Analysis of the turbulent boundary layer in the vicinity of a self-excited cylindrical Helmholtz resonator

Abstract

This study investigates the changes in the structure of a turbulent boundary layer downstream of a flow-excited Helmholtz resonator. To this end, a fully developed turbulent boundary layer over a resonator mounted flush with a flat plate was simulated by implementing a large eddy simulation (LES). To assist in understanding the effect of the resonator on the flow structure, a sensitivity study was undertaken by changing the main geometrical parameters of the resonator. The results demonstrated that when the boundary layer thickness equals the orifice length, the cross-stream component of velocity fluctuations penetrates the boundary layer, resulting in a reduction of the turbulence intensity by up to 12%. Therefore, it is concluded that a Helmholtz resonator has the potential to reduce the instabilities within the boundary layer. These investigations also assist in identifying the optimal parameters to delay turbulence events within the grazing flow using Helmholtz resonators.