Spin-up of a magnetically driven tornado-like vortex


Spin-up of a magnetically driven tornado-like vortex

Vogt, T.; Grants, I.; Eckert, S.; Gerbeth, G.

The spin-up of a concentrated vortex in a liquid metal cylinder with a free surface is considered experimentally and numerically. The vortex is driven by two flow-independent magnetic body forces. A continuously applied rotating magnetic field provides source of the angular momentum. A pulse of about one order of magnitude stronger travelling magnetic field drives a converging flow that temporarily focuses this angular momentum towards the axis of the container. A highly concentrated vortex forms that produces a funnel-shaped surface depression. We explore experimentally the duration, the depth and the conditions of formation of this funnel. Additionally, we measure the axial velocity and calculate the axi-symmetric flow field of such transient vortex at a lower force magnitude. The spin-up vortex is similar to the corresponding developed time-averaged turbulent vortex driven by the same magnetic forces (Grants et al. 2008). There are two main differences. First, the maximum swirl concentration condition does not express as a constant ratio of the both driving forces. Second, a much higher degree of swirl concentration is feasible. We explain those differences by a much lower turbulence during the spin-up.

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Publ.-Id: 19184