Chaotic behavior of the piccolo?
Nicholas J. Giordano · The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America · 2014
A direct numerical solution of the Navier-Stokes equations has been used to calculate the sound produced by a model of the piccolo. At low to moderate blowing speeds and at appropriate blowing angles, the sound pressure is approximately periodic with the expected frequency. As the blowing speed is increased or as the blowing angle is varied, the time dependence of the sound pressure becomes more complicated, and examination of the spectrum and the sensitivity of the sound pressure to initial conditions suggest that the behavior becomes chaotic. Similarities with the behavior found in Taylor-Couette and Rayleigh-Bènard instabilities of fluids are noted and possible implications for the nature of the piccolo tone are discussed.