A CFD study of the interaction of oscillatory flows with a pair of side-by-side cylinders

The behavior of vortices induced by a pair of side-by-side square cylinders in an oscillating flow is investigated using an in-house numerical model. The study is carried out for various Keulegan Carpenter numbers, Reynolds numbers, and cylinder gap spacings. For an oscillating flow past a pair of side-by-side cylinders, the gap ratio plays a vital role in the flow pattern. A jet-like structure is observed when fluid flows through the gap. Moreover, the gap promotes the earlier appearance of asymmetric vortex shedding. In-line force and lift force coefficients of two square cylinders are analyzed using spectral analysis. An autocorrelation function is used to determine the relation between flow patterns around two cylinders. These results demonstrate the transition of the flow field from the periodic state to the chaotic state. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.