An experimental investigation of flows of a large number of inert and polyatomic gases in various channels, a non-ideal orifice, flat slits with different surface roughnesses and wall materials, capillary packets with molten walls and a capillary sieve, has been made.

The unsteady flow method and a highly sensitive capacitance micromanometer were used (the sensitivity being ∼ 3 × 10−4N/m2Hz). Measurements were made in a range of Knudsen numbers 5 × 104–10−3 at ∼ 293 °K, and some measurements for flow through a non-ideal orifice were carried out at 77.2°K.

It was found that, both in the viscous slip-flow and free-molecule regimes for the channels with molten walls, the experimental conductivities were higher (by ∼ 15%) than theoretical ones calculated assuming diffuse molecular scattering by the walls. We have also observed that the channel conductivity essentially depends on the channel surface roughness and on the kind of gas. The larger the roughness height, the lower the conductivity. From the experimental data the tangential momentum accommodation coefficients were calculated.

Linear stability theory is applied to the natural convection of slightly, elastic, viscous fluids in an infinitely long vertical slot. Travelling, as well as stationary, disturbances are considered. It is found that the elasticity (i) slightly stabilizes the stationary disturbances while strongly destabilizing the travelling disturbances, (ii) strongly increases the wave speed while slightly decreasing the wavenumber and (iii) reduces the transition Prandtl number, which separates the stationary cells from the travelling waves, from its value of 12.7 for Newtonian fluids.

Experiments are carried out with a viscoelastic fluid prepared by mixing Separan AP30 with water, giving a Prandtl number of about 30. This fluid is shown to produce wave instability at a Grashof number between 3900 and 4300. Under the same conditions, a Newtonian fluid is shown to remain stable to both stationary and travelling disturbances.

The averaged equations of slow flow in random arrays of fixed spheres are developed as a hierarchy of integro-differential equations, and an iteration procedure is described for obtaining the mean drag in the case of small volume concentration c. The leading approximation is that given by Brinkman's model of flow past a single fixed sphere, in which the effects of all other spheres are treated as a Darcy resistance. The higher approximations take account of the modification to the mean flow, particularly in the near field, due to the localized nature of the actual resistance. Thus the second approximation finds the change due to a second sphere, and averages over all its possible positions. The result for the mean drag confirms Childress’ terms in clogc and c (apart from an arithmetical correction to the latter), but indicates that for practical values of c numerical evaluation of integrals is needed, rather than expansion in powers of c and log c. The last section of the paper develops the corresponding results for flow through random arrays of fixed parallel circular cylinders.

Turbulent convection for a rotating layer of fluid heated from below is studied in this paper. The boundaries of the fluid layer are taken to be free. The underlying principle, used is the Malkus hypothesis that the flow tends to transport the maximum amount of heat possible, subject to certain constraints. By taking the Prandtl number to be infinite, a linear differential constraint and an integral constraint are used. The variational problem that follows then depends on two dimensionless parameters, the Taylor number T and the Rayleigh number R.

Asymptotic analysis for the turbulent regime shows that the flow arranges itself so as to tend to offset the stabilizing effect of the rotational constraint, at least in so far as the heat flux is concerned. The dimensionless heat flux, or the Nusselt number, has in general different dependence on T and R, depending on the particular region in the parameter space. For T [les ] O(R), the flow is essentially non-rotating. For O(R) [les ]T [les ] O(R4/3), the flow will always have finitely many horizontal wavenumbers, though the total number of modes increases as T increases in this region. For O(R4/3) [les ] T [les ] O (R3/2), the Nusselt number has a functional dependence proportional to R3/T2, having essentially infinitely many horizontal modes as both R and T increase indefinitely in this region. The last expression is particularly interesting, as it agrees qualitatively with results in finite-amplitude laminar convection. It is also linearly dependent on the layer thickness, as one might expect from dimensional argument. It is suggested that, in the context of the maximum principle, the result in this region of the parameter space may be applicable as well to the same fluid layer with rigid boundaries through the existence of an Ekman layer that is thinner than the thermal layer.

In an experimental and theoretical study, we model a phenomenon observed in the summer Arctic, where a fresh-water layer at a temperature of 0°C floats both over a sea-water layer at its freezing point and under an ice layer. Our results show that the ice growth in this system takes place in three phases. First, because the fresh-water density decreases upon supercooling, the rapid diffusion of heat relative to salt from the fresh to the salt water causes a density inversion and thereby generates a high Rayleigh number convection in the fresh water. In this convection, supercooled water rises to the ice layer, where it nucleates into thin vertical interlocking ice crystals. When these sheets grow down to the interface, supercooling ceases. Second, the presence of the vertical ice sheets both constrains the temperature T and salinity s to lie on the freezing curve and allows them to diffuse in the vertical. In the interfacial region, the combination of these processes generates a lateral crystal growth, which continues until a horizontal ice sheet forms. Third, because of the T and s gradients in the sea water below this ice sheet, the horizontal sheet both migrates upwards and increases in thickness. From one-dimensional theoretical models of the first two phases, we find that the heat-transfer rates are 5–10 times those calculated for classic thermal diffusion.

By making simple assumptions, an analytical theory is deduced for the mean velocity behind a two-dimensional obstacle (of height h) placed on a rigid plane over which flows a turbulent boundary layer (of thickness δ). It is assumed that h [Gt ] δ, and that the wake can be divided into three regions. The velocity deficit − u is greatest in the two regions in which the change in shear stress is important, a wall region (W) close to the wall and a mixing region (M) spreading from the top of the obstacle. Above these is the external region (E) in which the velocity field is an inviscid perturbation on the incident boundary-layer velocity, which is taken to have a power-law profile U(y) = U∞(y − y1)n/δn, where n [Gt ] 1. In (M), assuming that an eddy viscosity (= KhU(h)) can be defined for the perturbed flow in terms of the incident boundary-layer flow and that the velocity is self-preserving, it is found that u(x,y) has the form $\frac{u}{U(h)} = \frac{ C }{Kh^2U^2(h)} \frac{f(n)}{x/h},\;\;\;\; {\rm where}\;\;\;\; \eta = (y/h)/[Kx/h]^{1/(n+2)}$, and the constant which defines the strength of the wake is $C = \int^\infty_0 y^U(y)(u-u_E)dy$, where u = uE(x, y) as y → 0 in region (E).

In region (W), u(y) is proportional to In y. By considering a large control surface enclosing the obstacle it is shown that the constant of the wake flow is not simply related to the drag of the obstacle, but is equal to the sum of the couple on the obstacle and an integral of the pressure field on the surface near the body.

New wind-tunnel measurements of mean and turbulent velocities and Reynolds stresses in the wake behind a two-dimensional rectangular block on a roughened surface are presented. The turbulent boundary layer is artificially developed by well-established methods (Counihan 1969) in such a way that δ = 8h. These measurements are compared with the theory, with other wind-tunnel measurements and also with full-scale measurements of the wind behind windbreaks.

It is found that the theory describes the distribution of mean velocity reasonably well, in particular the (x/h)−1 decay law is well confirmed. The theory gives the correct self-preserving form for the distribution of Reynolds stress and the maximum increase of the mean-square turbulent velocity is found to decay downstream approximately as $ (\frac{x}{h})^{- \frac{3}{2}} $ in accordance with the theory. The theory also suggests that the velocity deficit is affected by the roughness of the terrain (as measured by the roughness length y0) in proportion to In (h/y0), and there seems to be some experimental support for this hypothesis.

An experimental study of the occurrence of temperature oscillations in molten gallium contained in a rectangular boat and heated from the side is reported. The dependence of the critical temperature difference across the boat for which oscillations set in upon the boat dimensions and upon the strength of a transverse magnetic field is described. The dependence of the frequency of oscillation on these parameters is also reported together with measurements of the variation of the phase of the oscillations over the top surface of the melt. The results are discussed in relation to the theory in the companion paper by Gill (1974).

Thermal oscillations have been found to occur during crystal growing, thereby introducing undesirable striations in the solid crystal produced. A reason for the existence of such oscillations is given in this paper, and relevant experiments discussed.

The steady streaming generated in the boundary layer on a cylinder performing simple harmonic motion in a viscous incompressible fluid which is otherwise at rest is investigated in the case where the Reynolds number Rs associated with this streaming is large. Comparison is made between experimental results obtained here and the theories of Riley (1965) and Stuart (1966). This comparison shows good agreement between the theories and the experiment close to the cylinder, but away from the cylinder significant discrepancies are observed. Possible reasons for these discrepancies are discussed.

Measurements have been made of the phase difference between the signals of two hot wires separated in the stream direction and placed in and close to the turbulent wake of a two-dimensional bluff body. Results are presented in the form of the wavelength and the phase speed of perturbations at the vortex shedding frequency for various positions in the flow. It is shown that values of the phase speed may be obtained that are in agreement with published values of the vortex transport velocity. It is necessary to ensure that the hot wires are close to the paths of the centres of the vortices in the wake, otherwise spurious results caused by the influence of the bound vorticity at the model will be obtained.

The subject of the present study is the question of how the sound power of a jet of constant exit velocity would vary if the jet exit density were varied. Changes in jet exit density would inevitably be accompanied in a real experiment by changes in the speed of sound (temperature) in the jet, so that both effects must be considered simultaneously. The point of view advanced at the end of the study is that experimentally observed results in this area seem to admit an explanation based on how the radiative efficiency of moving acoustic sources is affected by the shrouding effect of a jet flow whose velocity, temperature and density differ from those of the ambient fluid. This change in efficiency is calculated with the aid of a simple model as follows. We determine the acoustic power output of a convected monopole source, simple harmonic in its own frame of reference, moving along the axis of a plug-flow round jet whose velocity is the same as that of the source. The jet is doubly infinite and the source is assumed to have an infinite lifetime. The density and temperature of the jet are allowed to differ from those of the ambient fluid though the specific-heat ratio of the jet fluid is assumed to be the same as that of the ambient. The requirement of equality of the static pressure inside and outside the jet then calls for a certain restraint on how the jet density and temperature vary. For a specific value of the jet exit velocity, the variation of acoustic power with the ratio of jet to ambient density along with a simple assumption on how the source strength varies with jet density are employed to deduce theoretically the ‘jet density exponent for jets which are subsonic with respect to the ambient speed of sound. The jet density exponent is found to depend both on the jet Mach number and even more strongly on a source frequency parameter. The theoretical results are compared with some experimental studies of this problem. Encouraging agreement is obtained both for the detailed observed effects on the power spectrum and the exponent for the overall power.