Boundary Layer Analysis of Acoustic Diffraction by a Half-Plane in a Viscous Fluid Medium

We investigate the effects of fluid viscosity on the diffraction of a time-harmonic acoustic plane wave by a semi-infinite half-plane. A boundary layer approximation based on a multiple scale expansion and the known inviscid diffraction solution is used to derive the velocity field near the surface of the half-plane. The boundary layer approximation is compared to an independent incompressible viscous flow solution that is derived for a small circular region in the neighborhood of the edge of the half-plane.