Rheol.

Acta 15, 172-178 (1976)

Thermodynamics Division, A.E.R.E. Harwell, Oxfordshire

Unsteady elastico-viscous flow in a rotaüng pipe
P. W. James
With 3 figures
(Received December t0, 1975)

I. Introduction but not the overall pattern of flow, results in

exact parallel with those of Thomas and V¢alters
Steady flows through stationary curved pipes
(14) for the Dean regime. Further work, both
and through rotating straight pipes are two
theoretical and experimental, has recently been
hydrodynamical regimes that have received
carried out on the rotating scheme by Gunn,
considerable attention in the literature, both
Mena and Walters (6). These authors work with
from the theoretical and experimental viewpoints.
a more widely applicable liquid model than
The theoretical analysis of the former problem
that used by Jones and Lewis, but their findings
was first undertaken by Dean (4,5). In his
confirm the similarity that exists between steady
analysis, for a purely viscous incompressible
flows in the Dean and Barua schemes.
liquid, Dean showed that the flow could be
It is not until recent times that attention has
characterized by a single parameter equal to
been focussed on unsteady flows in the above
the product of the square of a Reynolds number
Dean and Barua configurations. Lyne (12) and
and the ratio of radius of cross-section to radius
Zalosh and Nelson (17) have looked theoretically
of curvature. For small values of this parameter
at the problem of purely viscous incompressible
Dean showed that a secondary flow, comprising
flow in a stationary curved pipe under the
two cell patterns, is set up in the cross-section
influence of a periodic pressure gradient, of
of the pipe and has the effect of reducing the
zero mean. It was found that the secondary
volume flow rate produced by a given pressure
flow set up in the cross-section of the pipe
gradient. Dean's findings were amply verified
consists of a time independent part together
by the experimental work of White (16) and
with a part oscillating at twice the frequency
Adler (1).
of the applied pressure gradient. The most
Nearly thirty years after the publication of
striking feature to emerge from these analyses
Dean's work, Barua (2) looked at the problem
was that for high frequencies the direction of the
of steady flow of a purely viscous liquid in a
steady secondary streaming, in the region away
straight pipe of circular cross-section rotating
from the pipe wall, is opposite to what one
perpendicular to its length. For smaU values of would expect from a consideration of centrifugal
a Reynolds number based on the angular effects, being now directed towards the centre
velocity of the pipe, Barua showed that a
of curvature 1). Lyne (12) was able to verify
secondary flow is set up in the cross-section of
experimentally the prediction of secondary flow
the pipe, similar to that established by Dean
reversal and further experimental support has
in the stationary curved pipe regime. This
recently been given by Bertelsen (3).
secondary flow again has the effect of reducing The qualitatively similar effects found in both
the volume flow rate produced by a given pres- the Dean and Barua schemes under steady
sure gradient. conditions have prompted the author to examine
Jones and Lewis (9) have in the meantime whether or not this similarity carries over under
extended the analysis of Barua to cover a wider
class of liquids, namely elastico-viscous liquids t) James (7) has looked further at this problem to
of type B' (15). Their analysis shows that the ascertain the role of elasticity, and has established that
presence of elasticity can strongly influence the elasticity can have the effect of reducing the critical
volume flow rate pressure gradient relationship (high) frequency which onsets flow reversal.
271
 James, Unsteady elastico-viscous flow in a rotating pipe
unsteady conditions. It is the purpose of the
present work to analyse the flow of an elastico-
viscous liquid of type B' through a straight pipe
of circular cross-section, rotating with constant
angular velocity perpendicular to its length,
under the influence of a periodic pressure
gradient. In particular the possibility of(elasticity
induced) flow reversal at high frequencies is
investigated.
2. Mathematical formulation
We first formulate the problem for a pipe of
arbitrary cross-section rotating with constant
angular velocity f2 about an axis perpendicular
to its iength. For this purpose it is convenient
to re[er the motion to a Cartesian frame of
reference O x y z rotating with angular velocity
(O, 0,0), 0z being along the axis of the pipe
so that the pipe wall may be represented by
f ( x , y ) = 0. Referred to these coordinates the
physical components of the velocity vector
v~(= u, v,w) and those of the partial stress
tensor 2), Pik, are taken to be functions of x,y
and t (the time), independent of z. The equations
of motion and of continuity then reduce to
(au au
p ä 7 + UäTx + v
~~)
- ~x +--gT-x + ~y '
p -~- - 2wf2 - ~Q2y nt- u ~ _ x q_ 1)
' 1
c~p'__~' ~p;,
cSpy._r___z,
- ~?y +--&-fix + O y '
p --Õ-[--k-21)(2-O2z+u~x q- v
@" . Op~~ Opy'~
-- -~z +--~x + Oy '
and
Ou 8v
~--~-+ ~ = 0.
Here p is the liquid density.
2) The partial stress tensor, P'ik, is defined in terms of
the stress tensor Pik, the metric tensor of the coordinate
system, 9~k, and an arbitrary isotropic pressure p", in
the usual way, namely pik = --P"gik + P'~k.
173
We define a stream function O(x, y, t) in the
usual way by writing
u = -~-y, v - (?x [2.3]
The equations of motion and of state have
to be solved simultaneously for the variables ~, w
(and p") subject to the boundary conditions
t~, &/,
w = ax ay = 0 on f(x,y)=O, [2.4]
together with the requirement that these variables
are finite throughout the region of flow.
It is clear that p" can be written in the form
p" - } (22(y 2 + z 2) ~-- --~Ô(t)Z -~ p'(x,y,t), [2.5]
where p'(x, y, t) is determined by the equations
of motion and /5(t) denotes a time-dependent
gradient of stress along the pipe in excess of that
which maintains a rigid body motion (u = v =
w = 0). We take
[~(t) = Pe i"', [2.6] 3)
where the constants P and n/21r denote the
amplitude and frequency respectively of the
excess axial gradient of Pzz over that which
maintains a rigid body motion.
Before proceeding we non-dimensionalize the
variables by means of the following substitu-
tions:
w =(vo/a)w, ( x , y , z ) = a ( x , y , z ) , ~ = Vo~,
[2.13 t = t/n, p' = (qo vo/a2)p ', P'ik = (qo vo/a2)pik,
[2.73
where a is a characteristic length of the pipe
cross-section, r/0 = ~ N(z)dz (N(r) being the re-
0
laxation spectrum) and Vo = qo/P. No confusion
should arise over the use of the same symbols
for dimensional and non-dimensional variables;
throughout the remainder of the analysis all
variables will be taken to be non-dimensional.
[2.2]
After eliminating p' by cross-differentiation
we arrive at the following pair of equations for
flow in the cross-section and along the axis
of the pipe:
3) Real parts are to be understood whenever complex
quantities are used to represent physical variables.
174 Rheologica Acta, Vol.'15, No. 3/4 (1976)

a n d V 2 is the usual two-dimensional Laplace

operator. The boundary conditions for eqs.
[2.8] and [2.9] are given by eq. [2.4].

3. Method of solution •ith associated boundary conditions

When R is zero, corresponding to flow in a
stationary pipe, we see from eq. [2.8] that a
solution with velocity distribution (O,O,w(x,y,t))
is possible provided

It has been established by Jones and Walters

(11) that this condition is automatically satisfied
for liquid B', the corresponding velocity and
partial stress distribution being of the form

In order to proceed, we assume (2) that R is

sufficiently small to justify expanding the relevant
dynamic and kinematic variables in power
series in R, and in what follows we work only
to first order in R. The procedure by which the
partial stresses are evaluated as functions of w
and ~ is straightforward but involves rather
heavy algebra, and is not described here (for
details, see (8)). We find that a solution for w
and 0 exists in the form
It is important to notice that the form of the
above solution to the unsteady rotating pipe
problem is fundamentally different from that
to the unsteady (stationary) curved pipe problem
in that the streaming in the cross-section has
4) An overbar is used to denote complex conjugate.
 James, Unsteady elastico-v&cous.17owin a rotating pipe
no steady component, whereas the secondary
axial velocity does have a steady component.
Thus it is seen that the qualitatively similar
effects found in the Dean and Barua schemes
under steady conditions are not found under
unsteady conditions of the type considered
here, and this result is true o f b o t h purely viscous
and elastico-viscous liquids.
4. Pipe of eircular cross-section
When the cross-section of the pipe is a circlc
of radius a, the solutions to eqs. [3.4], [3.5],
[3.6] and [3.7] are of the form
w{°'11 = ~,(r), ~,{~'1} = z(r) cosO,
w{1,o} = wC{r)sinO, w{1'2) = wU(r)sinO,
where r,O are (non-dimensional) polar coordi-
nates defined by x = r cosO, y = r sinO, r = 1
representing the pipe wall. We find
ip ( Jo(kr)~
ü,{r} = - 7 ~ J-õB~/'
-p
z ( r ) - 4~4Jo(k) ×
[ {J3(k) - 3 J1(k)} {kJa(kr) - krJl{k)}
2Jl(k) - kJo(k) + kJ2{k)
+ r{Jo(kr) - Jo(k) + J2(k) - J 2 ( k r } l ] ,
where Jù denotes the Bessel function of the first
kind of order n, and we define Im(k) < O.
From now on we shall be mainly concerned
with the steady component of secondary axial
velocity wC(r), the solution for which may be
written
mz(r) d(v Il(r) I2(r)
wC(r) = -- + r--
2r dr 2r 2 lations performed in the next section.
r
+ T- (11(1) - I2(1)).
Here 11 (r) and I2(r) are defined by
1 r ) ~__~_
Il{r) =~-(1 - ( m - r h ) k Z ) ~ t Z ( t
0
z o t dt
5) Jones and Walters(10) have examined the solution
given by eq. [4.2] in detail for liquid B', paying partic-
ular attention to its boundary layer nature at high
frequency.
175
The abovc integrals can be evaluated explicitly
in terms of Bessel functions and infinite series
of hypergeometric functions, but the resulting
expressions, although straight forward to evaluate
numerically, are not amenable to analytical
investigation and are not given here. (For
details see (8).)
In the next section we determine the effects of
elasticity on ws by focussing attention on a
particular relaxation spectrum N(z). Before
proceeding, however, it is instructive to note
that at low frequencies the following approximate
expressions for #, Z, w~ and w~ may be obtained:
~:(r) = 4 ( 1 - r z) + O(~2) ,
[4.1]
z(r) = pr(1 - r2) 2
384 + 0(«2) '
w'(r) = w"(r) = T
,(~)2
T~ r(1 - r 2) {3(1 + 16m)
[4.23 5)
-- 3r2(1 + 16m)+ r 4} +O(0{4).
[4.6]
7
These solutions reduce to those of Barua for
the purely viscous regime, corresponding to
m = 0 , and agree with those of Jones and
Lewis (9) for the steady elastico-viscous regime 6).
We therefore conclude that at low frequencies
[4.3] the flow pattern approaches that which would be
produced by a steady pressure gradient of the
same instantaneous value. The analyses of
Barua and Jones and Lewis show that for the
steady regime there is no possibility of a second-
ary axial flow reversal, thus we conclude that
flow reversal will not be a feature of the present
unsteady regime at low frequencies. This con-
clusion is confirmed by the numerical caleu-
For high frequencies of oscillation a boundary
[4.4] layer analysis can also be carried out in order
to obtain simpler expressions for #, :Z and w~
than those given here. This analysis, and the
solutions thus obtained, is given in detail in
dt,
James(8), but is not included here since it
furnishes no simple criterion for the onset of
secondary axial flow reversal.
0) The analysis of Jones and Lewis (9) contains a
slight algebraic error in that their solution correspond-
ing to wC(w") should contain a term 16m instead of
18m.
176 Rheologica Acta, VoL 15, No. 3/4 (1976)

5. Numerical illustration midway between the centre of the pipe (r = 0)

In this section, in order to make specific
remarks about the nature of the steady com-
ponent of secondary axial velocity ws, we focus
attention on the Oldroyd three-constant spec-
trum (13, 15) for which simple prototype
( 1 + i2Aa2~ 2(1 - A)
Km = qo i ~_'/-'~~2 j and m 1 + i2Π2 '
[5.1]
Here the dimensionless parameters 2 and A
are defined in terms of the stress and strain
relaxation times, 21 and 2» by 2=21vo/a 2
and A =22/2t. The purely viscous liquid is
obtained by wfiting A = 1(22=).1) and, in
general, )-1 and 22 satisfy the inequality
21 > 22 > 0.
The numerical results show that for a fixed
value of 2 the (ws, r) velocity profiles fall broadly
into two categories depending on whether «
is large or small. For small values of Πit is
found that ws increases to its maximum value
9 c05xi05
and the pipe wall (r = 1) and as A decreases
this maximum value greatly increases (fig. 1).
Thus for the low frequency regime we see that
the steady 'drift' velocity of liquid along the
pipe may be expected to be far greater for some
elastico-viscous liquids than for purely viscous
liquids 7).
The more interesting results are obtained
for the highly oscillatory regime for which Πis
large. As can be seen from figs. 2 and 3, the
velocity ws changes rapidly in the region close
to the wall (indicating the expected boundary
layer nature of the flow) and there exist critical
values of A below which flow reversal takes
3 -r °J~xf010

8
1-

7-

o.'e o:~ 0:6 WD.e\ »d,-

5

#
-I-

3 2

-2
Fig. 2. (w~,r) velocity profiles for « = 10.0, 2 = 0.5.
(1)A=0.72, (2) A 0.7, (3) A=0.68, (4) A=0.65.
(p = 1.0)

0"2 0"14- O'b 0"8 1.Of 7) We stress that there is no net steady drifl of liquid
along the pipe since
Fig. 1. (wS,r) velocity' profiles for «=0.1, 2=0.5.
(I) A = 1.0, (2) A=0.75, (3) A=0.5, (4) A=0.25. w~l'°lrdrdO = O.
(p = 1.0) r=O 0~0
 James, Unsteady elastico-viscous flow in a rotating pipe
•6oSxlO1~
6-
/4-
0.2 o.~. 0.6 0.6' 1-01r
-2
-#.
Fig. 3. (w~,r) velocity profiles for ~ = 15.0, 2 = 0.5.
(1)A= 1.0, (2) A=0.75, (3) A=0.5, (4) A=0.25.
(p = 1.0)
place. For a given (large) value o f t , as A decreases,
the flow reversal occurs first at the pipe wall and
eventually extends into the core region. However
it is pointed out that there are no reversal
effects exhibited for the value A = 1 and thus
such effects arise solely from the presence of
elasticity.
The above results have been computed for
a fixed value of 2. When A is fixed and 2 varied
it is found that there is no appreciable effect
on the high frequency (ws, r) velocity profiles,
whereas for low frequencies the velocity profiles
are of the same general 'shape' as in fig. 1, but
the m a x i m u m value attained by ws for a given
A( 4: 1) increases with increasing 2.
6. Concluding remarks
It has been shown that the secondary axial
velocity induced by the slow rotation of a
177
straight pipe of circular cross-section has a
steady component when the applied pressure
gradient along the pipe is purely oscillatory.
This steady component, while producing no net
axial flow, results in a drift of liquid elements
along the pipe, being in opposite directions
along either side of the central plane containing
the axis of the pipe and the axis of rotation. For
purely viscous liquids the direction of drift is
the same at all frequencies of oscillation, but
when elasticity is present flow reversal at high
frequencies can occur. Since the dominant
component of secondary axial velocity is steady
(at high frequencies) it should be possible to
verify these predictions experimentally.
The author acknowledges the many helpful comments
throughout this analysis from Dr. J.R. Jones, De-
partment of Applied Mathematics, University College
of Swansea. The receipt of a maintenance award from
the Science Research Council is also gratefully ac-
knowledged.
Summary
An analysis is presented of incompressible flow in
a straight pipe of circular cross-section, rotating about
an axis perpendicular to its length, under the influence
of a periodic pressure gradient. It is shown that the
secondary axial velocity along the pipe is comprised
of a steady part and an unsteady part oscillating at
twice the frequency of the applied pressure gradient.
Of particular interest is the steady component of
velocity for which it is shown that, at high frequencies,
a reversal of drift in certain regions can be induced.
ZusammenJassung
Es wird eine Analyse der inkompressiblen Strömung
in einem geraden Rohr mit rundem Querschnitt, das
um eine senkrecht zu seiner Länge verlaufende Achse
rotiert, unter dem Einfluß eines periodischen Druck-
gradienten gegeben. Dabei wird gezeigt, daß die sekun-
däre axiale Anströmungsgeschwindigkeit in der Röhre
aus einem stationären Anteil und aus einem nicht-
stationären Anteil besteht. Der letztere oszilliert mit
einer Frequenz, die doppelt so groß ist wie die des
wirkenden Druckgradienten. Von besonderem In-
teresse ist der stationäre Anteil der Angströmge-
schwindigkeit, Für den gezeigt wird, daß bei hohen
Frequenzen in gewissen Bereichen eine Umkehr der
Strömungsrichtung herbeigeführt werden kann•
Re[èrences
1) Adler, M., Z.Angew. Math. Mech. 14, 125 (1934).
2) Barua, S. N., Proc. Roy. Soc. Lond. A 227, 133
(1954).
3) Bertelsen. A. F., J. Fluid Mech. 70, 519 (1975).
178 Rheologica Acta, Vol. 15, No. 3/4 (1976)

4) Dean, W. R., Phil. Mag. 4, 208 (1927). 14) Thomas, R. H., K. Walters, J. Fluid Mech. 16,
5) Dean, W. R., Phil. Mag. 5, 673 (1928). 22,~ (1963}.
6) Gunn, R. W., B. Mena, K. Walters, Z. Angew. 15) Walters, K., in : M. Reiner, D. Abir (eds.), Second-
Math. Phys. 25, 591 (1974). order effects in elasticity, plasticity and fluid dynamics,
7) James, P. W., Rheol. Acta 14, 679 (1975). pp. 507-519 (New York 1964).
8) James, P. W., Ph. D., Thesis University of 16) White, C. M., Proc. Roy. Soc. Lond. A 123, 645
Wales (1975). (1929).
9) Jones, J. R., M. K. Lewis, Rheol. Acta 7, 307 17) Zalosh, R. G., W. G. Nelson, J. Fluid Mech. 59,
(1968). 693 (1973).
1O) Jones, J. R., T. S. Walters, Rheol. Acta 6, 240
(1967). Author's address :
11) Jones, J. R., T. S. Walters, Rheol. Acta 6, 330
(1967). P. W. James
12) Lyne, W. H., J. Fluid Mech. 50, 13 (1970). Thermodynamics Division
13) Oldroyd, J. G., Proc. Roy. Soc. Lond. A 200, 523 A. E. R. E. Harwell
(1950). Oxfordshire (England)