Numerical study on the flow around flat plates at low Reynolds numbers

The unsteady viscous flow around flat plates is investigated through a finite-difference computation of the incompressible two-dimensional Navier-Stokes equations. The side ratio of the plates d/h ranges from 3 to 10 with Reynolds numbers Re equal to 200 and 400, where d is the depth, h is the height, and Re is based on h. It was pointed out in our previous experiment performed at Re = 1000 that vortex shedding from the plates is characterized by the impinging-shear-layer instability, since the Strouhal number based on d increases stepwise with increasing d/h, as was confirmed in our numerical analysis. In the present paper, the flows at two lower Reynolds numbers, Re = 200 and 400, are numerically analyzed and compared with the results for Re = 1000.