Identifying the Self-Sustaining Mechanisms of Transonic Airfoil Buffet with Resolvent Analysis

The self-sustaining mechanisms of shock oscillations in transonic airfoil buffet are studied by wall-resolved large-eddy simulation (LES) and resolvent analysis. The LES successfully reproduces the large-scale shock oscillations over a transonic OAT15A airfoil, and the resolvent analysis using the high-fidelity LES data reveals the input–output relations in the self-sustained shock oscillations. Based on the input–output relations revealed by the resolvent analysis, this study identifies two mechanisms of the self-sustained shock oscillations. The first mechanism is closely tied to the periodic variations of the shock-induced separation height, whereas the second mechanism is related to the pressure dynamics around the shock wave. The mechanisms of the self-sustained shock oscillations identified by the input–output relations are examined in detail along with the high-fidelity LES data to aid the understanding of the feedback formulations in transonic airfoil buffet.