Turbulent flows and coherent structures emerging within turbulent flow fields have been extensively studied for the past few decades and a wide variety of experimental and numerical techniques have been developed for measurement and analysis of turbulent flows. The complex nature of turbulence requires methods that can accurately estimate its highly chaotic spatial and temporal behavior. Some of the classical cases of turbulent flows with simpler geometries have been well characterized by means of the existing experimental techniques and numerical models. Nevertheless, since most turbulent fields are of complex geometries; there is an increasing interest in the study of turbulent flows through models with more complicated geometries. In this dissertation, characteristics of turbulent flows through two different facilities with complex geometries are studied applying two different experimental methods. The first study involves the investigation of turbulent impinging jets through a staggered array of rods with or without crossflow. Such flows are crucial in various engineering disciplines. This experiment aimed at modeling the coolant flow behavior and mixing phenomena within the lower plenum of a Very High Temperature Reactor (VHTR). Dynamic Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) and Matched Index of Refraction (MIR) techniques were applied to acquire the turbulent velocity fields within the model. Some key flow features that may significantly enhance the flow mixing within the test section or actively affect some of the structural components were identified in the velocity fields. The evolution of coherent structures within the flow field is further investigated using a Snapshot Proper Orthogonal Decomposition (POD) technique. Furthermore, a comparative POD method is proposed and successfully implemented for identification of the smaller but highly influential coherent structures which may not be captured in the full-field POD analysis. The second experimental study portrays the coolant flow through the core of an annular pebble bed VHTR. The complex geometry of the core and the highly turbulent nature of the coolant flow passing through the gaps of fuel pebbles make this case quite challenging. In this experiment, a high frequency Hot Wire Anemometry (HWA) system is applied for velocity measurements and investigation of the bypass flow phenomena within the near wall gaps of the core. The velocity profiles within the gaps verify the presence of an area of increased velocity close to the outer reflector wall; however, the characteristics of the coolant flow profile is highly dependent on the gap geometry and to a less extent on the Reynolds number of the flow. The time histories of the velocity are further analyzed using a Power Spectra Density (PSD) technique to acquire information about the energy content and energy transfer between eddies of different sizes at each point within the gaps.

This thesis deals with the near-field of confluent jets, which can be of interest in many engineering applications such as design of a ventilation supply device. The physical effect of interaction between multiple closely spaced jets is studied using experimental and numerical methods. The primary aim of this study is to explore a better understanding of flow and turbulence behavior of multiple interacting jets. The main goal is to gain an insight into the confluence of jets occurring in the near-field of multiple interacting jets. The array of multiple interacting jets is studied when they are placed on a flat and a curved surface. To obtain the boundary conditions at the nozzle exits of the confluent jets on a curved surface, the results of numerical prediction of a cylindrical air supply device using two turbulence models (realizable 𝑘 − 𝜖 and Reynolds stress model) are validated with hot-wire anemometry (HWA) near different nozzles discharge in the array. A single round jet is then studied to find the appropriate turbulence models for the prediction of the three-dimensional flow field and to gain an understanding of the effect of the boundary conditions predicted at the nozzle inlet. In comparison with HWA measurements, the turbulence models with low Reynolds correction (𝑘 − 𝜖 and shear stress transport [SST] 𝑘 − 𝜔) give reasonable flow predictions for the single round jet with the prescribed inlet boundary conditions, while the transition models (𝑘 − 𝑘l − 𝜔𝜔 and transition SST 𝑘 − 𝜔) are unable to predict the flow in the turbulent region. The results of numerical prediction (low Reynolds SST 𝑘 − 𝜔 model) using the prescribed inlet boundary conditions agree well with the HWA measurement in the nearfield of confluent jets on a curved surface, except in the merging region. Instantaneous velocity measurements are performed by laser Doppler anemometry (LDA) and particle image velocimetry (PIV) in two different configurations, a single row of parallel coplanar jets and an inline array of jets on a flat surface. The results of LDA and PIV are compared, which exhibit good agreement except near the nozzle exits. The streamwise velocity profile of the jets in the initial region shows a saddle back shape with attenuated turbulence in the core region and two off-centered narrow peaks. When confluent jets issue from an array of closely spaced nozzles, they may converge, merge, and combine after a certain distance downstream of the nozzle edge. The deflection plays a salient role for the multiple interacting jets (except in the single row configuration), where all the jets are converged towards the center of the array. The jet position, such as central, side and corner jets, significantly influences the development features of the jets, such as velocity decay and lateral displacement. The flow field of confluent jets exhibits asymmetrical distributions of Reynolds stresses around the axis of the jets and highly anisotropic turbulence. The velocity decays slower in the combined regio  of confluent jets than a single jet. Using the response surface methodology, the correlations between characteristic points (merging and combined points) and the statistically significant terms of the three design factors (inlet velocity, spacing between the nozzles and diameter of the nozzles) are determined for the single row of coplanar parallel jets. The computational parametric study of the single row configuration shows that spacing has the greatest impact on the near-field characteristics.

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Les recherches sur les instationnarités des Interactions Ondes de Choc Couches Limites (IOCCL) turbulentes ont permis une description détaillée de celles-ci tant expérimentalement que numériquement . Ceci a conduit à plusieurs schémas susceptibles d'expliquer les respirations à basses fréquences observées dans de tels écoulements. Les configurations avec des conditions amont laminaires ou transitionnelles ont été moins étudiées.Dans le cadre du programme Européen TFAST, un important effort a été mené afin de développer des dispositifs expérimentaux, conjointement à des simulations numériques, permettant une étude détaillée de ces configurations. Dans le cadre de cette thèse, on a mis en place une configuration de réflexion d'onde de choc sur une couche limite laminaire pour un nombre de Mach de 1.68. L'utilisation des métrologies classiques (Anémométrie Laser Doppler, Anémométrie Fil Chaud), adaptées à ces conditions expérimentales particulières, a permis de décrire les propriétés spatio-temporelles de ces écoulements. Le champ moyen a été caractérisé et comparé aux théories classique et aux résultats obtenus dans différentes souffleries.Un schéma décrivant le mécanisme de transition à la turbulence au sein de l'interaction a été développé. Sa sensibilité aux conditions amont a été étudiée en plaçant des perturbations en amont de l'interaction. Dans tous les cas, des instationnarités convectives (haute fréquence) et stationnaires (basse fréquence) ont été observées et comparées à celles existantes pour les configurations amont turbulentes. Une gamme intermédiaire d'instationnarités convectives (moyenne fréquence) a été mise en évidence et caractérisée. / Research dedicated to the study of the unsteadiness of turbulent Shock Wave Boundary Layer Interaction (SWBLI) has allowed a detailed description of this kind of interaction both experimentally and numerically. Several scenario were proposed to explain the low frequency unsteadiness observed in separated SWBLI. Nevertheless, the literature on this kind of flow involving either upstream laminar or transitional conditions is quite reduce. Within the framework of the European TFAST program, an important effort was made to develop experimental devices, in conjunction with numerical simulations, allowing a detailed study of these laminar or transitional configurations. In particular, within the framework of this thesis, a shock wave reflection configuration on a laminar boundary layer was set-up, with a nominal free stream Mach number of 1.68. Using classical metrology (Laser Doppler Anemometry, Hot WireAnemometry) that have been adapted to these particular experimental conditions, we have been able to describe the spatio-temporal properties of the interaction. The mean field has been characterized and compared with the classical theories and the results obtained in other configurations.A model describing the transition mechanisms to turbulence within the interaction has been developed. Its sensitivity to upstream conditions was studied by placing perturbations upstream of the interaction. In all cases, convective (high frequency) and stationary (low frequency) unsteadiness were observed and compared with those existing for upstream turbulent configurations. An intermediate range of convective unsteadiness (medium frequency) has been demonstrated and characterized.