Turbulent inflow conditions for large-eddy simulation based on low-order empirical model

Generation of turbulent inflow boundary conditions is performed by interfacing an experimental database acquired by particle image velocimetry to a computational code. The proposed method ensures that the velocity fields introduced as inlet conditions in the computational code present correct one- and two-point spatial statistics and a realistic temporal dynamics. This approach is based on the use of the proper orthogonal decomposition (POD) to interpolate and extrapolate the experimental data onto the numerical mesh and to model both the temporal dynamics and the spatial organization of the flow in the inlet section. Realistic representation of the flow is achieved by extracting and modeling independently its coherent and incoherent parts. A low-order dynamical model is derived from the experimental database in order to provide the temporal evolution of the most energetic structures. The incoherent motion is modeled by employing time series of Gaussian random numbers to mimic the temporal evolution of higher order POD modes. Validation of the proposed method is provided by performing a large-eddy simulation of a turbulent plane mixing layer, which is compared to experimental results. (C) 2008 American Institute of Physics.