Interaction of a vortex ring with a natural convective layer

Abstract

We study the dynamics of the interaction of a vortex ring with a shear flow, generated by a natural convective layer. Laminar vortex rings were generated in water with a piston-cylinder arrangement. To generate the shear flow, a vertical wall was heated by a thermal bath held at constant temperature to produce a laminar and stable thermal boundary layer with a Grashof number of O(108). Measurements of the two-dimensional velocity field were obtained with a time resolved particle image velocimetry technique. Additionally, a 3D numerical model was used to simulate the experimental conditions. We mainly conducted experiments for the piston stroke L/D0 = 1 and Re of O(1000). The velocity ratio r = Uvi/Ush (where Uvi is the initial vortex velocity and Ush is the maximum velocity of the shear layer) was in the range 2.2 ⩽ r ⩽ 3.6. The results show that as the vortex approaches the shear layer, the ring expands and stretches mainly in the vertical direction and tilts slightly forming an angle between the wall and the ring plane which increases to about 3°. The rate of reduction of circulation is slower at the lower section of the vortex ring indicating that the momentum transport is more significant in this region. Moreover, the vortex circulation at the lower section increases to about 20% compared to the isothermal case. An analysis of the different mechanisms leading to this ring-shear layer interaction is presented and comparisons with reported data are discussed.