Hydrodynamics and Sound

Description

There is a certain body of knowledge and methods that finds application in most branches of fluid mechanics. This book aims to supply a proper theoretical understanding that will permit sensible simplifications to be made in the formulation of problems, and enable the reader to develop analytical models of practical significance. Such analyses can be used to guide more detailed experimental and numerical investigations. As in most technical subjects, such understanding is acquired by detailed study of highly simplified 'model problems'. The first part (Chapters 1-4) is concerned entirely with the incompressible flow of a homogeneous fluid. It was written for the Boston University introductory graduate level course 'Advanced Fluid Mechanics'. The remaining Chapters 5 and 6 deal with dispersive waves and acoustics, and are unashamedly inspired by James Lighthill's masterpiece, Waves in Fluids.

M. S. Howe has been Professor in the Department of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering at Boston University since 1992. He is a Fellow of the Institute of Acoustics (UK) and of the Acoustical Society of America. He was appointed American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) Rayleigh Lecturer for 1997 for his 'pioneering contributions to the science and applications of acoustics'. He received the ASME 2000 Per Bruel Gold Medal for Noise Control and Acoustics 'for important work on the interactions of fluid flow and structures, leading to an increased understanding of acoustic radiation generated from such interactions'. In 2001 he received the Aeroacoustics Award of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, for 'outstanding theoretical contributions to the understanding of the fundamental physical processes of noise generation in aeroacoustics'. Dr Howe is the author of Acoustics of Fluid-Structure Interactions (CUP 1998), Theory of Vortex Sound (in press, 2001), and has publishedmore than 180 papers in refereed Mathematics and Engineering journals.

'Researchers and advanced students of unsteady high-speed flow, particularly those concerned with the sound waves that are generated in such flows, will learn a lot by studying this book ... Michael Howe succeeds throughout the book in maintaining the lively style pioneered by his mentor to whom the book is dedicated, and in doing so will have made some readers understand this subject much better than they ever thought possible.' Journal of Fluid Mechanics 'Professor Howe is not only a well-established researcher but also an excellent pedagogue. He succeeded in explaining in a comprehensive manner complex topics of hydrodynamics and in making the reading a fascinating scientific journey. This book has all the chances to become a classical textbook on this subject. ... Howe's book should be recommended to all students willing to discover the wonderful world of hydrodynamics.' European Journal of Mechanics B/Fluids