scholarly journals Viscous Analysis of Steam Turbine Rotor Blade Aerodynamics

Author(s):  
R. S. Amano ◽  
B. Lin ◽  
B. Song

Unsteady load predictions on steam turbine blades are needed for a better understanding of high cycle fatigue blade failures. The forced response due to rotor-stator interaction and the unsteady loads due to blade oscillatory motion are major factors for the cause of stresses. In addition, turbulence, which is generated through the stator nozzle passages of a turbine, significantly affects the flow characteristics and heat transfer of the rotor blades. This paper presents a numerical modeling of turbulence effects of a flow around a rotor blade which was extended to demonstrate unsteady calculations due to blade oscillations. The grids were generated by employing the boundary-fitted algebraic grid generation technique. In the computations, the unsteady compressible Navier-Stokes equations were solved for the simulation of the flows in the above mentioned regions to determine mean velocity components, the turbulence energy levels, pressures, and thermodynamic properties such as temperatures and densities. The computed pressure distributions along a blade were compared with the published experimental data and the code was validated by showing reasonable agreement with the results. Some numerical examples are presented by using different turbulence models to investigate the nature of the turbulence occurring in the flow around a blade. Furthermore, the computational model was tested for its applicability to blade flutter in three vibrational modes — tangential, axial, and twist modes.

2000 ◽  
Vol 122 (3) ◽  
pp. 522-532 ◽  
Author(s):  
H. Lee ◽  
S.-H. Kang

Transition characteristics of a boundary layer on a NACA0012 airfoil are investigated by measuring unsteady velocity using hot wire anemometry. The airfoil is installed in the incoming wake generated by an airfoil aligned in tandem with zero angle of attack. Reynolds number based on the airfoil chord varies from 2.0×105 to 6.0×105; distance between two airfoils varies from 0.25 to 1.0 of the chord length. To measure skin friction coefficient identifying the transition onset and completion, an extended wall law is devised to accommodate transitional flows with pressure gradient and nonuniform inflows. Variations of the skin friction are quite similar to that of the flat plate boundary layer in the uniform turbulent inflow of high intensity. Measured velocity profiles are coincident with families generated by the modified wall law in the range up to y+=40. Turbulence intensity of the incoming wake shifts the onset location of transition upstream. The transitional region becomes longer as the airfoils approach one another and the Reynolds number increases. The mean velocity profile gradually varies from a laminar to logarithmic one during the transition. The maximum values of rms velocity fluctuations are located near y+=15-20. A strong positive skewness of velocity fluctuation is observed at the onset of transition and the overall rms level of velocity fluctuation reaches 3.0–3.5 in wall units. The database obtained will be useful in developing and evaluating turbulence models and computational schemes for transitional boundary layer. [S0098-2202(00)01603-5]


Author(s):  
C. Bréard ◽  
J. S. Green ◽  
M. Vahdati ◽  
M. Imregun

This paper presents an iterative method for determining the resonant speed shift when non-linear friction dampers are included in turbine blade roots. Such a need arises when conducting response calculations for turbine blades where the unsteady aerodynamic excitation must be computed at the exact resonant speed of interest. The inclusion of friction dampers is known to raise the resonant frequencies by up to 20% from the standard assembly frequencies. The iterative procedure uses a viscous, time-accurate flow representation for determining the aerodynamic forcing, a look-up table for evaluating the aerodynamic boundary conditions at any speed, and a time-domain friction damping module for resonance tracking. The methodology was applied to an HP turbine rotor test case where the resonances of interest were due to the 1T and 2F blade modes under 40 engine-order excitation. The forced response computations were conducted using a multi-stage approach in order to avoid errors associated with “linking” single stage computations since the spacing between the two bladerows was relatively small. Three friction damper elements were used for each rotor blade. To improve the computational efficiency, the number of rotor blades was decreased by 2 to 90 in order to obtain a stator/rotor blade ratio of 4/9. However, the blade geometry was skewed in order to match the capacity (mass flow rate) of the components and the condition being analysed. Frequency shifts of 3.2% and 20.0% were predicted for the 1T/40EO and 2F/40EO resonances in about 3 iterations. The predicted frequency shifts and the dynamic behaviour of the friction dampers were found to be within the expected range. Furthermore, the measured and predicted blade vibration amplitudes showed a good agreement, indicating that the methodology can be applied to industrial problems.


Author(s):  
Yogini Patel ◽  
Giteshkumar Patel ◽  
Teemu Turunen-Saaresti

With the tremendous role played by steam turbines in power generation cycle, it is essential to understand the flow field of condensing steam flow in a steam turbine to design an energy efficient turbine because condensation at low pressure (LP) turbine introduces extra losses, and erosion in turbine blades. The turbulence has a leading role in condensing phenomena which involve a rapid change of mass, momentum and heat transfer. The paper presents the influence of turbulence modelling on non-equilibrium condensing steam flows in a LP steam turbine stage adopting CFD code. The simulations were conducted using the Eulerian-Eulerian approach, based on Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes equations coupled with a two equation turbulence model, which is included with nucleation and droplet growth model for the liquid phase. The SST k-ω model was modified, and the modifications were implemented in the CFD code. First, the performance of the modified model is validated with nozzles and turbine cascade cases. The effect of turbulence modelling on the wet-steam properties and the loss mechanism for the 3D stator-rotor stage is discussed. The presented results show that an accurate computational prediction of condensing steam flow requires the turbulence to be modelled accurately.


2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (8) ◽  
pp. 2769 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jun Song Kim ◽  
Donghae Baek ◽  
Inhwan Park

River meanders form complex 3D flow patterns, including secondary flows and flow separation. In particular, the flow separation traps solutes and delays their transport via storage effects associated with recirculating flows. The simulation of the separated flows highly relies in the performance of turbulence models. Thus, these closure schemes can control dispersion behaviors simulated in rivers. This study performs 3D simulations to quantify the impact of the turbulence models on solute transport simulations in channels under different sinuosity conditions. The 3D Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes equations coupled with the k − ε , k − ω and SST k − ω models are adopted for flow simulations. The 3D Lagrangian particle-tracking model simulates solute transport. An increase in sinuosity causes strong transverse gradients of mean velocity, thereby driving the onset of the separated flow recirculation along the outer bank. Here, the onset and extent of the flow separation are strongly influenced by the turbulence models. The k − ε model fails to reproduce the flow separation or underestimates its size. As a result, the k − ε model yields residence times shorter than those of other models. In contrast, the SST k − ω model exhibits a strong tailing of breakthrough curves by generating more pronounced flow separation.


Author(s):  
Satoshi Miyake ◽  
Satoru Yamamoto ◽  
Yasuhiro Sasao ◽  
Kazuhiro Momma ◽  
Toshihiro Miyawaki ◽  
...  

A numerical study simulating unsteady 3-D wet-steam flows through three-stage stator-rotor blade rows in a low-pressure steam turbine model experimentally conducted by Mitsubishi Heavy Industry (MHI) was presented in the last ASME Turbo Expo by our group. In this study, the previous discussion is extended to the discussion how nonequilibrium condensation is influenced by unsteady wakes and corner vortices from prefaced multi-stage blade rows. Unsteady 3-D flows through three-stage stator-rotor blade rows are simulated assuming nonequilibrium condensation. Flows with a different inlet flow condition are calculated and the results are compared with each other. Instantaneous condensate mass fractions are visualized at different spans and cross sections in the three-stage stator and rotor blade rows. Also the time and space dependent values are plotted and the obtained unsteady flow characteristics are explained.


2001 ◽  
Vol 123 (2) ◽  
pp. 401-406 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elgin A. Anderson ◽  
Robert E. Spall

The flowfield of dual, parallel planar turbulent jets is investigated experimentally using an x-type hot-wire probe and numerically by solving the Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes equations. The performance of both differential Reynolds stress (RSM) and standard k-ε turbulence models is evaluated. Results show that the numerical models predict the merge and combined point characteristics to good accuracy. However, both turbulence models show a narrower width of the jet envelope than measured by experiment. The predicted profiles of the mean velocity along the symmetry plane agree well with the experimental results.


Author(s):  
Stefano Zucca ◽  
Muzio M. Gola ◽  
Francesco Piraccini

The prediction of the aeromechanical behavior of low-pressure blades represents one of the main challenges in the Steam Turbine Industry. The evaluation of forced response and damping is critical for the reliability of new designs and usually requires expensive validation campaigns such as Wheel Box Tests (WBT). A WBT consists of one or more blade rows assembled on a rotor and spun at the desired rotating speed in a vacuum cell, with synchronous excitation provided by various sources. The WBT provides accurate information about the blade modes frequency, the alternating response level, and allows the evaluation of the mechanical damping. Given the large effort in terms of costs and time associated to the experimental activity, the possibility to rely on the output of a numerical code either during the first steps of a new design or to investigate the effect of minor changes to a current design would be extremely beneficial to the development of future products. In order to compute the non-linear forced response of shrouded blades of steam turbines, custom numerical solvers must be developed, since commercial finite element (FE) solvers do not perform this kind of analysis in the frequency domain. In this paper, the forced response of a blade with shrouds of a low pressure steam turbine is computed and numerical results are compared with the experimental Wheel Box Tests performed at GE Oil & Gas. The calculations require a three-step procedure: in the first step, a non-linear static analysis is performed in ANSYS® in order to compute the actual contact area on the shroud surface and the distribution of static normal loads, then a reduced order model of the blade is generated in ANSYS® taking into account the stiffening effect on the blade of the pre-stress due to the centrifugal force, finally the reduced model is imported in a numerical code and the non-linear forced response of the blade is computed. The numerical code solves the balance equations of the system in the frequency domain, by means of the Harmonic Balance Method, imposing cyclic symmetry boundary conditions of the system. An interpolation procedure is implemented in order to manage the non-perfectly matching meshes of the shroud contact surfaces, while the tangential and normal contact stiffness is computed with a numerical model based on the contact mechanics principles. The numerical and the experimental results around some of the critical resonances of the system are compared in order to assess the reliability and accuracy of the numerical tool for its future implementation in the mechanical design practice of the blades.


2019 ◽  
Vol 23 (1) ◽  
pp. 353-364
Author(s):  
Mohammed Dali ◽  
Slobodan Jaramaz

The CFD numerical simulations were carried out to investigate the base drag characteristics of a projectile with base bleed unit with a central jet. Different base bleed grain types with different combustion temperatures were used. The goal was to find a way to effectively control the base flow for base drag reduction and optimisate the latter using an adequate CFD software. Axisymmetric, compressible, mass-averaged Navier-Stokes equations are solved using the k-? SST, transition k-kl-?, and RSM turbulence models. The various base flow characteristics are obtained by the change in the non-dimensionalized injection impulse. The results obtained through the present study show that there is an optimum bleed condition for all base bleed grains tested. That optimum is dependent on the temperature of the grain combustion products. The optimum reduces the total drag for 6,9% in the case of air injection at temperature of 300 K and reaches up to 28% in the case of propellant combustion products injection at almost 2500 K. Besides, the increasing of molecular weight has a role no less important than temperature of the combustion products in terms of base drag reduction.


2009 ◽  
Vol 283-286 ◽  
pp. 243-249
Author(s):  
Anouar Souid ◽  
Wassim Kriaa ◽  
Hatem Mhiri ◽  
Georges Le Palec ◽  
Philippe Bournot

We intend in this work to model an industrial burner replica of the ceramic tunnel furnace of the Ceramics Modern Society (SOMOCER, TUNISIA). This study aims to evaluate the ability of turbulence and radiation models to predict the dynamics and heat transfer fields. The study is conducted by means of numerical simulations in presence of a reactive flow using the commercial code FLUENT. The 3D Navier-Stokes equations and four species transport equations are solved with the eddy-dissipation (ED) combustion model. We use three turbulence models (k- standard, k- RNG, and RSM) and two radiation models (DTRM and DO). The obtained results demonstrate that the k- standard turbulence model is unable to predict the flow characteristics whereas; the k- RNG and RSM models give a satisfying agreement with the experiments. Suitable results are provided by the DTRM radiation model; whereas, those given by the DO model can be improved.


2010 ◽  
Vol 132 (6) ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael A. Delichatsios ◽  
C. P. Brescianini ◽  
D. Paterson ◽  
H. Y. Wang ◽  
J. M. Most

Computational fluid dynamics based on Reynolds averaged Navier–Stokes equations is used to model a turbulent planar buoyant adiabatic wall plume. The plume is generated by directing a helium/air source upwards at the base of the wall. Far from the source, the resulting plume becomes self-similar to a good approximation. Several turbulence models based predominantly on the k-ε modeling technique, including algebraic stress modeling, are examined and evaluated against experimental data for the mean mixture fraction, the mixture fraction fluctuations, the mean velocity, and the Reynolds shear stress. Several versions of the k-ε model are identified that can predict important flow quantities with reasonable accuracy. Some new results are presented for the variation in a mixing function for the mixture normal to the wall. Finally, the predicted (velocity) lateral spread is as expected smaller for wall flows in comparison to the free flows, but quite importantly, it depends on the wall boundary conditions in agreement with experiments, i.e., it is larger for adiabatic than for hot wall plumes.


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