Statistical transition to turbulence in plane channel flow
Sébastien Gomé, Laurette S. Tuckerman, Dwight Barkley
Abstract
The subcritical route to turbulence in shear flows is characterized by metastable localized turbulent-laminar patterns. In plane channel flow, these take the form of intermittent oblique turbulent bands, which either proliferate or decay on timescales that depend on the Reynolds number. A statistical study via direct numerical simulations in a narrow tilted domain leads to the determination of a crossing Reynolds number of around 965, above which the probability for a band to split outpaces its probability to disappear.
Topics & Concepts
TurbulenceLaminar flowReynolds numberPhysicsOpen-channel flowPlane (geometry)MechanicsDirect numerical simulationCouette flowFlow (mathematics)Statistical physicsGeometryMathematicsFluid Dynamics and Turbulent FlowsWind and Air Flow StudiesPlant Water Relations and Carbon Dynamics