On Steady Vortex Flow in Two Dimensions. I.

Abstract

The purpose of this paper (and its sequel) is to give a mathematically rigorous - as well as physically natural - discussion of certain steady solutions of the Euler dynamical equations for an ideal, two-dimensional fluid. The flows considered have a prescribed distribution of vorticity omega = curl u (u devotes the velocity field), and are separated into regions where omega = 0 and omega > 0. The shape and position of the vortex core (region where omega > 0) for a flow satisfying the dynamical requirements is then determined by the geometry of the fluid domain (assumed bounded here). Solutions of the fluid dynamical equations are most conveniently characterized by a variational principle which involves finding an extreme value for the kinetic energy of the flow subject to certain natural constraints. This approach permits a precise analysis of the properties of solutions to be carried out in a unified manner. In this respect, special emphasis is placed upon deriving the (classical) point vortex as the limit of solutions with concentrated vorticity.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Jul 01, 1982
Accession Number
ADA120965

Entities

People

  • Bruce Turkington

Organizations

  • University of Wisconsin–Madison

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Energy and Power Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Contracts
  • Equations
  • Euler Equations
  • Flow
  • Fluid Flow
  • Geometry
  • Inequalities
  • Kinetic Energy
  • Mathematics
  • Potential Theory
  • Sequences
  • Steady Flow
  • Stratified Fluids
  • Two Dimensional
  • United States
  • Universities
  • Variational Principles

Fields of Study

  • Mathematics

Readers

  • Calculus or Mathematical Analysis
  • Fluid Mechanics and Fluid Dynamics.
  • Theoretical Analysis.