Richard J.A.M. Stevens

Professor at the University of Twente

Wind energy · Turbulence · Environmental flows

Publication 20 · Thermal convection

Logarithmic temperature profiles in turbulent Rayleigh-Bénard convection

G. Ahlers, E. Bodenschatz, D. Funfschilling, S. Grossmann, X. He, D. Lohse, R.J.A.M. Stevens, R. Verzicco, Phys. Rev. Lett. 109, 114501 (2012).

Read the article Open-access version (university repository)

Main finding

The paper provides strong profile-shape evidence for selected intervals and strong DNS evidence of classical radial nonuniformity. It does not establish a universal bulk temperature log law, direct experiment–DNS validation, or a common shear-flow mechanism.

Time-averaged temperature profiles against distance from the plate on logarithmic axes
How to read the figure. Time-averaged temperature at a fixed radial position against the logarithm of the distance from the plate, in the classical (a) and ultimate (b) ranges of turbulent Rayleigh-Benard convection. The profiles are straight over an interval of the boundary region, which is the logarithmic dependence the paper reports. The measurement is at one radial location, and the accompanying simulations show the profile is not the same everywhere across the plate, so this is not a universal bulk temperature log law. Open the full-resolution figure. Figure 1. G. Ahlers et al. (2012). No separate licence is stated here; consult the original publication and credited source before reuse.

Why this matters

A simple-looking logarithmic profile can reveal organized structure in a turbulent interior.

Research context

The cylindrical DNS lineage supplies an important local-resolution warning: agreement in global heat transfer does not validate a spatially resolved temperature profile. Related boundary-layer studies constrain the Prandtl–Blasius comparison, but none independently validates the present logarithmic fits or turns them into a universal bulk law.

View in the complete publication list Related thermal convection research