Hierarchical network of thermal plumes and their dynamics in turbulent Rayleigh-Benard convection.

ABSTRACT: The link between characteristic coherent structures and their statistical properties in turbulent flows remains largely unclear and is thus a central bottleneck for a better understanding of turbulent flows. Here, we demonstrate this link for the important problem of thermal convection. We show how the hierarchical plume network in the near-wall region of the flow, which becomes increasingly sparse with increasing distance away from the wall, is connected to the marginal stability of the thermal boundary layer and the resulting global heat transport. Our results, which are based on a series of direct numerical simulations for Rayleigh numbers up to [Formula: see text] in a relatively shallow layer, suggest a highly fluctuating thermal boundary layer that is composed of local building block

SUBMITTER: Shevkar PP 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12358893 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature