Turbulent oscillation in unbalanced T-junction flows

Fuente: arXiv
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Main Authors: Jia, Dongjie, Ardekani, Arezoo
Format: Preprint
Published: 2026
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author Jia, Dongjie
Ardekani, Arezoo
author_facet Jia, Dongjie
Ardekani, Arezoo
contents The T-junction impinging flow occurs in many fluid dynamics systems. In particular, the T-junction micromixer has recently been widely used for nanoparticle production, where the two inlet streams operate at a significant flow-rate imbalance and the Reynolds number is in the turbulent regime. This operating condition exposes a gap in the existing literature on the fluid dynamics of the T-junction. In this study, we used high-fidelity numerical simulations to investigate high-Reynolds-number unbalanced T-junction flows. We discover a new oscillatory behavior between the two inlet streams at the T-junction, leading to a new turbulence-production mode. We will present detailed evidence of this new behavior, in contrast to the existing understanding of balanced turbulent T-junction flows. This oscillatory behavior also persists across a range of Reynolds numbers simulated, where the Strouhal number is approximately constant, indicating a self-similar phenomenon. As a result, many of the fluid dynamics parameters follow a power-law relation with the Reynold number. The discovery in this paper affects real-world applications, where process design and product quality are affected by turbulence and mixing dynamics.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2605_12621
institution arXiv
publishDate 2026
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Turbulent oscillation in unbalanced T-junction flows
Jia, Dongjie
Ardekani, Arezoo
Fluid Dynamics
The T-junction impinging flow occurs in many fluid dynamics systems. In particular, the T-junction micromixer has recently been widely used for nanoparticle production, where the two inlet streams operate at a significant flow-rate imbalance and the Reynolds number is in the turbulent regime. This operating condition exposes a gap in the existing literature on the fluid dynamics of the T-junction. In this study, we used high-fidelity numerical simulations to investigate high-Reynolds-number unbalanced T-junction flows. We discover a new oscillatory behavior between the two inlet streams at the T-junction, leading to a new turbulence-production mode. We will present detailed evidence of this new behavior, in contrast to the existing understanding of balanced turbulent T-junction flows. This oscillatory behavior also persists across a range of Reynolds numbers simulated, where the Strouhal number is approximately constant, indicating a self-similar phenomenon. As a result, many of the fluid dynamics parameters follow a power-law relation with the Reynold number. The discovery in this paper affects real-world applications, where process design and product quality are affected by turbulence and mixing dynamics.
title Turbulent oscillation in unbalanced T-junction flows
topic Fluid Dynamics
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2605.12621