arXiv subjects

Peter E. Hamlington

Publications and source records attributed to Peter E. Hamlington.

16 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2025

High-Speed Thermal Imaging of Disk-shaped Firebrands in a Wind Tunnel

The transport and temperature-time history of disk-shaped firebrands was studied with high-speed thermal imaging in a wind tunnel. One millimeter diameter wooden disks were ignited using a novel firebrand generator. The firebrands dropped vertically into a wind tunnel crossflow. Optical images of the firebrands were recorded at 960 frames/second during their transport in the wind tunnel test section at three different wind speeds. The resulting high speed color videos were processed using a particle tracking algorithm and a two color pyrometry technique to determine temperature, position, and velocity time histories of individual firebrands. The firebrand temperatures were observed to oscillate at distinct frequencies that ranged between 50Hz and 480Hz (the Nyquist frequency of the imaging system). A positive correlation was observed between the temperature fluctuation frequency and the relative speed of the firebrand compared to the wind speed. The observed high speed temperature fluctuations suggest that rapid transitions between glowing and flaming combustion may be an important aspect in firebrand transport phenomena and should be considered within the context of model development.

physics.flu-dyn↗

arXiv2023

WindCline: Sloping Wind Tunnel for Characterizing Flame Behavior Under Variable Inclines and Wind Conditions

Developing accurate computational models of wildfire dynamics is increasingly important due to the substantial and expanding negative impacts of wildfire events on human health, infrastructure, and the environment. Wildfire spread and emissions depend on a number of factors, including fuel type, environmental conditions (moisture, wind speed, etc.) and terrain/location. However, there currently exist only a few experimental facilities that enable testing of the interplay of these factors at length scales <1 m with carefully controlled and characterized boundary conditions and advanced diagnostics. Experiments performed at such facilities are required for informing and validating computational models. Here we present the design and characterization of a novel tilting wind tunnel (the 'WindCline') for studying wildfire dynamics. The WindCline is unique in that the entire tunnel platform is constructed to pivot around a central axis, which enables sloping of the entire system without compromising the quality of the flow properties. In addition, this facility has a configurable design for the test section and diffuser to accommodate a suite of advanced diagnostics to aid in the characterization of 1) the parameters needed to establish boundary conditions and 2) flame properties and dynamics. The WindCline thus allows for measurement and control of several critical wildfire variables and boundary conditions, especially at the small length scales important to the development of high fidelity computational simulations (10 - 100 cm). Computational modeling frameworks developed and validated under these controlled conditions can expand understanding of fundamental combustion processes, promoting greater confidence when leveraging these processes in complex combustion environments.

physics.flu-dyn↗

arXiv2022

Assessing diffusion model impacts on enstrophy and flame structure in turbulent lean premixed flames

Diffusive transport of mass occurs at small scales in turbulent premixed flames. As a result, multicomponent mass diffusion, which is often neglected in direct numerical simulations (DNS) of premixed combustion, has the potential to impact both turbulence and flame characteristics at small scales. In this study, we evaluate these impacts by examining enstrophy dynamics and the internal structure of the flame for lean premixed hydrogen-air combustion, neglecting secondary Soret and Dufour effects. We performed three-dimensional DNS of these flames by implementing the Stefan-Maxwell equations in the code NGA to represent multicomponent mass transport, and we simulated statistically planar lean premixed hydrogen-air flames using both mixture-averaged and multicomponent models. The mixture-averaged model underpredicts the peak enstrophy by up to 13% in the flame front. Comparing the enstrophy budgets of these flames, the multicomponent simulation yields larger peak magnitudes compared to the mixture-averaged simulation in the reaction zone, showing differences of 17% and 14% in the normalized stretching and viscous effects terms. In the super-adiabatic regions of the flame, the mixture-averaged model overpredicts the viscous effects by up to 13%. To assess the effect of these differences on flame structure, we reconstructed the average local internal structure of the turbulent flame through statistical analysis of the scalar gradient field. Based on this analysis, we show that large differences in viscous effects contribute to significant differences in the average local flame structure between the two models.

physics.flu-dyn↗

arXiv2021

Efficient Simulations of Propagating Flames Using Adaptive Mesh Refinement

Wildland fires are complex multi-physics problems that span wide spatial scale ranges. Capturing this complexity in computationally affordable numerical simulations for process studies and "outer-loop" techniques (e.g., optimization and uncertainty quantification) is a fundamental challenge in reacting flow research. Further complications arise for propagating fires where a priori knowledge of the fire spread rate and direction is typically not available. In such cases, static mesh refinement at all possible fire locations is a computationally inefficient approach to bridging the wide range of spatial scales relevant to wildland fire behavior. In the present study, we address this challenge by incorporating adaptive mesh refinement (AMR) in fireFoam, an OpenFOAM solver for simulations of complex fire phenomena. The AMR functionality in the extended solver, called wildFireFoam, allows us to dynamically track regions of interest and to avoid inefficient over-resolution of areas far from a propagating flame. We demonstrate the AMR capability for fire spread on vertical panels and for large-scale fire propagation on a variable-slope surface that is representative of real topography. We show that the AMR solver reproduces results obtained using much larger statically refined meshes, at a substantially reduced computational cost.

physics.flu-dyn↗

arXiv2020

Parameter Estimation for RANS Models Using Approximate Bayesian Computation

We use approximate Bayesian computation (ABC) to estimate unknown parameter values, as well as their uncertainties, in Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) simulations of turbulent flows. The ABC method approximates posterior distributions of model parameters, but does not require the direct computation, or estimation, of a likelihood function. Compared to full Bayesian analyses, ABC thus provides a faster and more flexible parameter estimation for complex models and a wide range of reference data. In this paper, we describe the ABC approach, including the use of a calibration step, adaptive proposal, and Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) technique to accelerate the parameter estimation, resulting in an improved ABC approach, denoted ABC-IMCMC. As a test of the classic ABC rejection algorithm, we estimate parameters in a nonequilibrium RANS model using reference data from direct numerical simulations of periodically sheared homogeneous turbulence. We then demonstrate the use of ABC-IMCMC to estimate parameters in the Menter shear-stress-transport (SST) model using experimental reference data for an axisymmetric transonic bump. We show that the accuracy of the SST model for this test case can be improved using ABC-IMCMC, indicating that ABC-IMCMC is a promising method for the calibration of RANS models using a wide range of reference data.

physics.flu-dyn↗

arXiv2020

Particle Pair Dispersion and Eddy Diffusivity in a High-Speed Premixed Flame

Turbulent mixing is a physical process of fundamental importance in high-speed premixed flames. This mixing results in enhanced transport of temperature and chemical scalars, leading to potentially large changes in flame structure and dynamics. To understand turbulent mixing in non-reacting flows, a number of classical theories have been proposed to describe the scaling and statistics of dispersing fluid particle pairs, including predictions of the effective, or turbulent, eddy diffusivity. Here we examine the validity of these classical theories through the study of fluid particle pair dispersion and eddy diffusivity in highly turbulent premixed methane-air flames at a Karlovitz number of approximately 140. Using data from a direct numerical simulation and a higher-order Lagrangian tracking algorithm, particle pair centroids are seeded at different initial temperatures and separations, and then integrated forward in time. We show that scaling relations and results developed for pair dispersion in non-reacting flows remain relevant in this high-intensity premixed flame, and we identify the impacts of heat release on dispersion and eddy diffusivity.

physics.flu-dyn↗

arXiv2020

Parameter Estimation for Subgrid-Scale Models Using Markov Chain Monte Carlo Approximate Bayesian Computation

We use approximate Bayesian computation (ABC) combined with an "improved" Markov chain Monte Carlo (IMCMC) method to estimate posterior distributions of model parameters in subgrid-scale (SGS) closures for large eddy simulations (LES) of turbulent flows. The ABC-IMCMC approach avoids the need to directly compute a likelihood function during the parameter estimation, enabling a substantial speed-up and greater flexibility as compared to full Bayesian approaches. The method also naturally provides uncertainties in parameter estimates, avoiding the artificial certainty implied by many optimization methods for determining model parameters. In this study, we outline details of the present ABC-IMCMC approach, including the use of an adaptive proposal and a calibration step to accelerate the parameter estimation process. We demonstrate the approach by estimating parameters in two nonlinear SGS closures using reference data from direct numerical simulations of homogeneous isotropic turbulence. We show that the resulting parameter values give excellent agreement with reference probability density functions of the SGS stress and kinetic energy production rate in a priori tests, while also providing stable solutions in forward LES (i.e., a posteriori tests) for homogeneous isotropic turbulence. The ABC-IMCMC method is thus shown to be an effective and efficient approach for estimating unknown parameters, including their uncertainties, in SGS closure models for LES of turbulent flows.

physics.flu-dyn↗

arXiv2019

Detonation initiation by compressible turbulence thermodynamic fluctuations

Theory and computations have established that thermodynamic gradients created by hot spots in reactive gas mixtures can lead to spontaneous detonation initiation. However, the current laminar theory of the temperature-gradient mechanism for detonation initiation is restricted to idealized physical configurations. Thus, it only predicts conditions for the onset of detonations in quiescent gases, where an isolated hot spot is formed on a timescale shorter than the chemical and acoustic timescales of the gas. In this work, we extend the laminar temperature-gradient mechanism into a statistical model for predicting the detonability of an autoignitive gas experiencing compressible isotropic turbulence fluctuations. Compressible turbulence forms non-monotonic temperature fields with tightly-spaced local minima and maxima that evolve over a range of timescales, including those much larger than chemical and acoustic timescales. We examine the utility of the adapted statistical model through direct numerical simulations of compressible isotropic turbulence in premixed hydrogen-air reactants for a range of conditions. We find strong, but not conclusive, evidence that the model can predict the degree of detonability in an autoignitive gas due to turbulence-induced thermodynamic gradients.

physics.flu-dyn↗

arXiv2019

Scaling of the Puffing Strouhal Number for Buoyant Jets

Prior research has shown that round and planar buoyant jets "puff" at a frequency that depends on the balance of momentum and buoyancy fluxes at the inlet, as parametrized by the Richardson number. Experiments have revealed the existence of scaling relations between the Strouhal number of the puffing and the inlet Richardson number, but geometry-specific relations are required when the characteristic length is taken to be the diameter (for round inlets) or width (for planar inlets). In the present study, we show that when the hydraulic radius of the inlet is instead used as the characteristic length, a single Strouhal-Richardson scaling relation is obtained for a variety of inlet geometries. In particular, we use adaptive mesh numerical simulations to measure puffing Strouhal numbers for circular, rectangular (with three different aspect ratios), triangular, and annular high-temperature buoyant jets over a range of Richardson numbers. We then combine these results with prior experimental data for round and planar buoyant jets to propose a new scaling relation that accurately describes puffing Strouhal numbers for various inlet shapes and for Richardson numbers spanning over four orders of magnitude.

physics.flu-dyn↗

arXiv2019

High-Resolution Numerical Simulations of a Large-Scale Helium Plume Using Adaptive Mesh Refinement

The physical characteristics and evolution of a large-scale helium plume are examined through a series of numerical simulations with increasing physical resolution using adaptive mesh refinement (AMR). The five simulations each model a 1~m diameter circular helium plume exiting into a (4~m)$^3$ domain, and differ solely with respect to the smallest scales resolved using the AMR, spanning resolutions from 15.6~mm down to 0.976~mm. As the physical resolution becomes finer, the helium-air shear layer and subsequent Kelvin-Helmholtz instability are better resolved, leading to a shift in the observed plume structure and dynamics. In particular, a critical resolution is found between 3.91~mm and 1.95~mm, below which the mean statistics and frequency content of the plume are altered by the development of a Rayleigh-Taylor instability near the centerline in close proximity to the base of the plume. This shift corresponds to a plume "puffing" frequency that is slightly higher than would be predicted using empirical relationships developed for buoyant jets. Ultimately, the high-fidelity simulations performed here are intended as a new validation dataset for the development of subgrid-scale models used in large eddy simulations of real-world buoyancy-driven flows.

physics.flu-dyn↗

arXiv2018

Effects of Isothermal Stratification Strength on Vorticity Dynamics for Single-Mode Compressible Rayleigh-Taylor Instability

The effects of isothermal stratification strength on vorticity dynamics for single-mode Rayleigh-Taylor instability (RTI) are examined using two dimensional fully compressible wavelet-based direct numerical simulations. The simulations model low Atwood number ($A=0.04$) RTI development for four different stratification strengths, corresponding to Mach numbers from 0.3 (weakly stratified) to 1.2 (strongly stratified), and for three different perturbation Reynolds numbers, from 5,000 to 20,000. All simulations use adaptive wavelet-based mesh refinement to achieve very fine spatial resolutions at relatively low computational cost. For all stratifications, the bubble and spike go through the exponential growth regime, followed by a slowing of the RTI evolution. For the weakest stratification, this slow-down is then followed by a re-acceleration, while for stronger stratifications the suppression of RTI growth continues. Bubble and spike asymmetries are observed for weak stratifications, with bubble and spike growth rates becoming increasingly similar as the stratification strength increases. For the range of cases studied, there is relatively little effect of Reynolds number on bubble and spike heights, although the formation of secondary vortices becomes more pronounced as Reynolds number increases. The underlying dynamics are analyzed in detail through an examination of the vorticity transport equation, revealing that incompressible baroclinicity drives RTI growth for small and moderate stratifications, but increasingly leads to the suppression of vorticity production and RTI growth for stronger stratifications. These variations in baroclinicity are used to explain the suppression of RTI growth for strong stratifications, as well as the anomalous asymmetry in bubble and spike growth rates for weak stratifications.

physics.flu-dyn↗

arXiv2018

Effects of Langmuir Turbulence on Upper Ocean Carbonate Chemistry

Effects of wave-driven Langmuir turbulence on the air-sea flux of carbon dioxide (CO$_2$) are examined using large eddy simulations featuring actively reacting carbonate chemistry in the ocean mixed layer at small scales. Four strengths of Langmuir turbulence are examined with three types of carbonate chemistry: time-dependent, instantaneous equilibrium chemistry, and no reactions. The time-dependent model is obtained by reducing a detailed eight-species chemical mechanism using computational singular perturbation analysis, resulting in a quasi-steady-state approximation for hydrogen ion (H$^+$), i.e., fixed pH. The reduced mechanism is then integrated in two half-time steps before and after the advection solve using a Runge--Kutta--Chebyshev scheme that is robust for stiff systems of differential equations. The simulations show that, as the strength of Langmuir turbulence increases, CO$_2$ fluxes are enhanced by rapid overturning of the near-surface layer, which rivals the removal rate of CO$_2$ by time-dependent reactions. Equilibrium chemistry and non-reactive models are found to bring more and less carbon, respectively, into the ocean as compared to the more realistic time-dependent model. These results have implications for Earth system models that either neglect Langmuir turbulence or use equilibrium, instead of time-dependent, chemical mechanisms.

physics.ao-ph↗

arXiv2011

Statistics of the Energy Dissipation Rate and Local Enstrophy in Turbulent Channel Flow

Using high-resolution direct numerical simulations, the height and Reynolds number dependence of higher-order statistics of the energy dissipation rate and local enstrophy are examined in incompressible, fully-developed turbulent channel flow. The statistics are studied over a range of wall distances, spanning the viscous sublayer to the channel flow centerline, for friction Reynolds numbers $Re_τ= 180$ and $Re_τ= 381$. The high resolution of the simulations allows dissipation and enstrophy moments up to fourth order to be calculated. These moments show a dependence on wall distance, and Reynolds number effects are observed at the edge of the logarithmic layer. Conditional analyses based on locations of intense rotation are also carried out in order to determine the contribution of vortical structures to the dissipation and enstrophy moments. Our analysis shows that, for the simulation at the larger Reynolds number, small-scale fluctuations of both dissipation and enstrophy become relatively constant for $z^+ \gtrsim 100$.

physics.flu-dyn↗

arXiv2009

Nonlocal Form of the Rapid Pressure-Strain Correlation in Turbulent Flows

A new fundamentally-based formulation of nonlocal effects in the rapid pressure-strain correlation in turbulent flows has been obtained. The resulting explicit form for the rapid pressure-strain correlation accounts for nonlocal effects produced by spatial variations in the mean-flow velocity gradients, and is derived through Taylor expansion of the mean velocity gradients appearing in the exact integral relation for the rapid pressure-strain correlation. The integrals in the resulting series expansion are solved for high- and low-Reynolds number forms of the longitudinal correlation function $f(r)$, and the resulting nonlocal rapid pressure-strain correlation is expressed as an infinite series in terms of Laplacians of the mean strain rate tensor. The new formulation is used to obtain a nonlocal transport equation for the turbulence anisotropy that is expected to provide improved predictions of the anisotropy in strongly inhomogeneous flows.

physics.flu-dyn↗

arXiv2008

Direct Assessment of Vorticity Alignment with Local and Nonlocal Strain Rates in Turbulent Flows

A direct Biot-Savart integration is used to decompose the strain rate into its local and nonlocal constituents, allowing the vorticity alignment with the local and nonlocal strain rate eigenvectors to be investigated. These strain rate tensor constituents are evaluated in a turbulent flow using data from highly-resolved direct numerical simulations. While the vorticity aligns preferentially with the intermediate eigenvector of the \textit{combined} strain rate, as has been observed previously, the present results for the first time clearly show that the vorticity aligns with the most extensional eigenvector of the \textit{nonlocal} strain rate. This in turn reveals a significant linear contribution to the vortex stretching dynamics in turbulent flows.

physics.flu-dyn↗

arXiv2008

Local and Nonlocal Strain Rate Fields and Vorticity Alignment in Turbulent Flows

Local and nonlocal contributions to the total strain rate tensor at any point in a flow are formulated from an expansion of the vorticity field in a local spherical neighborhood of radius R centered on x. The resulting exact expression allows the nonlocal (background) strain rate tensor to be obtained from the total strain rate tensor. In turbulent flows, where the vorticity naturally concentrates into relatively compact structures, this allows the local alignment of vorticity with the most extensional principal axis of the background strain rate tensor to be evaluated. In the vicinity of any vortical structure, the required radius R and corresponding order n to which the expansion must be carried are determined by the viscous lengthscale. We demonstrate the convergence to the background strain rate field with increasing R and n for an equilibrium Burgers vortex, and show that this resolves the anomalous alignment of vorticity with the intermediate eigenvector of the total strain rate tensor. We then evaluate the background strain field in DNS of homogeneous isotropic turbulence where, even for the limited R and n corresponding to the truncated series expansion, the results show an increase in the expected equilibrium alignment of vorticity with the most extensional principal axis of the background strain rate tensor.

physics.flu-dyn↗