Vortex tubes in turbulent flows: identification, representation, reconstruction

  • Authors:
  • David C. Banks;Bart A. Singer

  • Affiliations:
  • NASA langley Research Center, Hampton, VA;High Technology Corporation, NASA langley Research Center, Hampton, VA

  • Venue:
  • VIS '94 Proceedings of the conference on Visualization '94
  • Year:
  • 1994

Quantified Score

Hi-index 0.00

Visualization

Abstract

A new algorithm for identifying vortices in complex flows is presented. The scheme uses both the vorticity and pressure fields. A skelton line along the center of a vortex is produced by a two-step predictor-corrector scheme. The technique uses the vector field to move in the direction of the skeleton line and the scalar field to correct the location in the plane perpendicular to the skelton line. With an economical description of the vortex tube's cross-section, the skeleton compresses the representation of the flow by a factor of 4000 or more. We show how the reconstructed geometry of vortex tubes can be enhanced to help visualize helical motion.