Some dynamical features of the turbulent flow of a viscoelastic fluid for reduced drag

It is well known that the addition of minute amounts of long polymer chains to organic solvents, or water, can lead to significant turbulent drag reduction. In the present study, direct numerical simulations of turbulent channel flow of a viscoelastic fluid, at zero-shear friction Reynolds numbers up to of 1000, are analyzed. Both the mean and turbulent fields are studied, but with a primary focus on the turbulent stress and viscoelastic extra-stress (conformation tensor) fields in order to contrast the dynamics of each. An analysis of both the turbulent kinetic energy and the elastic energy budget is made, with emphasis on the interactive dynamics between the two fields.