Effect of Tip Clearance on Rotating Stall in A Mixed-Flow Pump

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-39
Author(s):  
Wei Li ◽  
Leilei Ji ◽  
Enda Li ◽  
Ling Zhou ◽  
Ramesh Agarwal
Keyword(s):  
Flow Separation ◽  
Internal Flow ◽  
Energy Performance ◽  
Rotating Stall ◽  
Tip Clearance ◽  
Leakage Flow ◽  
Pump Efficiency ◽  
Mixed Flow ◽  
Performance Curves ◽  
Flow Pump

Abstract The non-uniform disturbance in circumferential direction is main cause for occurrence of rotating stall in turbomachinery. In order to study the effect of tip clearance leakage flow on rotating stall, mixed-flow pump models with different tip clearances are simulated and energy performance curves and internal flow structures are obtained and compared. The results show that the computed pump efficiency and the internal flow field of the pump are in good agreement with experimental results. A saddle region appears in energy performance curves of three tip clearances and with decrease in tip clearance, the head and efficiency of mixed-flow pump increase and critical stall point shifts and stable operating range of mixed-flow pump decreases, which indicates that mixed-flow pump stalls easily for smaller tip clearance. Under deep stall condition, influence of leakage flow in end wall area increases gradually with decrease in clearance. For small clearance, the leakage flow moves away from suction surface to some distance to form number of leakage vortex strips with mainstream flow and flows over the leading edge of next blade and then flows downstream into different flow passages generating back flow and secondary flow separation at the blade inlet, which seriously damages the spatial structure of inlet flow. This results in earlier occurrence of stall. With increase in clearance, the leakage vortex develops along radial direction towards middle of flow channel and large flow separation occurs in downstream channel which induces deep stall.

Effect of Tip Clearance on Rotating Stall in a Mixed-Flow Pump

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wei Li ◽  
Ramesh K. Agarwal ◽  
Ling Zhou ◽  
Enda Li ◽  
Leilei Ji
Keyword(s):  
Flow Separation ◽  
Internal Flow ◽  
Energy Performance ◽  
Rotating Stall ◽  
Tip Clearance ◽  
Leakage Flow ◽  
Pump Efficiency ◽  
Mixed Flow ◽  
Performance Curves ◽  
Flow Pump

Abstract The non-uniform disturbance in the circumferential direction is the main cause for the occurrence of rotating stall in turbomachinery. In order to study the effect of tip clearance leakage flow on rotating stall, the mixed-flow pump models with different tip clearances are numerically simulated, and then the energy performance curves and internal flow structures are obtained and compared. The results show that the computed pump efficiency and the internal flow field of the pump from numerical simulation are in good agreement with the experimental results. A saddle region appears in the energy performance curves of the three tip clearances, and with decrease in tip clearance, the head and efficiency of the mixed-flow pump increase and the critical stall point shifts, and the stable operating range of the mixed-flow pump decreases, which indicates that the mixed-flow pump stalls easily for smaller tip clearance. Under the deep stall condition, the influence of the leakage flow in the end wall area increases gradually with decrease in clearance. For small clearance, the leakage flow moves away from the suction surface to some distance to form a number of leakage vortex strips with the mainstream flow and flows over the leading edge of the next blade and then flows downstream into different flow passages, generating backflow and secondary flow separation at the blade inlet, which seriously damages the spatial structure of the inlet flow. This results in the earlier occurrence of stall. With increase in clearance, the leakage vortex develops along the radial direction towards the middle of the flow channel and large flow separation occurs in the downstream channel, which induces deep stall. For 0.8mm clearance, the whole impeller outlet passage is almost blocked by the backflow of the guide vane inlet, and a deep stall is induced.

Influence of tip leakage flow and inlet distortion flow on a mixed-flow pump with different tip clearances within the stall condition

2019 ◽  
Vol 234 (4) ◽  
pp. 433-453 ◽  
Author(s):  
Leilei Ji ◽  
Wei Li ◽  
Weidong Shi
Keyword(s):  
Internal Flow ◽  
Energy Performance ◽  
Rotating Stall ◽  
Design Flow ◽  
Tip Clearance ◽  
Leakage Flow ◽  
Tip Leakage Flow ◽  
Mixed Flow ◽  
Tip Leakage ◽  
Flow Pump

In order to investigate the effect of impeller tip clearance on internal flow fields and the rotating stall inception impacted by tip leakage vortex and inlet unsteady flow in a mixed-flow pump, mixed-flow pump models with tip clearances of 0.5 mm, 0.8 mm, and 1.1 mm were numerically calculated, and then the energy performance curves and internal flow structures were obtained and compared. The results show that the pump efficiency and the internal flow fields of numerical calculation are in good agreement with experimental results at design flow rate and near-stall condition. A portion of the positive slope segment appears in the energy performance curves under different tip clearances. The lowest head of the mixed-flow pump in the positive slope region decreases with the increase of the tip clearance while the highest head shows an opposite situation indicating that mixed-flow pumps are easier to stall under small tip clearance. At the design flow rate condition, the tip leakage vortex is relatively stable under different tip clearances and appears as a “snail shell” shape, whereas in rotating stall conditions, the “snail shell” shape disappear and the tip leakage flow on blade front forms a “flat” vortex structure. The inlet swirl flow not only affects the tip leakage flow in rotating stall conditions under different tip clearances, but also blocks the fluid from the inlet pipe. Under the circumstance of the same tip clearance, the main frequency amplitude of pressure pulsation coefficient gradually shifts away from blade passing frequency (96.67 Hz) to the axial frequency (24.17 Hz) when the pump operates in the stall condition.

Investigation of Internal Flow and Characteristic Instability of a Mixed Flow Pump

2009 ◽  
Author(s):  
Masahiro Miyabe ◽  
Akinori Furukawa ◽  
Hideaki Maeda ◽  
Isamu Umeki
Keyword(s):  
Flow Rate ◽  
Internal Flow ◽  
Rotating Stall ◽  
Leakage Flow ◽  
Suction Surface ◽  
Mixed Flow ◽  
Vaned Diffuser ◽  
Flow Angle ◽  
Pressure Surface ◽  
Flow Pump

The relationship between pump characteristic instabilities and internal flow was investigated in a mixed flow pump with specific speed of 700 (min−1 m3/min, m) or 1.72 (non-dimensional) by using a commercial CFD code and a dynamic PIV (DPIV) measurement. This pump has two positive slopes of a head-flow characteristic at the flow rates of about 60%Qopt and 82%Qopt. In the authors’ previous study, it was clarified that the characteristic instability at 82%Qopt is caused by the diffuser rotating stall (DRS) and the backflow near the hub of the vaned diffuser plays an important role on the onset of the diffuser rotating stall. In the present paper, the investigation is focused on the instability at about 60% Qopt. Based on both of experimental and numerical results, it was clarified that the characteristic instability at 60%Qopt is caused by the backflow at the inlet of the impeller tip and the leakage flow from the impeller pressure surface to the suction surface plays an important role on the onset of the backflow. The behaviors of backflow at the impeller inlet were visualized by the DPIV measurements and CFD simulation. Moreover, internal flow was investigated in detail and the occurrence of characteristic instability is assumed as follows: At the partial flow rate, the flow angle at the inlet of the impeller tip decreases and the flow hits the impeller pressure surface. Then, the blade loading at the inlet of impeller tip is increased and the recirculation at the leading edge and the leakage flow rate from pressure surface to suction surface increases. The leakage flow causes to generate vortices at the inlet of the suction surface of the impeller. As the flow rate is further decreased, the vortices develop to backflow with swirl. The leakage flow has peripheral component of absolute velocity and the swirling energy is continuously supplied by the backflow. Therefore, even the passage flow at the inlet of the impeller has been getting pre-swirling. The theoretical head, the Euler head is decreased due to the pre-swirling. Moreover, based on the CFD results, the pre-swirling and unsteady vortices near the suction surface of the impeller causes pump characteristic instability. When the flow rate is decreased further more, total head rises because the flow pattern in the impeller changes to centrifugal type due to the backflow from the vaned diffuser at the hub region.

Transient characteristics of internal flow fields of mixed-flow pump with different tip clearances under stall condition

2020 ◽  
pp. 095765092096225
Author(s):  
Leilei Ji ◽  
Wei Li ◽  
Weidong Shi ◽  
Ramesh Agarwal
Keyword(s):  
Swirling Flow ◽  
Internal Flow ◽  
Flow Fields ◽  
Design Flow ◽  
Tip Clearance ◽  
Tip Leakage Flow ◽  
Mixed Flow ◽  
Transient Characteristics ◽  
Initial Starting ◽  
Flow Pump

This paper investigates the influence of different tip clearances on the transient characteristics of mixed-flow pump under stall condition. The instantaneous internal flow fields of mixed-flow pump with four tip clearances (0.2 mm, 0.5 mm, 0.8 mm and 1.1 mm) are explored by conducting unsteady time accurate simulations. Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) equations are employed in the simulations and the results of computations are compared with experimental data. The results show that the pump head decreases by 22.1% and the pump efficiency drops by 13.9% at design flow condition when the impeller tip clearance increases from 0.2 mm to 1.1 mm. The swirling flow occurs in the inlet pipe of the mixed-flow pump with different tip clearances under stall condition, and the initial starting point of the swirling flow gets further away from the impeller inlet with increase in tip clearance because of increase in circumferential velocity and change in momentum of the tip leakage flow (TLF). The high turbulent eddy dissipation (TED) regions in the flow are attributed to the TLF, swirling flow, back flow and stall vortex, and their intensity are affected by the change in tip clearance. The oscillating trend of time domain distribution of TED enhances first and then decreases with increase in tip clearance and it exhibits a propagation feature under the effect of stall vortex, while most of the energy in the frequency domain remains concentrated in the low frequency part under stall condition.

Performance of a Mixed Flow Pump with Varying Tip Clearance: Part 2

1996 ◽  
Vol 210 (4) ◽  
pp. 319-327 ◽  
Author(s):  
S Soundranayagam ◽  
T K Saha
Keyword(s):  
Close Agreement ◽  
Tip Clearance ◽  
Pump Efficiency ◽  
Centrifugal Pumps ◽  
Mixed Flow ◽  
Loss Distribution ◽  
Specific Speed ◽  
Flow Pump ◽  
Relative Flow

Measurements in a mixed flow pump of non-dimensional specific speed k = 1.89 [ NS = 100 r/min (metric)] are analysed to give loss distribution and local hydraulic efficiencies at different flowrates and values of tip clearance. Fairly close agreement is obtained between the relative flow angles leaving the blading as predicted by simple deviation and slip models and derived from the measurements. The head developed is broken up into two parts: that contributed by Coriolis action and that associated with blade circulation. It is suggested that lift coefficients based on blade circulation are of limited value in selecting blade profiles. The variation of pump efficiency with tip clearance is greater than that reported for centrifugal pumps.

scholarly journals Dynamic Characteristics of Rotating Stall in Mixed Flow Pump

2013 ◽  
Vol 2013 ◽  
pp. 1-12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiaojun Li ◽  
Shouqi Yuan ◽  
Zhongyong Pan ◽  
Yi Li ◽  
Wei Liu
Keyword(s):  
Pressure Gradient ◽  
Adverse Pressure Gradient ◽  
Rotating Stall ◽  
Tip Clearance ◽  
Propagation Mechanism ◽  
Positive Slope ◽  
Mixed Flow ◽  
Outlet Flow ◽  
Research Gap ◽  
Flow Pump

Rotating stall, a phenomenon that causes flow instabilities and pressure hysteresis by propagating at some fraction of the impeller rotational speed, can occur in centrifugal impellers, mixed impellers, radial diffusers, or axial diffusers. Despite considerable efforts devoted to the study of rotating stall in pumps, the mechanics of this phenomenon are not sufficiently understood. The propagation mechanism and onset of rotating stall are not only affected by inlet flow but also by outlet flow as well as the pressure gradient in the flow passage. As such, the complexity of these concepts is not covered by the classical explanation. To bridge this research gap, the current study investigated prerotation generated at the upstream of the impeller, leakage flow at the tip clearance between the casing and the impeller, and strong reserve flow at the inlet of the diffuser. Understanding these areas will clarify the origin of the positive slope of the head-flow performance curve for a mixed flow pump. Nonuniform pressure distribution and adverse pressure gradient were also introduced to evaluate the onset and development of rotating stall within the diffuser.

Influence of Spanwise Distribution of Impeller Exit Circulation on Optimization Results of Mixed Flow Pump

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 507
Author(s):  
Mengcheng Wang ◽  
Yanjun Li ◽  
Jianping Yuan ◽  
Fareed Konadu Osman
Keyword(s):  
Design Method ◽  
Internal Flow ◽  
Inverse Design ◽  
Pump Efficiency ◽  
Mixed Flow ◽  
Baseline Model ◽  
Pump Impeller ◽  
First Case ◽  
Inverse Design Method ◽  
Flow Pump

The spanwise distribution of impeller exit circulation (SDIEC) has an important influence on the performance of the impeller. To quantitatively study the influence of SDIEC on optimization results, a comprehensive optimization system composed of the computational fluid dynamics, inverse design method, design of experiment, surrogate model, and optimization algorithm was used to optimize a mixed flow pump impeller in two different cases. In the first case, the influence of SDIEC was ignored, while in the second case, the influence of SDIEC was considered. The result shows that the optimization upper limit can be further improved when the influence of SDIEC is considered in the optimization process. The pump efficiency of the preferred optimized impeller F1 obtained in the first case at 1.2Qdes, 1.0Qdes, and 0.8Qdes are increased by 6.48%, 2.41%, and 0.06%, respectively, over the baseline model. Moreover, the pump efficiency of the preferred optimized impeller S2 obtained in the second case further increased by 0.76%, 1.24%, and 1.21%, respectively, over impeller F1. Furthermore, the influence of SDIEC on the performance of the mixed flow pump is clarified by a comparative analysis of the internal flow field.

scholarly journals Energy Performance and Flow Patterns of a Mixed-Flow Pump with Different Tip Clearance Sizes

Energies ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 191 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yabin Liu ◽  
Lei Tan ◽  
Yue Hao ◽  
Yun Xu
Keyword(s):  
Energy Performance ◽  
Flow Patterns ◽  
Tip Clearance ◽  
Mixed Flow ◽  
Flow Pump

scholarly journals Prediction of 3-D Viscous Flow of Centrifugal Impeller With Tip-Clearance: Part 2 — Mixed-Flow Water Pump

1997 ◽  
Author(s):  
E. Y. K. Ng
Keyword(s):  
Static Pressure ◽  
Internal Flow ◽  
Tip Clearance ◽  
Fine Tuning ◽  
Navier Stokes ◽  
Centrifugal Impeller ◽  
Mixed Flow ◽  
Static Pressure Distribution ◽  
Time Marching ◽  
Flow Pump

This paper describes an extension of 3D time-marching compressible Navier-Stokes solver (Part 1) for an incompressible application through the pseudo-compressibility technique suggested by Chorin. Effect of tip clearances on the mixed-flow pump is investigated. Static pressure distribution and intricate internal flow pattern is reasonably well predicted. Fine-tuning of the pseudo-compressibility parameter and grid size is required for improve convergence and stability.

Rotating Stall Behavior in a Diffuser of Mixed Flow Pump and Its Suppression

2008 ◽  
Author(s):  
Masahiro Miyabe ◽  
Akinori Furukawa ◽  
Hideaki Maeda ◽  
Isamu Umeki
Keyword(s):  
Flow Rate ◽  
Internal Flow ◽  
Rotating Stall ◽  
Low Energy ◽  
Suction Surface ◽  
Mixed Flow ◽  
Vaned Diffuser ◽  
Flow Angle ◽  
Pump Design ◽  
Flow Pump

The relationship between pump characteristic instability and internal flow was investigated on a mixed flow pump with specific speed ωs = 1.72 (dimensionless) or 700 (m3/min, m, min−1) by using a commercial CFD code and a dynamic PIV (DPIV) measurement. As a result, it was clarified that the diffuser rotating stalls causes the positive slope of a head-flow characteristic and the backflow at hub-side of the vaned diffuser plays an important role on the onset of the diffuser rotating stall. The complex behaviors of diffuser rotating stall were visualized by the DPIV measurements and CFD simulation. Moreover, the internal flow was investigated in detail and the inception of characteristic instability was presumed as follows: At the partial flow rate, low energy fluids are accumulated in the corner between the hub surface and the suction surface of the diffuser vane. As the flow rate is further decreased, the low energy fluids region at the corner axi-symmetrically expands along the hub and become unstable due to adverse pressure gradient. Then, strong backflow occurs and impinges against passage flow from the impeller at the inlet of the vaned diffuser. In addition, the backflow blocks the passage flow from impeller and the inlet flow angle at the leading edge of adjacent diffuser vane is reduced. Therefore, flow separation occurs near the inlet of suction surface of the vaned diffuser, and a strong vortex is generated there. After that, the vortex develops and becomes a stall core. Based on above considerations, pump design parameter studies were numerically carried out and diffuser rotating stall was suppressed and pump characteristic instability was controlled by enlarging the inlet diameter of diffuser hub.

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