Blade Row Interaction in a High-Pressure Steam Turbine

2003 ◽  
Vol 125 (1) ◽  
pp. 14-24 ◽  
Author(s):  
V. S. P. Chaluvadi ◽  
A. I. Kalfas ◽  
H. P. Hodson ◽  
H. Ohyama ◽  
E. Watanabe

This paper presents a study of the three-dimensional flow field within the blade rows of a high-pressure axial flow steam turbine stage. Compound lean angles have been employed to achieve relatively low blade loading for hub and tip sections and so reduce the secondary losses. The flow field is investigated in a low-speed research turbine using pneumatic and hot-wire probes downstream of the blade row. Steady and unsteady numerical simulations were performed using structured 3-D Navier-Stokes solver to further understand the flow field. Agreement between the simulations and the measurements has been found. The unsteady measurements indicate that there is a significant effect of the stator flow interaction in the downstream rotor blade. The transport of the stator viscous flow through the rotor blade row is described. Unsteady numerical simulations were found to be successful in predicting accurately the flow near the secondary flow interaction regions compared to steady simulations. A method to calculate the unsteady loss generated inside the blade row was developed from the unsteady numerical simulations. The contribution of various regions in the blade to the unsteady loss generation was evaluated. This method can assist the designer in identifying and optimizing the features of the flow that are responsible for the majority of the unsteady loss production. An analytical model was developed to quantify this effect for the vortex transport inside the downstream blade.

Author(s):  
V. S. P. Chaluvadi ◽  
A. I. Kalfas ◽  
H. P. Hodson ◽  
H. Ohyama ◽  
E. Watanabe

This paper presents a study of the three-dimensional flow field within the blade rows of a high-pressure axial flow steam turbine stage. Compound lean angles have been employed to achieve relatively low blade loading for hub and tip sections and so reduce the secondary losses. The flow field is investigated in a Low-Speed Research Turbine using pneumatic and hot-wire probes downstream of the blade row. Steady and unsteady numerical simulations were performed using structured 3D Navier-Stokes solver to further understand the flow field. Agreement between the simulations and the measurements has been found. The unsteady measurements indicate that there is a significant effect of the stator flow interaction in the downstream rotor blade. The transport of the stator viscous flow through the rotor blade row is described. Unsteady numerical simulations were found to be successful in predicting accurately the flow near the secondary flow interaction regions compared to steady simulations. A method to calculate the unsteady loss generated inside the blade row was developed from the unsteady numerical simulations. The contribution of various regions in the blade to the unsteady loss generation was evaluated. This method can assist the designer in identifying and optimizing the features of the flow that are responsible for the majority of the unsteady loss production. An analytical model was developed to quantify this effect for the vortex transport inside the downstream blade.


Author(s):  
V. S. P. Chaluvadi ◽  
A. I. Kalfas ◽  
H. P. Hodson

This paper presents a study of the three-dimensional flow field within the blade rows of a high-pressure axial flow steam turbine stage. Half-delta wings were fixed to a rotating hub to simulate an upstream rotor passage vortex. The flow field is investigated in a Low-Speed Research Turbine using pneumatic and hot-wire probes downstream of the blade row. The paper examines the impact of the delta wing vortex transport on the performance of the downstream blade row. Steady and unsteady numerical simulations were performed using structured 3D Navier-Stokes solver to further understand the flow field. The loss measurements at the exit of the stator blade showed an increase in stagnation pressure loss due to the delta wing vortex transport. The increase in loss was 21% of the datum stator loss, demonstrating the importance of this vortex interaction. The transport of the stator viscous flow through the rotor blade row is also described. The rotor exit flow was affected by the interaction between the enhanced stator passage vortex and the rotor blade row. Flow underturning near the hub and overturning towards the mid-span was observed, contrary to the classical model of overturning near the hub and underturning towards the mid-span. The unsteady numerical simulation results were further analysed to identify the entropy producing regions in the unsteady flow field.


2004 ◽  
Vol 126 (3) ◽  
pp. 395-405 ◽  
Author(s):  
V. S. P. Chaluvadi ◽  
A. I. Kalfas ◽  
H. P. Hodson

This paper presents a study of the three-dimensional flow field within the blade rows of a high-pressure axial flow steam turbine stage. Half-delta wings were fixed to a rotating hub to simulate an upstream rotor passage vortex. The flow field is investigated in a low-speed research turbine using pneumatic and hot-wire probes downstream of the blade row. The paper examines the impact of the delta wing vortex transport on the performance of the downstream blade row. Steady and unsteady numerical simulations were performed using structured three-dimensional Navier-Stokes solver to further understand the flow field. The loss measurements at the exit of the stator blade showed an increase in stagnation pressure loss due to the delta wing vortex transport. The increase in loss was 21% of the datum stator loss, demonstrating the importance of this vortex interaction. The transport of the stator viscous flow through the rotor blade row is also described. The rotor exit flow was affected by the interaction between the enhanced stator passage vortex and the rotor blade row. Flow underturning near the hub and overturning towards the midspan was observed, contrary to the classical model of overturning near the hub and underturning towards the midspan. The unsteady numerical simulation results were further analyzed to identify the entropy producing regions in the unsteady flow field.


1996 ◽  
Vol 118 (4) ◽  
pp. 835-843 ◽  
Author(s):  
B. V. Marathe ◽  
B. Lakshminarayana ◽  
Y. Dong

The objective of this investigation is to understand the nature of the complex flow field inside each element of the torque converter through a systematic experimental and numerical investigation of the flow field. A miniature five-hole probe was used to acquire the data at the exit of the stator at several operating conditions. The flow field is found to be highly three dimensional with substantial flow deviations, and secondary flow at the exit of the stator. The secondary flow structure, caused by the upstream radial variation of the through flow, induces flow overturning near the core. Flow separation near the shell causes flow underturning in this region. The rate of decay of stator wake is found to be slower than that observed in the wakes of axial flow turbine nozzles. The flow predictions by a Navier–Stokes code are in good agreement with the pressure and the flow field measured at the exit of the stator at the design and the off-design conditions.


Author(s):  
K. Yamada ◽  
K. Funazaki ◽  
M. Kikuchi ◽  
H. Sato

A study on the effects of the axial gap between stator and rotor upon the stage performance and flow field of a single axial flow turbine stage is presented in this paper. Three axial gaps were tested, which were achieved by moving the stator vane in the axial direction while keeping the disk cavity constant. The effect of the axial gap was investigated at two different conditions, that is design and off-design conditions. The unsteady three-dimensional flow field was analyzed by time-accurate RANS (Reynolds-Averaged Navier-Stokes) simulations. The simulation results were compared with the experiments, in which total pressure and the time-averaged flow field upstream and downstream of the rotor were obtained by five-hole probe measurements. The effect of the axial gap was confirmed in the endwall regions, and obtained relatively at off-design condition. The turbine stage efficiency was improved almost linearly by reducing the axial gap at the off-design condition.


Author(s):  
N. Liamis ◽  
J.-M. Duboue

The purpose of this contribution is to report on the aerodynamical performance calculations carried out around single stage high pressure turbines including rotor blade tip clearance effects. Three different turbine configurations are considered: a low lift case with two different tip gap heights and a high lift case. A multistage approach based on the ONERA-Snecma 3D Navier-Stokes code CANARI is used to investigate the turbine flow behaviour. The computational results are compared with experimental data and with results obtained by single blade row simulations.


1991 ◽  
Author(s):  
N. Suryavamshi ◽  
B. Lakshminarayana

The results of a numerical investigation to predict the flow field including wakes and mixing in axial flow compressor rotors has been presented in this paper. The wake behaviour in a moderately loaded compressor rotor has been studied numerically using a three-dimensional incompressible Navier-Stokes solver with a high Reynolds number form of the k–ε turbulence model. The equations are solved using a time dependent implicit technique. The agreement between the measured data and the predictions are good; including the blade boundary layer profiles, wake mean velocity profiles and decay. The ability of the pseudo-compressibility scheme to predict the entire flow field including the near and far wake profiles and its decay characteristics, effect of loading and the viscous losses of a three-dimensional rotor flow field has been demonstrated. An analysis of the passage averaged velocities and the pressure coefficients shows that the mixing in the downstream regions away from the hub and annulus walls is dominated by wake diffusion. In regions away from the walls, the radial mixing is predominantly caused by the transport of mass, momentum and energy by the radial component of velocity in the wake.


Author(s):  
A. S. Witkowski ◽  
T. J. Chmielniak ◽  
M. D. Strozik

Detailed measurements have been performed in a low pressure axial flow compressor stage to investigate the structure of the secondary flow field and the three-dimensional wake decay at different axial locations before and behind the rotor. The three dimensional flow field upstream and downstream of the rotor and on the centerline of the stator blade passage have been sampled periodically using a straight and a 90 degree triple-split fiber probe. Radial measurements at 39 radial stations were carried out at chosen axial positions in order to get the span-wise characteristics of the unsteady flow. Taking the experimental values of the unsteady flow velocities and turbulence properties, the effects of the rotor blade wake decay and secondary flow on the blade row spacing and stator passage flow at different operating conditions are discussed. For the normal operating point, the component of radial turbulent intensities in the leakage-flow mixing region is found to be much higher than the corresponding axial and tangential components. But for a higher value of the flow coefficient the relations are different.The results of the experiments show that triple-split fiber probes, straight and 90 degree measurements, combined with the ensemble average technique are a very useful method for the analysis of rotor flow in turbomachinery. Tip clearance vortex, secondary flow near the hub and radial flow in the wake, turbulent intensity and Reynolds stresses and also the decay of the rotor wakes can be obtained by this method.


Author(s):  
Yijin Li ◽  
Qun Zheng ◽  
Lanxin Sun

Aerodynamic performances of a partial admission multistage radial inflow turbine are investigated with numerical simulation. A three-dimensional unsteady Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes solver closed by Baldwin-Lomax model is applied for the computations. The flow field features of the first stages with partial admission are analyzed and discussed. Detailed flow patterns of the partial admission radial turbine impeller are presented here in this paper.


1996 ◽  
Author(s):  
Moming Su ◽  
Chuan-gang Gu ◽  
Yong-miao Miao

The complex three-dimensional flow field in an axial-flow impeller incorporating high-Reynolds-number k-ε turbulence model is studied in this paper. The fully three-dimensional Reynolds averaged Navier-Stokes equations are solved. A computational procedure has been developed for predicting three-dimensional incompressible separated turbulent flows in the impeller. The SIMPLE-like algorithm is used. Convective terms are approximated with higher-order upstream-weighted approximations and a TVD-type MUSCL scheme. Physical covariant velocity components are selected as dependent solving variables. The non-orthogonal boundary-fitted coordinate system and collocated grid arrangement are also employed. Rhie and Chow’s momentum interpolation method is adopted to eliminate the non-physical pressure and velocity oscillations. Periodic boundary condition and moving wall boundary condition are considered to simulate truthfully the turbulent flow field in impeller. Two types of axial-flow impellers are computed. The first one is designed by ordinary method and the other is a improved design that has been considered with eliminating flow separation and viscous vortex in the first design. The computed results show that the fully tree-dimensional turbulent flows computation can efficiently predict three-dimensional separated flows and viscous vortex in axial-flow impeller and vaneless clearance. Using the program, a designer can improve passage geometric design to enhance the performance of the fan.


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