Hybrid RANS/LES of turbulent flow in a rotating rib-roughened channel

In this paper, we investigate the effect of the Coriolis force on the flow field in a rib-roughened channel subjected to either clockwise or counter-clockwise system rotation using hybrid RANS/LES based on wall modelling. A simplified dynamic forcing scheme incorporating backscatter is proposed for the hybrid simulation approach. The flow is characterized by a Reynolds number of Re = 1.5 x 10(4) and a rotation number Ro ranging from -0.6 to 0.6. The mean flow speed and turbulence level near the roughened wall are enhanced under counter-clockwise rotation and suppressed under clockwise rotation. The Coriolis force significantly influences the stability of the wall shear layer and the free shear layers generated by the ribs. Consequently, it is interesting to observe that the classification of the roughness type relies not only on the pitch ratio, but also on the rotation number in the context of rotating rib-roughened flows. In order to validate the present hybrid approach, the first-and second-order statistical moments of the velocity field obtained from the simulations are thoroughly compared with the available laboratory measurement data. Published by AIP Publishing.