Experimental and Numerical Investigation of a Gas Compressor Windback Seal

2006 ◽  
Vol 129 (1) ◽  
pp. 129-134
Author(s):  
Adnan Al-Ghasem ◽  
G. L. Morrison ◽  
John P. Platt
Keyword(s):  
Pressure Ratio ◽  
Experimental Tests ◽  
Labyrinth Seal ◽  
Leakage Rate ◽  
Rectangular Cavity ◽  
Screw Thread ◽  
Cfd Simulations ◽  
Commercial Code ◽  
Purge Gas ◽  
Gas Face Seal

The effectiveness of a computational fluid dynamics (CFD) commercial code to accurately predict the leakage rate for a windback seal was evaluated. The windback seal under consideration has a rectangular cavity and is similar in design to a gas tooth on stator annular labyrinth seal. The main difference is the windback seal has only one tooth, which continuously winds around the shaft like a screw thread. These seals are used in gas compressors to isolate the gas face seal from bearing oil. A purge gas is passed through the seal into the bearing housing. The helical design allows the seal to clear itself of any oil contamination. The objective is to determine if CFD simulations can be used along with a few experimental tests to study windback seals of this design. Comparison of measurement and predictions for a simple rectangular cavity windback seal shows predictions and measurements comparing very well with maximum differences of 5% for leakage rate. The variation of leakage with shaft speed and pressure ratio across the seal is accurately predicted by the CFD simulations.

Experimental and Computational Analysis of a Gas Compressor Windback Seal

2007 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. L. Morrison ◽  
Adnan Al-Ghasem
Keyword(s):  
Standard Deviation ◽  
Gas Flow ◽  
Computational Analysis ◽  
Pressure Ratio ◽  
Labyrinth Seal ◽  
Leakage Rate ◽  
Screw Thread ◽  
Shaft Speed ◽  
Flow Paths ◽  
Carry Over

A gas windback seals is similar to a labyrinth seal except the cavity is one continuous channel which winds around the shaft like a screw thread. One application is in gas compressors to isolate lubrication oil from the gas flow paths. A CFD based study of clearance, pressure ratio, and shaft speed has been performed. One seal geometry was experimentally studied to provide verification of the CFD accuracy. An empirical model for the leakage rate has been developed which fits the data with a standard deviation of 0.8%. The effects of pressure ratio and shaft speed upon the leakage rate are independent of each other. Analysis of the CFD results indicate that the kinetic energy carry over coefficient is substantially less for the windback seal operating at low differential pressures and gas densities than for a labyrinth seal operating under typical conditions.

Effects of Inlet Preswirl and Cell Diameter and Depth on Honeycomb Seal Characteristics

2010 ◽  
Vol 132 (12) ◽  
Author(s):  
Xin Yan ◽  
Jun Li ◽  
Zhenping Feng
Keyword(s):  
Temperature Increase ◽  
Pressure Ratio ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Labyrinth Seal ◽  
Leakage Rate ◽  
Navier Stokes ◽  
Cell Diameter ◽  
Total Temperature ◽  
Honeycomb Seals ◽  
Honeycomb Cell

Three-dimensional Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes solutions are employed to investigate the discharge and total temperature increase characteristics of the stepped labyrinth seal with honeycomb land. First, the relations between the windage heating number and the circumferential Mach number at different Reynolds numbers for different honeycomb seals are calculated and compared with the experimental data. The obtained numerical results show that the present three-dimensional periodic model can properly predict the total temperature increase in honeycomb seals. Then, a range of pressure ratios, three inlet preswirl ratios, four sizes of honeycomb cell diameter, and nine sizes of cell depth are selected to investigate the influence of inlet preswirl ratios and honeycomb geometry sizes on the discharge and total temperature increase characteristics of the stepped labyrinth seal. It shows that the leakage rate increases with the increase in cell diameter, and the cell depth has a strong influence on the discharge behavior. However, the influence of the inlet preswirl on the leakage rate is found to be little in the present study. For the total temperature increase characteristic, the inlet preswirl ratio and pressure ratio have more pronounced influence than those of cell depth and diameter. Furthermore, the relations between the leakage rate and cell depth and diameter, as well as the relations between the windage heating power and cell depth and diameter, are not monotonic functions if the pressure ratio is kept constant.

scholarly journals Experimental and numerical tip leakage flow visualization in the LP turbine labyrinth seal

2019 ◽  
Vol 137 ◽  
pp. 01008
Author(s):  
Krzysztof Bochon ◽  
Włodzimierz Wrόblewski ◽  
Artur Szymański ◽  
Mirosiaw Majkut ◽  
Michał Strozik ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Pressure Ratio ◽  
Main Idea ◽  
Labyrinth Seal ◽  
Tip Leakage Flow ◽  
Pressure Losses ◽  
Low Pressure Turbine ◽  
Flow Parameters ◽  
Ansys Cfx ◽  
Commercial Code ◽  
Lp Turbine

The subject of this publication is the identification of basic flow parameters and flow structures in the seal experimentally and compare them with CFD results. A straight-through seal with two leaning fins and smooth or honeycomb land was analysed. The sealing concept is characteristic for the tip seal of the last stage of an aircraft low-pressure turbine. Due to the limitations of the test rig the analyses presented here were conducted on a highly simplified, stationary model of the seal itself, with an axial inflow and no curvature in the circumferential direction. The characteristics of the discharge coefficient as a function of the pressure ratio for different clearances and the pressure distribution along the seal, for different pressure ratios are presented. In addition, an attempt was made to visualize the flow using the schlieren technique. The main idea of application schlieren photography was to observe the vortex and separation structures occurring during the flow through the labyrinth seal, which is the major source of pressure losses. CFD calculations were carried out using the Ansys CFX commercial code.

Optimization of Labyrinth Seal for Screw Compressor

2007 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Selvaraji ◽  
Sam P. Joseph ◽  
N. Nirmal
Keyword(s):  
Heat Transfer ◽  
Pressure Ratio ◽  
Labyrinth Seal ◽  
Leakage Rate ◽  
Heat Transfer Analysis ◽  
Lubricating Oil ◽  
Screw Compressor ◽  
Labyrinth Seals ◽  
Gas Leakage ◽  
Working Medium

There is a growing demand for compressed air in the industry for various applications. Majority of industrial requirements is in line with screw compressor operating range. Design and construction of screw compressors are demanding tasks that require advanced calculations and theoretical knowledge. Clearances play a major role in the performance and reliability aspects of a screw compressor. Seals are provided in compressors to fit around rotor shafts in order to prevent the leakage of lubricating oil and working medium. However there is a small clearance between the seal and rotor shaft, which can cause potential leakage of the working medium. The performance of the compressor is directly related to the leakage rate through the seals. The labyrinth seal is a special type of seal, used in screw compressors and turbo-machinery for sealing purpose. Labyrinth seal is a non-contacting type seal that uses a tortuous path to minimize the gas leakage. The pressure drop occurs at each labyrinth tooth as the medium is squeezed between the labyrinth tooth and the rotor. The leakage through the seal is directly related to the labyrinth profile and also the clearance between the rotor and the labyrinth tooth. The present work is carried out to reduce the leakage through the labyrinth seal by optimising the tooth profile and operating clearances. Heat transfer analysis is carried out on the housing of the labyrinth seal to find out the boundary temperature of the seal. Also the heat transfer analysis on the labyrinth seal followed by Thermo-structural analysis is carried out to find out the accurate operating clearance of the seal. By using CFD as a tool, the optimisation is carried out on different design configurations of labyrinth seal by comparing the deviation in leakage rates. Effect of rotor speed, width of seal and pressure ratio on air leakage rate is also investigated. A set of labyrinth seals has been designed based on the above optimisation and tested in the compressor. The results have been compared with the CFD prediction.

Influence of Hole-Pattern Stator on Leakage Performance of Labyrinth Seals

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xin Yan ◽  
Xinbo Dai ◽  
Kang Zhang ◽  
Jun Li ◽  
Kun He
Keyword(s):  
Experimental Tests ◽  
Labyrinth Seal ◽  
Leakage Rate ◽  
Control Performance ◽  
Labyrinth Seals ◽  
Rotordynamic Coefficients ◽  
Honeycomb Seal ◽  
Leakage Control ◽  
Stability Enhancement ◽  
The Cost

The honeycomb seal shows promising characteristics in many turbine machines for the leakage control and rotor stability enhancement. However, the cost of honeycomb seal is relative high due to its complexities in manufacture and installation process. The hole-pattern seal has a very close leakage and rotordynamic performance with honeycomb seal, and also the manufacture and installation of hole-pattern seal are easier than the honeycomb seal, which attract the researchers and designers in recent years. In the published literature, there have been many papers dealt with the rotordynamic coefficients measurements, but very few researchers concentrated on the leakage control performance for the labyrinth seal with hole-pattern land. In this paper, the experimental tests were carried out to obtain the leakage rates versus pressure ratios at four clearances for the straight-through labyrinth seal with smooth stator, straight-through labyrinth seal with hole-pattern stator, stepped labyrinth seal with smooth stator and the stepped labyrinth seal with hole-pattern stator. The flow fields in the seal chambers were also visualized at different clearances and pressure ratios. Moreover, the CFD tool was also implemented to predict the leakage performance in labyrinth seals, and the numerical results were compared with the measurements. The results show that, the stepped labyrinth seal with hole-pattern land performs better leakage control characteristic than the straight-through labyrinth seal with hole-pattern land, and the stepped labyrinth seal with smooth land performs better leakage control than the straight through labyrinth seal with smooth land. For the stepped labyrinth seal, holes in the stator increase the effective clearance thus increase the leakage rate in seal. However, the straight-through labyrinth seal with hole-pattern land almost has the identical leakage performance with the smooth configuration.

Numerical Investigations on the Leakage Flow Characteristics of Pocket Damper Seals

2011 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhigang Li ◽  
Jun Li ◽  
Zhenping Feng ◽  
Jiandao Yang ◽  
Rui Yang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Flow Rate ◽  
Rotational Speed ◽  
Pressure Ratio ◽  
Flow Characteristics ◽  
Labyrinth Seal ◽  
Leakage Rate ◽  
Numerical Results ◽  
Flow Coefficient ◽  
Leakage Flow ◽  
Leakage Flow Rate

The effects of pressure ratios, rotational speeds and sealing clearances on the leakage flow characteristics of pocket damper seals (PDS) were numerically investigated using Reynolds-Averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) solutions. The leakage flow rate of the experimental PDS with the eight-bladed and eight-pocket was conducted at three different pressure drops and three different rotational speeds. The numerical results were in agreement with the experimental data. Six pressure ratios, four rotational speeds and four sealing clearances were utilized to study the effects of theses factors on the leakage flow characteristics of the PDS. Numerical results show that the leakage rate of the PDS increases with decreased pressure ratio. The leakage rate decreases with the increasing rotational speed, and this phenomenon is more pronounced at higher rotational speed. At the highest rotational speed 20200rpm, the flow coefficient is up to 4.4% less than that of the non-rotating case. The leakage rate increases linearly with sealing clearance increasing. The comparison of the leakage flow rate shows that the PDS leaks slightly less than that of the labyrinth seal at the same pressure ratio, rotational speed and sealing clearance, especially at the higher rotational speed case. Furthermore, the circumferential partition wall can significantly decrease the circumferential flow in the PDS cavity. At the highest rotational speed with 20200rpm, the swirl ratio in the active and inactive cavity of the PDS is reduced by 94.5% and 46% compared to the labyrinth seal, respectively.

Sharper Labyrinth Seal Edges to Allow Greater Clearance Without Increased Leakage

1995 ◽  
Author(s):  
David L. Rhode ◽  
M. J. Guidry
Keyword(s):  
Numerical Study ◽  
Energy Generation ◽  
Labyrinth Seal ◽  
Leakage Rate ◽  
Turbulence Energy ◽  
Resistance Increase ◽  
Leakage Resistance ◽  
Edge Sharpness ◽  
Damage Susceptibility

Abstract A numerical study was undertaken to examine the effects of utilizing sharper edges for increasing the leakage resistance of advanced labyrinth seal configurations. Such an increase allows the designer to enlarge the extremely small knife clearance, providing a seal with less damage susceptibility at the same leakage rate. The maximum possible leakage resistance increase from changing three cavity edges to perfectly sharp ones was estimated from the present computations. In addition, previous measurements of the edge sharpness effect on the leakage through orifices are appropriately utilized to obtain a rough estimate of the resistance increase for generic seals. The latter allows consideration of a broader range of application. Further, turbulence energy generation contours reveal that only one particular cavity edge needs to be sharpened in order to obtain a significantly increased leakage resistance.

scholarly journals Investigation of the Performances of a Diesel Engine Operating on Blended and Emulsified Biofuels from Rapeseed Oil

Energies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (20) ◽  
pp. 6661
Author(s):  
Vladimir Anatolyevich Markov ◽  
Bowen Sa ◽  
Sergey Nikolaevich Devyanin ◽  
Anatoly Anatolyevich Zherdev ◽  
Pablo Ramon Vallejo Maldonado ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Diesel Engine ◽  
Rapeseed Oil ◽  
Characteristic Curve ◽  
Motor Fuel ◽  
Experimental Tests ◽  
Operating Conditions ◽  
Test Results ◽  
Cfd Simulations ◽  
Brake Thermal Efficiency ◽  
Flow Simulations

The article discusses the possibility of using blended biofuels from rapeseed oil (RO) as fuel for a diesel engine. RO blended diesel fuel (DF) and emulsified multicomponent biofuels have been investigated. Fuel physicochemical properties have been analyzed. Experimental tests of a diesel engine D-245 in the operating conditions of the external characteristic curve and the 13-mode test cycle have been conducted to investigate the effect of these fuels on engine performances. CFD simulations of the nozzle inner flow were performed for DF and ethanol-emulsified RO. The possibility of a significant improvement in brake thermal efficiency of the engine has been noted. The efficiency of using blended biofuels from RO as a motor fuel for diesel engines has been evaluated based on the experimental test results. It was shown that in comparison with the presence of RO in emulsified multicomponent biofuel, the presence of water has a more significant effect on NOx emission reduction. The content of RO and the content of water in the investigated emulsified fuels have a comparable influence on exhaust smoke reduction. Nozzle inner flow simulations show that the emulsification of RO changes its flow behaviors and cavitation regime.

scholarly journals Numerical and experimental analyses for the improvement of surface instant decontamination technology through biocidal agent dispersion: Potential of application during pandemic

PLoS ONE ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (5) ◽  
pp. e0251817
Author(s):  
Paulo Roberto Freitas Neves ◽  
Turan Dias Oliveira ◽  
Tarcísio Faustino Magalhães ◽  
Paulo Roberto Santana dos Reis ◽  
Luzia Aparecida Tofaneli ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Experimental Tests ◽  
Cfd Simulations ◽  
New Device ◽  
Qualitative And Quantitative ◽  
Droplet Concentration ◽  
Computational Fluid Dynamics Cfd ◽  
Suspended Droplet ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Disinfection Chamber ◽  
Important Form

The transmission of SARS-CoV-2 through contact with contaminated surfaces or objects is an important form of transmissibility. Thus, in this study, we evaluated the performance of a disinfection chamber designed for instantaneous dispersion of the biocidal agent solution, in order to characterize a new device that can be used to protect individuals by reducing the transmissibility of the disease through contaminated surfaces. We proposed the necessary adjustments in the configuration to improve the dispersion on surfaces and the effectiveness of the developed equipment. Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulations of the present technology with a chamber having six nebulizer nozzles were performed and validated through qualitative and quantitative comparisons, and experimental tests were conducted using the method Water-Sensitive Paper (WSP), with an exposure to the biocidal agent for 10 and 30 s. After evaluation, a new passage procedure for the chamber with six nozzles and a new configuration of the disinfection chamber were proposed. In the chamber with six nozzles, a deficiency was identified in its central region, where the suspended droplet concentration was close to zero. However, with the new passage procedure, there was a significant increase in wettability of the surface. With the proposition of the chamber with 12 nozzles, the suspended droplet concentration in different regions increased, with an average increase of 266%. The experimental results of the new configuration proved that there was an increase in wettability at all times of exposure, and it was more significant for an exposure of 30 s. Additionally, even in different passage procedures, there were no significant differences in the results for an exposure of 10 s, thereby showing the effectiveness of the new configuration or improved spraying and wettability by the biocidal agent, as well as in minimizing the impact caused by human factor in the performance of the disinfection technology.

Simulation and Experimental Investigation of a New Type of Combined Seal Structure

2021 ◽  
Vol 143 (5) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jin Li ◽  
Xiaoli Fu ◽  
Shenglin Yan
Keyword(s):  
Numerical Simulation ◽  
Labyrinth Seal ◽  
Internal Resistance ◽  
Leakage Rate ◽  
Geometric Parameters ◽  
Inlet Flow ◽  
New Type ◽  
Leakage Characteristics ◽  
Nozzle Structure ◽  
Better Than

Abstract Based on the study of leakage characteristics of labyrinth seal structure (LSS), a new type of combined seal structure (CSS) consisting of the labyrinth structure and the nozzle structure has been proposed. The sealing characteristics of CSS and LSS are compared by means of numerical simulation and experiments, and the effects of the internal resistance of the device, structural geometric parameters and other factors on the leakage characteristics of CSS are studied. The results illustrate the following conclusions: (a) When the inlet flow is 12 m3/h and the internal resistance of the device is 2000–4000 Pa, the leakage rate of CSS decreases by 30%–40% in comparison with that of LSS, which indicates that the performance of CSS is much better than that of LSS. (b) The leakage rate increases as the internal resistance of the device increases. When the internal resistance of the device increases from 2000 Pa to 8000 Pa, the leakage rate increases from 26% to 72%. (c) When the internal resistance of the device is constant, the larger the inlet flow, the smaller the leakage rate. (d) The choice of nozzle radius in structural geometric parameters is more important for the leakage rate than the tooth height and teeth numbers. When the nozzle radius decreases, ΔPAB (pressure difference between the labyrinth structure and the nozzle structure) and the leakage rate decrease accordingly.

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