Critical behavior in the relaminarization of localized turbulence in pipe flow

The statistics of the relaminarization of localized turbulence in a pipe are examined by direct numerical simulation. As in recent experimental data [J. Peixinho and T. Mullin, Phys. Rev. Lett. 96, 094501 (2006)], the half-life for the decaying turbulence is consistent with the scaling (Re-c-Re)(-1), indicating a boundary crisis of the localized turbulent state familiar in low-dimensional dynamical systems. The crisis Reynolds number is estimated as Re-c=1870, a value within 7% of the experimental value 1750. We argue that the frequently asked question, of which initial disturbances at a given Re trigger sustained turbulence in a pipe, is really two separate questions: the local phase space question (local to the laminar state) of what threshold disturbance at a given Re is needed to initially trigger turbulence, followed by the global phase space question of whether Re exceeds Re-c at which point the turbulent state becomes an attractor.