Smoke introduced into the boundary layer of a cone rotating in a stream highlights the transition from laminar to turbulent flow. On the left side of the picture, the boundary Keep reading
Tag: transition
Smoke Transition
Smoke issuing from a round jet undergoes transition from laminar to turbulent flow. As the smoke moves past the unmoving ambient air, the friction between these two layers creates shear Keep reading
Toroidal Vortex
When instabilities exist in laminar flow, they do not always lead immediately to turbulence. In this video, a viscous fluid fills the space between two concentric cylinders. As the inner Keep reading
Osborne Reynolds and Transition
How and when flow through a pipe becomes turbulent has been a conundrum for fluid mechanicians since the days of Osbourne Reynolds (~1870s): Typically, the laminar-to-turbulence transition is studied mathematically Keep reading
Reynolds on Transition
For although only the disciplined motion is recognized in military tactics, troops have another manner of motion when anything disturbs their order. And this is precisely how it is with Keep reading
Godspeed, Discovery!
The space shuttle, despite three decades of service, remains a triumph of engineering. Although it is nominally a space vehicle, fluid dynamics are vital throughout its operation. From the combustion Keep reading
Instability in a Jet
This photo shows the development of a flow instability in an axisymmetric jet. On the left, the jet is smooth and fully laminar, but, by the center of the photo, Keep reading
Wavy Vortices
Shown above is the flow between two concentric cylinders (Taylor-Couette flow). In the laminar regime, the velocity profile between the two cylinders is linear. As the rate of rotation of Keep reading
Three Flows in One
These plumes of smoke demonstrate the three types of fluid flow: laminar, transitional, and turbulent. At the bottom of the photo, the plumes are smooth and orderly, as is typical Keep reading