The Identification of Tip Leakage Vortex of an Axial Flow Waterjet Pump by Using Omega Method and Liutex

Author(s):  
Xiaoyang Zhao ◽  
Jie Chen ◽  
Biao Huang ◽  
Guoyu Wang
Author(s):  
Shun Xu ◽  
Bin Ji ◽  
Xinping Long ◽  
Zhongdong Qian ◽  
Guibin Li ◽  
...  

Abstract The flow field in the tip region of the axial-flow waterjet pump is very complex. Although it has been studied for many years, many relevant phenomena have still been a puzzle. In present paper, many detailed data on instantaneous inner structures of the tip leakage flow and evolution of the tip leakage vortex cavitation with different tip gap sizes are offered. The numerical simulation has been conducted by using SAS turbulence model and ZGB cavitation model to understand the cavitation-vortex interaction mechanism. The predicted cavitation performance exhibits a reasonable agreement with the experimental results. Based on the illustration, with the impeller tip gap size decreasing, the cavitation area in rotating region gradually decreases. The cavitation development enhances vorticity production in an axial-flow waterjet pump. Vortices are mainly located at the impeller tip leakage region. The analysis of the relative vorticity transport equation indicates that the baroclinic torque term and the vortex dilation term have significant effects on cavitation, the main contributor to vortex generation is the vortex dilation term. In addition, in the impeller tip region, the effect of viscous diffusion term cannot be ignored, and the cavitation area has a larger amplitude of pressure pulsation.


Author(s):  
Desheng Zhang ◽  
Weidong Shi ◽  
Suqing Wu ◽  
Dazhi Pan ◽  
Peipei Shao ◽  
...  

In this paper, the tip leakage vortex (TLV) structures in an axial flow pump were investigated by numerical and experimental methods. Based on the comparisons of different blade tip clearance size (i.e., 0.5 mm, 1mm and 1.5mm) and different flow rate conditions, TLV trajectories were obtained by Swirling Strength method, and simulated by modified SST k-ω turbulence model with refined high-quality structured grids. A high-speed photography test was carried out to capture the tip leakage vortex cavitation in an axial flow pump with transparent casing. Numerical results were compared with the experimental leakage vortex trajectories, and a good agreement is presented. The detailed trajectories show that the start point of tip leakage vortex appears near the leading edge at small flow rate, and it moves from trailing edge to about 30% chord span at rated flow rate. At the larger flow rate condition, the starting point of TLV shifts to the middle of chord, and the direction of TLV moves parallel to the blade hydrofoil. As the increasing of the tip size, the start point of TLV trajectories moves to the central of chord and the minimum pressure in vortex core is gradually reduced.


Author(s):  
Rinaldo L. Miorini ◽  
Huixuan Wu ◽  
Joseph Katz

The complex flow field in the tip region of a turbomachine rotor, including the tip leakage flow and tip leakage vortex (TLV), has been studied for decades. Yet many associated phenomena are still not understood. This paper provides detailed data on the instantaneous and phase averaged inner structure of the tip flow, and evolution of the TLV. Observations are based on series of high resolution planar particle image velocimetry measurements performed in a transparent waterjet pump fitted into an optical refractive index matched test facility. Velocity distributions and turbulence statistics are obtained in several meridional planes inside the rotor. We observe that the instantaneous TLV structure is composed of several unsteady vortex filaments that propagate into the blade passage. These filaments are first embedded into a vortex sheet generated at the suction side of the blade tip, and then they wrap around each other and roll up into the TLV. These vortices do not have sufficient time to merge into a single compact structure within the blade passage. We also find that the leakage vortex induces flow separation at the casing endwall and entrains the casing boundary layer with its counter-rotating vorticity. As it propagates in the rotor passage, the TLV migrates towards the pressure side of the neighboring blade. Unsteadiness associated with observed vortical structures is also investigated. We notice that, at early stages of the TLV evolution, turbulence is elevated in the vortex sheet, in the flow entrained from the endwall, and near the vortex core. Interestingly, the turbulence observed around the core is not consistent with the local distribution of turbulent kinetic energy production rate. This mismatch indicates that, given a TLV section, production likely occurs at preceding stages of the vortex evolution. Then, the turbulence is convected to the core of the TLV, and we suggest that this transport has substantial component along the vortex. Because we observe that the meandering of vortex filaments dominate the flow in the passage, we decompose the unsteadiness surrounding the TLV core to contributions from interlaced vortices and broadband turbulence. Results of this decomposition show that the two contributions are of the same order of magnitude. The TLV is investigated also beyond the trailing edge of the rotor blade. During these late stages of its evolution, the TLV approaches the pressure side of the neighboring blade and vortex breakdown occurs, causing rapid broadening of the phase average core, with little change in overall circulation. Associated turbulence occupies almost half the width of the blade passage and turbulence production there is also broadly distributed. Proximity of the TLV to the pressure side of the neighboring blade also affects entrainment of flow into the incoming tip region.


2017 ◽  
Vol 49 (3) ◽  
pp. 035504 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lei Shi ◽  
Desheng Zhang ◽  
Yongxin Jin ◽  
Weidong Shi ◽  
B P M (Bart) van Esch

2015 ◽  
Vol 112 ◽  
pp. 61-71 ◽  
Author(s):  
Desheng Zhang ◽  
Weidong Shi ◽  
B.P.M. (Bart) van Esch ◽  
Lei Shi ◽  
Michel Dubuisson

Author(s):  
Wei Wang ◽  
Wuli Chu ◽  
Haoguang Zhang ◽  
Yanhui Wu

Recirculating casing treatment (RCT) was studied in a subsonic axial flow compressor experimentally and numerically. The RCT was parameterized with the injector throat height and circumferential coverage percentage (ccp) to investigate its influence on compressor stability and on the overall performance in the experimentation. The injector throat height varied from 2 to 6 times the height of the rotor tip clearance, and the ccp ranged from 8.3% to 25% of the casing perimeter. Various RCT configurations were achieved with a modular design procedure. The rotor casing was instrumented with fast-response pressure transducers to detect the stall inception, rotational speed of stall cells, and pressure flow fields. Whole-passage unsteady simulations were also implemented for the RCT and solid casing to understand the flow details. Results indicate that both the compressor stability and overall performance can be improved through RCT with appropriate geometrical parameters. The effect of injector throat height on the stability depends on the choice of ccp, i.e., interaction effect exists. In general, the RCT with a moderate injector throat height and a large circumferential coverage is the optimal choice. Phase-locked pattern of the casing wall pressure reveals a weakened tip leakage vortex under the effect of RCT compared with the solid casing. The numerical results show that the RCT has a substantial effect on tip blockage even when the blade passages break away from the domain of RCT. The reduction of tip blockage induced by the tip leakage vortex is the main reason for the extension of stable operation range. The unsteadiness of double-leakage flow is detected both in the experiment and in numerical simulations. The pressure fluctuations caused by double-leakage flow are depressed with RCT. This observation indicates reduced losses related with the double-leakage flow. Although the stall inception is not changed by implementing RCT, the stall pattern is altered. The stall with two cells is detected in RCT compared with the solid casing with only one stall cell.


Machines ◽  
2022 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 41
Author(s):  
Hu Zhang ◽  
Jianbo Zang ◽  
Desheng Zhang ◽  
Weidong Shi ◽  
Jiean Shen

Studies on the tip leakage vortex (TLV) are extensive, while studies on the secondary tip leakage vortex (S-TLV) are rare. To advance the understanding of the formation mechanism of the S-TLV, turbulent cavitating flows were numerically investigated using the shear stress transport (SST) turbulence model and the Zwart–Gerber–Belamri cavitation model. The morphology and physical quantity distribution of the S-TLV under two cavitation conditions were compared, and its formation mechanism was analyzed. The results reveal that in the lower cavitation number case, there is a low-velocity zone of circumferential flow near the tip in the back half of the blade. The shear vortices formed by the leakage jet gradually accumulate and concentrate in the low-velocity area, which is one of the main sources of the S-TLV. Meanwhile, the radial jet pushes the vortices on the suction surface to the tip, which mixes with the S-TLV. The flow path formed by the radial jet and the leakage jet is in accordance with the rotation direction of the S-TLV, which promotes the S-TLV’s further development. Under the conditions of a small cavitation number and low flow rate, the circumferential velocity and radial velocity of the fluid near the gap have altered significantly, which is conducive to the formation of the S-TLV.


Author(s):  
Hongwei Ma ◽  
Haokang Jiang

This paper presents an experimental study of the three-dimensional turbulent flow field in the tip region of an axial flow compressor rotor passage at a near stall condition. The investigation was conducted in a low-speed large-scale compressor using a 3-component Laser Doppler Velocimetry and a high frequency pressure transducer. The measurement results indicate that a tip leakage vortex is produced very close to the leading edge, and becomes the strongest at about 10% axial chord from the leading edge. Breakdown of the vortex periodically occurs at about 1/3 chord, causing very strong turbulence in the radial direction. Flow separation happens on the tip suction surface at about half chord, prompting the corner vortex migrating toward the pressure side. Tangential migration of the low-energy fluids results in substantial flow blockage and turbulence in the rear of a rotor passage. Unsteady interactions among the tip leakage vortex, the separated vortex and the corner flow should contribute to the inception of the rotating stall in a compressor.


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