Previous work on solute transport with sorption in Poiseuille flow has reached contradictory conclusions. Some have concluded that sorption increases mean solute transport velocity and decreases dispersion relative to a tracer, while others have concluded the opposite. Here we resolve this contradiction by deriving a series solution for the transient evolution that recovers previous results in the appropriate limits. This solution shows a transition in solute transport behaviour from early to late time that is captured by the first- and zeroth-order terms. Mean solute transport velocity is increased at early times and reduced at late times, while solute dispersion is initially reduced, but shows a complex dependence on the partition coefficient $k$ at late times. In the equilibrium sorption model, the time scale of the early regime and the duration of the transition to the late regime both increase with $\ln k$ for large $k$. The early regime is pronounced in strongly sorbing systems ($k\gg 1$). The kinetic sorption model shows a similar transition from the early to the late transport regime and recovers the equilibrium results when adsorption and desorption rates are large. As the reaction rates slow down, the duration of the early regime increases, but the changes in transport velocity and dispersion relative to a tracer diminish. In general, if the partition coefficient $k$ is large, the early regime is well developed and the behaviour is well characterized by the analysis of the limiting case without desorption.

We present a theoretical study of the statics and dynamics of a partially wetting liquid droplet, of equilibrium contact angle $\unicode[STIX]{x1D703}_{e}$, confined in a solid wedge geometry of opening angle $\unicode[STIX]{x1D6FD}$. We focus on a mostly non-wetting regime, given by the condition $\unicode[STIX]{x1D703}_{e}-\unicode[STIX]{x1D6FD}>90^{\circ }$, where the droplet forms a liquid barrel – a closed shape of positive mean curvature. Using a quasi-equilibrium assumption for the shape of the liquid–gas interface, we compute the changes to the surface energy and pressure distribution of the liquid upon a translation along the symmetry plane of the wedge. Our model is in good agreement with numerical calculations of the surface energy minimisation of static droplets deformed by gravity. Beyond the statics, we put forward a Lagrangian description of the droplet dynamics. We focus on the overdamped limit, where the driving capillary force is balanced by the frictional forces arising from the bulk hydrodynamics, the corner flow near the contact lines and the contact-line friction. Our results provide a theoretical framework to describe the motion of partially wetting liquids in confinement, and can be used to gain further understanding on the relative importance of dissipative processes that span from microscopic to macroscopic length scales.

Direct numerical simulations were used to investigate the downstream decay of fully developed flow in a $180^{\circ }$ curved pipe that exits into a straight outlet. The flow is studied for a range of Reynolds numbers and pipe-to-curvature radius ratios. Velocity, pressure and vorticity fields are calculated to visualize the downstream decay process. Transition ‘decay’ lengths are calculated using the norm of the velocity perturbation from the Hagen–Poiseuille velocity profile, the wall-averaged shear stress, the integral of the magnitude of the vorticity, and the maximum value of the $Q$-criterion on a cross-section. Transition lengths to the fully developed Poiseuille distribution are found to have a linear dependence on the Reynolds number with no noticeable dependence on the pipe-to-curvature radius ratio, despite the flow’s dependence on both parameters. This linear dependence of Reynolds number on the transition length is explained by linearizing the Navier–Stokes equations about the Poiseuille flow, using the form of the fully developed Dean flow as an initial condition, and using appropriate scaling arguments. We extend our results by comparing this flow recovery downstream of a curved pipe to the flow recovery in the downstream outlets of a T-junction flow. Specifically, we compare the transition lengths between these flows and document how the transition lengths depend on the Reynolds number.

Since free Stokesian swimming does no work external to fluid and body, the classical thermodynamic efficiency of this activity is zero. This paper introduces a potential thermodynamic efficiency by partially tethering the body so that work is done externally and instantaneously. We compare the resulting efficiency with other definitions utilized in Stokes flow, extend the instantaneous definition to encompass a full swimming stroke, and compute it for propulsion of a spherical body by a helical flagellum.

The construction of approximate Schrödinger eigenvalue equations for planetary (Rossby) waves and for inertia–gravity (Poincaré) waves on an ocean-covered rotating sphere yields highly accurate estimates of the phase speeds and meridional variation of these waves. The results are applicable to fast rotating spheres such as Earth where the speed of barotropic gravity waves is smaller than twice the tangential speed on the equator of the rotating sphere. The implication of these new results is that the phase speed of Rossby waves in a barotropic ocean that covers an Earth-like planet is independent of the speed of gravity waves for sufficiently large zonal wavenumber and (meridional) mode number. For Poincaré waves our results demonstrate that the dispersion relation is linear, (so the waves are non-dispersive and the phase speed is independent of the wavenumber), except when the zonal wavenumber and the (meridional) mode number are both near 1.

The present study is an experimental investigation of the relationship between the large- and small-scale motions in the far field of an air jet at high Reynolds number. In the first part of our investigation, the analysis is based on time series of hot-wire anemometry (HWA), which are converted into space series after applying the Taylor hypothesis. By using a spectral filter, two signals are constructed, one representative of the large-scale motions ($2{\it\lambda}_{T}-L$, where ${\it\lambda}_{T}$ is the Taylor length scale, and $L$ is the integral length scale) and the other representative of the small-scale motions ($1.5{-}5{\it\eta}$, where ${\it\eta}$ is the Kolmogorov length scale). The small-scale signal is found to be modulated both in amplitude and in frequency by the energy-containing scales in an analogous way, both at the centreline and around the centreline. In particular, for positive fluctuations of the large-scale signal, the small-scale signal is locally stronger in amplitude (amplitude modulation), and it locally exhibits a higher number of local maxima and minima (frequency modulation). The extent of this modulation is quantified based on the strength of the large-scale fluctuations. The response of the small-scale motions to amplitude modulation can be considered instantaneous, being on the order of one Kolmogorov time scale. In the second part of our investigation we use long-range ${\it\mu}$PIV to study the behaviour of the small-scale motions in relation to their position in either high-speed or low-speed regions of the flow. The spatially resolved velocity vector fields allow us to quantify amplitude modulation directly in physical space. From this direct estimation in physical space, amplitude modulation is only 25 % of the value measured from HWA. The remaining 75 % comes from the fixed spectral band filter used to obtain the large- and small-scale signals, which does not consider the local convection velocity. A very similar overestimation of amplitude modulation when quantified in the time-frame is also obtained analytically. Furthermore, the size of the structures of intense vorticity does not change significantly in relation to the large-scale velocity fluctuation, meaning that there is no significant spatial frequency modulation. The remaining amplitude modulation in space can be explained as a statistical coupling between the strength of the structures of vorticity and their preferential location inside large-scale high-velocity regions. Finally, the implications that the present findings have on amplitude and frequency modulation in turbulent boundary layers (TBLs) are discussed.

The advance of the front of a dense gravity current propagating in a rectangular channel and V-shaped valley both horizontally and up a shallow slope is examined through theory, full-depth lock–release laboratory experiments and hydrostatic numerical simulations. Consistent with theory, experiments and simulations show that the front speed is relatively faster in the valley than in the channel. The front speed measured shortly after release from the lock is 5–22 % smaller than theory, with greater discrepancy found in upsloping V-shaped valleys. By contrast, the simulated speed is approximately 6 % larger than theory, showing no dependence on slope for rise angles up to ${\it\theta}=8^{\circ }$. Unlike gravity currents in a channel, the current head is observed in experiments to be more turbulent when propagating in a V-shaped valley. The turbulence is presumably enhanced due to the lateral flows down the sloping sides of the valley. As a consequence, lateral momentum transport contributes to the observed lower initial speeds. A Wentzel–Kramers–Brillouin like theory predicting the deceleration of the current as it runs upslope agrees remarkably well with simulations and with most experiments, within errors.

This study investigates the collision statistics of inertial particles in inverse-cascading two-dimensional (2D) homogeneous isotropic turbulence by means of a direct numerical simulation (DNS). A collision kernel model for particles with small Stokes number ($\mathit{St}$) in 2D flows is proposed based on the model of Saffman & Turner (J. Fluid Mech., vol. 1, 1956, pp. 16–30) (ST56 model). The DNS results agree with this 2D version of the ST56 model for $\mathit{St}\lesssim 0.1$. It is then confirmed that our DNS results satisfy the 2D version of the spherical formulation of the collision kernel. The fact that the flatness factor stays around 3 in our 2D flow confirms that the present 2D turbulent flow is nearly intermittency-free. Collision statistics for $\mathit{St}= 0.1$, 0.4 and 0.6, i.e. for $\mathit{St}<1$, are obtained from the present 2D DNS and compared with those obtained from the three-dimensional (3D) DNS of Onishi et al. (J. Comput. Phys., vol. 242, 2013, pp. 809–827). We have observed that the 3D radial distribution function at contact ($g(R)$, the so-called clustering effect) decreases for $\mathit{St}= 0.4$ and 0.6 with increasing Reynolds number, while the 2D $g(R)$ does not show a significant dependence on Reynolds number. This observation supports the view that the Reynolds-number dependence of $g(R)$ observed in three dimensions is due to internal intermittency of the 3D turbulence. We have further investigated the local $\mathit{St}$, which is a function of the local flow strain rates, and proposed a plausible mechanism that can explain the Reynolds-number dependence of $g(R)$. Meanwhile, 2D stochastic simulations based on the Smoluchowski equations for $\mathit{St}\ll 1$ show that the collision growth can be predicted by the 2D ST56 model and that rare but strong events do not play a significant role in such a small-$\mathit{St}$ particle system. However, the probability density function of local $\mathit{St}$ at the sites of colliding particle pairs supports the view that powerful rare events can be important for particle growth even in the absence of internal intermittency when $\mathit{St}$ is not much smaller than unity.

The response characteristics of a hot wire operated at constant temperature and exposed to a mean-velocity gradient along its length are examined both analytically and experimentally. The shear sensitivity of local wire temperature distributions, as measured with an infrared microscope, are compared with predicted temperature distributions in order to select a convective heat transfer correlation which can be applied locally along a wire in shear flow. On the basis of this correlation, the steady-state and dynamic response behaviour of platinum and tungsten wires in shear flow are examined by means of computer-generated data. Response curves of general applicability are presented which can be used to correct local mean-velocity and turbulence intensity measurements whenever a mean-velocity gradient exists along a wire.

The time-mean heat transfer of the incompressible laminar boundary layer on a flat plate under the influence of oscillation is studied analytically. Flow oscillation amplitude outside the boundary layer is assumed constant along the surface and the viscous dissipation effect is considered. First, the small velocity–amplitude case is treated and the approximate formulae are obtained in the extreme cases when the frequency is low and high. Next, the finite velocity–amplitude case is treated under the condition of high frequency and it is found that the formulae obtained for the small amplitude and high frequency case are also valid. These results show that, when the oscillation is of high frequency, the time-mean heat flux to the wall can be several times as large as that without oscillation. This is due wholly to the viscous dissipation effect combined with oscillation.

Nonlinear coupling among wave modes and vortical modes is investigated with the following question in mind: can we distinguish the wave–vortical interactions largely responsible for formation versus evolution of coherent, balanced structures? The two main case studies use initial conditions that project only onto the vortical-mode flow component of the rotating Boussinesq equations: (i) an initially balanced dipole and (ii) random initial data in the vortical modes. Both case studies compare quasi-geostrophic (QG) dynamics (involving only nonlinear interactions between vortical modes) to the dynamics of intermediate models allowing for two-way feedback between wave modes and vortical modes. For an initially balanced dipole with symmetry across the $\hat{\boldsymbol {x}}$-axis, the QG dipole will propagate along the $\hat{\boldsymbol {x}}$-axis while the trajectory of the Boussinesq dipole exhibits a cyclonic drift. Compared to a forced linear (FL) model with one-way forcing of wave modes by the vortical modes, the simplest intermediate model with two-way feedback involving vortical–vortical–wave interactions is able to capture the speed and trajectory of the dipole for roughly ten times longer at Rossby $Ro$ and Froude $Fr$ numbers $Ro = Fr \approx 0.1$. Despite its success at tracking the dipole, the latter intermediate model does not accurately capture the details of the flow structure within the adjusted dipole. For decay from random initial conditions in the vortical modes, the full Boussinesq equations generate vortices that are smaller than QG vortices, indicating that wave–vortical interactions are fundamental for creating the correct balanced state. The intermediate model with QG and vortical–vortical–wave interactions actually prevents the formation of vortices. Taken together these case studies suggest that: vortical–vortical–wave interactions create waves and thereby influence the evolution of balanced structures; vortical–wave–wave interactions take energy out of the wave modes and contribute in an essential way to the formation of coherent balanced structures.

A self-preservation (SP) analysis is carried out for a zero pressure gradient (ZPG) rough-wall turbulent boundary layer with a view to establishing the requirements of complete SP (i.e. SP across the entire layer) and determining if these are achievable. The analysis shows that SP is achievable in certain rough-wall boundary layers (irrespectively of the Reynolds number $Re$), when the mean viscous stress is zero or negligible compared to the form drag across the entire boundary layer. In this case, the velocity scale $u^{\ast }$ must be constant, the length scale $l$ should vary linearly with the streamwise distance $x$ and the roughness height $k$ must be proportional to $l$. Although this result is consistent with that of Rotta (Prog. Aeronaut. Sci., vol. 2 (1), 1962, pp. 1–95), it is derived in a more rigorous manner than the method employed by Rotta. Further, it is noted that complete SP is not possible in a smooth-wall ZPG turbulent boundary layer. The SP conditions are tested against published experimental data on both a smooth wall (Kulandaivelu, 2012, PhD thesis, The University of Melbourne) and a rough wall, where the roughness height increases linearly with $x$ (Kameda et al., J. Fluid Sci. Technol., vol. 3 (1), 2008, pp. 31–42). Complete SP in a ZPG rough-wall turbulent boundary layer seems indeed possible when $k\propto x$.

The results of point-particle Eulerian–Lagrangian direct numerical simulation (DNS) calculations of dilute particle-laden turbulent channel flow are used to study the effect of the particles on the local flow topology. It is found that in the viscous sublayer, the flow becomes increasingly more two-dimensional as the two-way coupling effect (due to interaction between particles and fluid flow) increases with increasing particle load. Beyond the viscous sublayer the modifications in flow topology are not strongly related to the preferential concentration of particles in the flow field, which is in contrast to previous channel flow simulations. The effect of particles on the turbulent flow beyond the viscous sublayer is mostly a result of the overall changing near-wall dynamics of the fluid flow.

The behaviour of an isolated nearly spherical drop in an ambient linear flow is examined analytically at small but finite Reynolds numbers, and thereby the first effects of inertia on the bulk stress in a dilute emulsion of neutrally buoyant drops are calculated. The Reynolds numbers, Re = a2ρ/μ and , are the relevant dimensionless measures of inertia in the continuous and disperse(drop) phases, respectively. Here, a is the drop radius, is the shear rate, ρ is the common density and and μ are, respectively, the viscosities of the drop and the suspending fluid. The assumption of nearly spherical drops implies the dominance of surface tension, and the analysis therefore corresponds to the limit of the capillary number(Ca) based on the viscosity of the suspending fluid being small but finite; in other words, Ca ≪ 1, where Ca = μa/T, T being the coefficient of interfacial tension. The bulk stress is determined to O(φRe) via two approaches. The first one is the familiar direct approach based on determining the force density associated with the disturbance velocity field on the surface of the drop; the latter is determined to O(Re) from a regular perturbation analysis. The second approach is based on a novel reciprocal theorem formulation and allows the calculation, to O(Re), of the drop stresslet, and hence the emulsion bulk stress, with knowledge of only the leading-order Stokes fields. The first approach is used to determine the bulk stress for linear flows without vortex stretching, while the reciprocal theorem approach allows one to generalize this result to any linear flow. For the case of simple shear flow, the inertial contributions to the bulk stress lead to normal stress differences(N1, N2) at O(φRe), where φ(≪1) is the volume fraction of the disperse phase. Inertia leads to negative and positive contributions, respectively, to N1 and N2 at O(φRe). The signs of the inertial contributions to the normal stress differences may be related to the O(ReCa) tilting of the drop towards the velocity gradient direction. These signs are, however, opposite to that of the normal stress differences in the creeping flow limit. The latter are O(φCa) and result from an O(Ca2) deformation of the drop acting to tilt it towards the flow axis. As a result, even a modest amount of inertia has a significant effect on the rheology of a dilute emulsion. In particular, both normal stress differences reverse sign at critical Reynolds numbers(Rec) of O(Ca) in the limit Ca ≪ 1. This criterion for the reversal in the signs of N1 and N2 is more conveniently expressed in terms of a critical Ohnesorge number(Oh) based on the viscosity of the suspending fluid, where Oh = μ/(ρaT)1/2. The critical Ohnesorge number for a sign reversal in N1 is found to be lower than that for N2, and the precise numerical value is a function of λ. In uniaxial extensional flow, the Trouton viscosity remains unaltered at O(φRe), the first effects of inertia now being restricted to O(φRe3/2). The analytical results for simple shear flow compare favourably with the recent numerical simulations of Li & Sarkar (J. Rheol., vol. 49, 2005, p. 1377).

One way that large-scale oceanic internal waves transfer their energy to small-scale mixing is through parametric subharmonic instability (PSI). But there is a disconnect between theory, which assumes the waves are periodic in space and time, and reality, in which waves are transient and localized. The innovative laboratory experiments and analysis techniques of Bourget et al. (J. Fluid Mech., vol. 723, 2013, pp. 1–20) show that theory can be applied to interpret the generation of subharmonic disturbances from a quasi-monochromatic wave beam. Their methodology and results open up new avenues of investigation into PSI through experiments, simulations and observations.

We study theoretically buoyant displacement flows of two generalized Newtonian fluids in a two-dimensional (2-D) channel with wall slip. We assume that a pseudo-interface separates two miscible (immiscible) fluids at the limit of negligible molecular diffusion (negligible surface tension). A heavy fluid displaces a light fluid at near-horizontal channel inclinations, implying that a stratified flow assumption is relevant. We develop a classical lubrication approximation model as a semi-analytical framework that includes a number of dimensionless parameters, such as a buoyancy number, the viscosity ratio, the non-Newtonian properties and the upper and lower wall slip coefficients. For specified interface heights and slopes, the reduced model can furnish the flux and velocity functions in displacing and displaced phases. We numerically solve the interface kinematic condition for four different wall slip cases: no slip (Case I), slip at the lower wall (Case II), slip at the upper wall (Case III) and slip at both walls (Case IV). The solutions for these cases deliver the interface propagation in time, for which leading and trailing displacement front heights, shapes and speeds and several key displacement features, such as front characteristic spreading lengths and short time behaviours, can be directly predicted by simplified analyses. The results reveal in detail how the presence of a channel wall slip may significantly affect the overall displacement flow and the interface evolution characteristics, for both Newtonian and non-Newtonian fluids. Regarding the latter, our analysis quantifies in particular the appearance and removal of static residual wall layers of the displaced phase, versus the wall slip cases.