Multistage Turbine Simulations With Vortex–Blade Interaction

1996 ◽  
Vol 118 (4) ◽  
pp. 643-653 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. G. Turner

The average passage approach of Adamczyk et al. (1990) has been used to simulate the multistage environment of the General Electric E3 low-pressure turbine. Four configurations have been analyzed and compared to test data. These include the nozzle only, the first stage, the first stage and a half, and the first two stages. A high casing slope on the first-stage nozzle causes the secondary flow vortex to separate off the casing and enter the downstream rotor. The detrimental effect on performance due to this vortex interaction has been predicted by the above approach, whereas isolated blade row calculations cannot simulate this interaction. The unsteady analysis developed by Chen et al. (1994) has also been run to understand the unsteady flow field in the first-stage rotor and compare with the average passage model and test data. Comparisons of both the steady and unsteady analyses with data are generally good, although in the region near the casing of the shrouded rotors, the predicted loss is lower than that shown by the data.

Author(s):  
Mark G. Turner

The average passage approach of Adamczyk et al (1990) has been used to simulate the multistage environment of the General Electric E3 low pressure turbine. Four configurations have been analyzed and compared to test data. These include the nozzle only, the first stage, the first stage and a half and the first two stages. A high casing slope on the first stage nozzle causes the secondary flow vortex to separate off the casing and enter the downstream rotor. The detrimental effect on performance due to this vortex interaction has been predicted by the above approach whereas isolated blade row calculations cannot simulate this interaction. The unsteady analysis developed by Chen et al (1994) has also been run to understand the unsteady flow field in the first stage rotor and compare with the average passage model and test data. Comparisons of both the steady and unsteady analyses with data are generally good, although in the region near the casing of the shrouded rotors, the predicted loss is lower than that shown by the data.


Author(s):  
S. Zerobin ◽  
S. Bauinger ◽  
A. Marn ◽  
A. Peters ◽  
F. Heitmeir ◽  
...  

This paper presents an experimental study of the unsteady flow field downstream of a high pressure turbine with ejected purge flows, with a special focus on a flow field discussion using the mode detection approach according to the theory of Tyler and Sofrin. Measurements were carried out in a product-representative one and a half stage turbine test setup, which consists of a high-pressure turbine stage followed by an intermediate turbine center frame and a low-pressure turbine vane row. Four independent purge mass flows were injected through the forward and aft cavities of the unshrouded high-pressure turbine rotor. A fast-response pressure probe was used to acquire time-resolved data at the turbine center frame duct inlet and exit. The interactions between the stator, rotor, and turbine center frame duct are identified as spinning modes, propagating in azimuthal direction. Time-space diagrams illustrate the amplitude variation of the detected modes along the span. The composition of the unsteadiness and its major contributors are of interest to determine the role of unsteadiness in the turbine center frame duct loss generation mechanisms and to avoid high levels of blade vibrations in the low-pressure turbine which can in turn result in increased acoustic emissions. This work offers new insight into the unsteady flow behavior downstream of a purged high-pressure turbine and its propagation through an engine-representative turbine center frame duct configuration.


Author(s):  
Ronald Mailach ◽  
Ingolf Lehmann ◽  
Konrad Vogeler

In this two-part paper results of the periodical unsteady flow field within the third rotor blade row of the four-stage Dresden Low-Speed Research Compressor are presented. The main part of the experimental investigations was performed using Laser-Doppler-Anemometry. Results of the flow field at several spanwise positions between midspan and rotor blade tip will be discussed. In addition time-resolving pressure sensors at midspan of the rotor blades provide information about the unsteady profile pressure distribution. In part II of the paper the flow field in the rotor blade tip region will be discussed. The experimental results reveal a strong periodical interaction of the incoming stator wakes and the rotor blade tip clearance vortices. Consequently, in the rotor frame of reference the tip clearance vortices are periodical with the stator blade passing frequency. Due to the wakes the tip clearance vortices are separated into different segments. Along the mean vortex trajectory these parts can be characterised by alternating patches of higher and lower velocity and flow turning or subsequent counterrotating vortex pairs. These flow patterns move downstream along the tip clearance vortex path in time. As a result of the wake influence the orientation and extension of the tip clearance vortices as well as the flow blockage periodically vary in time.


2014 ◽  
Vol 136 (11) ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin Lipfert ◽  
Jan Habermann ◽  
Martin G. Rose ◽  
Stephan Staudacher ◽  
Yavuz Guendogdu

In a joint project between the Institute of Aircraft Propulsion Systems (ILA) and MTU Aero Engines, a two-stage low pressure turbine is tested at design and strong off-design conditions. The experimental data taken in the Altitude Test Facility (ATF) aims to study the effect of positive and negative incidence of the second stator vane. A detailed insight and understanding of the blade row interactions at these regimes is sought. Steady and time-resolved pressure measurements on the airfoil as well as inlet and outlet hot-film traverses at identical Reynolds number are performed for the midspan streamline. The results are compared with unsteady multistage computational fluid dynamics (CFD) predictions. Simulations agree well with the experimental data and allow detailed insights in the time-resolved flow-field. Airfoil pressure field responses are found to increase with positive incidence whereas at negative incidence the magnitude remains unchanged. Different pressure to suction side (SS) phasing is observed for the studied regimes. The assessment of unsteady blade forces reveals that changes in unsteady lift are minor compared to changes in axial force components. These increase with increasing positive incidence. The wake-interactions are predominating the blade responses in all regimes. For the positive incidence conditions, vane 1 passage vortex fluid is involved in the midspan passage interaction, leading to a more distorted three-dimensional (3D) flow field.


Author(s):  
Michael Henke ◽  
Lars Wein ◽  
Tim Kluge ◽  
Yavuz Guendogdu ◽  
Marc Heinz-Otto Biester ◽  
...  

The flow field in modern axial turbines is non-trivial and highly unsteady due to secondary flow and blade row interaction. In recent years, existing design-tools like two-dimensional flow solvers as well as fully three-dimensional CFD methods have been validated for the assumption of a quasi-steady flow field. Since the inevitable unsteadiness of the flow field has a direct impact on unsteady loss generation and work transfer, existing design methods stand in need of validation for local unsteady effects within the flow field. In order to clearly separate end-wall losses from those generated by blade row interaction within the blade passage, a two-dimensional core-flow is essential for the investigation. Hence, a new 1.5-stage high aspect ratio low pressure turbine has been designed to determine the intensity of core-flow blade row interaction for different axial gaps. First, inlet and outlet conditions of the test rig are evaluated with regard to homogeneity of the flow parameters in their radial and circumferential distributions. Secondly, the measurement data gained from rig tests have been applied as boundary conditions to time-averaged numerical computations. The flow field analysis for two different axial gaps focuses on the verification of the core flow. The authors show that the new turbine has been successfully verified using both test data and the numerical predictions, serving as a precondition for the validation of the numerical model for unsteady effects within the core-flow.


1990 ◽  
Vol 112 (3) ◽  
pp. 370-376 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. J. Adamczyk ◽  
M. L. Celestina ◽  
T. A. Beach ◽  
M. Barnett

This work outlines a procedure for simulating the flow field within multistage turbomachinery, which includes the effects of unsteadiness, compressibility, and viscosity. The associated modeling equations are the average passage equation system, which governs the time-averaged flow field within a typical passage of a blade row embedded within a multistage configuration. The results from a simulation of a low aspect ratio stage and one-half turbine will be presented and compared with experimental measurements. It will be shown that the secondary flow field generated by the rotor causes the aerodynamic performance of the downstream vane to be significantly different from that of an isolated blade row.


Author(s):  
Wolfgang Höhn ◽  
Ralf Gombert ◽  
Astrid Kraus

This paper is the second part of a two part paper, which describes in part one the experimental setup and results of a new multistage turbine. Part two presents results of unsteady viscous flow calculations based on cold flow experiments of that three stage low pressure turbine. The present paper emphasizes the investigation of stator-stator interaction of a low pressure turbine section of a commercial jet engine. Different positions for the second and third stator are studied numerically and experimentally with respect to the blade row interaction, unsteady blade loading and unsteady boundary layer effects. A time accurate Reynolds averaged Navier-Stokes solver is applied for the computations. Turbulence is modeled using the Spalart-Allmaras one equation model turbulence model and the influence of modern transition models on the unsteady flow predictions is investigated. The integration of the governing equations in time is performed by a four stage Runge-Kutta scheme, which is accelerated by a two grid method in the viscous boundary layer around the blades and alternatively by a dual time stepping method. At the inlet and outlet reflecting or non-reflecting boundary conditions are used. The quasi 3D calculations are conducted on a stream surface around midspan allowing a varying stream tube thickness. In particular, the flow field with respect to time averaged and unsteady quantities such as surface pressure, vorticity, unsteady velocity field and skin friction are compared with the experiments conducted in the cold air flow test rig.


Author(s):  
L. Simonassi ◽  
M. Zenz ◽  
S. Zerobin ◽  
F. Heitmeir ◽  
A. Marn ◽  
...  

Modern low pressure turbines (LPT) are designed in order to fulfil a various number of requirements such as high endurance, low noise, high efficiency, low weight and low fuel consumption. Regarding the reduction of the emitted noise, different designs of low pressure turbine exit guide vanes (aerodynamically and/or acoustically optimized) of the turbine exit casing (TEC) were tested and their noise reduction capabilities and aerodynamic performance were evaluated. In particular, measurements of TEC-losses were performed and differences in the losses were reported. Measurements were carried out in a one and a half stage subsonic turbine test facility at the engine relevant operating point approach. This work focuses on the study of the unsteady flow field downstream of an unshrouded low pressure turbine rotor. The influence on the upstream flow field of a TEC design including acoustically optimized vanes (Inverse cut-off TEC) is investigated and compared with a second TEC configuration without vanes (Vaneless TEC), by means of fast response aerodynamic pressure probe measurements. The second configuration served as a reference concerning the influence of TEGVs onto the upstream located LPT rotor. The interactions between the stator and rotor wakes, secondary flows and the turbine exit guide vanes potential effect are identified via modal decomposition according to the theory of Tyler and Sofrin. The main structures constituting the unsteady flow field are detected and the role of the major interaction effects in the loss generation mechanism and in the acoustic emission is analysed. This study based on the modal analysis of the unsteady flow field offers new insight into the main interaction mechanisms and their importance in the assessment of the aerodynamic and aeroelastic performance of modern low pressure turbine exit casings.


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):  
Ronald Mailach ◽  
Ingolf Lehmann ◽  
Konrad Vogeler

In this two-part paper results of the periodical unsteady flow field within the third rotor blade row of the four-stage Dresden Low-Speed Research Compressor are presented. The main part of the experimental investigations was performed using Laser-Doppler-Anemometry. Results of the flow field at several spanwise positions between midspan and rotor blade tip will be discussed. In addition time-resolving pressure sensors at midspan of the rotor blades provide information about the unsteady profile pressure distribution. In part I of the paper the flow field at midspan of the rotor blade row will be discussed. Different aspects of the blade row interaction process are considered for the design point and an operating point near the stability limit. The periodical unsteady blade-to-blade velocity field is dominated by the incoming stator wakes, while the potential effect of the stator blades is of minor influence. The inherent vortex structures and the negative jet effect, which is coupled to the wake appearance, are clearly resolved. Furthermore the time-resolved profile pressure distribution of the rotor blades is discussed. Although the negative jet effect within the rotor blade passage is very pronounced the rotor blade pressure distribution is nearly independent from the convectively propagating chopped stator wakes.


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