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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 451 records · Page 25

Analysis of the effect of initial conditions on the initial development of a turbulent jet

The effect of the initial condition at the jet exit on the downstream evolution, particularly within the potential core length, were numerically investigated as well as with available experimental data. In order to select the most dependable computational model for the present numerical experiment, a comparative study has been performed with different turbulence models at k-epsilon level, and it was found that the k-epsilon-gammma model yields superior prediction accuracy over other conventional models. The calculated results show that the potential core length and the spreading rate the initial mixing layer are dependent on the initial length scale as well as the turbulent kinetic energy at the jet exit. Such effect of the initial length scale increases with higher initial turbulence level. An empirical parameter has been devised to collapse the calculated data of the potential core length and the spreading rate with various initial conditions onto a single curve.

Kim, Soong KI↗

Effect of Liquid Surface Turbulent Motion on the Vapor Condensation in a Mixing Tank

The effect of liquid surface motion on the vapor condensation in a tank mixed by an axial turbulent jet is numerically investigated. The average value (over the interface area) of the root-mean-squared (rms) turbulent velocity at the interface is shown to be linearly increasing with decreasing liquid height and increasing jet diameter for a given tank size. The average rms turbulent velocity is incorporated in Brown et al. (1990) condensation correlation to predict the condensation of vapor on a liquid surface. The results are in good agreement with available condensation data.

Lin, C. S.↗

The structure of evaporating and combusting sprays: Measurements and predictions

An apparatus was constructed to provide measurements in open sprays with no zones of recirculation, in order to provide well-defined conditions for use in evaluating spray models. Measurements were completed in a gas jet, in order to test experimental methods, and are currently in progress for nonevaporating sprays. A locally homogeneous flow (LHF) model where interphase transport rates are assumed to be infinitely fast; a separated flow (SF) model which allows for finite interphase transport rates but neglects effects of turbulent fluctuations on drop motion; and a stochastic SF model which considers effects of turbulent fluctuations on drop motion were evaluated using existing data on particle-laden jets. The LHF model generally overestimates rates of particle dispersion while the SF model underestimates dispersion rates. The stochastic SF flow yield satisfactory predictions except at high particle mass loadings where effects of turbulence modulation may have caused the model to overestimate turbulence levels.

Shuen, J. S.↗

Global gyrokinetic simulations of the impact of magnetic island on ion temperature gradient driven turbulence

The effect of island width on the multi-scale interactions between magnetic island (MI) and ion temperature gradient (ITG) turbulence has been investigated based on the global gyrokinetic approach. It is found that the coupling between the island and turbulence is enhanced when the MI width (w) becomes larger. A vortex flow that is highly sensitive to the width of the MI can be triggered, ultimately resulting in a potent E × B shear flow and a consequent reduction in turbulent transport. The shearing rate induced by the vortex flow is minimum at the O-point while it is maximum at both of the two reconnection points of the island, i.e. the X-points, regardless of the island width. There exists a nonmonotonic relationship between zonal flow (ZF) amplitude and island width, showing that the ZF is partially suppressed by medium-sized MIs whereas enhanced in the case of large island. A larger MI can tremendously damage the ITG mode structure, resulting in higher turbulent transport at the X-point whereas a lower one at the O-point, respectively. Such phenomenon will be less distinct at very small island widths below w/a ~ 8% ≈ 12ρ i (a is the minor radius and ρ i the ion gyroradius), where it shows that turbulence near the X-point is hardly affected although it is still suppressed inside the island. Furthermore, the influence of different island sizes on turbulence transport level is also discussed.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

Effect of Contraction on Turbulence and Temperature Fluctuations Generated by a Warm Grid

Hot-wire anemometer measurements were made of several statistical properties of approximately homogeneous and isotropic fields of turbulence and temperature fluctuations generated by a warm grid in a uniform airstream sent through a 4-to-1 contraction. These measurements were made both in the contraction and in the axisymmetric domain farther downstream. In addition to confirming the well-known turbulence anisotropy induced by strain, the data show effects on the skewnesses of both longitudinal velocity fluctuation (which has zero skewness in isotropic turbulence) and its derivative. The concomitant anisotropy in the temperature field accelerates the decay of temperature fluctuations.

Mills, Robert R., Jr.↗

Effects of fluid inertia and turbulence on force coefficients for squeeze film dampers

The effects of fluid inertia and turbulence on the force coefficients of squeeze film dampers are investigated analytically. Both the convective and the temporal terms are included in the analysis of inertia effects. The analysis of turbulence is based on friction coefficients currently found in the literature for Poiseuille flow. The effect of fluid inertia on the magnitude of the radial direct inertia coefficient (i.e., to produce an apparent added mass at small eccentricity ratios, due to the temporal terms) is found to be completely reversed at large eccentricity ratios. The reversal is due entirely to the inclusion of the convective inertia terms in the analysis. Turbulence is found to produce a large effect on the direct damping coefficient at high eccentricity ratios. For the long or sealed squeeze film damper at high eccentricity ratios, the damping prediction with turbulence included is an order of magnitude higher than the laminar solution.

Andres, L. S.↗

Effects of free-stream turbulence on diffuser performance

An experimental evaluation of the effects of free stream turbulence on the performance of a subsonic two dimensional diffuser was made. The diffuser's static pressure recovery coefficient was increased 11.4 and 21.1 percent at total. Divergence angles of 12 and 20 degrees respectively were obtained when the value of the inlet integral free stream scale of turbulence in the flow direction was at least 7.5 times larger than the inlet boundary layer displacement thickness, and when the inlet total free stream turbulence intensity was at least 3.5 percent. It is hypothesized that a larger scale of turbulence transmits the free stream energy to the wall more effectively and when coupled with large turbulence intensities, acts to decrease the distortion and delay separation within the diffuser.

Hoffmann, J. A.↗

Structure formation in turbulence as an instability of effective quantum plasma

Structure formation in turbulence can be understood as an instability of “plasma” formed by fluctuations serving as effective particles. These “particles” are quantumlike in the sense that their wavelengths are non-negligible compared to the sizes of background coherent structures. The corresponding “kinetic equation” describes the Wigner matrix of the turbulent field, and the coherent structures serve as collective fields. This formalism is usually applied to manifestly quantumlike or scalar waves. Here, we show how to systematically extend it to more complex systems using compressible Navier–Stokes turbulence as an example. In this case, the fluctuation Hamiltonian is a five-dimensional matrix operator and diverse modulational modes are present. As an illustration, we calculate these modes for a sinusoidal shear flow and find two modulational instabilities. One of them is specific to supersonic flows, and the other one is a Kelvin–Helmholtz-type instability that is a generalization of the known zonostrophic instability. Our calculations are readily extendable to other types of turbulence, for example, magnetohydrodynamic turbulence in plasma.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

On turbulent flows dominated by curvature effects

A technique for improving the numerical predictions of turbulent flows with the effect of streamline curvature is developed. Separated flows and the flow in a curved duct are examples of flowfields where streamline curvature plays a dominant role. New algebraic formulations for the eddy viscosity incorporating the k-epsilon turbulence model are proposed to account for various effects of streamline curvature. The loci of flow reversal of the separated flows over various backward-facing steps are employed to test the capability of the proposed turbulence model in capturing the effect of local curvature.

Cheng, G. C.↗

Propulsive effects due to flight through turbulence

A simple and straightforward analysis is presented for evaluating the approximate magnitude of the propulsive effect for various types of airplane (soaring glider, light airplane, fighter, and transport). The airplane, subject to vertical gust disturbances, is assumed to be constrained to fly at constant airspeed and constant pitch angle. Changes in the magnitude and direction of the lift vector are taken into account. It is shown that the thrust effects due to turbulence vary as the square of the turbulence intensity and are quite small for moderate turbulence. Only for rather severe turbulence are the effects large enough to be given any consideration. The thrust coefficient is 10-20% of the drag coefficient of a soaring glider.

Phillips, W. H.↗

Atmospheric effects on RF propagation due to turbulence in the Venus atmosphere

Although there have been several theoretical studies and predictions of the Venus atmospheric effects on the radio-frequency wave propagation, the limited experimental data of Venera 4, 5, 6 and 7 do not provide a consistent answer on how severe the turbulence effects could be especially near the Venus surface. In this paper the status of this problem is examined. Important theoretical results are presented. Some meaningful conclusions are drawn from the available experimental data as well as the theoretical analysis.

Chen, C. H.↗

Effects of Gravity on Sheared Turbulence Laden with Bubbles or Droplets

This is a new project which started in May 1996. The main objective of the experimental/numerical study is to improve the understanding of the physics of two-way coupling between the dispersed phase and turbulence in a prototypical turbulent shear flow - homogeneous shear, laden with small liquid droplets (in gas) or gaseous bubbles (in liquid). The method of direct numerical simulation (DNS) is used to solve the full three-dimensional, time-dependent Navier-Stokes equations including the terms describing the two-way coupling between the dispersed phase and the carrier flow. The results include the temporal evolution of the three-dimensional energy and dissipation spectra and the rate of energy transfer across the energy spectrum to understand the fundamental physics of turbulence modulation, especially the effects of varying the magnitude of gravitational acceleration. The mean-square displacement and diffusivity of the droplets (or bubbles) of a given size and the preferential accumulation of droplets in low vorticity regions and bubbles in high vorticity regions will be examined in detail for different magnitudes of gravitational acceleration. These numerical results which will be compared with their corresponding measured data will provide a data base from which a subgrid-scale (SGS) model can be developed and validated for use in large-eddy simulation (LES) of particle-laden shear flows. Two parallel sets of experiments will be conducted: bubbles in an immiscible liquid and droplets in air. In both experiments homogeneous shear will be imposed on the turbulent carrier flow. The instantaneous velocities of the fluid and polydispersed-size particles (droplets or bubbles) will be measured simultaneously using a two-component Phase-Doppler Particle Analyzer (PDPA). Also, the velocity statistics and energy spectra for the carrier flow will be measured.

Elghobashi, Said↗

Verification and Improvement of Flamelet Approach for Non-Premixed Flames

Studies in the mathematical modeling of the high-speed turbulent combustion has received renewal attention in the recent years. The review of fundamentals, approaches and extensive bibliography was presented by Bray, Libbi and Williams. In order to obtain accurate predictions for turbulent combustible flows, the effects of turbulent fluctuations on the chemical source terms should be taken into account. The averaging of chemical source terms requires to utilize probability density function (PDF) model. There are two main approaches which are dominant in high-speed combustion modeling now. In the first approach, PDF form is assumed based on intuitia of modelliers (see, for example, Spiegler et.al.; Girimaji; Baurle et.al.). The second way is much more elaborate and it is based on the solution of evolution equation for PDF. This approach was proposed by S.Pope for incompressible flames. Recently, it was modified for modeling of compressible flames in studies of Farschi; Hsu; Hsu, Raji, Norris; Eifer, Kollman. But its realization in CFD is extremely expensive in computations due to large multidimensionality of PDF evolution equation (Baurle, Hsu, Hassan).

Zaitsev, S.↗