ABSTRACT
Vortices play a dominant role in many flow problems, in hydrodynamics as well as in aerodynamics. Vortices can influence the main flow substantially, as for example, the dangerous spiraling of vortices in diffusers of large water turbines or the lee-side vortices on delta wings. The notion of slender vortices will be introduced first in the frame of Prandtl’s lifting-line theory. Simplified model equations will be used to explain the flow motion in the cores of the starting and the tip vortices. The simulation of vortex flows facilitated with numerical integration will be explained for time dependent flows in comparison with experimental data. The results show, that the motion of the vortices and also their inner structure can accurately be simulated with numerical solutions of the Navier-Stokes equations on high-performance computers.
