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  • Letter
  • Open Access

Transitions of turbulent superstructures in generalized Kolmogorov flow

Cristian C. Lalescu1,2 and Michael Wilczek1,3,*

  • 1Max Planck Institute for Dynamics and Self-Organization, Am Faßberg 17, 37077 Göttingen, Germany
  • 2Max Planck Computing and Data Facility, Gießenbachstraße 2, 85748, Garching b. München, Germany
  • 3Institute for the Dynamics of Complex Systems, University of Göttingen, Friedrich-Hund-Platz 1, 37077 Göttingen, Germany

  • *michael.wilczek@ds.mpg.de
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Phys. Rev. Research 3, L022010 – Published 5 May, 2021

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevResearch.3.L022010

Abstract

Self-organized large-scale flow structures occur in a wide range of turbulent flows. Yet, their emergence, dynamics, and interplay with small-scale turbulence are not well understood. Here, we investigate such self-organized turbulent superstructures in three-dimensional turbulent Kolmogorov flow with large-scale drag. Through extensive simulations, we uncover their low-dimensional dynamics featuring transitions between several stable and metastable large-scale structures as a function of the damping parameter. The main dissipation mechanism for the turbulent superstructures is the generation of small-scale turbulence, whose local structure depends strongly on the large-scale flow. Our results elucidate the generic emergence and low-dimensional dynamics of large-scale flow structures in fully developed turbulence and reveal a strong coupling of large- and small-scale flow features.

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Phys. Rev. Research 3, L022010– Published 5 May, 2021
  • Received 8 September 2020
  • Accepted 23 March 2021
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Published by the American Physical Society under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license. Further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the published article's title, journal citation, and DOI. Open access publication funded by the Max Planck Society.

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