Oblique laminar-turbulent interfaces in plane shear flows

Localized structures such as turbulent stripes and turbulent spots are typical features of transitional wall-bounded flows in the subcritical regime. Based on an assumption for scale separation between large and small scales, we show analytically that the corresponding laminar-turbulent interfaces a...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Physical review letters 2013, Vol.110 (3), p.034502-034502, Article 034502
Main Authors: Duguet, Yohann, Schlatter, Philipp
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Fluid mechanics
In-plane shear
Large-scale flows
Localized structures
Mechanics
Physics
Plane Couette flow
Plane Poiseuille flow
Scale separation
Small scale
Subcritical flow
Taylor Couette flow
Turbulent fluctuation
Turbulent spots
Wall bounded flows
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Summary:Localized structures such as turbulent stripes and turbulent spots are typical features of transitional wall-bounded flows in the subcritical regime. Based on an assumption for scale separation between large and small scales, we show analytically that the corresponding laminar-turbulent interfaces are always oblique with respect to the mean direction of the flow. In the case of plane Couette flow, the mismatch between the streamwise flow rates near the boundaries of the turbulence patch generates a large-scale flow with a nonzero spanwise component. Advection of the small-scale turbulent fluctuations (streaks) by the corresponding large-scale flow distorts the shape of the turbulence patch and is responsible for its oblique growth. This mechanism can be easily extended to other subcritical flows such as plane Poiseuille flow or Taylor-Couette flow.
ISSN:0031-9007
1079-7114
1079-7114
DOI:10.1103/PhysRevLett.110.034502