Signature of Pressure Gradient History on Wall Shear Stress in Turbulent Boundary Layers

TL;DR

This study investigates how the history of pressure gradients affects wall shear stress in turbulent boundary layers, revealing long-lasting upstream influences and the role of large-scale structures through detailed experiments and measurements.

Contribution

It provides new experimental evidence of history effects on wall shear stress in turbulent boundary layers subjected to varying pressure gradients, highlighting the influence of large-scale structures.

Findings

Wall shear stress is affected by upstream pressure gradient history.

Long-lasting upstream effects are more pronounced at lower Reynolds numbers.

Large-scale structures influence wall shear stress through coherence and convection velocity.

Abstract

Our experiments evaluate the presence of history effects on wall shear stress in turbulent boundary layers (TBLs) subjected to five sequences of favorable and adverse pressure gradients (FAPGs) of increasing strength. Steady but spatially varying FAPGs are imposed on a flat plate using a deformable convex false ceiling. An array of three one-dimensional capacitive probes, positioned in the adverse pressure gradient (APG) region downstream of the favorable pressure gradient (FPG), enables direct and high-frequency measurements of wall shear stress. We first characterize the sensor performance under canonical zero pressure gradient (ZPG) conditions across a range of Reynolds numbers. With increasing FAPG strength, a non-monotonic increase in skin friction and a reduction in normalized wall shear stress fluctuations are observed, indicating long-lasting upstream FPG influence within the downstream APG region. These effects are more pronounced at lower Reynolds numbers. Additionally, the influence of large-scale structures in FAPG on wall shear stress is studied through coherence spectrum, two points cross-correlation, and convection velocity.