23rd Congress of International Council of the Aeronautical Sciences, 8-13 September, 2002, Toronto, Canada
Paper ICAS 2002-2.8.2

THREE-DIMENSIONAL CO-OPERATIVE INSTABILITIES IN WAKE VORTEX PAIRS

R. Steijl, H. W. M. Hoeijmakers
Twente University, Netherlands

Keywords: aerodynamics, vortex pair, three-dimensional instability

A numerical study is presented concerning three-dimensional co-operative instabilities in vortex pairs. A counter-rotating vortex pair can develop two fundamentally different types of instabilities: short-wavelength or elliptic instabilities and long-wavelength or Crow instabilities. The role of both types is considered in the decay of an aircraft vortex wake.

view full paper