Direct simulation of vortex dynamics of multi-cellular Taylor–Green vortex by pseudo-spectral method

Abstract

This study investigates the long-time vorticity dynamics of the multi-cellular configurations of the two-dimensional (2D) Taylor–Green vortex (TGV). The pseudo-spectral method is used to solve the incompressible Navier–Stokes equation to analyze the evolution of TGV arrays. The focus is on understanding vortex interactions leading to vortex filamentation and stripping (forward cascade) during primary instability; merger and reconnection (inverse cascade) among the TGV vortical cells subsequently. Here, consideration of multiple cells avoids imposing symmetries at the smallest periodic length scale, and thereby affecting disturbance growth. The initial condition is taken from the analytic solution of the TGV, and Fourier spectral method is employed to track the interactions of the initial doubly-periodic vortices. The full sequence of evolution from one equilibrium state to another for the TGV is not addressed before, as reported here to fill this gap for multiple TGV cells in both directions. By studying various vortical interactions in the ensemble, here we report the enstrophy and energy spectra for different number of TGV cells. This is crucial in understanding the very long-time evolution process, at post-critical Reynolds numbers for the 2D TGV problem in the same physical domain, ($0\le (x,y)\le 4\pi$) having $(4\times 4)$ and $(6\times 6)$ cells. Reported results show the evolution of these vortical cells from original configurations to finally a $(1\times 1)$ vortical cells — the universal state not demonstrated before.