English

Fractal iso-contours of passive scalar in smooth random flows

Mathematical Physics 2012-10-23 v1 math.MP Chaotic Dynamics Fluid Dynamics

Abstract

We consider a passive scalar field under the action of pumping, diffusion and advection by a smooth flow with a Lagrangian chaos. We present theoretical arguments showing that scalar statistics is not conformal invariant and formulate new effective semi-analytic algorithm to model the scalar turbulence. We then carry massive numerics of passive scalar turbulence with the focus on the statistics of nodal lines. The distribution of contours over sizes and perimeters is shown to depend neither on the flow realization nor on the resolution (diffusion) scale rdr_d for scales exceeding rdr_d. The scalar isolines are found fractal/smooth at the scales larger/smaller than the pumping scale LL. We characterize the statistics of bending of a long isoline by the driving function of the L\"owner map, show that it behaves like diffusion with the diffusivity independent of resolution yet, most surprisingly, dependent on the velocity realization and the time of scalar evolution.

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.1108.1203,
  title  = {Fractal iso-contours of passive scalar in smooth random flows},
  author = {Marija Vucelja and Gregory Falkovich and Konstantin S. Turitsyn},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:1108.1203},
  year   = {2012}
}