Static Pressure Extraction from Velocimetry in Vortical Flow Fields

Abstract

Rapid fluctuations of static pressure away from flow boundaries in a low-speed vortical flow, are extracted using the measured velocity field. The technique departs from prior work in not requiring far boundary values. Stereo Particle Image Velocimetry data satisfying the continuity equation are used as input to a Navier-Stokes solver. Streamline curvature, inspired by the Polhamus suction analogy, is used to determine the pressure inside recirculation regions. The technique is validated numerically using the flow around a circular cylinder before being applied to the vortical flow beneath the sharp edge of a rotor blade in reversed flow. The technique proves effective for sparsely seeded regions including recirculation zones and shear layers in vortices.