On vortex shedding from a circular cylinder in the critical Reynolds number régime

TLDR

The flow around a circular cylinder has been studied over Reynolds numbers 10⁵ to 7.5×10⁵ based on cylinder diameter. Narrow‑band vortex shedding was observed up to Re 5.5×10⁵, well into the critical regime, with a Strouhal number of 0.46 and velocity‑fluctuation spectra shown for several Reynolds numbers.

Abstract

The flow around a circular cylinder has been examined over the Reynolds number range 10 5 to 7·5 × 10 5 , Reynolds number being based on cylinder diameter. Narrow-band vortex shedding has been observed up to a Reynolds number of 5·5 × 10 5 , i.e. well into the critical régime. At this Reynolds number the Strouhal number reached the unusually high value of 0·46. Spectra of the velocity fluctuations measured in the wake are presented for several values of Reynolds number.