Plume

In hydrodynamics, a plume is a column of one fluid moving through another. Several effects control the motion of the fluid, including momentum, diffusion, and buoyancy (for density-driven flows). When momentum effects are more important than density differences and buoyancy effects, the plume is usually described as a jet. Usually, as a plume moves away from its source, it widens because of entrainment of the surrounding fluid at its edges. Plume... more

In hydrodynamics, a plume is a column of one fluid moving through another. Several effects control the motion of the fluid, including momentum, diffusion, and buoyancy (for density-driven flows). When momentum effects are more important than density differences and buoyancy effects, the plume is usually described as a jet. Usually, as a plume moves away from its source, it widens because of entrainment of the surrounding fluid at its edges. Plume shapes can be influenced by flow in the ambient fluid (for example, if local wind blowing in the same direction as the plume results in a co-flowing jet). This usually causes a plume which has initially been 'momentum-dominated' to become 'buoyancy-dominated' (this transition is usually predicted by a dimensionless number called the Richardson number). A further phenomenon of importance is whether a plume has laminar flow or turbulent flow. Usually there is a transition from laminar to turbulent as the plume moves away from its source. This... less