Physics-Based Part Orientation and Sentencing: A Solution to Manufacturing Variability

2020 ◽  
Vol 142 (10) ◽  
Author(s):  
Wen Yao Lee ◽  
William N. Dawes ◽  
John D. Coull

Abstract Casting deviations introduce geometric variability that impacts the aerodynamic performance of turbomachinery. These effects are studied for a high-pressure turbine rotor blade from a modern aero-engine. A sample of 197 blades were measured using structured-light three-dimensional scanning, and the performance of each blade is quantified using Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes (RANS) simulations. Casting variation is typically managed by applying geometric tolerances to determine the suitability of a component for service. The analysis demonstrates that this approach may not be optimal since it does not necessarily align with performance, in particular the capacity and efficiency. Alternatively, functional acceptance based on the predicted performance of each blade removes the uncertainty associated with geometric tolerancing and gives better performance control. Building on these findings, the paper proposes a method to set the orientation of the fir-tree, which is machined after casting. By customizing the alignment of each blade, performance variability and scrap rates can be significantly reduced. The method uses predictions of performance to reorient the castings to compensate for manufacturing-induced errors, without changing the design-intent blade geometry and with minimal changes to the manufacturing facility.

Author(s):  
Wen Yao Lee ◽  
William N. Dawes ◽  
John D. Coull

Abstract Casting deviations introduce geometric variability that impacts the aerodynamic performance of turbomachinery. These effects are studied for a High Pressure Turbine (HPT) rotor blade from a modern aero-engine. 197 blades were measured using three-dimensional structured-light scanning (GOM scanning), and the performance of each blade is quantified using Reynolds-Averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) simulations. Casting variation is typically managed by applying geometric tolerances to determine the suitability of a component for service. The analysis demonstrates that this approach may not be optimal since it does not necessarily align with performance, in particular the capacity and efficiency. Alternatively, functional acceptance based on the predicted performance of each blade removes the uncertainty associated with geometric tolerancing and gives better performance control. Building on these findings, the paper proposes a method to set the orientation of the fir-tree, which is machined after casting. By customizing the alignment of each blade, performance variability and scrap rates can be significantly reduced. The method uses predictions of performance to reorient the castings to compensate for the manufacturing-induced errors, without changing the design-intent blade geometry and with minimal changes to the manufacturing facility.


Author(s):  
R. Heider ◽  
J. M. Duboue ◽  
B. Petot ◽  
G. Billonnet ◽  
V. Couaillier ◽  
...  

A 3D Navier-Stokes investigation of a high pressure turbine rotor blade including tip clearance effects is presented. The 3D Navier-Stokes code developed at ONERA solves the three-dimensional unsteady set of mass-averaged Navier-Stokes equations by the finite volume technique. A one step Lax-Wendroff type scheme is used in a rotating frame of reference. An implicit residual smoothing technique has been implemented, which accelerates the convergence towards the steady state. A mixing length model adapted to 3D configurations is used. The turbine rotor flow is calculated at transonic operating conditions. The tip clearance effect is taken into account. The gap region is discretized using more than 55,000 points within a multi-domain approach. The solution accounts for the relative motion of the blade and casing surfaces. The total mesh is composed of five sub-domains and counts 710,000 discretization points. The effect of the tip clearance on the main flow is demonstrated. The calculation results are compared to a 3D inviscid calculation, without tip clearance.


1999 ◽  
Vol 122 (2) ◽  
pp. 278-285 ◽  
Author(s):  
Neil W. Harvey ◽  
Martin G. Rose ◽  
Mark D. Taylor ◽  
Shahrokh Shahpar ◽  
Jonathan Hartland ◽  
...  

A linear design system, already in use for the forward and inverse design of three-dimensional turbine aerofoils, has been extended for the design of their end walls. This paper shows how this method has been applied to the design of a nonaxisymmetric end wall for a turbine rotor blade in linear cascade. The calculations show that nonaxisymmetric end wall profiling is a powerful tool for reducing secondary flows, in particular the secondary kinetic energy and exit angle deviations. Simple end wall profiling is shown to be at least as beneficial aerodynamically as the now standard techniques of differentially skewing aerofoil sections up the span, and (compound) leaning of the aerofoil. A design is presented that combines a number of end wall features aimed at reducing secondary loss and flow deviation. The experimental study of this geometry, aimed at validating the design method, is the subject of the second part of this paper. The effects of end wall perturbations on the flow field are calculated using a three-dimensional pressure correction based Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes CFD code. These calculations are normally performed overnight on a cluster of work stations. The design system then calculates the relationships between perturbations in the end wall and resulting changes in the flow field. With these available, linear superposition theory is used to enable the designer to investigate quickly the effect on the flow field of many combinations of end wall shapes (a matter of minutes for each shape). [S0889-504X(00)00902-8]


1996 ◽  
Vol 118 (2) ◽  
pp. 307-313 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. A. Ameri ◽  
A. Arnone

The effect of transition modeling on the heat transfer predictions from rotating turbine blades was investigated. Three-dimensional computations using a Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes code were performed. The code utilized the Baldwin–Lomax algebraic turbulence model, which was supplemented with a simple algebraic model for transition. The heat transfer results obtained on the blade surface and the hub endwall were compared with experimental data for two Reynolds numbers and their corresponding rotational speeds. The prediction of heat transfer on the blade surfaces was found to improve with the inclusion of the transition length model and wake-induced transition effects over the simple abrupt transition model.


Author(s):  
Ali A. Ameri ◽  
Andrea Arnone

The effect of transition modeling on the heat transfer predictions from rotating turbine blades was investigated. Three-dimensional computations using a Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes code were performed. The code utilized the Baldwin-Lomax algebraic turbulence model which was supplemented with a simple algebraic model for transition. The heat transfer results obtained on the blade surface and the hub end wall were compared with experimental data for two Reynolds numbers and their corresponding rotational speeds. The prediction of heat transfer on the blade surfaces was found to improve with the inclusion of the transition length model and wake induced transition effects over the simple abrupt transition model.


Author(s):  
Neil W. Harvey ◽  
Martin G. Rose ◽  
Mark D. Taylor ◽  
Shahrokh Shahpar ◽  
Jonathan Hartland ◽  
...  

A linear design system, already in use for the forward and inverse design of three-dimensional turbine aerofoils, has been extended for the design of their end walls. This paper shows how this method has been applied to the design of a non-axisymmetric end wall for a turbine rotor blade in linear cascade. The calculations show that non-axisymmetric end wall profiling is a powerful tool for reducing secondary flows, in particular the secondary kinetic energy and exit angle deviations. Simple end wall profiling is shown to be at least as beneficial aerodynamically as the now standard techniques of differentially skewing aerofoil sections up the span, and (compound) leaning of the aerofoil. A design is presented which combines a number of end wall features aimed at reducing secondary loss and flow deviation. The experimental study of this geometry, aimed at validating the design method, is the subject of the second part of this paper. The effects of end wall perturbations on the flow field are calculated using a 3-D pressure correction based Reynolds Averaged Navier-Stokes CFD code. These calculations are normally performed overnight on a cluster of work stations. The design system then calculates the relationships between perturbations in the end wall and resulting changes in the flow field. With these available, linear superposition theory is used to enable the designer to investigate quickly the effect on the flow field of many combinations of end wall shapes (a matter of minutes for each shape).


Author(s):  
I. Sladojevic´ ◽  
E. P. Petrov ◽  
M. Imregun ◽  
A. I. Sayma

The paper presents the results of a study looking into changes in the forced response levels of bladed disc assemblies subject to both structural and aerodynamic mistuning. A whole annulus FE model, representative of a civil aero-engine fan with 26 blades was used in the calculations. The forced response of all blades of 1000 random mistuned patterns was calculated. The aerodynamic parameters, frequency shifts and damping, were calculated using a three-dimensional Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes aero-elasticity code. They were randomly varied for each mistuning pattern, with the assumption that the system would remain stable, i.e. flutter would not occur due to aerodynamic mistuning. The results show the variation of the forced response with different types of mistuning, with structural mistuning only, with aerodynamic mistuning only and with both structural and aerodynamic mistuning.


Author(s):  
J. Luo ◽  
B. Lakshminarayana

The 3-D viscous flowfield in the rotor passage of a single-stage turbine, including the tip-leakage flow, is computed using a Navier-Stokes procedure. A grid-generation code has been developed to obtain embedded H grids inside the rotor tip gap. The blade tip geometry is accurately modeled without any “pinching”. Chien’s low-Reynolds-number k-ε model is employed for turbulence closure. Both the mean-flow and turbulence transport equations are integrated in time using a four-stage Runge-Kutta scheme. The computational results for the entire turbine rotor flow, particularly the tip-leakage flow and the secondary flows, are interpreted and compared with available data. The predictions for major features of the flowfield are found to be in good agreement with the data. Complicated interactions between the tip-clearance flows and the secondary flows are examined in detail. The effects of endwall rotation on the development and interaction of secondary and tip-leakage vortices are also analyzed.


Author(s):  
W. R. Briley ◽  
D. V. Roscoe ◽  
H. J. Gibeling ◽  
R. C. Buggeln ◽  
J. S. Sabnis ◽  
...  

Three-dimensional solutions of the ensemble-averaged Navier-Stokes equations have been computed for a high-turning turbine rotor passage, both with and without tip clearance effects. The geometry is Pratt & Whitney’s preliminary design for the Generic Gas Generator Turbine (GGGT), having an axial chord of 0.5 inch and turning angle of about 160 degrees. The solutions match the design Reynolds number of 3x 106/inch and design inflow/outflow distributions of flow quantities. The grid contains 627,000 points, including 20 radial points in the clearance gap of 0.015 inch, and has a minimum spacing of 10−4 inch adjacent to all surfaces. The solutions account for relative motion of the blade and shroud surfaces and include a backstep on the shroud. Computed results are presented which show the general flow behavior, especially near the tip clearance and backstep regions. The results are generally consistent with experimental observations for other geometries having thinner blades and smaller turning angles. The leakage flow includes some fluid originally in the freestream at 91 percent span. Downstream, the leakage flow behaves as a wall jet directed at 100 degrees to the main stream, with total pressure and temperature higher than the freestream. Radial distributions of circumferentially-averaged flow quantities are compared for solutions with and without tip leakage flow. Two-dimensional solutions are also presented for the mid-span blade geometry for design and off-design inflow angles.


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