps are the dominant events as the aspect ratio increases. The upward transfer of TKE flux increases in the outer layer with increase in aspect ratio. In the inner layer, the TKE production and rate of dissipation are found to be increasing with decreasing aspect ratio. Therefore, the production and dissipation of TKE are dependent on the aspect ratio of the flow. The analysis of Reynolds stress AIM reveals that for low aspect ratio flows turbulence tends to attain rod-like axisymmetric turbulence only in the intermediate layer whereas for higher aspect ratio, turbulence attains rod-like axisymmetric turbulence throughout the depth.