Definition
Reynolds defect system
Momentum balance with the divergence of a symmetric error tensor.
A Reynolds defect system, with the right-hand-side sign convention, is
Here is a symmetric matrix field, its divergence is , and is an outer product. For this is called Navier–Stokes–Reynolds; for , Euler–Reynolds. The Navier–Stokes equation is recovered when the defect divergence vanishes.
The pressure term is its gradient and is the componentwise Laplacian.
Pressure and trace
Writing with , replace by to use the trace-free tensor . Thus trace parts can be put into pressure. The sign of a tensor called Reynolds stress must be checked against its displayed equation.