Low Reynolds number fully developed two-dimensional turbulent channel flow with system rotation

Abstract

Theoretical and experimental studies have been performed on fully developed twodimensional turbulent channel flows in the low Reynolds number range that are subjected to system rotation. The turbulence is affected by the Coriolis force and the low Reynolds number simultaneously. Using dimensional analysis, the relevant parameters of this flow are found to be Reynolds number Re* = u*D/v (u* is the friction velocity, D the channel half-width) and Ωv/u2* (Ω is the angular velocity of the channel) for the inner region, and Re* and ΩD/u* for the core region. Employing these parameters, changes of skin friction coefficients and velocity profiles compared to nonrotating flow can be reasonably well understood. A Coriolis region where the Coriolis force effect predominates is shown to exist in addition to conventional regions such as viscous and buffer regions. A flow regime diagram that indicates ranges of these regions as a function of Re* and |Ω|v/u2* is given from which the overall flow structure in a rotating channel can be obtained.Experiments have been made in the range of 56 ≤ Re* ≤ 310 and -0.0057 ≤ Ωv/u2* ≤ 0.0030 (these values correspond to Re = 2UmD/v from 1700 to 10000 and rotation number R0 = 2|Ω|D/Um up to 0.055; Um is bulk mean velocity). The characteristic features of velocity profiles and the variation of skin friction coefficients are discussed in relation to the theoretical considerations.

A new set-up for PIV measurements in rotating turbulent duct flows

“…has also been used in industrial fluid dynamics, but then sometimes with the bulk velocity U b replaced by the friction velocity [3][4][5].…”

Direct numerical simulation of spanwise rotating turbulent channel flow with heat transfer

“…As a result, the asymmetric distributions of the mean flow and Reynolds stresses about the central line of the rotating channel are observed [3][4][5][6][7][8]. Meanwhile, the large-scale roll cells are generated due to the Taylor-Görtler instability and shift towards the pressure wall as the rotation rate increases [3,6].…”

“…Although some experimental and numerical investigations have been performed on rotating channel flows, most of them are mainly limited to the turbulence statistics, the near-wall structures, and the dynamic process related to the turbulence energy subject to system rotation without heat transfer [3][4][5][6][7][8]. Understanding the effects of system rotation on turbulent heat transfer in the rotating channel flow is a fundamental issue in turbulence modelling because any model aimed at predicting the thermal statistics in rotating turbulence should reproduce the essential features of this canonical situation.…”

Large-eddy simulation of turbulent flows in a heated streamwise rotating channel

“…The Among the studies of turbulent channel flows subjected to these three types of system rotations, the spanwise rotating turbulent channel flows have been studied extensively through experiments [23,24] and numerical simulations [14,[25][26][27][28][29][30][31][32][33][34][35][36][37]. It is reported that as the rotation number increases, turbulence is gradually enhanced on the pressure side and reduced on the suction side, further resulting in asymmetric distributions in the mean flow and Reynolds stresses [14,[23][24][25][26][27][28][29][30][31][32][33][34][35][36][37]. At the same time, large-scale roll cells come forth as a result of the Taylor-Görtler (T-G) instability [14,23,25,35].…”