Shock Wave/Free Shear Layer Interaction

Experiments were conducted to explore the effects of interaction of a bow shock generated in front of a cylinder or a square rod with shear layers of convective Mach numbers 0.51 and 0.86. At Mc of 0.86, the bow shock interaction did not show any noticeable effects on the large scale structures observed in Schlieren photographs or on the statistical turbulence characteristics measured by laser Doppler velocimetry. At Mc of 0.51, neither the structures nor the Reynolds normal and shear stresses were affected; however, a significant increase in the lateral convection of kinetic energy was observed. The bow shock generated with a cylinder or a square produced similar results as did the interaction of bow shock with the shear layer at the developing or the fully developed stage.