Direct numerical simulation of transition to turbulence in an oscillatory channel flow

In this Note, we present results of the numerical simulation of transition to turbulence for a purely oscillatory channel flow. These simulations were performed for various values of the Reynolds number, the so-called Stokes parameter being equal to 4. The methodology used for the flow simulation relies on a combination of finite element space approximations with time-discretization by operator splitting; it has shown to be very effective, even when it is applied to relatively complex domains with strong expansions at the inlet and outlet of the channel. The numerical results obtained agree qualitatively well with previous experiments by other investigators. To cite this article: L.H. Juárez, E. Ramos, C. R. Mecanique 331 (2003).