Measurement of turbulent spectra of particle-laden flows in a horizontal channel

Frequency spectra of air turbulence of particle-laden flows were investigated by use of a laser-Doppler velocimeter to discover the eddy-length scales that are influenced by the transported particles. The influence of glass and steel particles of 100–1,000 μm diameter was measured in a horizontal channel and a horizontal pipe for the streamwise and transverse components of the velocity vector. Particles that were small compared with the integral length scale of the particle-laden flow decrease the turbulent power density of the greatest eddies in varying degrees, depending on mass loading and distance from the wall. All fractions create turbulence in their wakes, the size of which depends on loading and slip velocity. These results support the hypothesis that the particles consume energy by following the large eddies that are much greater than the particle diameters, and in so doing, turbulence is created by this energy. Received: 28 September 2000/Accepted: 9 April 2001