High-Reynolds-number fractal signature of nascent turbulence during transition.

ABSTRACT: Transition from laminar to turbulent flow occurring over a smooth surface is a particularly important route to chaos in fluid dynamics. It often occurs via sporadic inception of spatially localized patches (spots) of turbulence that grow and merge downstream to become the fully turbulent boundary layer. A long-standing question has been whether these incipient spots already contain properties of high-Reynolds-number, developed turbulence. In this study, the question is posed for geometric scaling properties of the interface separating turbulence within the spots from the outer flow. For high-Reynolds-number turbulence, such interfaces are known to display fractal scaling laws with a dimension [Formula: see text], where the 1/3 excess exponent above 2 (smooth surfaces) follows from Kolmogor

SUBMITTER: Wu Z 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7035509 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature