In diverse areas of science and technology, including inertial confinement fusion (ICF), astrophysics, geophysics, and engineering processes, turbulent mixing induced by hydrodynamic instabilities is of scientific interest as well as practical significance. Because of the fundamental roles they often play in ICF and other applications, three classes of hydrodynamic instability-induced turbulent flows—those arising from the Rayleigh-Taylor, Richtmyer-Meshkov, and Kelvin-Helmholtz instabilities—have attracted much attention. ICF implosions, supernova explosions, and other applications illustrate that these phases of instability growth do not occur in isolation, but instead are connected so that growth in one phase feeds through to initiate growth in a later phase. Essentially, a description of these flows must encompass both the temporal and spatial evolution of the flows from their inception. Hydrodynamic instability will usually start from potentially infinitesimal spatial perturbations, will eventually transition to a turbulent flow, and then will reach a final state of a true multiscale problem. Indeed, this change in the spatial scales can be vast, with hydrodynamic instability evolving from just a few microns to thousands of kilometers in geophysical or astrophysical problems. These instabilities will evolve through different stages before transitioning to turbulence, experiencing linear, weakly, and highly nonlinear states. The challenges confronted by researchers are enormous. The inherent difficulties include characterizing the initial conditions of such flows and accurately predicting the transitional flows. Of course, fully developed turbulence, a focus of many studies because of its major impact on the mixing process, is a notoriously difficult problem in its own right. In this pedagogical review, we will survey challenges and progress, and also discuss outstanding issues and future directions.

Turbulent mixing and transition criteria of flows induced by hydrodynamic instabilities

Rayleigh-Taylor and Richtmyer-Meshkov instabilities: A journey through scales

In diverse areas of science and technology, including inertial confinement fusion (ICF), astrophysics, geophysics, and engineering processes, turbulent mixing induced by hydrodynamic instabilities is of scientific interest as well as practical significance. Because of the fundamental roles they often play in ICF and other applications, three classes of hydrodynamic instability-induced turbulent flows—those arising from the Rayleigh-Taylor, Richtmyer-Meshkov, and Kelvin-Helmholtz instabilities—have attracted much attention. ICF implosions, supernova explosions, and other applications illustrate that these phases of instability growth do not occur in isolation, but instead are connected so that growth in one phase feeds through to initiate growth in a later phase. Essentially, a description of these flows must encompass both the temporal and spatial evolution of the flows from their inception. Hydrodynamic instability will usually start from potentially infinitesimal spatial perturbations, will eventually transition to a turbulent flow, and then will reach a final state of a true multiscale problem. Indeed, this change in the spatial scales can be vast, with hydrodynamic instability evolving from just a few microns to thousands of kilometers in geophysical or astrophysical problems. These instabilities will evolve through different stages before transitioning to turbulence, experiencing linear, weakly, and highly nonlinear states. The challenges confronted by researchers are enormous. The inherent difficulties include characterizing the initial conditions of such flows and accurately predicting the transitional flows. Of course, fully developed turbulence, a focus of many studies because of its major impact on the mixing process, is a notoriously difficult problem in its own right. In this pedagogical review, we will survey challenges and progress, and also discuss outstanding issues and future directions.In diverse areas of science and technology, including inertial confinement fusion (ICF), astrophysics, geophysics, and engineering processes, turbulent mixing induced by hydrodynamic instabilities is of scientific interest as well as practical significance. Because of the fundamental roles they often play in ICF and other applications, three classes of hydrodynamic instability-induced turbulent flows—those arising from the Rayleigh-Taylor, Richtmyer-Meshkov, and Kelvin-Helmholtz instabilities—have attracted much attention. ICF implosions, supernova explosions, and other applications illustrate that these phases of instability growth do not occur in isolation, but instead are connected so that growth in one phase feeds through to initiate growth in a later phase. Essentially, a description of these flows must encompass both the temporal and spatial evolution of the flows from their inception. Hydrodynamic instability will usually start from potentially infinitesimal spatial perturbations, will eventually t...

Turbulent Mixing and Transition Criteria of Flows Induced by Hydrodynamic Instabilities

The reshocked single-mode Richtmyer-Meshkov instability is simulated in two spatial dimensions using the fifth- and ninth-order weighted essentially non-oscillatory shock-capturing method with uniform spatial resolution of 256 points per initial perturbation wavelength. The initial conditions and computational domain are modeled after the single-mode, Mach 1.21 air(acetone)/SF{sub 6} shock tube experiment of Collins and Jacobs [J. Fluid Mech. 464, 113 (2002)]. The simulation densities are shown to be in very good agreement with the corrected experimental planar laser-induced fluorescence images at selected times before reshock of the evolving interface. Analytical, semianalytical and phenomenological linear and nonlinear, impulsive, perturbation and potential flow models for single-mode Richtmyer-Meshkov unstable perturbation growth are summarized. The simulation amplitudes are shown to be in very good agreement with the experimental data and with the predictions of linear amplitude growth models for small times and with those of nonlinear amplitude growth models at later times up to the time at which the driver-based expansion in the experiment (but not present in the simulations or models) expands the layer before reshock. The qualitative and quantitative differences between the fifth- and ninth-order simulation results are discussed. Using a local and global quantitative metric, the prediction of the Zhang and Sohn [Phys. Fluids 9, 1106 (1997)] nonlinear Pade model is shown to be in best overall agreement with the simulation amplitudes before reshock. The sensitivity of the amplitude growth model predictions to the initial growth rate from linear instability theory, the post-shock Atwood number and amplitude, and the velocity jump due to the passage of the shock through the interface is also investigated numerically. In Part II [Phys. Fluids (2006)], a comprehensive investigation of mixing induced by the reshocked single-mode Richtmyer-Meshkov instability is performed using the present simulation data to assess and quantify the effects of reshock and other waves on the mixing dynamics, including the post-reshock growth, circulation deposition, mixing profiles and fractions, baroclinic circulation deposition, energy spectra and statistics.

/pdf/high-resolution-simulations-and-modeling-of-reshocked-single-31dnlyig1o.pdf

High-resolution simulations and modeling of reshocked single-mode Richtmyer-Meshkov instability. I. Comparison to experimental data and to amplitude growth model predictions

The interaction of a planar shock wave with a polygonal N2 volume surrounded by SF6 is investigated experimentally and numerically. Three polygonal interfaces (square, triangle and diamond) are formed by the soap film technique developed in our previous work, in which thin pins are introduced as angular vertexes to connect adjacent sides of polygonal soap films. The evolutions of the shock-accelerated polygonal interfaces are then visualized by a high-speed schlieren system. Wave systems and interface structures can be clearly identified in experimental schlieren images, and agree well with the numerical ones. Quantitatively, the movement of the distorted interface, and the length and height of the interface structures are further compared and good agreements are achieved between experimental and numerical results. It is found that the evolution of these polygonal interfaces is closely related to their initial shapes. In the square interface, two vortices are generated shortly after the shock impact around the left corner and dominate the flow field at late stages. In the triangular and diamond cases, the most remarkable feature is the small ‘SF6 jet’ which grows constantly with time and penetrates the downstream boundary of the interface, forming two independent vortices. These distinct morphologies of the three polygonal interfaces also lead to the different behaviours of the interface features including the length and height. It is also found that the velocities of the vortex pair predicted from the theory of Rudinger and Somers (J. Fluid Mech., vol. 7, 1960, pp. 161‐176) agree with the experimental ones, especially for the square case. Typical free precursor irregular refraction phenomena and the transitions among them are observed and analysed, which gives direct experimental evidence for wave patterns and their transitions at a slow/fast interface. The velocities of triple points and shocks are experimentally measured. It is found that the transmitted shock near the interface boundary has weakened into an evanescent wave.

/pdf/on-the-interaction-of-a-planar-shock-with-a-light-polygonal-54wu3sewf7.pdf

On the interaction of a planar shock with a light polygonal interface

The Richtmyer–Meshkov instability on a three-dimensional single-mode light/heavy interface is experimentally studied in a converging shock tube. The converging shock tube has a slender test section so that the non-uniform feature of the shocked flow is amply exhibited in a long testing time. A deceleration phenomenon is evident in the unperturbed interface subjected to a converging shock. The single-mode interface presents three-dimensional characteristics because of its minimum surface feature, which leads to the stratified evolution of the shocked interface. For the symmetry interface, it is quantitatively found that the perturbation amplitude experiences a rapid growth to a maximum value after shock compression and finally drops quickly before the reshock. This quick reduction of the interface amplitude is ascribed to a significant Rayleigh–Taylor stabilization effect caused by the deceleration of the light/heavy interface. The long-term effect of the Rayleigh–Taylor stabilization even leads to a phase inversion on the interface before the reshock when the initial interface has sufficiently small perturbations. It is also found that the amplitude growth is strongly suppressed by the three-dimensional effect, which facilitates the occurrence of the phase inversion.

/pdf/long-term-effect-of-rayleigh-taylor-stabilization-on-2tvol0j64a.pdf

Long-term effect of Rayleigh-Taylor stabilization on converging Richtmyer-Meshkov instability

Evolution of a two-dimensional air/SF6 single-mode interface is numerically investigated by an upwind CE/SE method under a cylindrically converging circumstance. The Rayleigh-Taylor effect caused by the flow deceleration on the phase inversion (RTPI) is highlighted. The RTPI was firstly observed in our previous experiment, but the related mechanism remains unclear. By isolating the three-dimensional effect, it is found here that the initial amplitude (a0), the azimuthal mode number (k0) and the re-shocking moment are the three major parameters which determine the RTPI occurrence. In the variable space of (k0, a0), a critical a0 for the RTPI occurrence is solved for each k0, and there exists a threshold value of k0 below which the RTPI will not occur no matter what a0 is. There exists a special k0 corresponding to the largest critical a0, and the reduction rule of critical a0 with k0 can be well described by an exponential decay function. The results show that the occurrence of the RTPI requires a small a0 which should be less than a critical value, a large k0 which should exceed a threshold, and a right impinging moment of the re-shock which should be later than the RTPI occurrence. Finally, the effects of the incident shock strength, the density ratio and the initial position of the interface on the threshold value of k0 and on the maximum critical a0 are examined. These new findings would facilitate the understanding of the converging Richtmyer-Meshkov instability and would be helpful for designing an optimal structure of the inertia confinement fusion capsule.

Numerical study on Rayleigh-Taylor effect on cylindrically converging Richtmyer-Meshkov instability

The developments of a membrane-less SF6 gas cylinder under reshock conditions are experimentally investigated in this work. Illuminated by a continuous laser sheet, the interface morphology is characterized by glycol droplets and captured by a high-speed camera. It is found that different phenomena are observed for different end wall distances. The effect of the reshock is more pronounced on the interface morphology if interaction occurs at later times for the reshock times studied, i.e. for farther end wall positions. The variations of interface dimensions over time are given to demonstrate the influence of reshock on the interface development. Moreover, the velocities of the upper and lower interfaces are measured and compared with the theoretical ones calculated from the one-dimensional model and a good agreement is obtained. The change of the interface height shows that reshock promotes the Richtmyer–Meshkov instability process.

Evolution of heavy gas cylinder under reshock conditions

The cylindrical converging shock reflection over a plane wedge is investigated experimentally and numerically in a specially designed shock tube which converts a planar shock into a cylindrical one. When the converging shock is moving along the wedge, both the shock strength and the incident angle are changing, which provides the possibility for the wave transition. The results show that both regular reflection (RR) and Mach reflection (MR) are found on the wedge with different initial incident angles. The wave transitions from direct Mach reflection (DiMR) to inverse Mach reflection (InMR) and further to transitioned regular reflection (TRR) are observed with appropriate initial incident angles. The instability development in the shear layer and strong vortices formation near the wall are evident, which are ascribed not only to the interaction of two shear layers but also to the shock impact and the shock converging effect. Because of the flow unsteadiness after the converging shock, the detachment criterion provides a good estimation for the RR → MR transition, but fails to predict the DiMR → InMR transition, and MR is found to persist slightly below the mechanical equilibrium condition. A hysteresis process is found in the MR → TRR transition and becomes more apparent as the increase of the initial incident angle due to the shock converging effect.

Reflection of cylindrical converging shock wave over a plane wedge

Developments of two-dimensional single-mode light/heavy interfaces driven by convergent shock waves are numerically investigated, focusing on the effect of the Atwood number on the Rayleigh–Taylor stabilization, the compressibility and the nonlinearity. Five different test gases, including $$\hbox {CO}_2$$
 , Kr, R22, R12 and $$\hbox {SF}_6$$
 , are considered with air as the ambient gas. It is clarified for the first time that the unperturbed interface begins to decelerate when the shock focuses at the convergence center, and the acceleration during the deceleration phase is proportional to the Atwood number. During the first reshock, the interface moves outwards with a deceleration until it starts moving inwards. When the initial interface is weakly disturbed, a more obvious amplitude reduction is observed for the case with a larger Atwood number before the reshock, which means that the Rayleigh–Taylor stabilization is stronger. To assess the effect of the Atwood number on the compressibility and the nonlinearity, three models, including a linear incompressible model, a nonlinear incompressible model and a linear compressible model, are adopted to predict the amplitude growth before the reshock. The results show that the nonlinearity is weak, and is almost not influenced by the Atwood number before the reshock. The compressibility, however, greatly changes the amplitude growth. As the Atwood number increases, the compressibility plays a less significant role in the amplitude growth because a heavier gas is harder to be compressed. Although a gas with a larger specific heat ratio is also difficult to be compressed, the specific heat ratio plays a minor role to the compressibility relative to the Atwood number. During the reshock, the amplitude grows linearly until the nonlinearity in the cases with large Atwood numbers is strong enough to reduce the amplitude growth rate.

Fu Zhang

Papers

Long-term effect of Rayleigh-Taylor stabilization on converging Richtmyer-Meshkov instability

Numerical study on Rayleigh-Taylor effect on cylindrically converging Richtmyer-Meshkov instability

Evolution of heavy gas cylinder under reshock conditions

Reflection of cylindrical converging shock wave over a plane wedge

Effect of Atwood number on convergent Richtmyer–Meshkov instability