2023/10/12 by Florencia Falkinhoff, Alexandre Ponomarenko, Falkinhoff, Florencia +9 · 1 citation
Engineering · Environmental Science · #FOS: Physical sciences #Fluid Dynamics (physics.flu-dyn) #Fluid Dynamics and Turbulent Flows #Hydrology and Sediment Transport Processes #Particle Dynamics in Fluid Flows
paper · pdf · doi:10.48550/arxiv.2310.08075
openalex publication_date 2023/10/12 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28
In this study, we investigated the flow dynamics in a fixed bed of hydrogel beads using Particle Tracking Velocimetry to compute the velocity field in the middle of the bed for moderate Reynolds numbers. We discovered that despite the overall stationarity of the flow and relatively low Reynolds number, it exhibits complex multiscale spatial dynamics reminiscent of those observed in classical turbulence. We found evidence of the presence of an inertial range and a direct energy cascade, and were able to obtain a value for a "porous" Kolmogorov constant of C2 = 3.1± 0.3. This analogy with turbulence opens up new possibilities for understanding mixing and global transport properties in porous media.