Asymmetry

Jin, Yaqing

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https://hdl.handle.net/2142/74910 Copy

Description

Title

Asymmetry

Author(s)

Jin, Yaqing

Issue Date

2015-04

Keyword(s)

Mechanical Engineering

Abstract

Despite its relevance in meteorology, sedimentology, and biomechanics, the physics of falling objects in fluid media is not yet well understood. Many factors such as density ratio, size, geometry and fluid viscosity shape the trajectory of a falling object. To further understand the link between the fluid and the object, I experimentally studied the flow around falling cones using a laser diagnostic technique. The cones fall straight down when the flow field and the vorticity in the wake are symmetric. However, as cones gain speed the flow symmetry breaks down and the cones deviate from the straight path. The wake is highly three-dimensional and is characterized by a vortex ring at the base of the cones. Here, I show two-dimensional slices of the wake in its symmetric and asymmetric forms. The contours of the normalized vertical velocity and the streamlines are shown on the left and the out-of-plane vorticity is shown on the right. Asymmetry in the wake and in vortex shedding leads to local rotation and complex cone trajectories.

Type of Resource

• text
• image

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http://hdl.handle.net/2142/74910

Copyright and License Information

Copyright 2015 Yaqing Jin

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