Dynamics of scalar dissipation in isotropic

The physical mechanisms underlying the dynamics of the dissipation of passive scalar fluctuations with a uniform mean gradient in stationary isotropic turbulence are studied using data from direct numerical simulations (DNS), at grid resolutions up to 5123. The ensemble-averaged Taylor-scale Reynolds number is up to about 240 and the Schmidt number is from 1 8 to 1. Special attention is given to statistics conditioned upon the energy dissipation rate because of their important role in the Lagrangian spectral relaxation (LSR) model of turbulent mixing. In general, the dominant physical processes are those of nonlinear amplication by strain rate fluctuations, and destruction by molecular diusivity. Scalar dissipation tends to form elongated structures in space, with only a limited overlap with zones of intense energy dissipation. Scalar gradient fluctuations are preferentially aligned with the direction of most compressive strain rate, especially in regions of high energy dissipation. Both the nature of this alignment and the timescale of the resulting scalar gradien