Influence of the mass ratio on the fluidelastic instability of a flexible cylinder in a bundle of rigid tubes

Several linear lumped-parameter models were proposed in the past to identify the main mechanisms underlying the cross-flow instability of a single flexible cylinder in tube bundles. Basing on such models, we analyze the influence of the mass ratio when the cylinder vibrates in the transverse direction, without structural damping (corresponding to a zero Scruton number). For two selected mass ratios, we focus on this linear interaction plotting the poles of the fluid–structure system as a function of the reduced velocity (root locus). This asymptotic approach allows a better understanding of the combined influence of the transient fluidelastic coupling and the mass ratio.