An experimental investigation on elliptical instability of a strongly asymmetric vortex pair in a stable density stratification

Abstract

We investigate the elliptical instability of a strongly asymmetric vortex pair in a stratified fluid, generated by the acceleration and deceleration of the rotation of a single flap. The dominant parameter is the Froude number, Fr=U/(N R), based on the maximum azimuthal velocity, U, and corresponding radius, R, of the strongest vortex, i.e. the principal vortex, and buoyancy frequency N. For Fr>l, both vortices are elliptically unstable while the instability is suppressed for Fr