Chapter 8 The Streamfunction and Vorticity

Chapter 8
The Streamfunction and Vorticity

For 2D incompressible ows, it is possible to recast the Navier-Stokes equations in an alternative
form in terms of the streamfunction and the vorticity.
In many applications, the streamfunction-vorticity form of the Navier Stokes equations provides
better insight into the physical mechanisms driving the ow than the primitive variable formulation
in terms of u, v and p.
The streamfunction and vorticity formulation is also useful for numerical work since it avoids some
problems resulting from the discretisation of the continuity equation.
Unless specically stated, all results in this chapter are restricted
to 2D incompressible ows.
8.1 The Streamfunction
The streamfunction is dened as
A
(P) =
_
P
A
u n ds, (8.1)
where the integral has to be evaluated along a line from the arbitrary but xed point A to point
P. n is the unit normal on the line from A to P. We regard
A
(P) as a function of the location of
point P.
y
x
P
n
u
A
Figure 8.1: Sketch illustrating the denition of the streamfunction.
The sketch in Fig. 8.1 shows that u n is equal to the component of the velocity u that crosses the
line AP. Therefore
A
(P) represents the volume ux (per unit depth in the z-direction) through
the line between A and P.
19
MATH35001 Viscous Fluid Flow: Streamfunction and Vorticity 20
Evaluating
A
(P) along two dierent paths and invoking the integral form of the incompressibility
constraint shows that
A
(P) is path-independent, i.e. its value only depends on the locations of
the points A and P.
Changing the position of point A only changes
A
(P) by a constant. It turns out that for all
applications such changes are irrelevant. It is therefore common to suppress the explicit reference
to A. Hence, we regard
A
(P) as a function of the spatial coordinates only, i.e.
A
(P) = (P) =
(x, y).
Streamlines are lines which are everywhere tangential to the velocity eld, i.e. u n = 0, where n
is the unit normal to the streamline. Hence the streamfunction is constant along streamlines.
Note that stationary impermeable boundaries are also characterised by u n = 0, where n is the
unit normal on the boundary. Therefore, is also constant along such boundaries.
Invoking the integral incompressibility constraint for an innitesimally small triangle shows that
is related to the two cartesian velocity components u and v via
u =

y
and v =
x
(8.2)
Similarly, in plane cylindrical polars, the velocity components are given by
u
r
=
1
r
and u
r
. (8.3)
Flows which are specied by a streamfunction automatically satisfy the continuity equation since
u
x
+
v
y
=

x
_
y
_
+

y
_
x
_
= 0. (8.4)
For 2D ows, the vorticity vector = u only has one non-zero component (in the z-direction),
i.e. = e
z
where
=
v
x

u
y
. (8.5)
Using the denition of the velocities in terms of the streamfunction shows that
=

x
_
x
_
x
_
x
_
(8.6)
and therefore
=
2
, (8.7)
where
2
=
2
/x
2
+
2
/y
2
is the 2D Laplace operator.
8.2 The Streamfunction-Vorticity form of the Navier-Stokes equa-
tions
Straightforward algebraic manipulation of the 3D momentum equations transforms them into the
vorticity transport equation
D
Dt
= ( )u +
2
(8.8)
(see the separate handout for the derivation; this equation is valid in 3D).
This equation shows that the rate of change of the vorticity of material particles, D/Dt, is con-
trolled by vortex stretching (described by ( )u; this is a familiar result from inviscid uid
mechanics) and by diusion (described by
2
). The diusion of vorticity only occurs in viscous
ows.
For 2D ows, vortex stretching is absent since u = u(x, y) e
x
+ v(x, y) e
y
and = (x, y) e
z
and
therefore ( )u = 0.
For 2D ows, the scalar vorticity transport equation
D
Dt
=
2
(8.9)
together with the equation for the vorticity in terms of the streamfunction
=
2
(8.10)
and
u = /y and v = /x (8.11)
provide the streamfunction-vorticity formulation of the Navier-Stokes equations. It consists of only
two PDEs for the scalars and rather than the three PDEs for u, v and p in the primitive
variable form.
In the limit of zero Reynolds number, only one fourth-order PDE for the streamfunction needs
to be solved, namely the biharmonic equation
4
= 0, (8.12)
where
4
=

4
x
4
+ 2

4
x
2
y
2
+

4
y
4
. (8.13)
This can be shown by, e.g., taking the curl of the Stokes equations.
8.2.1 The streamfunction and the biharmonic equation in cylindrical polars
In cylindrical polars, (r, ) the relation between the streamfunction (r, ) and the velocity com-
ponents u
r
and u
is:
u
r
=
1
r
(8.14)
and
u
r
, (8.15)
where u = u
r
e
r
+ u
.
The biharmonic equation in polar coordinates:
4
(r, ) =
_

2
r
2
+
1
r
r
+
1
r
2
2
_ _
r
2
+
1
r
r
+
1
r
2
2
_
(8.16)
4
(r, ) =
,rrrr
+
2
r
,rrr
1
r
2
(
,rr
2
,rr
) +
1
r
3
(
,r
2
,r
) +
1
r
4
(4
,
+2
,
) (8.17)
For axisymmetric solutions:
4
(r) =
1
r
_
r
_
1
r
[r
,r
]
,r
_
,r
_
,r
(8.18)
4
(r) =
,rrrr
+
2
r
,rrr
1
r
2
,rr
+
1
r
3
,r
(8.19)
The general form of the solution of the biharmonic equation in cylindrical polars is known. It can
be represented by superposition of the following solutions:
The general axisymmetric solution:
(r) = A
0
+ B
0
r
2
+ C
0
ln r + D
0
r
2
ln r (8.20)
The general separated non-axisymmetric solution:
For n = 1:
(r, ) =
_
Ar +
B
r
+ Cr
3
+ Dr ln r
_
cos()
+
_
ar +
b
r
+ cr
3
+ dr ln r
_
sin() (8.21)
For n 2:
(r, ) =
n=2
_
A
n
r
n
+ B
n
r
n
+ C
n
r
n+2
+ D
n
r
n+2
_
cos(n)
+
_
a
n
r
n
+ b
n
r
n
+ c
n
r
n+2
+ d
n
r
n+2
_
sin(n) (8.22)
The coecients (A
0
, B
0
, C
0
, D
0
, A
1
, B
1
, C
1
, D
1
, a
1
, b
1
, c
1
, d
1
, A
2
, B
2
, C
2
, D
2
, a
2
, b
2
, c
2
, d
2
, ...) have to
be determined from the boundary conditions.

Chapter 8 The Streamfunction and Vorticity

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Chapter 8 The Streamfunction and Vorticity

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Description:

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Chapter 8 The Streamfunction and Vorticity

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Chapter 8

The Streamfunction and Vorticity

You might also like