STRUCTURE AND DYNAMICS OF TAYLOR VORTEX FLOW AND THE EFFECT OF SUBCRITICAL DRIVING RAMPS

Finite difference numerical solutions for rotationally symmetric flows in the rotating Couette system are presented. Axial and radial structures of velocity and pressure of Taylor vortices are elucidated. The Reynolds number dependence of their axial Fourier amplitudes is compared with theory. The wave number selection by ramps realized at constant geometry by slow axial decrease of the driving from super-to subcritical values is determined. The phase dynamics of the response to moving a boundary is compared with theory. The long-time effective phase diffusion constant strongly depends on the axial amplitude profile of the vortex structure. © 1990 Springer-Verlag.