Publisher Description

Despite significant advancements in the understanding of fluid flows, combustion and material technologies, hypersonic flight still presents numerous technological challenges. In hypersonic vehicles turbulence is critical in controlling heat generation in the boundary layer, mixing inside the combustor, generation of acoustic noise, and mass flow in the intake. The study of turbulence in highly compressible flows is challenging compared to incompressible due to a drastic change in the behavior of pressure and a relaxation of the incompressibility constraint. In addition fluid flow inside a flight vehicle is complicated by wall-effects, heat generation and complex boundary conditions. Homogeneous shear flow contains most of the relevant physics of boundary and mixing layers without the aforementioned complicating effects. In this work we aim to understand and characterize the role of pressure, velocity-pressure interaction, velocity-thermodynamics interaction in the late-stage transition-to-turbulence regime in a high speed shear dominated flow by studying the evolution of perturbations in in a high Mach number homogeneous shear flow. We use a modal-analysis based approach towards understanding the statistical behavior of turbulence. Individual Fourier waves constituting the initial flow field are studied in isolation and in combination to understand collective statistical behavior. We demonstrate proof of concept of novel acoustic based strategies for controlling the onset of turbulence. Towards this goal we perform direct numerical simulations (DNS) in three studies: (a) development and evaluation of gas kinetic based numerical tool for DNS of compressible turbulence, and perform detailed evaluation of the efficacy of different interpolation schemes in capturing solenoidal and dilatational quantities, (b) modal investigation in the behavior of pressure and isolation of linear, non-linear, inertial and pressure actions, and (c) modal investigation in the possible acoustic based control strategies in homogeneously sheared compressible flows. The findings help to understand the manifestation of the effects of compressibility on transition and turbulence via the velocity-pressure interactions and the action of individual waves. The present study helps towards the design of control mechanisms for compressible turbulence and the development of physically consistent pressure strain correlation models. The electronic version of this dissertation is accessible from http://hdl.handle.net/1969.1/148321

Compressibility, Turbulence and High Speed Flow introduces the reader to the field of compressible turbulence and compressible turbulent flows across a broad speed range, through a unique complimentary treatment of both the theoretical foundations and the measurement and analysis tools currently used. The book provides the reader with the necessary background and current trends in the theoretical and experimental aspects of compressible turbulent flows and compressible turbulence. Detailed derivations of the pertinent equations describing the motion of such turbulent flows is provided and an extensive discussion of the various approaches used in predicting both free shear and wall bounded flows is presented. Experimental measurement techniques common to the compressible flow regime are introduced with particular emphasis on the unique challenges presented by high speed flows. Both experimental and numerical simulation work is supplied throughout to provide the reader with an overall perspective of current trends. - An introduction to current techniques in compressible turbulent flow analysis - An approach that enables engineers to identify and solve complex compressible flow challenges - Prediction methodologies, including the Reynolds-averaged Navier Stokes (RANS) method, scale filtered methods and direct numerical simulation (DNS) - Current strategies focusing on compressible flow control