A theoretical model compared with experiments for the unsteady pressure on a cylinder oscillating in turbulent annular flow

Abstract The unsteady turbulent flow around a cylindrical centre-body oscillating ina narrow duct is considered in this paper in support of the flow-induced vibration studies of such systems. A simplified analysis was developed for smooth geometries in order to assess the importance of the unsteady turbulent effects. To validate the theoretical solution, experimental investigations were conducted to measure the circumferential variation of the unsteady pressure on the oscillating centre-body in turbulent annular flow. Good agreement was found to exist between the theoretical solution and the experimental results for both the amplitude and phase of the measured unsteady pressure on the oscillating cylinder.