Small scale intermittency in a rough wall turbulent boundary layer

Abstract

 Relatively good quality isotropy is observed in the central region of a turbulent boundary layer developing over a mesh screen rough wall. Spectra of velocity and, more especially, vorticity fluctuations satisfy isotropy over a significant wavenumber range. Inertial range scaling exponents ζ _u2 (p) and ζ _u3 (p) of moments of order p(?8) of increments of the transverse velocity fluctuations u ₂ and u ₃ are significantly smaller than the exponents ζ _u1 (p) of increments of the longitudinal velocity fluctuation u ₁. Exponents inferred from the locally averaged values of squared transverse vorticity fluctuations are only slightly smaller than ζ _u1 (p). The difference between ζ _u1 (p) and ζ _u2 (p) [or ζ _u3 (p)] more likely reflects the departure from isotropy of inertial range scales. There is evidence to suggest that the difference decreases with an increase in the Reynolds number and/or a decrease in the magnitude of the mean shear.