In this paper, the stability of a laminar plume due to solutal convection is addressed from experimental, numerical and theoretical points of view. A topless vertical tube containing water is put in a pressure cell filled with carbon dioxide ($\text{CO}_{2}$). The diffusion of $\text{CO}_{2}$ at the free surface creates a thin layer of heavy fluid underneath the surface. This unstable density gradient generates a steady laminar plume which goes downward through the entire tube. A quasi-steady flow settles in the tube, filling gradually the bottom of the tube with heavy fluid. During this laminar regime, the velocity of the plume slowly decreases due to the build-up of the background density gradient. Surprisingly, despite the decrease of the Reynolds number, the laminar plume suddenly destabilises via a varicose mode into periodic pulsed puffs after an onset time which depends on the height of the tube and on the solutal Rayleigh number $Ra$. This periodic regime is followed by an aperiodic regime, which lasts until the complete saturation of the solution. The observed destabilisation is explained as a result of the interplay between the feedback of the global recirculating flow and the progressive density stratification of the background fluid. The wavelength, frequency, onset time and phase velocity of the instability are explored using particle image velocimetry (PIV) measurements over two decades of Rayleigh number. The characteristics of the instability appear to be almost independent of the Bond number but strongly dependent on the solutal Rayleigh number and the aspect ratio. The phase velocity is very close to the fluid velocity of the plume before the instability, which has been predicted in various works to scale as $Ra^{2/3}(\ln \,Ra)^{1/3}$. The wavelength is close to 4.5 times the radius of the cylinder (independent of aspect ratio, Bond number and Rayleigh number) such that the frequency scales as the phase velocity. The onset time, which is proportional to the height of the cylinder, scales as $Ra^{-0.55}$ and depends on the Bond number. A simplified model inspired from Lorenz’ waterwheel is proposed to explain the destabilisation process after partial fill-up of the cylinder. Although very qualitative, the model captures the key features of the experimental observations.

We present new experiments and theoretical models of the motion of relatively dense particles carried upwards by a liquid jet into a laterally confined space filled with the same liquid. The incoming jet is negatively buoyant and rises to a finite height, at which the dense mixture of liquid and particles, diluted by the entrainment of ambient liquid, falls back to the floor. The mixture further dilutes during the collapse and then spreads out across the floor and supplies an up-flow outside the fountain equal to the source volume flux plus the total entrained volume flux. The fate of the particles depends on the particle fall speed, $u_{fall}$, compared to (i) the characteristic fountain velocity in the fountain core, $u_{F}$, (ii) the maximum upward velocity in the ambient fluid outside the fountain, $u_{u}(0)$, which occurs at the base of the fountain, and (iii) the upward velocity in the ambient fluid above the top of the fountain associated with the original volume flux in the liquid jet, $u_{BG}$. From this comparison we identify four regimes. (I) If $u_{fall}>u_{F}$, then the particles separate from the fountain and settle on the floor. (II) If $u_{F}>u_{fall}>u_{u}(0)$, the particles are carried to the top of the fountain but then settle as the collapsing flow around the fountain spreads out across the floor; we do not observe particle suspension in the background flow. (III) For $u_{u}(0)>u_{fall}>u_{BG}$ we observe a particle-laden layer outside the fountain which extends from the floor of the tank to a point below the top of the fountain. The density of this lower particle-laden layer equals the density of the collapsing fountain fluid as it passes downwards through this interface. The collapsing fluid then spreads out horizontally through the depth of this particle-laden layer, instead of continuing downwards around the rising fountain. In the lower layer, the negatively buoyant source fluid in fact rises as a negatively buoyant jet, but this transitions into a fountain above the upper interface of the particle-laden layer. The presence of the particles in the lower layer reduces the density difference between fountain and environment, leading to an increase in the fountain height. (IV) If $u_{fall}<u_{BG}$ then an ascending front of particles rises above the fountain and eventually fills the entire tank up to the level where fluid is removed from the tank. We compare the results of a series of new laboratory experiments with simple theoretical investigations for each case, and discuss the relevance of our results.

The dynamic response to shear of a fluid-filled square cavity with stable temperature stratification is investigated numerically. The shear is imposed by the constant translation of the top lid, and is quantified by the associated Reynolds number. The stratification, quantified by a Richardson number, is imposed by maintaining the temperature of the top lid at a higher constant temperature than that of the bottom, and the side walls are insulating. The Navier–Stokes equations under the Boussinesq approximation are solved, using a pseudospectral approximation, over a wide range of Reynolds and Richardson numbers. Particular attention is paid to the dynamical mechanisms associated with the onset of instability of steady state solutions, and to the complex and rich dynamics occurring beyond.

The Taylor–Melcher (TM) model is the standard model for describing the dynamics of poorly conducting leaky dielectric fluids under an electric field. The TM model treats the fluids as ohmic conductors, without modelling the underlying ion dynamics. On the other hand, electrodiffusion models, which have been successful in describing electrokinetic phenomena, incorporate ionic concentration dynamics. Mathematical reconciliation of the electrodiffusion picture and the TM model has been a major issue for electrohydrodynamic theory. Here, we derive the TM model from an electrodiffusion model in which we explicitly model the electrochemistry of ion dissociation. We introduce salt dissociation reaction terms in the bulk electrodiffusion equations and take the limit in which the salt dissociation is weak; the assumption of weak dissociation corresponds to the fact that the TM model describes poor conductors. Together with the assumption that the Debye length is small, we derive the TM model with or without the surface charge convection term depending upon the scaling of relevant dimensionless parameters. An important quantity that emerges is the Galvani potential (GP), the jump in voltage across the liquid–liquid interface between the two leaky dielectric media; the GP arises as a natural consequence of the interfacial boundary conditions for the ionic concentrations, and is absent under certain parametric conditions. When the GP is absent, we recover the TM model. Our analysis also reveals the structure of the Debye layer at the liquid–liquid interface, which suggests how interfacial singularities may arise under strong imposed electric fields. In the presence of a non-zero GP, our model predicts that the liquid droplet will drift under an imposed electric field, the velocity of which is computed explicitly to leading order.

Aerofoils operating in a turbulent flow generate broadband noise by scattering vorticity into sound at the leading edge. Previous work has demonstrated the effectiveness by which serrations, or undulations, introduced onto the leading edge, can substantially reduce broadband leading-edge noise. All of this work has focused on sinusoidal (single-wavelength) leading-edge serration profiles. In this paper, a new leading-edge serration geometry is proposed which provides significantly greater noise reductions compared to the maximum noise reductions achievable by single-wavelength serrations of the same amplitude. This is achieved through destructive interference between different parts of the aerofoil leading edge, and therefore involves a fundamentally different noise reduction mechanism from conventional single-wavelength serrations. The new leading-edge serration profiles simply comprise the superposition of two single-wavelength components of different wavelength, amplitude and phase with the objective of forming two roots that are sufficiently close together and separated in the streamwise direction. Compact sources located at these root locations then interfere, leading to less efficient radiation than single-wavelength geometries. A detailed parametric study is performed experimentally to investigate the sensitivity of the noise reductions to the profile geometry. A simple model is proposed to explain the noise reduction mechanism for these double-wavelength serration profiles and shown to be in close agreement with the measured noise reduction spectra. The study is primarily performed on flat plates in an idealized turbulent flow. The paper concludes by introducing the double-wavelength serration on a 10 % thick aerofoil, where near-identical noise reductions are obtained compared to the flat plate.

Instability evolution in a transitional hypersonic boundary layer and its effects on aerodynamic heating are investigated over a 260 mm long flared cone. Experiments are conducted in a Mach 6 wind tunnel using Rayleigh-scattering flow visualization, fast-response pressure sensors, fluorescent temperature-sensitive paint (TSP) and particle image velocimetry (PIV). Calculations are also performed based on both the parabolized stability equations (PSE) and direct numerical simulations (DNS). Four unit Reynolds numbers are studied, 5.4, 7.6, 9.7 and $11.7\times 10^{6}~\text{m}^{-1}$. It is found that there exist two peaks of surface-temperature rise along the streamwise direction of the model. The first one (denoted as HS) is at the region where the second-mode instability reaches its maximum value. The second one (denoted as HT) is at the region where the transition is completed. Increasing the unit Reynolds number promotes the second-mode dissipation but increases the strength of local aerodynamic heating at HS. Furthermore, the heat generation rates induced by the dilatation and shear processes (respectively denoted as $w_{\unicode[STIX]{x1D703}}$ and $w_{\unicode[STIX]{x1D714}}$) were investigated. The former item includes both the pressure work $w_{\unicode[STIX]{x1D703}1}$ and dilatational viscous dissipation $w_{\unicode[STIX]{x1D703}2}$. The aerodynamic heating in HS mainly arose from the high-frequency compression and expansion of fluid accompanying the second mode. The dilatation heating, especially $w_{\unicode[STIX]{x1D703}1}$, was more than five times its shear counterpart. In a limited region, the underestimated $w_{\unicode[STIX]{x1D703}2}$ was also larger than $w_{\unicode[STIX]{x1D714}}$. As the second-mode waves decay downstream, the low-frequency waves continue to grow, with the consequent shear-induced heating increasing. The latter brings about a second, weaker growth of surface-temperature HT. A theoretical analysis is provided to interpret the temperature distribution resulting from the aerodynamic heating.

Superspreading is a phenomenon such that a drop of a certain class of surfactant on a substrate can spread with a radius that grows linearly with time much faster than the usual capillary wetting. Its origin, in spite of many efforts, is still not fully understood. Previous modelling and simulation studies (Karapetsas et al. J. Fluid Mech., vol. 670, 2011, pp. 5–37; Theodorakis et al. Langmuir, vol. 31, 2015, pp. 2304–2309) suggest that the transfer of the interfacial surfactant molecules onto the substrate in the vicinity of the contact line plays a crucial role in superspreading. Here, we construct a detailed theory to elaborate on this idea, showing that a rational account for superspreading can be made using a purely hydrodynamic approach without involving a specific surfactant structure or sorption kinetics. Using this theory it can be shown analytically, for both insoluble and soluble surfactants, that the curious linear spreading law can be derived from a new dynamic contact line structure due to a tiny surfactant leakage from the air–liquid interface to the substrate. Such a leak not only establishes a concentrated Marangoni shearing toward the contact line at a rate much faster than the usual viscous stress singularity, but also results in a microscopic surfactant-devoid zone in the vicinity of the contact line. The strong Marangoni shearing then turns into a local capillary force in the zone, making the contact line in effect advance in a surfactant-free manner. This local Marangoni-driven capillary wetting in turn renders a constant wetting speed governed by the de Gennes–Cox–Voinov law and hence the linear spreading law. We also determine the range of surfactant concentration within which superspreading can be sustained by local surfactant leakage without being mitigated by the contact line sweeping, explaining why only limited classes of surfactants can serve as superspreaders. We further show that spreading of surfactant spreaders can exhibit either the $1/6$ or $1/2$ power law, depending on the ability of interfacial surfactant to transfer/leak to the bulk/substrate. All these findings can account for a variety of results seen in experiments (Rafai et al. Langmuir, vol. 18, 2002, pp. 10486–10488; Nikolov & Wasan, Adv. Colloid Interface Sci., vol. 222, 2015, pp. 517–529) and simulations (Karapetsas et al. 2011). Analogy to thermocapillary spreading is also made, reverberating the ubiquitous role of the Marangoni effect in enhancing dynamic wetting driven by non-uniform surface tension.

The flow of an electrified liquid film down an inclined plane wall is investigated with the focus on coherent structures in the form of travelling waves on the film surface, in particular, single-hump solitary pulses and their interactions. The flow structures are analysed first using a long-wave model, which is valid in the presence of weak inertia, and second using the Stokes equations. For obtuse angles, gravity is destabilising and solitary pulses exist even in the absence of an electric field. For acute angles, spatially non-uniform solutions exist only beyond a critical value of the electric field strength; moreover, solitary-pulse solutions are present only at sufficiently high supercritical electric-field strengths. The electric field increases the amplitude of the pulses, can generate recirculation zones in the humps and alters the far-field decay of the pulse tails from exponential to algebraic with a significant impact on pulse interactions. A weak-interaction theory predicts an infinite sequence of bound-state solutions for non-electrified flow, and a finite set for electrified flow. The existence of single-hump pulse solutions and two-pulse bound states is confirmed for the Stokes equations via boundary-element computations. In addition, the electric field is shown to trigger a switch from absolute to convective instability, thereby regularising the dynamics, and this is confirmed by time-dependent simulations of the long-wave model.

We report on a numerical study of the vortex structure modifications and drag reduction in a flow over a rotationally oscillating circular cylinder at a high subcritical Reynolds number, $Re=1.4\times 10^{5}$. Considered are eight forcing frequencies $f=f_{e}/f_{0}=0.5$, $1$, $1.5$, $2$, $2.5$, $3$, $4$, $5$ and three forcing amplitudes $\unicode[STIX]{x1D6FA}=\unicode[STIX]{x1D6FA}_{e}D/2U_{\infty }=1$, $2$, $3$, non-dimensionalized with $f_{0}$, which is the natural vortex-shedding frequency without forcing, $U_{\infty }$ the free-stream velocity, $D$ the diameter of the cylinder. In order to perform a parametric study of a large number of cases ($24$ in total) with affordable computational resources, the three-dimensional unsteady computations were performed using a wall-integrated (WIN) second-moment (Reynolds-stress) Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes (RANS) turbulence closure, verified and validated by a dynamic large-eddy simulations (LES) for selected cases ($f=2.5$, $\unicode[STIX]{x1D6FA}=2$ and $f=4$, $\unicode[STIX]{x1D6FA}=2$), as well as by the earlier LES and experiments of the flow over a stagnant cylinder at the same $Re$ number described in Palkin et al. (Flow Turbul. Combust., vol. 97 (4), 2016, pp. 1017–1046). The drag reduction was detected at frequencies equal to and larger than $f=2.5$, while no reduction was observed for the cylinder subjected to oscillations with the natural frequency, even with very different values of the rotation amplitude. The maximum reduction of the drag coefficient is 88 % for the highest tested frequency $f=5$ and amplitude $\unicode[STIX]{x1D6FA}=2$. However, a significant reduction of 78 % appears with the increase of $f$ already for $f=2.5$ and $\unicode[STIX]{x1D6FA}=2$. Such a dramatic reduction in the drag coefficient is the consequence of restructuring of the vortex-shedding topology and a markedly different pressure field featured by a shrinking of the low pressure region behind the cylinder, all dictated by the rotary oscillation. Despite the need to expend energy to force cylinder oscillations, the considered drag reduction mechanism seems a feasible practical option for drag control in some applications for $Re>10^{4}$, since the calculated power expenditure for cylinder oscillation under realistic scenarios is several times smaller than the power saved by the drag reduction.

The two-dimensional flow induced by the breaking of modulated wave trains is numerically investigated using the open source software Gerris (Popinet, J. Comput. Phys., vol. 190, 2003, pp. 572–600; J. Comput. Phys., vol. 228, 2009, pp. 5838–5866. The two-phase flow is modelled by the Navier–Stokes equations for a single fluid with variable density and viscosity, coupled with a volume-of-fluid (VOF) technique for the capturing of the interface dynamics. The breaking is induced through the Benjamin–Feir mechanism, by adding two sideband disturbances to a fundamental wave component. The evolution of the wave system is simulated starting from the initial condition until the end of the breaking process, and the role played by the initial wave steepness is investigated. As already noted in previous studies as well as in field observations, it is found that the breaking is recurrent and several breaking events are needed before the breaking process finally ceases. The down-shifting of the fundamental component to the lower sideband is made irreversible by the breaking. At the end of the breaking process the magnitude of the lower sideband component is approximately 80 % of the initial value of the fundamental one. The time histories of the energy content in water and the energy dissipation are analysed. The whole breaking process dissipates a fraction of between twenty and twenty-five per cent of the pre-breaking energy content, independently of the initial steepness. The energy contents of the different waves of the group are evaluated and it is found that after the breaking, the energy of the most energetic wave of the group decays as $t^{-1}$.

The classical problem of roll-up of a two-dimensional free inviscid vortex sheet is reconsidered. The singular governing equation brings with it considerable difficulty in terms of actual calculation of the sheet dynamics. Here, the sheet is discretized into segments that maintain it as a continuous object with curvature. A model for the self-induced velocity of a finite segment is derived based on the physical consideration that the velocity remain bounded. This allows direct integration through the singularity of the Birkhoff–Rott equation. The self-induced velocity of the segments represents the explicit inclusion of stretching of the sheet and thus vorticity transport. The method is applied to two benchmark cases. The first is a finite vortex sheet with an elliptical circulation distribution. It is found that the self-induced velocity is most relevant in regions where the curvature and the sheet strength or its gradient are large. The second is the Kelvin–Helmholtz instability of an infinite vortex sheet. The critical time at which the sheet forms a singularity in curvature is accurately predicted. As observed by others, the vortex sheet strength forms a finite-valued cusp at this time. Here, it is shown that the cusp value rapidly increases after the critical time and is the impetus that initiates the roll-up process.

We investigate the effect of constant-vorticity background shear on the properties of wavetrains in deep water. Using the methodology of Fokas (A Unified Approach to Boundary Value Problems, 2008, SIAM), we derive a higher-order nonlinear Schrödinger equation in the presence of shear and surface tension. We show that the presence of shear induces a strong coupling between the carrier wave and the mean-surface displacement. The effects of the background shear on the modulational instability of plane waves is also studied, where it is shown that shear can suppress instability, although not for all carrier wavelengths in the presence of surface tension. These results expand upon the findings of Thomas et al. (Phys. Fluids, vol. 24 (12), 2012, 127102). Using a modification of the generalized Lagrangian mean theory in Andrews & McIntyre (J. Fluid Mech., vol. 89, 1978, pp. 609–646) and approximate formulas for the velocity field in the fluid column, explicit, asymptotic approximations for the Lagrangian and Stokes drift velocities are obtained for plane-wave and Jacobi elliptic function solutions of the nonlinear Schrödinger equation. Numerical approximations to particle trajectories for these solutions are found and the Lagrangian and Stokes drift velocities corresponding to these numerical solutions corroborate the theoretical results. We show that background currents have significant effects on the mean transport properties of waves. In particular, certain combinations of background shear and carrier wave frequency lead to the disappearance of mean-surface mass transport. These results provide a possible explanation for the measurements reported in Smith (J. Phys. Oceanogr., vol. 36, 2006, pp. 1381–1402). Our results also provide further evidence of the viability of the modification of the Stokes drift velocity beyond the standard monochromatic approximation, such as recently proposed in Breivik et al. (J. Phys. Oceanogr., vol. 44, 2014, pp. 2433–2445) in order to obtain a closer match to a range of complex ocean wave spectra.

It has been shown experimentally that dynamic roughness elements – small bumps embedded within a boundary layer, oscillating at a fixed frequency – are able to increase the angle of attack at which a laminar boundary layer will separate from the leading edge of an airfoil (Grager et al., in 6th AIAA Flow Control Conference, 2012, pp. 25–28). In this paper, we attempt to verify that such an increase is possible by considering a two-dimensional dynamic roughness element in the context of marginal separation theory, and suggest the mechanisms through which any increase may come about. We will show that a dynamic roughness element can increase the value of $\unicode[STIX]{x1D6E4}_{c}$ as compared to the clean airfoil case; $\unicode[STIX]{x1D6E4}_{c}$ represents, mathematically, the critical value of the parameter $\unicode[STIX]{x1D6E4}$ below which a solution exists in the governing equations and, physically, the maximum angle of attack possible below which a laminar boundary layer will remain predominantly attached to the surface. Furthermore, we find that the dynamic roughness element impacts on the perturbation pressure gradient in two possible ways: either by decreasing the magnitude of the adverse pressure peak or by increasing the streamwise extent in which favourable pressure perturbations exist. Finally, we discover that the marginal separation bubble does not necessarily have to exist at $\unicode[STIX]{x1D6E4}=\unicode[STIX]{x1D6E4}_{c}$ in the time-averaged flow and that full breakaway separation can therefore occur as a result of the bursting of transient bubbles existing within the length scale of marginal separation theory.

We present wall-resolved large-eddy simulation (LES) of flow with free-stream velocity $\boldsymbol{U}_{\infty }$ over a cylinder of diameter $D$ rotating at constant angular velocity $\unicode[STIX]{x1D6FA}$, with the focus on the lift crisis, which takes place at relatively high Reynolds number $Re_{D}=U_{\infty }D/\unicode[STIX]{x1D708}$, where $\unicode[STIX]{x1D708}$ is the kinematic viscosity of the fluid. Two sets of LES are performed within the ($Re_{D}$, $\unicode[STIX]{x1D6FC}$)-plane with $\unicode[STIX]{x1D6FC}=\unicode[STIX]{x1D6FA}D/(2U_{\infty })$ the dimensionless cylinder rotation speed. One set, at $Re_{D}=5000$, is used as a reference flow and does not exhibit a lift crisis. Our main LES varies $\unicode[STIX]{x1D6FC}$ in $0\leqslant \unicode[STIX]{x1D6FC}\leqslant 2.0$ at fixed $Re_{D}=6\times 10^{4}$. For $\unicode[STIX]{x1D6FC}$ in the range $\unicode[STIX]{x1D6FC}=0.48{-}0.6$ we find a lift crisis. This range is in agreement with experiment although the LES shows a deeper local minimum in the lift coefficient than the measured value. Diagnostics that include instantaneous surface portraits of the surface skin-friction vector field $\boldsymbol{C}_{\boldsymbol{f}}$, spanwise-averaged flow-streamline plots, and a statistical analysis of local, near-surface flow reversal show that, on the leeward-bottom cylinder surface, the flow experiences large-scale reorganization as $\unicode[STIX]{x1D6FC}$ increases through the lift crisis. At $\unicode[STIX]{x1D6FC}=0.48$ the primary-flow features comprise a shear layer separating from that side of the cylinder that moves with the free stream and a pattern of oscillatory but largely attached flow zones surrounded by scattered patches of local flow separation/reattachment on the lee and underside of the cylinder surface. Large-scale, unsteady vortex shedding is observed. At $\unicode[STIX]{x1D6FC}=0.6$ the flow has transitioned to a more ordered state where the small-scale separation/reattachment cells concentrate into a relatively narrow zone with largely attached flow elsewhere. This induces a low-pressure region which produces a sudden decrease in lift and hence the lift crisis. Through this process, the boundary layer does not show classical turbulence behaviour. As $\unicode[STIX]{x1D6FC}$ is further increased at constant $Re_{D}$, the localized separation zone dissipates with corresponding attached flow on most of the cylinder surface. The lift coefficient then resumes its increasing trend. A logarithmic region is found within the boundary layer at $\unicode[STIX]{x1D6FC}=1.0$.

Very low Reynolds number propulsion is a topic of enduring interest due to its importance in biological systems such as sperm migration in the female reproductive tract. Motivated by the fibrous nature of cervical mucus, several recent studies have considered the effect of anisotropic rheology; these studies have generally employed the classical swimming sheet model of G. I. Taylor. The models of Cupples et al. (J. Fluid Mech. vol. 812, 2017, pp. 501–524) and Shi & Powers (Phys. Rev. Fluids vol. 2, 2017, 123102) consider related problems which in a common limit (passive, slightly anisotropic) make different predictions regarding how swimming speed depends on alignment angle. In the present paper we find that this discrepancy is due to missing terms in the analysis of Cupples et al., and that when these terms are correctly included, the models agree in their common limit. We further explore the predictions of the corrected model for both passive and active cases; it is found that for certain combinations of alignment angle and activity parameter, propulsion is halted; in other cases the small amplitude asymptotic expansion is no longer valid, motivating future numerical study.

Slender-body theory is utilized to derive an asymptotic approximation to the hydrodynamic drag on an axisymmetric particle that is held fixed in an otherwise uniform stream of an incompressible Newtonian fluid at moderate Reynolds number. The Reynolds number, $Re$, is based on the length of the particle. The axis of rotational symmetry of the particle is collinear with the uniform stream. The drag is expressed as a series in powers of $1/\text{ln}(1/\unicode[STIX]{x1D716})$, where $\unicode[STIX]{x1D716}$ is the small ratio of the characteristic width to length of the particle; the series is asymptotic for $Re\ll O(1/\unicode[STIX]{x1D716})$. The drag is calculated through terms of $O[1/\text{ln}^{3}(1/\unicode[STIX]{x1D716})]$, thereby extending the work of Khayat & Cox (J. Fluid Mech., vol. 209, 1989, pp. 435–462) who determined the drag through $O[1/\text{ln}^{2}(1/\unicode[STIX]{x1D716})]$. The calculation of the $O[1/\text{ln}^{3}(1/\unicode[STIX]{x1D716})]$ term is accomplished via the generalized reciprocal theorem (Lovalenti & Brady, J. Fluid Mech., vol. 256, 1993, pp. 561–605). The first dependence of the inertial contribution to the drag on the cross-sectional profile of the particle is at $O[1/\text{ln}^{3}(1/\unicode[STIX]{x1D716})]$. Notably, the drag is insensitive to the direction of travel at this order. The asymptotic results are compared to a numerical solution of the Navier–Stokes equations for the case of a prolate spheroid. Good agreement between the two is observed at moderately small values of $\unicode[STIX]{x1D716}$, which is surprising given the logarithmic error associated with the asymptotic expansion.

Steady self-similar solutions to the supersonic flow of Bethe–Zel’dovich–Thompson fluids past compressive and rarefactive ramps are derived. Inviscid, non-heat-conducting, non-reacting and single-phase vapour flow is assumed. For convex isentropes and shock adiabats in the pressure–specific volume plane (classical gas dynamic regime), the well-known oblique shock and centred Prandtl–Meyer fan occur at a compressive and rarefactive ramp, respectively. For non-convex isentropes and shock adiabats (non-classical gas dynamic regime), four additional wave configurations may possibly occur; these are composite waves in which a Prandtl–Meyer fan is adjacent up to two oblique shock waves. The steady two-dimensional counterparts of the wave curves defined for the one-dimensional Riemann problem are constructed. In the present context, such curves consist of all the possible states connected to a given initial state (namely, the uniform state upstream of the ramp/wedge) by means of a steady self-similar solution. In addition to the classical case, as many as six non-classical wave-curve configurations are singled out. Moreover, the necessary conditions leading to each type of wave curves are analysed and a map of the upstream states leading to each configuration is determined.

Modal decomposition techniques are used to analyse the wake field past a marine propeller achieved by previous numerical simulations (Muscari et al. Comput. Fluids, vol. 73, 2013, pp. 65–79). In particular, proper orthogonal decomposition (POD) and dynamic mode decomposition (DMD) are used to identify the most energetic modes and those that play a dominant role in the inception of the destabilization mechanisms. Two different operating conditions, representative of light and high loading conditions, are considered. The analysis shows a strong dependence of temporal and spatial scales of the process on the propeller loading and correlates the spatial shape of the modes and the temporal scales with the evolution and destabilization mechanisms of the wake past the propeller. At light loading condition, due to the stable evolution of the wake, both POD and DMD describe the flow field by the non-interacting evolution of the tip and hub vortex. The flow is mainly associated with the ordered convection of the tip vortex and the corresponding dominant modes, identified by both decompositions, are characterized by spatial wavelengths and frequencies related to the blade passing frequency and its multiples, whereas the dynamic of the hub vortex has a negligible contribution. At high loading condition, POD and DMD identify a marked separation of the flow field close to the propeller and in the far field, as a consequence of wake breakdown. The tonal modes are prevalent only near to the propeller, where the flow is stable; on the contrary, in the transition region a number of spatial and temporal scales appear. In particular, the phenomenon of destabilization of the wake, originated by the coupling of consecutive tip vortices, and the mechanisms of hub–tip vortex interaction and wake meandering are identified by both POD and DMD.

Hydraulic fracturing is a widely used method for well stimulation to enhance hydrocarbon recovery. Permeability, or fluid conductivity, of the hydraulic fracture is a key parameter to determine the fluid production rate, and is principally conditioned by fracture geometry and the distribution of the encased proppant. A numerical model is developed to describe proppant transport within a propagating blade-shaped fracture towards defining the fracture conductivity and reservoir production after fracture closure. Fracture propagation is formulated based on the PKN-formalism coupled with advective transport of an equivalent slurry representing a proppant-laden fluid. Empirical constitutive relations are incorporated to define rheology of the slurry, proppant transport with bulk slurry flow, proppant gravitational settling, and finally the transition from Poiseuille (fracture) flow to Darcy (proppant pack) flow. At the maximum extent of the fluid-driven fracture, as driving pressure is released, a fracture closure model is employed to follow the evolution of fracture conductivity with the decreasing fluid pressure. This model is capable of accommodating the mechanical response of the proppant pack, fracture closure of potentially contacting rough surfaces, proppant embedment into fracture walls, and most importantly flexural displacement of the unsupported spans of the fracture. Results show that reduced fluid viscosity increases the length of the resulting fracture, while rapid leak-off decreases it, with both characteristics minimizing fracture width over converse conditions. Proppant density and size do not significantly influence fracture propagation. Proppant settling ensues throughout fracture advance, and is accelerated by a lower viscosity fluid or greater proppant density or size, resulting in accumulation of a proppant bed at the fracture base. ‘Screen-out’ of proppant at the fracture tip can occur where the fracture aperture is only several times the diameter of the individual proppant particles. After fracture closure, proppant packs comprising larger particles exhibit higher conductivity. More importantly, high-conductivity flow channels are necessarily formed around proppant banks due to the flexural displacement of the fracture walls, which offer preferential flow pathways and significantly influence the distribution of fluid transport. Higher compacting stresses are observed around the edge of proppant banks, resulting in greater depths of proppant embedment into the fracture walls and/or an increased potential for proppant crushing.

We present a method for calculating the hydrodynamic interactions between particles in the kinetic (or transition regime), characterized by non-negligible particle Knudsen numbers. Such particles are often present in aerosol systems. The method is based on our extended Kirkwood–Riseman theory (Corson et al., Phys. Rev. E, vol. 95 (1), 2017c, 013103), which accounts for interactions between spheres using the velocity field around a translating sphere as a function of Knudsen number. Results for the two-sphere problem at small Knudsen numbers are in good agreement with those obtained using Felderhof’s interaction actions for mixed slip-stick boundary conditions, which are accurate to order $r^{-7}$ (Felderhof, Physica A, vol. 89 (2), 1977, pp. 373–384). The strength of the interactions decreases with increasing Knudsen number. Results for two fractal aggregates demonstrate that one can apply a point force approach for interactions between particles in the transition regime; the interaction tensor is similar to the Oseen tensor for continuum flow. Using this point force approach, we present an analysis for the settling of an unbounded cloud of particles. Our analysis shows that for sufficiently high volume fractions and cloud radii, the cloud behaves as a gas droplet in continuum flow even when the individual particles are small relative to the mean free path of the gas. The method presented here can be applied in a Brownian dynamics simulation analogous to Stokesian dynamics to study the behaviour of a dense aerosol system.