Enstrophy, Strain and Scalar Gradient

Dynamics across the Turbulent-Nonturbulent

Interface in Jets

Carlos B. da Silva and José C. F. Pereira

Instituto Superior Técnico, Pav. Mecânica I, 1o andar/LASEF, Av. Rovisco Pais,

1049-001, Lisboa, Portugal Carlos.Silva@ist.utl.pt

1 Introduction
The mechanism of turbulent entrainment takes place in a sharp interface re-
gion separating turbulent and non-turbulent flow which is present in many
turbulent flows such as wakes, shear layers and jets. The goal of the present
work is to analyse detailed dynamics of the enstrophy, strain and scalar gra-
dient across this turbulent/non-turbulent (T/NT) interface. For this purpose
direct numerical simulations (DNS) of turbulent plane jets are used. The sim-
ulations are made with a Navier-Stokes solver using pseudo-spectral methods
and 3rd order Runge-Kutta time scheme described in da Silva and Pereira[1].
The present simulations include the computation of an advected or passive
scalar field with Schmidt number Sc = 0.7 and Lagrangian particle tracking.
The resolution is about 30 million grid points and the Taylor scale Reynolds
number reaches Reλ ≈ 140 at the centre of the shear layer. The results pre-
sented here consist in statistics made using 10 instantaneous fields taken from
the turbulent regime. The T/NT interface can be defined using either the vor-
ticity norm as in Bisset et al.[2] or using a scalar or concentration field as in
Westerweel et al.[3]. The present work uses the scalar field with a threshold
of Θ = 0.1 to define the interface.

2 Results
Figure 1 (a) shows mean profiles of the terms from the enstrophy transport
equation 21 Ωi Ωi , using ”classical” averages as in reference [1]. As can be seen,
the mean advective and mean viscous diffusion terms are negligible for all
values of y/H, even at the borders of the turbulent/non-turbulent region
(|y|/H ≈ 1.5), and the mean dynamics of the enstrophy is dominated by
a global balance between enstrophy production and viscous dissipation. A
similar picture is observed for the square of the scalar gradient transport
equation 21 Gi Gi .
2 Carlos B. da Silva and José C. F. Pereira

4 2
<Ω >I
<Uj∂/∂xj(Ω /2)>
2 2
<|Ωz| >I 2
30 3 2
<Ωz >I <S >I
<ΩiΩjSij> 2
<G >I
25 60
<ν ∂2/∂xj∂xj(Ω2/2)> 2 (monitor)
20 2
<-ν (∂Ωi/∂xj) >

Enstrophy eq. terms

1
15

10 0
-1 -0.5 0 0.5 1
40 (y-yI)/δ0.5
gh i
5

-5

-10

-15
20
f
-20

-25

-30 0
a bc d e
-2 -1 0 1 2 -0.6 -0.4 -0.2 0 0.2 0.4
y/H (y-yI)/H
(a) (b)

Fig. 1. (a) Mean profiles of terms from the enstrophy equation 12 Ωi Ωi , in the
turbulent plane jet; (b) Enstrophy, strain and square of the scalar gradient as a
function of the distance from the T/NT interface. The letters ”a” to ”j” represent
particular locations in relation to the T/NT interface position yI (”e” corresponds
to y − yI = 0). The spanwise vorticity component Ωz and its norm |Ωz | are also
shown.

Figure 1 (b) shows several mean profiles as a function of the distance from
the T/NT interface. We denote these means as <>I to distinguish them from
the classical means <>. The procedure to obtain these means is very similar
to the one used in reference [3]. The enstrophy Ω 2 and strain S 2 increase
quickly as the turbulent region is approached and the Ωz vorticity and its
modulus |Ωz | display a small peak just at the start of the turbulent region
as in references [2] and [3]. The square of the scalar gradient G2 on the other
hand has a very intense peak very close to the T/NT interface.

<Uj∂/∂xj(Ω2/2)>I <Uj∂/∂xj(G /2)>I

2
25
<ΩiΩjSij>I <-GiGjSij>I
2 100
20 <ν ∂ /∂xj∂xj(Ω /2)>I
2
<γ ∂2/∂xj∂xj(G2/2)>I
Scalar gradient eq. terms

2 2
15 <-ν (∂Ωi/∂xj) >I <-γ (∂Gi/∂xj) >I
Enstrophy eq. terms

10 50

0 0

-5

-10 -50

-15

-20 -100

-25
-0.6 -0.4 -0.2 0 0.2 0.4 -0.2 -0.1 0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4
(y-yI)/H (y-yI)/H
(a) (b)

Fig. 2. Mean profiles as a function of the distance from the T/NT interface y −yI =
0: (a) Terms from the enstrophy equation 21 Ωi Ωi ; (b) Terms from the square of the
scalar gradient equation 21 Gi Gi .

Figures 2 (a,b) show mean profiles of the enstrophy and square of the
scalar gradient across the T/NT interface, respectively. In the fully developed
turbulent shear layer region ((y − yI )/H > 0.5) the advective and viscous
 Enstrophy and Scalar Gradient in the Turbulent-Nonturbulent Interface 3

diffusion terms are negligible, and there is basically a strong balance between
production and molecular dissipation of both enstrophy and square of the
scalar gradient. The differences occur very close to the T/NT interface y−yI =
0. Indeed the advection is very important for both equations near y − yI = 0,
particularly for the scalar. Moreover, for the scalar, in strong contrast to the
”classical” averages all terms attain extremes very close to the interface (notice
that even the molecular diffusion term has some importance). This suggests
that there are indeed big differences between the process of entrainment of
velocity and of a given passive scalar. In isotropic turbulence the different
dynamics of the enstrophy and square of scalar gradient have been studied
extensively since the paper by Ruetsch and Maxey [4]).
3
(Turbulent region) Irrot
20
2
g h 2 Turb

<Q>I
10
Q

2 0
0

-10
i -1

-20 0 20
1 (Turbulent) -2
1
R -3
-1 -0.5 0 0.5 1
<R>
j
<Q>I
I

0 0 a
b (Irrotational)
c
d
-1 <Q>I
-1 f
<R>I
e (interface)
-0.4 -0.2 0 0.2 0.4 -0.5 0 0.5 1
(y-yI)/H <R>I
(a) (b)

Fig. 3. (a) Mean profiles of the 2nd and 3rd invariants of the velocity gradient
tensor Q and R as a function of the distance from the T/NT interface (Joint PDF
in the turbulent region also shown); (b) Trajectories of the mean invariants < Q >I
and < R >I in the (R,Q) map across the T/NT interface.
Finally, figures 3 (a,b) show mean profiles of the 2nd and 3rd invariants
of the velocity gradient tensor in relation to the T/NT interface, and their
position in the (R,Q) map. It is interesting to see that right at the interface
R has a maximum and Q has a minimum, and that this situation changes
very quickly afterwards. The (R,Q) map shows that as the irrotational flow
approaches the T/NT interface the flow tends to be more and more strain
dominated with a predominance of compression over vortex stretching. After
the T/NT interface is crossed the flow evolves quickly into an opposite situa-
tion i.e. vorticity dominated with a predominance of vortex vortex stretching
over vortex compression. The interface region itself is characterised mainly by
vortex compression and bi-axial strain.

References
1. C.B. da Silva and J.C.F. Pereira: Phys. Fluids 16 (12), 4506 (2004)
2. D.K. Bisset, J.C.R. Hunt and M.M. Rogers: J. Fluid Mech. 451, 383 (2002)
3. J. Westerweel, C. Fukushima, J.M. Pedersen and J.C.R. Hunt. Phys. Review
Lett. 95, 174501 (2005)
4. G. R. Ruetsch and M. R. Maxey. Phys. Fluids A 3 (6), 1587 (1991)