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Control of long-range correlations in turbulence

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Abstract

The character of turbulence depends on where it develops. Turbulence near boundaries, for instance, is different than in a free stream. To elucidate the differences between flows, it is instructive to vary the structure of turbulence systematically, but there are few ways of stirring turbulence that make this possible. In other words, an experiment typically examines either a boundary layer or a free stream, say, and the structure of the turbulence is fixed by the geometry of the experiment. We introduce a new active grid with many more degrees of freedom than the previous active grids. The additional degrees of freedom make it possible to control various properties of the turbulence. We show how long-range correlations in the turbulent velocity fluctuations can be shaped by changing the way the active grid moves. Specifically, we show how not only the correlation length, but also the detailed shape of the correlation function depends on the correlations imposed in the motions of the grid. Until now, large-scale structure had not been adjustable in experiments. This new capability makes possible new systematic investigations into turbulence dissipation and dispersion, for example, and perhaps in flows that mimic features of boundary layers, free streams, and flows of intermediate character.

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Notes

  1. An eight-sided cross section was chosen by the designer to maximize the area available to the flow within the circular cross section of the VDTT pressure vessel while allowing equipment to be installed between the wall of the test section and the wall of the pressure vessel.

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Acknowledgements

Since its inception more than 10 years ago, many assistants and colleagues have made this experiment possible. They include the staff of the Max Planck Institute for Dynamics and Self-Organization—Joachim Hesse, Andreas Kopp, Artur Kubitzek, Ortwin Kurre, Andreas Renner, Udo Schminke and their colleagues in the machine and electronics shops. We thank Helmut Eckelmann and Holger Nobach for helping to put the Prandtl tunnel back into running condition. The project was largely advanced by undergraduates from the University of Göttingen and Princeton University—Florian Köhler, who wrote parts of the final active grid control code and helped to build the new test section for the Prandtl tunnel, and Jessie Liu and Horace Zhang, who developed initial versions of our methods and collected preliminary data. We thank the Princeton International Internship Program for funding the internships of Jessie Liu, Horace Zhang, and authors Kevin Griffin and Nathan Wei. Visiting graduate-student assistants included Ergun Cekli, who wrote the first active grid control code and helped to build the active grid, and Florent Lachaussée, who developed new methods to switch the grid between different states. Finally, we acknowledge Zellman Warhaft for stimulating initial discussions about active grid design and for providing access to his wind tunnel in which we measured the torque on winglets, Greg Voth who worked with Florent to acquire initial data, and Willem van de Water for his assistance throughout the project.

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Author notes

  1. Kevin P. Griffin and Nathaniel J. Wei contributed equally.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA

    Kevin P. Griffin

  2. Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, 08544, USA

    Nathaniel J. Wei

  3. Max Planck Institute for Dynamics and Self-Organization, 37077, Göttingen, Germany

    Eberhard Bodenschatz

  4. Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, 14850, USA

    Gregory P. Bewley

Authors
  1. Kevin P. Griffin
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  2. Nathaniel J. Wei
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  3. Eberhard Bodenschatz
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  4. Gregory P. Bewley
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Correspondence to Gregory P. Bewley.

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Griffin, K.P., Wei, N.J., Bodenschatz, E. et al. Control of long-range correlations in turbulence. Exp Fluids 60, 55 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00348-019-2698-1

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