ALBERT

Description: An experimental investigation of the flow and acoustic properties of a moderate-Reynolds-number (Be = 70000), Mach number M = 2.1, axisymmetric jet has been performed. These measurements extended the experimental studies conducted previously in this laboratory to a higher-Reynolds-number regime where the flow and acoustic processes are considerably more complex. In fact, mean-flow and acoustic properties of this jet were determined to be closely comparable to published properties of high-Reynolds-number jets. The major results of the flow-field measurements demonstrate that the jet shear annulus is unstable over a broad frequency range. The initial growth rates and wavelengths of these instabilities as measured by a hot wire were found to be in reasonable agreement with linear stability theory predictions. Also, in agreement with subsonic-jet results, the potential core of the jet was found to be most responsive to excitation at frequencies near a Strouhal number of S = 0.3. The overall development of organized disturbances around S = 0.2 seems to agree in general with calculations performed using the instability theory originally developed by Morris and Tam. The acoustic near field was characterized in terms of sound-pressure level and directivity for both natural and excited (pure-tone) jets. In addition, propagation direction and azimuthal character of dominant spectral components were also measured. It was determined that the large-scale flow disturbances radiate noise in a directional pattern centred about 30° from the jet axis. The noise from these disturbances appears from simple ray tracing to be generated primarily near the region of the jet where the coherent fluctuations saturate in amplitude and begin to decay. It was also determined that the large-scale components of the near-field sound are made up predominately of axisymmetric (n = 0) and helical (n = ±1) modes. The dominant noise-generation mechanism appears to be a combination of Mach-wave generation and a process associated with the saturation and disintegration of the large-scale instability. Finally, the further development of a noise-generation model of the instability type appears to hold considerable promise. © 1982, Cambridge University Press. All rights reserved.

Description: (Previously cited in issue 06, p. 860, Accession no. A82-17824)

Description: The objective of the present research was to characterize the instability of supersonic jets of Mach numbers 1.4, 2.1, and 2.5 in the Reynolds number range around 8000. In this Reynolds number range the jet instability has its maximum coherence so that its properties as well as the acoustic properties can be most clearly identified. Growth rate, wavelength, and wave orientation of dominant spectral components of the instability for the three Mach number jets were measured in order to characterize the instability. The saturation and subsequent decay on the instability are coincident with a drastic decrease in the coherence of the instability. Associated research shows that the phenomenon of rapid growth and decay is of fundamental importance in the noise generation process.

Description: The role of large scale wavelike structures as the major mechanism for supersonic jet noise emission is examined. With the use of aerodynamic and acoustic data for low Reynolds number, supersonic jets at and below 70 thousand comparisons are made with flow fluctuation and acoustic measurements in high Reynolds number, supersonic jets. These comparisons show that a similar physical mechanism governs the generation of sound emitted in he principal noise direction. These experimental data are further compared with a linear instability theory whose prediction for the axial location of peak wave amplitude agrees satisfactorily with measured phased averaged flow fluctuation data in the low Reynolds number jets. The agreement between theory and experiment in the high Reynolds number flow differs as to the axial location for peak flow fluctuations and predicts an apparent origin for sound emission far upstream of the measured acoustic data.

Description: Experiments and computations on the flowfield and radiated noise of supersonic model jets are discussed. The shock associated noise produced by large scale instabilities in underexpanded supersonic jets, the nonlinear propagation distortion phenomenon in the noise radiated by supersonic model jets, and computations of instability evolution and radiated noise using the LSNOIS computer code are addressed.

Description: The nonlinear interactions of fluctuating components which produce noise in supersonic jet flows were studied experimentally. Attention was given to spectral components interactions and the spectral effects of increasing Re. A jet exhausted in perfectly expanded conditions was monitored by microphones in the maximum noise emission direction. Trials were run at Mach 1.4 and 2.1 and the Re was varied from 5000-20,000 and 9000-25,000, respectively. Hot-wire data were gathered to examine the mode-mode interactions and a point glow discharge was used to excite the jets. The noise was found to exhibit discrete frequency components and a single tone instability at Re below 10,000. Mode interactions were found to weaken after the instabilities reached a crescendo and then decayed, leading to a nonlinear spectral broadening effect.