Heat transfer and skin-friction in a turbulent boundary layer under a non-equilibrium longitudinal adverse pressure gradient

The experimental data on the effect of weak and moderate non-equilibrium adverse pressure gradients (APG) on the parameters of dynamic and thermal boundary layers are presented. The Reynolds number based on the momentum thickness at the beginning of the APG region was Re^** = 5500. The APG region was a slot channel with upper wall expansion angles from 0 to 14°. The profiles of the mean and fluctuation velocity components were measured using a single-component hot-wire anemometer. The friction coefficients were determined using two methods, namely, the indirect Clauser method and the direct method of weighting the lower wall region on a single-component strain-gage balance. The heat transfer coefficients were determined by a transient method using an IR camera. It is noticed that in the pressure gradient range realized the universal logarithmic region in the boundary layer profile is conserved. The values of the relative (divided by the parameters in zero gradient flow at the same value of Re^**) friction and heat transfer coefficients, together with the Reynolds analogy factor, are determined as functions of the longitudinal pressure gradient. The values of the relative friction coefficient reduced to c_f/c_f0 = 0.7 and those of the heat transfer to St/St₀ = 0.9. A maximum value of the Reynolds analogy factor (St/St₀)/(c_f/c_f0) = 1.16 was reached for the pressure gradient parameter β = 2.9.     

Laminarisation and re-transition of a turbulent boundary layer subjected to favourable pressure gradient

 Experimental results are reported for the response of an initially turbulent boundary layer (Re _θ≈1700) to a favourable pressure gradient with a peak value of K≡(−υ/ρU ³ _E ) dp/dx equal to 4.4×10^-6. In the near-wall region of the boundary layer (y/δ<0.1) the turbulence intensity u′ scales roughly with the free-stream velocity U _E until close to the location where K is a maximum whereas in the outer region u′ remains essentially frozen. Once the pressure gradient is relaxed, the turbulence level increases throughout the boundary layer until K falls to zero when the near wall u′ levels show a significant decrease. The intermittency γ is the clearest indicator of a fundamental change in the turbulence structure: once K exceeds 3×10^-6, the value of γ in the immediate vicinity of the wall γ _s falls rapidly from unity, reaches zero at the location where K again falls below 3×10^-6 and then rises back to unity. Although γ is practically zero throughout the boundary layer in the vicinity of γ _s =0, the turbulence level remains high. The explanation for what appears to be a contradiction is that the turbulent frequencies are too low to induce turbulent mixing. The mean velocity profile changes shape abruptly where K exceeds 3×10^-6. Values for the skin friction coefficient, based upon hot-film measurements, peak at the same location as K and fall to a minimum close to the location where K drops back to zero. Received: 28 January 1998/Accepted: 8 April 1998     

Bulk flow parameters in turbulent wall boundary layers near separation

Experiments were conducted in a turbulent boundary layer near separation along a flat plate. The pressure gradient in flow direction was varied such that three significant boundary layer configurations could be maintained. The flow in the test section thus had simultaneously a region of favourable pressure gradient, a region of strong adverse pressure gradient with boundary layer separation and a region of reattached boundary layer. Specially designed fine probes facilitated the measurements of skin friction and velocity distribution very close to the wall. Bulk flow parameters such as skin friction coefficient C _f, Reynold's number Re_δ2 and shape factors H and G, which are significant characteristics of wall boundary layers were evaluated. The dependence of these parameters on the Reynolds number and along the test section was explored and the values were compared with other empirical and analytical formulae known in the literature.     

Reynolds-number-dependence of the maximum in the streamwise velocity fluctuations in wall turbulence

A survey is made of the standard deviation of the streamwise velocity fluctuations in near-wall turbulence and in particular of the Reynolds-number-dependency of its peak value. The following canonical flow geometries are considered: an incompressible turbulent boundary layer under zero pressure gradient, a fully developed two-dimensional channel and a cylindrical pipe flow. Data were collected from 47 independent experimental and numerical studies, which cover a Reynolds number range of R _θ=U _∞ θ/v=300−20,920 for the boundary layer with θ the momentum thickness and R ⁺=u _*R/v=100-4,300 for the internal flows with R the pipe radius or the channel half-width. It is found that the peak value of the rms-value normalised by the friction velocity, u _*, is within statistical errors independent of the Reynolds number. The most probable value for this parameter was found to be 2.71±0.14 and 2.70±0.09 for the case of a boundary layer and an internal flow, respectively. The present survey also includes some data of the streamwise velocity fluctuations measured over a riblet surface. We find no significant difference in magnitude of the normalised peak value between the riblet and smooth surfaces and this property of the normalised peak value may for instance be exploited to estimate the wall shear stress from the streamwise velocity fluctuations. We also consider the skewness of the streamwise velocity fluctuations and find its value to be close to zero at the position where the variance has its peak value. This is explained with help of the equations of the third-order moment of velocity fluctuations. These results for the peak value of the rms of the streamwise velocity fluctuations and also the coincidence of this peak with the zero value of the third moment can be interpreted as confirmation of local equilibrium in the near-wall layer, which is the basis of inner-layer scaling. Furthermore, these results can be also used as a requirement which turbulence models for the second and triple velocity correlations should satisfy. The authors are indebted to Prof. P. Bradshaw for making available his list of references on this topic and for his remarks on “active” and “inactive” motions. We also gratefully acknowledge discussions with Prof. I. Castro regarding the value of σ _u ⁺ above rough walls.     

DNS of a spatially developing turbulent boundary layer with passive scalar transport

A direct numerical simulation (DNS) of a spatially developing turbulent boundary layer over a flat plate under zero pressure gradient (ZPG) has been carried out. The evolution of several passive scalars with both isoscalar and isoflux wall boundary condition are computed during the simulation. The Navier–Stokes equations as well as the scalar transport equation are solved using a fully spectral method. The highest Reynolds number based on the free-stream velocity U_∞ and momentum thickness θ is Re_θ=830, and the molecular Prandtl numbers are 0.2, 0.71 and 2. To the authors’ knowledge, this Reynolds number is to date the highest with such a variety of scalars. A large number of turbulence statistics for both flow and scalar fields are obtained and compared when possible to existing experimental and numerical simulations at comparable Reynolds number. The main focus of the present paper is on the statistical behaviour of the scalars in the outer region of the boundary layer, distinctly different from the channel-flow simulations. Agreements as well as discrepancies are discussed while the influence of the molecular Prandtl number and wall boundary conditions is also highlighted. A Pr scaling for various quantities is proposed in outer scalings. In addition, spanwise two-point correlation and instantaneous fields are employed to investigate the near-wall streak spacing and the coherence between the velocity and the scalar fields. Probability density functions (PDF) and joint probability density functions (JPDF) are shown to identify the intermittency both near the wall and in the outer region of the boundary layer. The present simulation data will be available online for the research community.     

Assessment of dual plane PIV measurements in wall turbulence using DNS data

Experimental dual plane particle image velocimetry (PIV) data are assessed using direct numerical simulation (DNS) data of a similar flow with the aim of studying the effect of averaging within the interrogation window. The primary reason for the use of dual plane PIV is that the entire velocity gradient tensor and hence the full vorticity vector can be obtained. One limitation of PIV is the limit on dynamic range, while DNS is typically limited by the Reynolds number of the flow. In this study, the DNS data are resolved more finely than the PIV data, and an averaging scheme is implemented on the DNS data of similar Reynolds number to compare the effects of averaging inherent to the present PIV technique. The effects of averaging on the RMS values of the velocity and vorticity are analyzed in order to estimate the percentage of turbulence intensity and enstrophy captured for a given PIV resolution in turbulent boundary layers. The focus is also to identify vortex core angle distributions, for which the two-dimensional and three-dimensional swirl strengths are used. The studies are performed in the logarithmic region of a turbulent boundary layer at z ⁺ = 110 from the wall. The dual plane PIV data are measured in a zero pressure gradient flow over a flat plate at Re _τ = 1,160, while the DNS data are extracted from a channel flow at Re _τ = 934. Representative plots at various wall-normal locations for the RMS values of velocity and vorticity indicate the attenuation of the variance with increasing filter size. Further, the effect of averaging on the vortex core angle statistics is negligible when compared with the raw DNS data. These results indicate that the present PIV technique is an accurate and reliable method for the purposes of statistical analysis and identification of vortex structures.     

A simplified v2–f model for near‐wall turbulence

A simplified version of the v²–f model is proposed that accounts for the distinct effects of low‐Reynolds number and near‐wall turbulence. It incorporates modified C_ε(1,2) coefficients to amplify the level of dissipation in non‐equilibrium flow regions, thus reducing the kinetic energy and length scale magnitudes to improve prediction of adverse pressure gradient flows, involving flow separation and reattachment. Unlike the conventional v²–f, it requires one additional equation (i.e. the elliptic equation for the elliptic relaxation parameter f_µ) to be solved in conjunction with the k–ε model. The scaling is evaluated from k in collaboration with an anisotropic coefficient C_v and f_µ. Consequently, the model needs no boundary condition on and avoids free stream sensitivity. The model is validated against a few flow cases, yielding predictions in good agreement with the direct numerical simulation (DNS) and experimental data. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Some Reynolds number effects on two- and three-dimensional turbulent boundary layers

Experimental data for a two-dimensional (2-D) turbulent boundary layer (TBL) flow and a three-dimensional (3-D) pressure-driven TBL flow outside of a wing/body junction were obtained for an approach Reynolds number based on momentum thickness of Re _θ =23,200. The wing shape had a 3:2 elliptical nose, NACA 0020 profiled tail, and was mounted on a flat wall. Some Reynolds number effects are examined using fine spatial resolution (Δy ⁺=1.8) three-velocity-component laser-Doppler velocimeter measurements of mean velocities and Reynolds stresses at nine stations for Re _θ =23,200 and previously reported data for a much thinner boundary layer at Re _θ =5,940 for the same wing shape. In the 3-D boundary layers, while the stress profiles vary considerably along the flow due to deceleration, acceleration, and skewing, profiles of the parameter correlate well and over available Reynolds numbers. The measured static pressure variations on the flat wall are similar for the two Reynolds numbers, so the vorticity flux and the measured mean velocities scaled on wall variables agree closely near the wall. The stresses vary similarly for both cases, but with higher values in the outer region of the higher Re _θ case. The outer layer turbulence in the thicker high Reynolds number case behaves similarly to a rapid distortion of the flow, since stream-wise vortical effects from the wall have not diffused completely through the boundary layer at all measurement stations. Received: 9 June 2000/Accepted: 26 January 2001     

Tailoring turbulence with an active grid

Using an active grid in a wind tunnel, we generate homogeneous shear turbulence and initiate turbulent boundary layers with adjustable properties. Homogeneous shear turbulence is characterized by a constant gradient of the mean velocity and a constant turbulence intensity. It is the simplest anisotropic turbulent flow thinkable, and it is generated traditionally by equipping a wind tunnel with screens which have a varying transparency and flow straighteners. This is not done easily, and the reachable turbulence levels are modest. We describe a new technique for generating homogeneous shear turbulence using an active grid only. Our active grid consists of a grid of rods with attached vanes which can be rotated by servo motors. We control the grid by prescribing the time-dependent angle of each axis. We tune the vertical transparency profile of the grid by setting appropriate angles of each rod such as to generate a uniform velocity gradient, and set the rods in flapping motion around these angles to tailor the turbulence intensity. The Taylor Reynolds number reached was R _λ = 870, the shear rate S = ∂U/∂y = 9.2 s⁻¹, the nondimensional shear parameter S ^*≡ Sq ²/ε = 12 and u = 1.4 ms⁻¹. As a further application of this idea we demonstrate the generation of a simulated atmospheric boundary layer in a wind tunnel which has tunable properties. This method offers a great advantage over the traditional one, in which vortex-generating structures need to be placed in the wind tunnel to initiate a fat boundary layer.     

Near-wall flow in a three-dimensional boundary layer on the endwall of a 30° bend

 Turbulence measurements are reported on the three-dimensional turbulent boundary layer along the centerline of the flat endwall in a 30° bend. Profiles of mean velocities and Reynolds stresses were obtained down to y ⁺≈2 for the mean flow and y ⁺≈8 for the turbulent stresses. Mean velocity data collapsed well on a simple law-of-the-wall based on the magnitude of the resultant velocity. The turbulence intensity and turbulent shear stress magnitude both increased with increased three-dimensionality. The ratio of these two quantities, the a ₁ structure parameter, decreased in the central regions of the boundary layer and showed profile similarity for y ⁺<50. The shear stress vector angle lagged behind the velocity gradient vector angle in the outer region of the boundary layer, however there was an indication that the shear stress vector tends to lead the velocity gradient vector close to the wall. Received: 16 July 1996/Accepted: 14 July 1997     

Application of the Dorodnitsyn finite element method to swirling boundary layer flow

The Dorodnitsyn finite element method for turbulent boundary layer flow with surface mass transfer is extended to include axisymmetric swirling internal boundary layer flow. Turbulence effects are represented by the two-layer eddy viscosity model of Cebeci and Smith¹ with extensions to allow for the effect of swirl. The method is applied to duct entry flow and a 10 degree included-angle conical diffuser, and produces results in close agreement with experimental measurements with only 11 grid points across the boundary layer. The introduction of swirl (w_e/u_e = 0.4) is found to have little effect on the axial skin friction in either a slightly favourable or adverse pressure gradient, but does cause an increase in the displacement area for an adverse pressure gradient. Surface mass transfer (blowing or suction) causes a substantial reduction (blowing) in axial skin friction and an increase in the displacement area. Both suction and the adverse pressure gradient have little influence on the circumferential velocity and shear stress components. Consequently in an adverse pressure gradient the flow direction adjacent to the wall is expected to approach the circumferential direction at some downstream location.     

Near‐wall profiles of mean flow and turbulence quantities predicted by eddy‐viscosity turbulence models

This paper presents for the simple flow over a flat plate the near‐wall profiles of mean flow and turbulence quantities determined with seven eddy‐viscosity turbulence models: the one‐equation turbulence models of Menter and Spalart & Allmaras; the k‐ω two‐equation model proposed by Wilcox and its TNT, BSL and SST variants and the $k-\sqrt{k}L$ two‐equation model. The results are obtained at several Reynolds numbers ranging from 10⁷ to 2.5 × 10⁹. Sets of nine geometrically similar Cartesian grids are adopted to demonstrate that the numerical uncertainty of the finest grid predictions is negligible. The profiles obtained numerically have relevance for the application of so‐called ‘wall function’ boundary conditions. Such wall functions refer to assumptions about the flow in the viscous sublayer and the ‘log law’ region. It turns out that these assumptions are not always satisfied by our results, which are obtained by computing the flow with full near‐wall resolution. In particular, the solution in the ‘log‐law’ region is dependent on the turbulence model and on the Reynolds number, which is a disconcerting result for those who apply wall functions. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Numerical simulations of non‐equilibrium turbulent boundary layer flowing over a bump

Large‐eddy simulation (LES) and Reynolds‐averaged Navier–Stokes simulation (RANS) with different turbulence models (including the standard k?ε, the standard k?ω, the shear stress transport k?ω (SST k?ω), and Spalart–Allmaras (S–A) turbulence models) have been employed to compute the turbulent flow of a two‐dimensional turbulent boundary layer over an unswept bump. The predictions of the simulations were compared with available experimental measurements in the literature. The comparisons of the LES and the SST k?ω model including the mean flow and turbulence stresses are in satisfied agreements with the available measurements. Although the flow experiences a strong adverse pressure gradient along the rear surface, the boundary layer is unique in that intermittent detachment occurring near the wall. The numerical results indicate that the boundary layer is not followed by mean‐flow separation or incipient separation as shown from the numerical results. The resolved turbulent shear stress is in a reasonable agreement with the experimental data, though the computational result of LES shows that its peak is overpredicted near the trailing edge of the bump, while the other used turbulence models, except the standard k?ε, underpredicts it. Analysis of the numerical results from LES confirms the experimental data, in which the existence of internal layers over the bump surface upstream of the summit and along the downstream flat plate. It also demonstrates that the quasi‐step increase in skin friction is due to perturbations in pressure gradient. The surface curvature enhances the near‐wall shear production of turbulent stresses, and is responsible for the formation of the internal layers. The aim of the present work is to examine the response and prediction capability of LES with the dynamic eddy viscosity model as a sub‐grid scale to the complex turbulence structure with the presence of streamline curvature generated by a bumpy surface. Aiming to reduce the computational costs with focus on the mean behavior of the non‐equilibrium turbulent boundary layer of flow over the bump surface, the present investigation also explains the best capability of one of the used RANS turbulence models to capture the driving mechanism for the surprisingly rapid return to equilibrium over the trailing flat plate found in the measurements. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Comparison of turbulence models for attached boundary layers relevant to aeronautics

With a single numerical method the performance of three classes of turbulence models is compared for different types of attached boundary layers, for which direct numerical simulations or experiments are available in the literature. The boundary-layer equations are solved with the following turbulence models: an algebraic model, two-equation models (k-ε andk-ω), and a differential Reynolds-stress model. The test cases are the channel flow, and boundary layers with zero, favourable and adverse streamwise pressure gradient. The differential Reynolds-stress model gives the best overall performance, whereas the performance of the algebraic model and thek-ω model is reasonably good. The performance of thek-ε model is less good for boundary layers with a non-zero streamwise pressure gradient, but it can easily be improved by an additional source term in the ε equation, which is also applied in the considered differential Reynolds-stress model.     

Low Reynolds number k–ε model for near‐wall flow

A wall‐distance free k–ε turbulence model is developed that accounts for the near‐wall and low Reynolds number effects emanating from the physical requirements. The model coefficients/functions depend non‐linearly on both the strain rate and vorticity invariants. Included diffusion terms and modified C_ε(1,2) coefficients amplify the level of dissipation in non‐equilibrium flow regions, thus reducing the kinetic energy and length scale magnitudes to improve prediction of adverse pressure gradient flows, involving flow separation and reattachment. The model is validated against a few flow cases, yielding predictions in good agreement with the direct numerical simulation (DNS) and experimental data. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A note on velocity-profile similarity of turbulent boundary layers with negligible wall stress

Summary The velocity profiles of a turbulent boundary layer with zero skin friction throughout its region of pressure rise, measured by Stratford in 1959, are analyzed in terms of a law of the wall and a velocity-defect law with a common velocity scale and a logarithmic velocity profile in the region of overlap. The analysis deviates from earlier work by Stratford and Townsend. It is shown that the flow in Stratford's boundary layer, even at the largest value of x ₁ at which measurements were taken, is not yet in a state of equilibrium. The velocity scale for turbulent boundary layers with zero skin friction is proportional to the cube root of the pressure gradient.     

Influence of the surface roughness on the third-order moments of velocity fluctuations

Roughness wall effects in a zero pressure gradient turbulent boundary layers were investigated using hot-wire anemometry. The skewness and diffusion factors of u and v, the longitudinal and normal velocity fluctuations, were measured and represented using wall variables. The results indicate that the wall roughness removes the crossover point between sweep and ejection events to the outer region of the layer for a single Reynolds number Re _θ  > 3,000. This behaviour exhibits that the roughness surface favours the maintaining of sweep events obtained by a quadrant analysis. These results show that communication between the wall region and outer region of a turbulent boundary layer exists and the wall similarity hypothesis for a rough wall is questionable. The effect of the wall roughness on the position of the point crossover from sweep to ejection motions with respect to the wall seems to be the same as that obtained when the Reynolds number is higher. Received: 8 March 2000/Accepted: 15 May 2000     

A study of the three-dimensional spectral energy distribution in a zero pressure gradient turbulent boundary layer

Time-resolved particle image velocimetry (PIV) measurements performed in wall parallel planes at three wall normal locations, y ⁺ = 34, 108, and 278, in a zero pressure gradient turbulent boundary layer at Re _τ = 470 are used to illuminate the distribution of streamwise velocity fluctuations in a three-dimensional energy spectrum (2D in space and 1D in time) over streamwise, spanwise, and temporal wavelengths. Two high-speed cameras placed side by side in the streamwise direction give a 10δ × 5δ streamwise by spanwise field of view with a vector spacing of _boxclose = z^+ 37\Updelta x^+ = \Updelta z^+ \approx 37 and a time step of \Updelta t⁺=0.5\Updelta t^+=0.5. Although 3D wavenumber--frequency spectra have been calculated in acoustics studies, to the authors’ knowledge this is the first time they has been calculated and presented for a turbulent boundary layer. The calculation and normalization of this spectrum, its relation to 2D and 1D spectra, and the effects of the PIV algorithm on its shape are carefully analyzed and outlined.     

Experimental Investigation of the Log-Law for an Adverse Pressure Gradient Turbulent Boundary Layer Flow at Re θ = 10000

We present an experimental investigation of a turbulent boundary layer flow at a significant adverse pressure gradient at Reynolds number Re _θ ?=?10000 using large field PIV. The testcase is designed to start from a zero pressure gradient flow at Re _θ ?=?8000 with a distinct log-law region following a slowly rising adverse pressure gradient. This allows to reveal a breakdown of the log-law under the effect of the adverse pressure gradient. The region described by the log-law is progressively reduced in terms of y ^?+? and then joins into a modified log-law which gives a good fit to the data up to at least y/δ ₉₉?≈?0.2. The scaling in the overlap region is demonstrated using the mean velocity slope diagnostic function, enabled due to the high quality of the PIV data. Locally, the velocity profile is measured down to the wall using long-range microscopic PIV with particle tracking velocimetry to determine the wall shear stress directly in the adverse pressure gradient region.