Large eddy simulation of flow over a twisted cylinder at a subcritical Reynolds number

We consider a twisted cylinder that was designed by rotating the elliptic cross-section along the spanwise direction, resulting in a passive control. The flow over the twisted cylinder is investigated at a subcritical Reynolds number (Re) of 3000 using large eddy simulation based on the finite volume method. For comparison, the flow past smooth and wavy cylinders is also calculated. The twisted cylinder achieves reductions of approximately 13 and 5% in mean drag compared with smooth and wavy cylinders, respectively. In particular, the root mean square (r.m.s.) value of the lift fluctuation of the twisted cylinder shows a substantial decrease of approximately 96% compared with the smooth cylinder. The shear layer of the twisted cylinder covering the recirculation region is more elongated than those of the smooth and wavy cylinders, and vortex shedding from the twisted cylinder is considerably suppressed. Consequently, the elongation of the shear layer from the body and the near disappearance of vortex shedding in the near wake with weak vortical strength contributes directly to the reduction of drag and lift oscillation. Various fundamental mechanisms that affect the flow phenomena, three-dimensional separation, pressure coefficient, vortex formation length and turbulent kinetic energy are examined systematically to demonstrate the effect of the twisted cylinder surface. In addition, for the twisted cylinder at Re = 3000, the effect of the cross-sectional aspect ratio is investigated from 1.25 to 2.25 to find an optimal value that can reduce the drag and lift forces. Moreover, the effect of the Reynolds number on the aerodynamic characteristics is investigated in the range of 3 x 10(3) <= Re <= 1 x 10(4). We find that as Re increases, the mean drag and the r.m.s. lift coefficient of the twisted cylinder increase, and the vortex formation length decreases.