On the choice of norm for modeling compressible flow dynamics at reduced-order using the POD

We use POD (proper orthogonal decomposition)/Galerkin projection to investigate and derive reduced-order models of the dynamics of compressible flows. We examine DNS data for two flows, a turbulent M=0.9 jet and self-sustained oscillations in the flow over an open cavity, and show how different choices of norm lead to different definitions of the energetic structures, and, for the cavity, to different reduced-order models of the dynamics. For the jet, we show that the near-field dynamics are fairly well represented by relatively few modes, but that key processes of interest, such as acoustic radiation, are not well captured by norms that are defined based on volume integrals of pressure and velocity. For the cavity flow, we demonstrate that vector-valued POD modes lead to reduced-order models that are much more effective (accurate and stable) than scalar-valued modes defined independently for different flow variables.