Role of the strain-rate tensor in turbulent scalar-transport modeling

Abstract

We examine the geometric orientation of the subfilter-scale scalar-flux vector in homogeneous isotropic turbulence. Vector orientation is determined using the eigenframe of the resolved strain-rate tensor. The Schmidt number is kept sufficiently large so as to leave the velocity field, and hence, the strain-rate tensor, unaltered by filtering in the viscous-convective subrange. Strong preferential alignment is observed for the case of Gaussian and box filters, whereas the sharp-spectral filter leads to close to a random orientation. The orientation angle obtained with the Gaussian and box filters is largely independent of the filter-width and the Schmidt number. It is shown that the alignment direction observed numerically using these two filters is predicted very well by the tensor-diffusivity model. Further a-priori tests indicate poor alignment of the Smagorinsky and stretched vortex model predictions with the exact subfilter flux.