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Patterns and stability of a whirlpool flow

Abstract:

This numerical study reveals stable multi-eddy patterns of a steady axisymmetric air-water flow driven by the rotating bottom disk in a vertical sealed cylindrical container. As rotation strength Re increases, eddies emerge, coalesce, separate, and disappear in both air and water. The topological scenario varies with water volume fraction Hw according to the results obtained for Hw = 0.3, 0.5, and 0.8. Interesting features are: (a) zipper-like chains of air and water eddies forming as the interface bends and (b) bubble-ring air eddies existing in the Re ranges specified in the paper. The stability analysis, performed with the help of a novel efficient technique for two-fluid flows, shows that these multi-eddy motions are stable. The shear-layer instability develops as the interface approaches either the top or bottom of the container and some eddies vanish. The physical reasoning behind the eddy formation and the flow instability is provided. The results are of fundamental interest and can have applications in bioreactors.