Layer Thickness Impact on Shock-Accelerated Interfacial Instabilities in Single-Mode Stratifications

Applied Sciences, vol. 15, pp. 10687

Abstract

This study investigates the influence of heavy-layer thickness on shock-accelerated interfacial instabilities in single-mode stratifications using high-order discontinuous Galerkin simulations at a fixed shock Mach number (Ms=1.22). By systematically varying the layer thickness, we quantify how acoustic transit time, shock attenuation, and phase synchronization modulate vorticity deposition, circulation growth, and interface deformation. The results show that thin layers (d=2.5–5 mm) generate strong and early baroclinic vorticity due to frequent reverberations, leading to rapid circulation growth, vigorous Kelvin–Helmholtz roll-up, and early jet pairing. In contrast, thick layers (d=20–40 mm) attenuate and dephase shock returns, producing weaker baroclinic reinforcement, delayed shear-layer growth, and smoother interfaces with reduced small-scale activity, while the intermediate case (d=10 mm) exhibits transitional behavior. Integral diagnostics reveal that thin layers amplify dilatational, baroclinic, and viscous vorticity production; sustain stronger circulation and enstrophy growth; and transfer bulk kinetic energy more efficiently into interface deformation and small-scale mixing.

Authors 3

1. Salman Saud Alsaeed

   Jouf University

   Affiliation as printed

   Department of Mathematics, College of Science, Jouf University, Sakaka P.O. Box 2014, Saudi Arabia

2. Satyvir Singh corresponding Aachen Applied and Computational Mathematics

   RWTH Aachen University · Graphic Era University

   Affiliation as printed

   Applied and Computational Mathematics, RWTH Aachen University, 52062 Aachen, Germany

   Department of Mathematics, Graphic Era Deemed to be University, Dehradun 248002, India

3. Nouf A. Alrubea

   Jouf University

   Affiliation as printed

   Department of Mathematics, College of Science, Jouf University, Sakaka P.O. Box 2014, Saudi Arabia