When long-chain flexible polymers are dissolved in a turbulent flow, the flow properties can be changed drastically by reducing the drag and enhancing the mixing. A fundamental riddle in materials science is to understand how these polymer additives interact with different spatial scales in turbulent flow to alter the turbulence energy transfer. In a new report now on Science Advances, Yi-Bao Zhang and a research team showed how turbulent kinetic energy could be transferred across different scales in the presence of polymer additives. The team noted the emergence of a previously unidentified scaling range known as the elastic range, where an increased amount of energy could be transferred by the elasticity of the polymers. The findings have important applications across many turbulent systems, including turbulence in plasmas or superfluids.
Click here for original story, Experimental observation of the elastic range scaling in turbulent flow with polymer additives
Source: Phys.org