Fully turbulent inflow past symmetrically located side branches mounted in a duct can give rise to pronounced flow oscillations due to coupling between separated shear layers and standing acoustic waves. Experimental investigation of acoustically-coupled flows was conducted using digital particle image velocimetry (DPIV) in conjunction with unsteady pressure measurements. Global instantaneous, phase- and time-averaged flow images, as well as turbulence statistics, were evaluated to provide insight into the flow physics during flow tone generation. Onset of the locked-on resonant states was characterized in terms of the acoustic pressure amplitude, frequency and the quality factor of the resonant pressure peak. Structure of the acoustic noise source is characterized in terms of patterns of generated acoustic power. In contrast to earlier work, the present study represents the first application of vortex sound theory in conjunction with global quantitative flow imaging and numerical simulation of the 2D acoustic field.

In addition to the basic side branch configuration, the effects of bluff rectangular splitter plates located along the centerline of the main duct was investigated. The first mode of the shear layer oscillation was inhibited by the presence of plates, which resulted in substantial reduction of the amplitude of acoustic pulsations and the strength of the acoustic source. These results can lead to the development of improved control strategies for coaxial side branch resonators.

Motivation for the second part of this study stems from the paper manufacturing industry, where air clamp devices utilize high-speed jets to position paper sheets with respect to other equipment. Thus, vibration of the paper sheet and turbulent flow that emerged from a planar curved nozzle between a flexible wall and a solid surface containing a backward-facing step (BFS) were investigated using high-speed photography and DPIV, respectively. The emphasis was on the characterization of the flow physics in the air clamp device, as well as of the shape of the paper sheet. For the control case, that involved a solid wall with a geometry that represented the time-averaged paper profile, hydrodynamic oscillation frequencies were characterized using unsteady pressure measurements. Experimentally obtained frequencies of the paper sheet vibration were compared to the hydrodynamic frequencies corresponding to the oscillations of the shear layer downstream of the BFS.