title: On the Origins of Vortex Shedding in Two-dimensional Incompressible Flows.
abstract: An exegesis of a novel mechanism leading to vortex splitting and subsequent shedding that is valid for two-dimensional incompressible, inviscid or viscous, and external or internal or wall-bounded flows, is detailed in this research. The mechanism, termed the Vortex-Shedding Mechanism (VSM), is simple and intuitive, requiring only two coincident conditions in the flow: (1) the existence of a location with zero momentum and (2) the presence of a net force having a positive divergence. Numerical solutions of several model problems illustrate causality of the VSM. Moreover, the VSM criteria is proved to be a necessary and sufficient condition for a vortex splitting event in any two-dimensional, incompressible flow. The VSM is shown to exist in several canonical problems including the external flow past a circular cylinder. Suppression of the von Kármán vortex street is demonstrated for Reynolds numbers of 100 and 400 by mitigating the VSM.
authors: Mechanical, Materials and Aerospace Engineering Department, Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago, IL.
authors: M E
authors: ME
authors: Boghosian
authors: Mechanical, Materials and Aerospace Engineering Department, Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago, IL.
authors: K W
authors: KW
authors: Cassel
keywords: von Kármán vortex street; vortex shedding; vortex splitting; vortex-shedding mechanism