On the wavenumber-frequency spectra of the wall pressure fluctuations in turbulent channel flow

TL;DR

This study uses DNS to analyze the three-dimensional spectrum of wall pressure fluctuations in turbulent channel flow, revealing the importance of cross spectra and proposing a predictive model based on random sweeping.

Contribution

It introduces a detailed analysis of the wavenumber-frequency spectrum and evaluates the impact of neglecting cross spectra in predictive models.

Findings

The energy-containing spectrum can be predicted using a random sweeping model.

Neglecting the cross spectrum causes up to 4.7dB error in the sub-convective region.

Cross spectra are significant in low Mach number acoustics, affecting radiated sound predictions.

Abstract

Direct numerical simulations (DNS) of turbulent channel flows up to $Re_{\tau} \approx 1000$ are conducted to investigate the three-dimensional (consisting of streamwise wavenumber, spanwise wavenumber and frequency) spectrum of wall pressure fluctuations. To develop a predictive model of the wavenumber-frequency spectrum from the wavenumber spectrum, the time decorrelation mechanisms of wall pressure fluctuations are investigated. It is discovered that the energy-containing part of the wavenumber-frequency spectrum of wall pressure fluctuations can be well predicted using a similar random sweeping model for streamwise velocity fluctuations. To refine the investigation, we further decompose the spectrum of the total wall pressure fluctuations into the auto spectra of rapid and slow pressure fluctuations, and the cross spectrum between them. We focus on evaluating the assumption applied in many predictive models, that is, the magnitude of the cross spectrum is negligibly small. The present DNS shows that neglecting the cross spectrum causes a maximum error up to 4.7dB in the sub-convective region for all Reynolds numbers under test. Our analyses indicate that the assumption of neglecting the cross spectrum needs to be applied carefully in the investigations of acoustics at low Mach numbers, in which the sub-convective components of wall pressure fluctuations make important contributions to the radiated acoustic power.