Secondary frequencies in the wake of a circular cylinder with vortex shedding

Abstract

A detailed numerical study of two-dimensional flow past a circular cylinder at moderately low Reynolds numbers has been conducted using three different numerical algorithms for solving the time-dependent compressible Navier–Stokes equations. It was found that if the algorithm and associated boundary conditions were consistent and stable, then the major features of the unsteady wake were well predicted. However, it was also found that even stable and consistent boundary conditions could introduce additional periodic phenomena reminiscent of the type seen in previous wind-tunnel experiments. However, these additional frequencies were eliminated by formulating the boundary conditions in terms of the characteristic variables. An analysis based on a simplified model provides an explanation for this behaviour.