Dynamics of vortical structures in a homogeneous shear flow

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Abstract
The mechanism of generation, development and interaction of vortical structures, extracted as concentrated-vorticity regions, in homogeneous shear turbulence is investigated by the use of the results of a direct numerical simulation of the Navier-Stokes equation with 1283 grid points. Among others, a few of typical vortical structures are identified as important dynamical elements, namely longitudinal and lateral vortex tubes and vortex layers. They interact strongly with each other. Longitudinal vortex tubes are generated from a random fluctuating vorticity field through stretching of fluid elements caused by the mean linear shear. They are inclined toward the streamwise direction by rotational motion due to the mean shear. There is a small (about 10°) deviation in direction between the longitudinal vortex tubes and vorticity vectors therein, which makes the vorticity vectors turn toward the spanwise direction (against the mean vorticity) until the spanwise components of the fluctuating vorticity become comparable in magnitude with the mean vorticity. These longitudinal vortex tubes induce straining flows perpendicular to themselves which generate vortex layers with spanwise vorticity in planes spanned by the tubes and the spanwise axis. These vortex layers are unstable, and roll up into lateral vortex tubes with concentrated spanwise vorticity through the Kelvin-Helmholtz instability. All of these vortical structures, through strong mutual interactions, break down into a complicated smallscale random vorticity field. Throughout the simulated period an oblique stripe structure dominates the whole flow field: initially it is inclined at about 45° to the downstream and, as the flow develops, the inclination angle decreases but eventually stays at around 10°–20°.