Cylinder wakes in flowing soap films.
We present an experimental characterization of cylinder wakes in flowing soap films. From instantaneous velocity and thickness fields, we find the vortex-shedding frequency, mean-flow velocity, and mean-film thickness. Using the empirical relationship between the Reynolds and Strouhal numbers obtained for cylinder wakes in three dimensions, we estimate the effective soap-film viscosity and its dependence on film thickness. We also compare the decay of vorticity with that in a simple Rankine vortex model with a dissipative term to account for air drag.
Vorobieff
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Center for Nonlinear Studies, Condensed Matter and Thermal Physics Group, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, New Mexico 87545, USA.
Ecke
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