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Uncoupling Coriolis Force and Rotating Buoyancy Effects on Full-Field Heat Transfer Properties of a Rotating Channel

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Published on: October 5, 2018

Flow reversals in thermally driven turbulence.

Kazuyasu Sugiyama¹, Rui Ni, Richard J A M Stevens

¹Physics of Fluids Group, Faculty of Science and Technology, Impact and MESAþ Institutes & Burgers Center for Fluid Dynamics,University of Twente, 7500AE Enschede, The Netherlands.

Physical Review Letters

|September 28, 2010

Summary

Large-scale flow reversals in Rayleigh-Bénard convection are driven by corner-flow rolls. These secondary rolls grow and eventually dominate the main flow, causing the reversal, dependent on Rayleigh and Prandtl numbers.

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Magnetically Induced Rotating Rayleigh-Taylor Instability

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Published on: March 3, 2017

Area of Science:

Fluid Dynamics
Heat Transfer
Complex Systems

Background:

Rayleigh-Bénard convection is a fundamental fluid dynamics phenomenon.
Understanding flow reversals is key to predicting system behavior.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate the mechanisms behind large-scale flow reversals in Rayleigh-Bénard convection.
To map the parameter space (Rayleigh and Prandtl numbers) influencing these reversals.

Main Methods:

Particle image velocimetry (PIV) flow visualization.
Direct numerical simulations (DNS) of the Boussinesq equations.
Analysis of quasi-two-dimensional, rectangular convection cells.

Main Results:

Identified a diagonal large-scale convection roll and two smaller corner-flow rolls for medium Prandtl numbers.
Demonstrated that corner-flow rolls grow via plume detachment and eventually overtake the main flow, causing reversals.
Mapped the Rayleigh vs. Prandtl number space, showing sensitive dependence of reversals on these parameters.

Conclusions:

Corner-flow rolls are critical for initiating large-scale flow reversals.
The occurrence and dynamics of reversals are strongly dependent on the Rayleigh and Prandtl numbers.
This study provides insights into the complex dynamics of convective flows.