Lagrangian velocity statistics of homogeneous isotropic turbulence in dilute polymer solutions

Abstract

We conduct direct numerical simulations of homogeneous isotropic turbulence in dilute polymer solutions to investigate the Lagrangian velocity statistics. We show how polymers modulate the power spectral density of the Lagrangian velocity and the Lagrangian integral timescale by varying the Reynolds number, forcing method, and polymer relaxation time. As the polymer relaxation time increases, the attenuation of the power spectral density extends successively from high to low frequencies, and the Lagrangian integral timescale increases. To clarify the mechanism underlying the modulation of the Lagrangian velocity statistics, we decompose the Lagrangian velocity into the contributions from vortices at different length scales. Using this scale-decomposition analysis, we demonstrate that the observed modulation of the Lagrangian velocity statistics results from polymer-induced suppression of vortices that proceeds from smaller to larger scales.