Numerical study of flow past a rotating circular cylinder using a hybrid vortex scheme

Abstract

The vortex shedding and wake development of a two-dimensional viscous incompressible flow generated by a circular cylinder that begins its rotation and translation impulsively in a stationary fluid is investigated by a hybrid vortex scheme at a Reynolds number of 1000. The rotational to translational speed ratio varies from 0 to 6. The method used to calculate the flow is considered as a combination of the diffusion-vortex method and the vortex-in-cell method. The full flow field is divided into two regions. Near the body surface, the diffusion-vortex method is used to solve the Navier-Stokes equations; while the vortex-in-cell method is used in the exterior inviscid domain. The results show that the present method can be used to calculate not only the global characteristics of the separated flow, but also the precise evolution with time of the fine structure of the flow field.