Alternating half-loop shedding in the turbulent wake of a finite surface-mounted square cylinder with a thin boundary layer

The configuration and energetics of the large-scale vortex structure are presented for quasi-periodic shedding in the turbulent wake of a finite (h/d = 4) square-cross-section surface-mounted cylinder protruding from a thin boundary layer (δ/h = 0.18). The three-dimensional large-scale structure is educed from phase averaged x-y and x-z planar data measured with particle image velocimetry (PIV). Simultaneous measurements of the surface pressure difference on either side of the obstacle were used to phase-align the PIV planar measurements. The topology of the educed structures resembles alternating half-loops interconnecting close to the base plate. The time averaging of this unsteady structure gives rise to mean streamwise vortices akin to those presented in the literature for similar geometries. This topological analysis offers a contrasting interpretation of the mean streamwise vorticity, which has, otherwise, been presumed to originate from structures generated at the leading edge of the free-end. The dynamical significance of the resolved large scale structures and unresolved fluctuating kinetic energy in the wake is presented, either part being responsible for roughly half the mean kinetic energy. A discussion of turbulence production in light of the base flow that supplies it with energy is put forward.