Vortex shedding in high-Reynolds-number axisymmetric bluff-body wakes: local linear instability and global bleed control

Abstract: We study the large-scale helical vortex shedding regime in the wake of an axisymmetric body with a blunt trailing edge at high Reynolds numbers, both experimentally and by means of local, linear, spatiotemporal stability analysis. In the instability analysis we take into account the detailed downstream evolution of the basic flow behind the body base. The study confirms the existence of a finite region of absolute instability for the first azimuthal number in the near field of the wake. Such instability is believed to trigger the large scale helical vortex shedding downstream of the recirculating zone. Inhibition of vortex shedding is examined by blowing a given flow rate of fluid through the base of the slender body. The extent of the locally absolute region of the flow is calculated as a function of the bleed coefficient, $C_b=q_b/(\pi R^2u_\infty)$, where $q_b$ is the bleed flow rate, $R$ is the radius of the base and $u_\infty$ is the incident free-stream velocity. It is shown that the basic flow becomes convectively unstable everywhere for a critical value of the bleed coefficient of $C_b^*\sim 0.13$, such that no self-excited regime is expected for $C_b>C_b^*$. In addition, we report experimental results of flow visualizations and hot-wire measurements for increasing values of the bleed coefficient. When a sufficient amount of base bleed is applied, flow visualizations indicate that vortex shedding is suppressed and that the mean flow becomes axisymmetric. The critical bleed coefficient predicted by linear instability analysis is shown to fall within the experimental values in the range of Reynolds numbers analyzed here.