Numerical and Experimental Investigation of the Impact of Mixed Flow Turbine Inlet Cone Angle and Inlet Blade Angle

2019 ◽  
Vol 141 (8) ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas Leonard ◽  
Stephen Spence ◽  
Andre Starke ◽  
Dietmar Filsinger

Mixed flow turbines (MFTs) offer potential benefits for turbocharged engines when considering off-design performance and engine transient behavior. Although the performance and use of MFTs are described in the literature, little is published on the combined impact of the cone angle and the inlet blade angle, which are the defining features of such turbines. Numerical simulations were completed using a computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model that was validated against experimental measurements for a baseline geometry. The mechanical impact of the design changes was also analyzed. Based on the results of the numerical study, two rotors of different blade angle and cone angle were selected and manufactured. These rotors were tested using the Queen's University Belfast (QUB) low-temperature turbine test rig, which allowed for accurate and wide-range mapping of the turbine performance to low values of the velocity ratio. The performance results from these additional rotors were used to further validate the numerical findings. The numerical model was used to understand the underlying physical reasons for the measured performance differences through detailed consideration of the flow field at the rotor inlet and to document how the loss mechanisms and secondary flow structures developed with varying rotor inlet geometry. It was observed that large inlet blade cone angles resulted in strong separation and flow blockage near the hub at off-design conditions, which greatly reduced efficiency. However, the significant rotor inertia benefits achieved with the large blade cone angles were shown to compensate for the efficiency penalties and could be expected to deliver improved transient performance in downsized automotive engine applications.

Author(s):  
Thomas Leonard ◽  
Stephen Spence ◽  
Dietmar Filsinger ◽  
Andre Starke

Mixed flow turbines offer potential benefits for turbocharged engines when considering off-design performance and engine transient behaviour. Although the performance and use of mixed flow turbines is described in the literature, little is published on the combined impact of the cone angle and the inlet blade angle, which are the defining features of such turbines. Numerical simulations were completed using a CFD model that was validated against experimental measurements for a baseline geometry. The mechanical impact of the design changes was also analysed. Based on the results of the numerical study, two rotors of different blade angle and cone angle were selected and manufactured. These rotors were tested using the QUB low temperature turbine test rig, which allowed for accurate and wide range mapping of the turbine performance to low values of velocity ratio. The performance results from these additional rotors were used to further validate the numerical findings. The numerical model was used to understand the underlying physical reasons for the measured performance differences through detailed consideration of the flow field at rotor inlet, and to document how the loss mechanisms and secondary flow structures developed with varying rotor inlet geometry. It was observed that large inlet blade cone angles resulted in strong separation and flow blockage near the hub at off-design conditions, which greatly reduced efficiency. However, the significant rotor inertia benefits achieved with the large blade cone angles were shown to compensate for the efficiency penalties and could be expected to deliver improved transient performance in downsized automotive engine applications.


Author(s):  
Thomas M. Leonard ◽  
Stephen Spence ◽  
Juliana Early ◽  
Dietmar Filsinger

Mixed flow turbines can offer improvements over typical radial turbines used in automotive turbochargers, with regards to transient performance and low velocity ratio efficiency. Turbine rotor mass dominates the rotating inertia of the turbocharger, and any reductions of mass in the outer radii of the wheel, including the rotor back-disk, can significantly reduce this inertia and improve the acceleration of the assembly. Off-design, low velocity ratio conditions are typified by highly tangential flow at the rotor inlet and a non-zero inlet blade angle is preferred for such operating conditions. This is achievable in a Mixed Flow Turbine without increasing bending stresses within the rotor blade, which is beneficial in high speed and high inlet temperature turbine design. A range of mixed flow turbine rotors was designed with varying cone angle and inlet blade angle and each was assessed at a number of operating points. These rotors were based on an existing radial flow turbine, and both the hub and shroud contours and exducer geometry were maintained. The inertia of each rotor was also considered. The results indicated that there was a trade-off between efficiency and inertia for the rotors and certain designs may be beneficial for the transient performance of downsized, turbocharged engines.


2017 ◽  
Vol 824 ◽  
pp. 866-885 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ali Mazloomi Moqaddam ◽  
Shyam S. Chikatamarla ◽  
Iliya V. Karlin

Recent experiments with droplets impacting macro-textured superhydrophobic surfaces revealed new regimes of bouncing with a remarkable reduction of the contact time. Here we present a comprehensive numerical study that reveals the physics behind these new bouncing regimes and quantifies the roles played by various external and internal forces. For the first time, accurate three-dimensional simulations involving realistic macro-textured surfaces are performed. After demonstrating that simulations reproduce experiments in a quantitative manner, the study is focused on analysing the flow situations beyond current experiments. We show that the experimentally observed reduction of contact time extends to higher Weber numbers, and analyse the role played by the texture density. Moreover, we report a nonlinear behaviour of the contact time with the increase of the Weber number for imperfectly coated textures, and study the impact on tilted surfaces in a wide range of Weber numbers. Finally, we present novel energy analysis techniques that elaborate and quantify the interplay between the kinetic and surface energy, and the role played by the dissipation for various Weber numbers.


2019 ◽  
Vol 141 (6) ◽  
Author(s):  
Wenke Li ◽  
Nicholas E. Wierschem ◽  
Xinhui Li ◽  
Tiejun Yang ◽  
Michael J. Brennan

Abstract In this paper, the single-sided vibro-impact track nonlinear energy sink (SSVI track NES) is studied. The SSVI track NES, which is attached to a primary structure, has nonlinear behavior caused by the NES mass moving on a fixed track and impacting on the primary structure at an impact surface. Unlike previous studies of the SSVI track NES, both the horizontal and vertical dynamics of the primary structure are considered. A numerical study is carried out to investigate the way in which energy is dissipated in this system. Assuming a track shape with a quartic polynomial, an optimization procedure that considers the total energy dissipated during a time period is carried out, to determine the optimum NES mass and track parameter. It is found that there is dynamic coupling between the horizontal and vertical directions caused by the SSVI track NES motion. The vibrational energy, originally in the structure in the horizontal direction, is transferred to the vertical motion of the structure where it is dissipated. Considering that many civil and mechanical systems are particularly vulnerable to extreme loads in the horizontal direction, this energy transformation can be beneficial to prevent or limit damage to the structure. The effect on energy dissipation of the position of the impact surface in the SSVI track NES and the ratio of the vertical to horizontal stiffness in the primary structure are discussed. Numerical results demonstrate a robust and stable performance of the SSVI track NES over a wide range of stiffness ratios.


2020 ◽  
Vol 142 (12) ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas Leonard ◽  
Stephen Spence ◽  
Dietmar Filsinger ◽  
Andre Starke

Abstract Mixed flow turbines offer additional design freedom compared with conventional radial turbines. This is useful in the automotive turbocharger application to reduce rotor inertia, which can be very beneficial for the transient response of a highly boosted downsized passenger car powertrain. A previously published study from the authors analyzed a series of nine mixed flow turbine rotors with varying blade cone angle and inlet blade angle. This paper reports an extension of that study with two further mixed flow turbine rotors where the chord length of the rotor blade was extended. The aim of this work was to understand both the aerodynamic and mechanical impacts of varying the chord length, particularly for the turbocharger application where off-design performance and transient response are very important. The baseline mixed flow rotor for this study had a blade cone angle of 30 deg and an inlet blade angle of 30 deg. Two further variations were produced; one with the trailing edge (TE) extended in the downstream direction across the entire blade span. In the second variation, the chord was extended at the hub corner only, while the shroud corner of the TE remained unchanged, with the aim of achieving some aerodynamic improvement while meeting mechanical requirements. When the blade was extended at both the hub and shroud, the inertia and stress levels increased significantly and the blade eigenfrequencies reduced. There was a significant improvement in peak efficiency, but the mechanical performance was unfavourable. The improvement in peak efficiency was mainly due to better exhaust diffuser performance and, therefore, would not be realized in most turbocharger installations. The blade that was extended at only the hub corner incurred very little additional inertia, and the centrifugal stresses and blade eigenfrequencies were improved. Consequently, it was possible to reduce the blade thickness at the TE in order to achieve a more aerodynamically optimized design. In this case, the mechanical performance was acceptable and there were efficiency improvements of up to 1.1% points at off-design conditions, with no reduction in peak efficiency or maximum mass flowrate. Therefore, the blade that was extended only at the hub produced some improvement within acceptable mechanical limits. The flow field features were considered for the three rotor geometries to explain the changes in loss and efficiency across the operating range.


Author(s):  
A. Rasteh ◽  
A. Farokhipour ◽  
M. A. Rasoulian ◽  
Z. Mansoori ◽  
M. Saffar-Avval ◽  
...  

Abstract Fracking (fracturing) is of great importance for enhancing oil and gas production from low permeability reservoirs. Since in fracking fluid, suspension of sand particles are used, the erosion failure of fracturing equipment has become an increasing concern. Accordingly, investigation of erosion of commonly used fittings such as ball seats in order to decrease its adverse consequences has attracted considerable attentions. Although the erosion wear of gas-solid flows in the pipe sudden expansion was investigated in the literature, the effect of particle size, ball seat shape and the contraction configurations on the erosion-induced wear is not fully understood. This study is aimed to explore the most erosion-resistant configuration of a ball seat under various operational conditions. A CFD model is used and a wide range of geometries are investigated. The studied configurations are categorized in three main groups including single cone, double cone and curved cone. In each category, different cone angles and curve styles are considered. The results showed that, among the single cone ball seats, the cone angle of 15° is the most erosion-resistant configuration. It was also shown that the third-order curve style cone has the best erosion performance.


Author(s):  
M. Farzad ◽  
J. Yagoobi

Abstract Slot jet reattachment (SJR) nozzle is developed in an attempt to enhance heat and mass transfer characteristics while effectively controlling the impingement surface force exerted by the jet flow. In the SJR nozzle, the jet is directed outward from the nozzle exit and it then reattaches on an adjacent surface in its vicinity. The turbulent mixing occurs at the boundaries of the free stream induces secondary flow by mass entrainment and causes the flow to reattach the surface in the form of an oval reattachment at close nozzle to surface spacing [1]. All the previous studies had considered a stationary reattachment surface. This paper, for the first time, investigates the impact of reattachment surface movement on the flow structure of SJR nozzle with three different exit angles of +45°, +20°, and +10°. Specifically, this numerical study is carried out by varying the surface-to-jet velocity ratio (u* = up/ue) from 0 to 1.5 and comparing of flow reattachment flow fields to those of a regular slot jet (SJ) nozzle, where up is the speed of reattachment surface (moving plate) and ue is the jet exit velocity. In this study, jet exit temperature is kept constant at the room temperature of 20°C and all comparisons were performed at the same Reynolds number of 7,900. Additionally, the effect of SJR air exit angle on the peak surface pressure is investigated.


Author(s):  
Sebastian Andres ◽  
Paul Steinmann ◽  
Silvia Budday

Geometric instabilities in bilayered structures control the surface morphology in a wide range of biological and technical systems. Depending on the application, different mechanisms induce compressive stresses in the bilayer. However, the impact of the chosen origin of compression on the critical conditions, post-buckling evolution and higher-order pattern selection remains insufficiently understood. Here, we conduct a numerical study on a finite-element set-up and systematically vary well-known factors contributing to pattern selection under the four main origins of compression: film growth, substrate shrinkage and whole-domain compression with and without pre-stretch. We find that the origin of compression determines the substrate stretch state at the primary instability point and thus significantly affects the critical buckling conditions. Similarly, it leads to different post-buckling evolutions and secondary instability patterns when the load further increases. Our results emphasize that future phase diagrams of geometric instabilities should incorporate not only the film thickness but also the origin of compression. Thoroughly understanding the influence of the origin of compression on geometric instabilities is crucial to solving real-life problems such as the engineering of smart surfaces or the diagnosis of neuronal disorders, which typically involve temporally or spatially combined origins of compression.


2016 ◽  
Vol 138 (7) ◽  
Author(s):  
Markus Häfele ◽  
Christoph Traxinger ◽  
Marius Grübel ◽  
Markus Schatz ◽  
Damian M. Vogt ◽  
...  

An experimental and numerical study on the flow in a three-stage low-pressure (LP) industrial steam turbine is presented and analyzed. The investigated LP section features conical friction bolts in the last and a lacing wire in the penultimate rotor blade row. These part-span connectors (PSC) allow safe turbine operation over an extremely wide range and even in blade resonance condition. However, additional losses are generated which affect the performance of the turbine. In order to capture the impact of PSCs on the flow field, extensive measurements with pneumatic multihole probes in an industrial steam turbine test rig have been carried out. State-of-the-art three-dimensional computational fluid dynamics (CFD) applying a nonequilibrium steam (NES) model is used to examine the aerothermodynamic effects of PSCs on the wet steam flow. The vortex system in coupled LP steam turbine rotor blading is discussed in this paper. In order to validate the CFD model, a detailed comparison between measurement data and steady-state CFD results is performed for several operating conditions. The investigation shows that the applied one-passage CFD model is able to capture the three-dimensional flow field in LP steam turbine blading with PSC and the total pressure reduction due to the PSC with a generally good agreement to measured values and is therefore sufficient for engineering practice.


Author(s):  
Joel Mortimer ◽  
Stephen Yoannidis ◽  
Farzad Poursadegh ◽  
Zhewen Lu ◽  
Michael Brear ◽  
...  

Abstract This paper presents an experimental and numerical study of a directly injected, spark-ignited (DI SI), heavy duty hydrogen fueled engine at knock-limited conditions. The impact of air-fuel ratio and ignition timing on engine performance is first investigated experimentally. Two-zone combustion modeling of the hydrogen fueled cylinder is then used to infer burn profiles and unburned, end-gas conditions using the measured in-cylinder pressure traces. Simulation of the autoignition chemistry in this end-gas is then undertaken to identify key parameters that are likely to impact knock-limited behavior. The experiments demonstrate knock-limited performance on this high compression ratio engine over a wide range of air-fuel ratios, λ. Other trends with λ are qualitatively similar to those shown in previous studies of hydrogen fueled engines. Kinetic simulations then suggest that some plausible combination of residual nitric oxide from previous cycles and locally high charge temperatures at intake valve closing can lead to autoignition at the knock-limited conditions identified in the experiments. This prompts a parametric study that shows how increased λ makes hydrogen less likely to autoignite, and suggests options for the design of high efficiency, directly injected, hydrogen fueled engines.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document