A detailed look at some of the more modern issues of hydrodynamic stability, including transient growth, eigenvalue spectra, secondary instability. It presents analytical results and numerical simulations, linear and selected nonlinear stability methods. By including classical results as well as recent developments in the field of hydrodynamic stability and transition, the book can be used as a textbook for an introductory, graduate-level course in stability theory or for a special-topics fluids course. It is equally of value as a reference for researchers in the field of hydrodynamic stability theory or with an interest in recent developments in fluid dynamics. Stability theory has seen a rapid development over the past decade, this book includes such new developments as direct numerical simulations of transition to turbulence and linear analysis based on the initial-value problem.

A detailed look at some of the more modern issues of hydrodynamic stability, including transient growth, eigenvalue spectra, secondary instability. It presents analytical results and numerical simulations, linear and selected nonlinear stability methods. By including classical results as well as recent developments in the field of hydrodynamic stability and transition, the book can be used as a textbook for an introductory, graduate-level course in stability theory or for a special-topics fluids course. It is equally of value as a reference for researchers in the field of hydrodynamic stability theory or with an interest in recent developments in fluid dynamics. Stability theory has seen a rapid development over the past decade, this book includes such new developments as direct numerical simulations of transition to turbulence and linear analysis based on the initial-value problem.

A detailed look at some of the more modern issues of hydrodynamic stability, including transient growth, eigenvalue spectra, secondary instability. It presents analytical results and numerical simulations, linear and selected nonlinear stability methods. By including classical results as well as recent developments in the field of hydrodynamic stability and transition, the book can be used as a textbook for an introductory, graduate-level course in stability theory or for a special-topics fluids course. It is equally of value as a reference for researchers in the field of hydrodynamic stability theory or with an interest in recent developments in fluid dynamics. Stability theory has seen a rapid development over the past decade, this book includes such new developments as direct numerical simulations of transition to turbulence and linear analysis based on the initial-value problem.

Starting from fundamentals of classical stability theory, an overview is given of the transition phenomena in subsonic, wall-bounded shear flows. At first, the consideration focuses on elementary small-amplitude velocity perturbations of laminar shear layers, i.e. instability waves, in the simplest canonical configurations of a plane channel flow and a flat-plate boundary layer. Then the linear stability problem is expanded to include the effects of pressure gradients, flow curvature, boundary-layer separation, wall compliance, etc. related to applications. Beyond the amplification of instability waves is the non-modal growth of local stationary and non-stationary shear flow perturbations which are discussed as well. The volume continues with the key aspect of the transition process, that is, receptivity of convectively unstable shear layers to external perturbations, summarizing main paths of the excitation of laminar flow disturbances. The remainder of the book addresses the instability phenomena found at late stages of transition. These include secondary instabilities and nonlinear features of boundary-layer perturbations that lead to the final breakdown to turbulence. Thus, the reader is provided with a step-by-step approach that covers the milestones and recent advances in the laminar-turbulent transition. Special aspects of instability and transition are discussed through the book and are intended for research scientists, while the main target of the book is the student in the fundamentals of fluid mechanics. Computational guides, recommended exercises, and PowerPoint multimedia notes based on results of real scientific experiments supplement the monograph. These are especially helpful for the neophyte to obtain a solid foundation in hydrodynamic stability. To access the supplementary material go to extras.springer.com and type in the ISBN for this volume.

Instability of flows and their transition to turbulence are widespread phenomena in engineering and the natural environment, and are important in applied mathematics, astrophysics, biology, geophysics, meteorology, oceanography and physics as well as engineering. This is a textbook to introduce these phenomena at a level suitable for a graduate course, by modelling them mathematically, and describing numerical simulations and laboratory experiments. The visualization of instabilities is emphasized, with many figures, and in references to more still and moving pictures. The relation of chaos to transition is discussed at length. Many worked examples and exercises for students illustrate the ideas of the text. Readers are assumed to be fluent in linear algebra, advanced calculus, elementary theory of ordinary differential equations, complex variables and the elements of fluid mechanics. The book is aimed at graduate students but will also be very useful for specialists in other fields.

Instabilities are present in all natural fluids from rivers to atmospheres. This book considers the physical processes that generate instability. Part I describes the normal mode instabilities most important in geophysical applications, including convection, shear instability and baroclinic instability. Classical analytical approaches are covered, while also emphasising numerical methods, mechanisms such as internal wave resonance, and simple `rules of thumb' that permit assessment of instability quickly and intuitively. Part II introduces the cutting edge: nonmodal instabilities, the relationship between instability and turbulence, self-organised criticality, and advanced numerical techniques. Featuring numerous exercises and projects, the book is ideal for advanced students and researchers wishing to understand flow instability and apply it to their own research. It can be used to teach courses in oceanography, atmospheric science, coastal engineering, applied mathematics and environmental science. Exercise solutions and MATLAB® examples are provided online. Also available as Open Access on Cambridge Core.

Developing clean, sustainable energy systems is a pre-eminent issue of our time. Most projections indicate that combustion-based energy conversion systems will continue to be the predominant approach for the majority of our energy usage. Unsteady combustor issues present the key challenge associated with the development of clean, high-efficiency combustion systems such as those used for power generation, heating or propulsion applications. This comprehensive study is unique, treating the subject in a systematic manner. Although this book focuses on unsteady combusting flows, it places particular emphasis on the system dynamics that occur at the intersection of the combustion, fluid mechanics and acoustic disciplines. Individuals with a background in fluid mechanics and combustion will find this book to be an incomparable study that synthesises these fields into a coherent understanding of the intrinsically unsteady processes in combustors.

The kinetic theory of gases as we know it dates to the paper of Boltzmann in 1872. The justification and context of this equation has been clarified over the past half century to the extent that it comprises one of the most complete examples of many-body analyses exhibiting the contraction from a microscopic to a mesoscopic description. The primary result is that the Boltzmann equation applies to dilute gases with short ranged interatomic forces, on space and time scales large compared to the corresponding atomic scales. Otherwise, there is no a priori limitation on the state of the system. This means it should be applicable even to systems driven very far from its eqUilibrium state. However, in spite of the physical simplicity of the Boltzmann equation, its mathematical complexity has masked its content except for states near eqUilibrium. While the latter are very important and the Boltzmann equation has been a resounding success in this case, the full potential of the Boltzmann equation to describe more general nonequilibrium states remains unfulfilled. An important exception was a study by Ikenberry and Truesdell in 1956 for a gas of Maxwell molecules undergoing shear flow. They provided a formally exact solution to the moment hierarchy that is valid for arbitrarily large shear rates. It was the first example of a fundamental description of rheology far from eqUilibrium, albeit for an unrealistic system. With rare exceptions, significant progress on nonequilibrium states was made only 20-30 years later.

This book presents five sets of pedagogical lectures by internationally respected researchers on nonlinear instabilities and the transition to turbulence in hydrodynamics. The book begins with a general introduction to hydrodynamics covering fluid properties, flow measurement, dimensional analysis and turbulence. Chapter two reviews the special characteristics of instabilities in open flows. Chapter three presents mathematical tools for multiscale analysis and asymptotic matching applied to the dynamics of fronts and localized nonlinear states. Chapter four gives a detailed review of pattern forming instabilities. The final chapter provides a detailed and comprehensive introduction to the instability of flames, shocks and detonations. Together, these lectures provide a thought-provoking overview of current research in this important area.

The instability of fluid flows is a key topic in classical fluid mechanics because it has huge repercussions for applied disciplines such as chemical engineering, hydraulics, aeronautics, and geophysics. This modern introduction is written for any student, researcher, or practitioner working in the area, for whom an understanding of hydrodynamic instabilities is essential. Based on a decade's experience of teaching postgraduate students in fluid dynamics, this book brings the subject to life by emphasizing the physical mechanisms involved. The theory of dynamical systems provides the basic structure of the exposition, together with asymptotic methods. Wherever possible, Charru discusses the phenomena in terms of characteristic scales and dimensional analysis. The book includes numerous experimental studies, with references to videos and multimedia material, as well as over 150 exercises which introduce the reader to new problems.