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We present a novel method for estimating the circulations and positions of point vortices using trajectory data of passive particles in the presence of Gaussian noise. The method comprises two algorithms: the first one calculates the vortex circulations, while the second one reconstructs the vortex trajectories. This reconstruction is done thanks to a hierarchy of optimization problems, involving the integration of systems of differential equations, over time sub-intervals all with the same amplitude defined by the autocorrelation function for the advected passive particles' trajectories. Our findings indicate that accurately tracking the position of vortices and determining their circulations is achievable, even when passive particle trajectories are affected by noise.

With the aim of providing a first step in the quest for a reduction of the aerodynamic drag on the rear-end of a car, we study the phenomena of separation and reattachment of an incompressible flow focusing on a specific aerodynamic geometry, namely a backward-slanted step at 25 degrees of inclination. The ensuing recirculation bubble provides the basis for an analytical and numerical investigation of streamwise-streak generation, lift-up effect, and turbulent-wake and Kelvin-Helmholtz instabilities. A linear stability analysis is performed, and an optimal control problem with a steady volumic forcing is tackled by means of variational formulation, adjoint method, penalization scheme and orthogonalization algorithm. Dealing with the transient growth of spanwise-periodic perturbations and inspired by the need of physically-realizable disturbances, we finally provide a procedure attaining a kinetic-energy maximal gain of the order of one million with respect to the power introduced by the external forcing., Comment: 17 figures

We consider the kinematic fluctuation dynamo problem in a flow that is random, white-in-time, with both solenoidal and potential components. This model is a generalization of the well-studied Kazantsev model. If both the solenoidal and potential parts have the same scaling exponent, then, as the compressibility of the flow increases, the growth rate decreases but remains positive. If the scaling exponents for the solenoidal and potential parts differ, in particular if they correspond to typical Kolmogorov and Burgers values, we again find that an increase in compressibility slows down the growth rate but does not turn it off. The slow down is, however, weaker and the critical magnetic Reynolds number is lower than when both the solenoidal and potential components display the Kolmogorov scaling. Intriguingly, we find that there exist cases, when the potential part is smoother than the solenoidal part, for which an increase in compressibility increases the growth rate. We also find that the critical value of the scaling exponent above which a dynamo is seen is unity irrespective of the compressibility. Finally, we realize that the dimension $d = 3$ is special, since for all other values of $d$ the critical exponent is higher and depends on the compressibility., Comment: 12 pages, 6 figures

We analyze the evolution of the distribution, both in the phase space and in the physical space, of inertial particles released by a spatially-localized (punctual) source and advected by an incompressible flow. The difference in mass density between fluid and particles is assumed as small, and represents the basic parameter for a regular perturbative expansion. By means of analytical techniques such as Hermitianization, we derive a chain of equations of the advection--diffusion--reaction type, easily solvable at least numerically. Our procedure provides results also for finite particle inertia, away from the over-damped limit of quasi-tracer dynamics., Comment: Submitted to EPJE

We investigate the large-scale transport properties of quasi-neutrally-buoyant inertial particles carried by incompressible zero-mean periodic or steady ergodic flows. We show how to compute large-scale indicators such as the inertial-particle terminal velocity and eddy diffusivity from first principles in a perturbative expansion around the limit of added-mass factor close to unity. Physically, this limit corresponds to the case where the mass density of the particles is constant and close in value to the mass density of the fluid which is also constant. Our approach differs from the usual over-damped expansion inasmuch we do not assume a separation of time scales between thermalization and small-scale convection effects. For general incompressible flows, we derive closed-form cell equations for the auxiliary quantities determining the terminal velocity and effective diffusivity. In the special case of parallel flows these equations admit explicit analytic solution. We use parallel flows to show that our approach enables to shed light onto the behavior of terminal velocity and effective diffusivity for Stokes numbers of the order of unity., Comment: 1 figure, submitted to Physical Review Fluids

We investigate the sedimentation properties of quasi-neutrally buoyant inertial particles carried by incompressible zero-mean fluid flows. We obtain generic formulae for the terminal velocity in generic space-and-time periodic (or steady) flows, along with further information for flows endowed with some degree of spatial symmetry such as odd parity in the vertical direction. These expressions consist in space-time integrals of auxiliary quantities which satisfy partial differential equations of the advection--diffusion--reaction type, that can be solved at least numerically since our scheme implies a huge reduction of the problem dimensionality from the full phase space to the classical physical space.

We analytically investigate the effective-diffusivity tensor of a tracer particle in a fluid flow endowed with a short correlation time. By means of functional calculus and a multiscale expansion, we write down the main contributions to the eddy diffusivity due to each single physical effect and to their interplays. Namely, besides molecular diffusivity and a constant uniform mean streaming, we take into account the possibility for the (incompressible, Gaussian, stationary, homogeneous, isotropic) turbulent fluctuations to break parity invariance. With respect to the classical turbulence-driven diffusivity amplification for delta-correlated flows, we find that the presence of a short temporal correlation induces a diminution even when coupled with such effects, with two principal exceptions. Notably, the diffusivity is --- perturbatively --- enlarged not only by the helical contribution itself, but also by the interference between molecular diffusion and mean flow., Comment: 14 pages, submitted to J.Stat.Mech

We investigate the bounds between normal or anomalous effective diffusion for inertial particles transported by parallel flows. The infrared behavior of the fluid kinetic-energy spectrum, i.e. the possible presence of long-range spatio-temporal correlations, is modeled as a power law by means of two parameters, and the problem is studied as a function of these latter. Our results, obtained in the limit of weak relative inertia, extend well-known results for tracers and apply to particles of any mass density, subject to gravity and Brownian diffusion. We consider both steady and time-dependent flows, and cases of both vanishing and finite particle sedimentation., Comment: 5 figures

We propose a procedure - partly analytical and partly numerical - to find the frequency and the damping rate of the small-amplitude oscillations of a massless elastic capsule immersed in a two-dimensional viscous incompressible fluid. The unsteady Stokes equations for the stream function are decomposed onto normal modes for the angular and temporal variables, leading to a fourth-order linear ordinary differential equation in the radial variable. The forcing terms are dictated by the properties of the membrane, and result into jump conditions at the interface between the internal and external media. The equation can be solved numerically, and an excellent agreement is found with a fully-computational approach we developed in parallel. Comparisons are also shown with the results available in the scientific literature for drops, and a model based on the concept of embarked fluid is presented, which allows for a good representation of the results and a consistent interpretation of the underlying physics., Comment: in press on JFM

The large-scale/long-time transport of inertial particles of arbitrary mass density under gravity is investigated by means of a formal multiple-scale perturbative expansion in the scale-separation parametre between the carrier flow and the particle concentration field. The resulting large-scale equation for the particle concentration is determined, and is found to be diffusive with a positive-definite eddy diffusivity. The calculation of the latter tensor is reduced to the resolution of an auxiliary differential problem, consisting of a coupled set of two differential equations in a (6+1)-dimensional coordinate system (3 space coordinates plus 3 velocity coordinates plus time). Although expensive, numerical methods can be exploited to obtain the eddy diffusivity, for any desirable non-perturbative limit (e.g. arbitrary Stokes and Froude numbers). The aforementioned large-scale equation is then specialized to deal with two different relevant perturbative limits: i) vanishing of both Stokes time and sedimenting particle velocity; ii) vanishing Stokes time and finite sedimenting particle velocity. Both asymptotics lead to a greatly simplified auxiliary differential problem, now involving only space coordinates and thus easy to be tackled by standard numerical techniques. Explicit, exact expressions for the eddy diffusivities have been calculated, for both asymptotics, for the class of parallel flows, both static and time-dependent. This allows us to investigate analytically the role of gravity and inertia on the diffusion process by varying relevant features of the carrier flow, as e.g. the form of its temporal correlation function. Our results exclude a universal role played by gravity and inertia on the diffusive behaviour: regimes of both enhanced and reduced diffusion may exist, depending on the detailed structure of the carrier flow., Comment: 8 figures (12 plots), submitted to JFM

The dispersion of inertial particles continuously emitted from a point source is analytically investigated in the limit of small inertia. Our focus is on the evolution equation of the particle joint probability density function p(x,v,t), x and v being the particle position and velocity, respectively. For finite inertia, position and velocity variables are coupled, with the result that p(x,v,t) can be determined by solving a partial differential equation in a 2d-dimensional space, d being the physical-space dimensionality. For small inertia, (x,v)-variables decouple and the determination of p(x,v,t) is reduced to solve a system of two standard forced advection-diffusion equations in the space variable x. The latter equations are derived here from first principles, i.e. from the well-known Lagrangian evolution equations for position and particle velocity., Comment: 10 pages, submitted to JFM

In order to model pressure and viscous terms in the equation for the Lagrangian dynamics of the velocity gradient tensor in turbulent flows, Chevillard & Meneveau (Phys. Rev. Lett. 97, 174501, 2006) introduced the Recent Fluid Deformation closure. Using matrix exponentials, the closure allows to overcome the unphysical finite-time blow-up of the well-known Restricted Euler model. However, it also requires the specification of a decorrelation time scale of the velocity gradient along the Lagrangian evolution, and when the latter is chosen too short (or, equivalently, the Reynolds number is too high), the model leads to unphysical statistics. In the present paper, we explore the limitations of this closure by means of numerical experiments and analytical considerations. We also study the possible effects of using time-correlated stochastic forcing instead of the previously employed white-noise forcing. Numerical experiments show that reducing the correlation time scale specified in the closure and in the forcing does not lead to a commensurate reduction of the autocorrelation time scale of the predicted evolution of the velocity gradient tensor. This observed inconsistency could explain the unrealistic predictions at increasing Reynolds numbers.We perform a series expansion of the matrix exponentials in powers of the decorrelation time scale, and we compare the full original model with a linearized version. The latter is not able to extend the limits of applicability of the former but allows the model to be cast in terms of a damping term whose sign gives additional information about the stability of the model as function of the second invariant of the velocity gradient tensor., Comment: 11 pages, 14 figures, submitted to the special issue "Fluids and Turbulence" of Physica D

Surface transport of inertial particles is investigated by means of the perturbative approach, introduced by Maxey (J. Fluid Mech. 174, 441 (1987)), which is valid in the case the deflections induced on the particle trajectories by the fluid flow can be considered small. We consider a class of compressible random velocity fields, in which the effect of recirculations is modelled by an oscillatory component in the Eulerian time correlation profile. The main issue we address here is whether fluid velocity fluctuations, in particular the effect of recirculation, may produce nontrivial corrections to the streaming particle velocity. Our result is that a small (large) degree of recirculation is associated with a decrease (increase) of streaming with respect to a quiescent fluid. The presence of this effect is confirmed numerically, away from the perturbative limit. Our approach also allows us to calculate the explicit expression for the eddy diffusivity, and to compare the efficiency of diffusive and ballistic transport., Comment: 18 pages, 13 figures, submitted to JFM

The influence of an underlying carrier flow on the terminal velocity of sedimenting particles is investigated both analytically and numerically. Our theoretical framework works for a general class of (laminar or turbulent) velocity fields and, by means of an ordinary perturbation expansion at small Stokes number, leads to closed partial differential equations (PDE) whose solutions contain all relevant information on the sedimentation process. The set of PDE's are solved by means of direct numerical simulations for a class of 2D cellular flows (static and time dependent) and the resulting phenomenology is analysed and discussed., Comment: 13 pages, 2 figures, submitted to JPA

We study the statistics of the relative separation between two fluid particles in a spatially smooth and temporally random flow. The Lagrangian strain is modelled by a telegraph noise, which is a stationary random Markov process that can only take two values with known transition probabilities. The simplicity of the model enables us to write closed equations for the inter-particle distance in the presence of a finite-correlated noise. In 1D, we are able to find analytically the long-time growth rates of the distance moments and the senior Lyapunov exponent, which consistently turns out to be negative. We also find the exact expression for the Cram\'er function and show that it satisfies the fluctuation relation (for the probability of positive and negative entropy production) despite the time irreversibility of the strain statistics. For the 2D incompressible isotropic case, we obtain the Lyapunov exponent (positive) and the asymptotic growth rates of the moments in two opposite limits of fast and slow strain. The quasi-deterministic limit (of slow strain) turns out to be singular, while a perfect agreement is found with the already-known delta-correlated case., Comment: 22 pages, new bibliographical reference added and misprinted equation reference corrected in the conclusions

We study the statistics of the relative separation between two fluid particles in a spatially smooth and temporally random flow. The Lagrangian strain is modelled by a telegraph noise, which is a stationary random Markov process that can only take two values with known transition probabilities. The simplicity of the model enables us to write closed equations for the inter-particle distance in the presence of a finite-correlated noise. In 1D, we are able to find analytically the long-time growth rates of the distance moments and the senior Lyapunov exponent, which consistently turns out to be negative. We also find the exact expression for the Cram\'er function and show that it satisfies the fluctuation relation (for the probability of positive and negative entropy production) despite the time irreversibility of the strain statistics. For the 2D incompressible isotropic case, we obtain the Lyapunov exponent (positive) and the asymptotic growth rates of the moments in two opposite limits of fast and slow strain. The quasi-deterministic limit (of slow strain) turns out to be singular, while a perfect agreement is found with the already-known delta-correlated case., Comment: 7 pages, equation (3) corrected, sentences added at the end of section 1, bibliography updated

The statistics of a passive scalar randomly emitted from a point source is investigated analytically. Our attention has been focused on the two-point equal-time scalar correlation function. The latter is indeed easily related to the spectrum, a statistical indicator widely used both in experiments and in numerical simulations. The only source of inhomogeneity/anisotropy is in the injection mechanism, the advecting velocity here being statistically homogeneous and isotropic. Our main results can be summarized as follows. 1) For a very large velocity integral scale, a pure scaling behaviour in the distance between the two points emerges only if their separation is much smaller than their distance from the point source. 2) The value we have found for the scaling exponent suggests the existence of a direct cascade, in spite of the fact that here the forcing integral scale is formally set to zero. 3) The combined effect of a finite inertial-range extension and of inhomogeneities causes the emergence of subleading anisotropic corrections to the leading isotropic term, that we have quantified and discussed., Comment: 10 pages, 1 figure, submitted to Journal of Fluid Mechanics

The issue of the parameterization of small-scale dynamics is addressed in the context of passive-scalar turbulence. The basic idea of our strategy is to identify dynamical equations for the coarse-grained scalar dynamics starting from closed equations for two-point statistical indicators. With the aim of performing a fully-analytical study, the Kraichnan advection model is considered. The white-in-time character of the latter model indeed leads to closed equations for the equal-time scalar correlation functions. The classical closure problem however still arises if a standard filtering procedure is applied to those equations in the spirit of the large-eddy-simulation strategy. We show both how to perform exact closures and how to identify the corresponding coarse-grained scalar evolution., Comment: 22 pages; submitted to Journal of Turbulence

The multifractal theory of turbulence uses a saddle-point evaluation in determining the power-law behaviour of structure functions. Without suitable precautions, this could lead to the presence of logarithmic corrections, thereby violating known exact relations such as the four-fifths law. Using the theory of large deviations applied to the random multiplicative model of turbulence and calculating subdominant terms, we explain here why such corrections cannot be present., Comment: 7 pages, 1 figure