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The pinch-off process in a starting buoyant plume

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Abstract

The vortex ring formation process of a starting buoyant plume was studied experimentally using digital particle image thermometry and velocimetry (DPITV). The vortex ring was observed to pinch-off, or become disconnected, from the trailing plume. Pinch-off occurred at non-dimensional times, or formation numbers, between 4.4 and 4.9. The observed pinch-off process is consistent with an explanation based upon the Kelvin–Benjamin variational principle. This is analogous to the pinch-off of a vortex ring generated using a piston–cylinder apparatus, suggesting that pinch-off is a general component of the vortex ring formation process for various generation mechanisms.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Graduate Aeronautical Laboratories, California Institute of Technology, M/C 205–45, Pasadena, CA, 91125 , USA

    T. S. Pottebaum & M. Gharib

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  1. T. S. Pottebaum
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  2. M. Gharib
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Correspondence to T. S. Pottebaum.

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Pottebaum, T.S., Gharib, M. The pinch-off process in a starting buoyant plume. Exp Fluids 37, 87–94 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00348-004-0788-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00348-004-0788-0

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