On phase asymmetries in oscillatory pipe flow

TL;DR

This study uses direct numerical simulations to explore how oscillatory pipe flow at different frequencies can lead to relaminarization or asymmetric turbulence, validating results against experimental and analytical data.

Contribution

The paper provides detailed DNS results on oscillatory pipe flow at various frequencies, highlighting asymmetries and flow state transitions, with validation against existing experimental and analytical data.

Findings

Flow relaminarizes or becomes asymmetric depending on frequency.

Strong asymmetry observed between positive and negative flow cycles at Wo=6.5.

DNS results agree well with experimental and analytical predictions.

Abstract

We present results from direct numerical simulations (DNS) of oscillatory pipe flow at several dimensionless frequencies Wo = {6.5, 13, 26} and one fixed shear Reynolds number Re_{\tau} = 1440. Starting from a fully-developed turbulent velocity field at that Re_{\tau}, the oscillatory flow either relaminarises or reaches a conditionally turbulent or strongly asymmetric state depending on Wo. The numerical method is validated by demonstrating excellent agreement of our DNS results with experimental data and analytical predictions from literature for the limiting cases of non-oscillating but turbulent and oscillating but laminar pipe flow. For an oscillating turbulent pipe flow we further found a very good agreement between qualitative descriptions of the characteristic flow features observed in experiments and our DNS. Here, we focus on the observation of a strongly asymmetric behaviour between the positive and the negative half-cycles of the oscillatory pipe flow at Wo=6.5.