Investigation of the secondary flow by convergent-divergent riblets in a supersonic turbulent boundary layer over a compression ramp

In this paper, the effect of the secondary flow induced by convergent-divergent riblets in supersonic turbulent boundary layers over a 24 degrees compression ramp at Mach number 2.9 is studied via direct numerical simulation. Two riblet cases with the wavelength A being 1.1 delta and 1.65 delta (delta is the boundary layer thickness) are conducted to examine their impact on the secondary rolling motion, momentum transfer, turbulent fluctuations, flow separation, and unsteady shock motion. As the flow develops over the riblet section, both the size and intensity of the secondary rolling motion tend to increase. For the riblet case with Lambda/delta - 1.1, a single rolling mode is observed within a half wavelength, while a pair of co-rotating vortical structures is obtained for Lambda/delta = 1.65. Both rolling patterns lead to an apparent spanwise variation of the flow field. The results reveal that the secondary flow contributes to the increase of both the mean momentum flux and turbulent fluctuations. By using the spanwise averaging, the mean momentum flux contributed from the dispersive stress and compressible effect caused by the secondary flow is identified. Both components appear to enhance the near-wall momentum mixing, and a larger enhancement is observed for Lambda/delta = 1.1, where the intensity of the secondary flow is stronger. Compared to the baseline case, the area of the separation zone at Lambda/delta = 1.1 and Lambda/delta = 1.65 is decreased by 56% and 38%, respectively. For all the cases, the low-frequency motion near the foot of the shock is observed. In comparison, the frequency of the low-frequency motion for the riblet case is two times higher than that in the baseline case, owing to the reduction of the separation area and length. Published under an exclusive license by AIP Publishing.

Automated summary

In this study, the effect of secondary flow induced by riblets on supersonic turbulent boundary layers over a compression ramp is investigated. The results show that the secondary flow leads to an increase in the size and intensity of the rolling motion, contributing to the increase of mean momentum flux and turbulent fluctuations. The separation area is also reduced by the presence of riblets, and the frequency of low-frequency motion is higher in the presence of riblets compared to the baseline case.