Abstract

In this study, we carried out the characterization of the transition to turbulence of a thermal pure plume by using ultrasound scattering. For this, the position, amplitude and broadening of the scattering peak are analyzed. The technique is based upon the scattering of an ultrasound wave coupling with an unstable how. The coupling between the acoustic mode with both vorticity and entropy modes is derived from non-linear terms of Navier-Stokes and energy equations. When the scattering mechanism occurs, the characteristic length scale of the flow structure under observation is comparable with the wavelength of incoming sound. Thus, the flow can be probed at different length scales by only changing the frequency of incoming sound. The thermal plume rises from a heated disk immersed into a quiescent medium and can reach transition and fully turbulent regimes. Criteria allowing the identification of both the beginning and the end of transition are derived from the results. The characteristics of the scattering process show evidence that allows us to discern the beginning of transition. The analysis of the amplitude of the scattering peak revealed a homogeneous behavior and led us to think of a possible principle of similarity. The evolution of both thermal and velocity fluctuations has made it possible to establish the limits of both the beginning and the end of transition, in terms of local Grashof number Gr(z) and position of the measurement zone z/D. The limits for transition reported in this work are comparable in its magnitude order with those of the literature. It was verified that thermal and velocity transition are phenomena that begin and finish almost simultaneously. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Inc. All rights reserved.