Controlling turbulence in a rearward-facing step combustor using countercurrent shear

The present work describes the application of countercurrent shear flow control to the nonreacting flow in a novel step combustor. The countercurrent shear control employs a suction based approach, which induces counterflow through a gap at the sudden expansion plane. Peak turbulent fluctuation levels, cross-stream averaged turbulent kinetic energy, and cross-stream momentum diffusion increased with applied suction. The control downstream of the step operates via two mechanisms: enhanced global recirculation and near field control of the separated shear layer. The use of counterflow also enhances three dimensionality, a feature that is expected to be beneficial under burning conditions.