Related Experiment Video
Updated: Mar 21, 2026

The Diffusion of Passive Tracers in Laminar Shear Flow
Published on: May 1, 2018
Reynolds-number dependence of the longitudinal dispersion in turbulent pipe flow
Christopher Hawkins1, Luiza Angheluta1, Marcin Krotkiewski2
1Physics of Geological Processes, Department of Physics, University of Oslo, P.O. 1048 Blindern, 0316 Oslo, Norway.
Abstract:
In Taylor's theory, the longitudinal dispersion in turbulent pipe flows approaches, on long time scales, a diffusive behavior with a constant diffusivity K_{L}, which depends empirically on the Reynolds number Re. We show that the dependence on Re can be determined from the turbulent energy spectrum. By using the intimate connection between the friction factor and the longitudinal dispersion in wall-bounded turbulence, we predict different asymptotic scaling laws of K_{L}(Re) depending on the different turbulent cascades in two-dimensional turbulence. We also explore numerically the K_{L}(Re) dependence in turbulent channel flows with smooth and rough walls using a lattice Boltzmann method.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
Poiseuille's Law and Reynolds Number
General Characteristics of Pipe Flow I
The classification of fluid...
Laminar Flow: Problem Solving
General Characteristics of Pipe Flow II
The distance to reach a fully developed flow is called the entrance length and depends on the...
Laminar Flow
The Buckingham Pi Theorem

