Viscous Flow near the Trailing Edge of a Semi-Infinite Flat Plate Set in the Middle of a Moving Channel

Abstract

A model flow is studied in order to investigate the nature of the viscous flow near the trailing edge of a flat plate: in the middle of a moving channel with constant velocity, which is filled with viscous fluid, a semi-infinite flat plate at rest extends to upstream infinity, and the flow tends to the Couette flow upstream. The model seems to have such features as the viscous flow past a finite flat plate does near the trailing edge.
Analytical and numerical solutions are obtained at low and moderate Reynolds numbers, respectively, and it is concluded that the trailing edge is a singular point in the flow field, i. e.,
C_f∼Ax₁^−1⁄2 as x₁→0,
where C_f is the local skin-friction coefficient, A a certain function of the Reynolds number and x₁ the distance measured along the flat plate from the trailing edge.