Three-dimensional multiscale flow structures behind a wall-mounted short cylinder based on tomographic particle image velocimetry and three-dimensional orthogonal wavelet transform.

Three-dimensional (3D) flow structures around a wall-mounted short cylinder of height-to-diameter ratio 1 were instantaneously measured by a high-resolution tomographic particle image velocimetry (Tomo-PIV) at Reynolds number of 10 720 in a water tunnel. 3D velocity fields, 3D vorticity, the Q criterion, the rear separation region, and the characteristic of arch type vortex and tip vortices were first discussed. We found a strong 3D W-type arch vortex behind the short cylinder, which was originated by the interaction between upwash and downwash flows. This W-type arch vortex was reshaped to the M-shaped arch vortex downstream. It indicated that the head shape of the arch vortex structure depended on the aspect ratio of the cylinder. The large-scale streamwise vortices were originated by the downwash and upwash flows near the center location of W-type arch vortex. Then the 3D orthogonal wavelet multiresolution technique was developed to analyze instantaneous 3D velocity fields of Tomo-PIV in order to clarify 3D multiscale wake flow structures. The W-type shape arch vortex was extracted in the time-averaged intermediate-scale structure, while an M-shaped arch vortex was identified in the time-averaged large-scale structure. The tip vortices distributed in the time-averaged large- and intermediate-scale structures. The instantaneous intermediate-scale upwash vortices played an essential role in producing W-type head of arch structure. It was also observed that strong small-scale vortices appeared in the shear layer or near the bottom plate and most of them were contained in the intermediate-scale structures.