Screeching supersonic jets appears at off-design operating conditions and is perceived as an intense tonal noise. In a twin nozzle configuration, mutual interactions between the two jet plumes may occur with various coupling modes developing depending on the operating conditions and lateral distance between the jets. The investigation of the detailed flow behaviors and near-field pressure fluctuations with relevance to the twin jets system, the analysis of the developed instabilities, will enhance understanding of fundamental features associated with jets located close to each other.

In the present study, the single jet is considered first to assess the large eddy simulation (LES) approach used and the near-field pressure fluctuation predictions. Based on the validated solver, twin jets are simulated. Two different twin-nozzle configurations having different separation distance or nozzle-to-nozzle centerline spacing are scrutinized for the same Mach number of 1.358. Notably, the twin jets are screeching by the coupling mode for both set-ups; however, the case of closer inter-nozzle distance presents a symmetrical dominant flapping mode, while the other case shows an anti-symmetrical flapping mode. The strength of the pressure fluctuation at the fundamental frequency changes depending on the location of the observer point (upstream or downstream) and the reference plane (twin-jet and normal to the twin-jet plane). The screech tones of the two cases, observable in the upstream region, are significantly different in the normal to the twin-jet plane direction because of the phase difference of fluctuating pressure. However, the first harmonic component remains strong, regardless of the flapping mode. It is also observed that, at the fundamental frequency, the amplitude of the pressure fluctuation at downstream locations is found to be strong in the normal to the twin-jet plane when the symmetrical flapping mode occurs. This feature is also observed in the twin-jet plane in the case of the opposite mode. By analyzing the developed vertical structures and performing correlation analyses of pressure fluctuations along jet shear layers, the periodicity of the flow in the downstream region with relevance to the fundamental frequency is revealed.