Experimental Study of Tip Clearance Effects Under Transonic Flow Conditions

1996 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Wehner ◽  
A. Bölcs ◽  
J. Bütikofer
Keyword(s):  
Test Section ◽  
Static Pressure ◽  
Suction Side ◽  
Tip Clearance ◽  
Tip Vortex ◽  
Blade Loading ◽  
Gap Flow ◽  
Inlet Conditions ◽  
Axial Turbines ◽  
Tip Gap Flow

An idealized 3 blade test section has been used to study tip clearance effects which occur in transonic axial turbines. At subsonic inlet conditions (Mis1 = 0.56) the flow leaves the test section supersonic (Mis2 = 1.26). The tip clearance was varied from 0 to 15% of the chord length. Extensive laser-2-focus anemometry was used to determine the tip gap mass flow based on the velocity vectors for gaps with 6, 10 and 15% chord. At small clearances the tip gap flow is mainly influenced by the pressure drop between pressure and suction side, while for larger gaps the main flow field dominates the tip gap flow. The variation of the blade loading with the tip clearance was measured by static pressure tappings at 50% and 90% Span. Furthermore the static pressure along the tip surface was measured for varying tip clearances. Pitot probe traverses in the tip vortex region at different downstream positions revealed the vortex structures and vortex core evolution. For tip gaps of 3 and 6%, multiple vortices were detected which were not fully mixed downstream. The origin of these vortices moves towards the trailing edge for larger gaps.

Control of Tip-Clearance Flow in a Low Speed Axial Compressor Rotor With Plasma Actuation

2010 ◽  
Author(s):  
Giridhar Jothiprasad ◽  
Robert C. Murray ◽  
Katherine Essenhigh ◽  
Grover A. Bennett ◽  
Seyed Saddoughi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Leading Edge ◽  
Suction Side ◽  
Tip Clearance ◽  
Edge Plasma ◽  
Tip Leakage Flow ◽  
Stall Margin ◽  
Low Speed ◽  
Gap Flow ◽  
End Wall ◽  
Tip Gap Flow

This research investigates different dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) actuator configurations for affecting tip leakage flow and suppressing stall inception. Computational investigations were performed on a low-speed rotor with a highly loaded tip region that was responsible for stall-onset. The actuator was mounted on the casing upstream of the rotor leading edge. Plasma injection had a significant impact on the predicted tip-gap flow and improved stall margin. The effect of changing the actuator forcing direction on stall margin was also studied. The improvement in stall margin was closely correlated with a reduction in loading parameter that quantifies mechanisms responsible for end-wall blockage generation. The actuation reduced end-wall losses by increasing the static pressure of tip-gap flow emerging from blade suction-side. Lastly, an approximate speed scaling developed for the DBD force helped estimate force requirements for stall enhancement of transonic rotors.

Control of Tip-Clearance Flow in a Low Speed Axial Compressor Rotor With Plasma Actuation

2011 ◽  
Vol 134 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Giridhar Jothiprasad ◽  
Robert C. Murray ◽  
Katherine Essenhigh ◽  
Grover A. Bennett ◽  
Seyed Saddoughi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Leading Edge ◽  
Suction Side ◽  
Tip Clearance ◽  
Edge Plasma ◽  
Tip Leakage Flow ◽  
Stall Margin ◽  
Low Speed ◽  
Gap Flow ◽  
End Wall ◽  
Tip Gap Flow

This research investigates different dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) actuator configurations for affecting tip leakage flow and suppressing stall inception. Computational investigations were performed on a low speed rotor with a highly loaded tip region that was responsible for stall-onset. The actuator was mounted on the casing upstream of the rotor leading edge. Plasma injection had a significant impact on the predicted tip-gap flow and improved stall margin. The effect of changing the actuator forcing direction on stall margin was also studied. The reduction in stalling flow was closely correlated with a reduction in loading parameter that quantifies mechanisms responsible for end-wall blockage generation. The actuation reduced end-wall losses by increasing the static pressure of tip-gap flow emerging from blade suction-side. Lastly, an approximate speed scaling developed for the DBD force helped estimate force requirements for stall margin enhancement of transonic rotors.

Measurement of Tip-Clearance Flow in a Multi-Stage, Axial Flow Compressor

1994 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew C. Foley ◽  
Paul C. Ivey
Keyword(s):  
Large Scale ◽  
Static Pressure ◽  
Axial Flow ◽  
Tip Clearance ◽  
Suction Surface ◽  
Tip Clearance Flow ◽  
Laser Anemometry ◽  
Two Dimensional Flow ◽  
Inlet Conditions ◽  
Stators And Rotors

Detailed measurements using pneumatic probe traverses, blade static pressure tappings and laser anemometry are made in the third stage of a large scale, low speed, four stage, axial flow, research compressor. Inlet conditions show well ordered ‘two dimensional’ flow from approximately 40 to 85% annulus span. Outside of this region, reduced total pressure due to upstream leakage losses aod endwall effects results in high incidence to the following blade row. As a result, peak suction surface static pressure moves forward along the blade chord for both the huh and tip of stators and rotors. At the blade tip however, the peak suction pressure is maintained with chord due to radial flow on the suction surface being entrained into the tip leakage jet. The extent of rotor chord for which this ‘entrainment’ occurs increases with increasing rotor tip clearance gap. The leakage jet from both stators and rotors is seen to ‘roll up’ into a vortex downstream of their respective blade rows.

A Physical Model for the Tip Vortex Loss: Experimental Validation and Scaling Method

2012 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sascha Karstadt ◽  
Peter F. Pelz
Keyword(s):  
Measurement Data ◽  
Suction Side ◽  
Secondary Flows ◽  
Tip Clearance ◽  
Tip Vortex ◽  
Tip Leakage Flow ◽  
Rotating Blades ◽  
Fluid Systems ◽  
Spiral Vortex ◽  
Flow Through

Losses through secondary flows occur in every turbomachine. Between the rotating blades and the casing of a turbomachine there is a secondary flow through the tip clearance caused by the pressure difference between the pressure and the suction side of the blade. This tip leakage flow is not involved in the work done by the rotating blades hence it reduces the aerodynamic efficiency. The flow through the tip clearance rolls up to a spiral vortex on the suction side of the blade and induces drag. Size and circulation of this vortex, according to the Helmholtz vortex theorem, depend on the bound vortex and the width of the tip clearance. Examinations of this structure lead to an idea of describing the tip vortex loss with analytical methods. Therefore an analytical approach is made regarding mainly the circulation at the blade tips. The method is discussed critically in the context of known loss models. It is shown to be a good summary of earlier methods. Since no explicit geometry data of the turbomachine is needed, it is much easier to use. The most important aspect is the excellent agreement with measurements performed at the Chair of Fluid Systems Technology. In total eleven different fan configurations are measured and analyzed in regard to their tip clearance losses. The measurements are performed at a test rig located at the laboratory of the Chair of Fluid Systems Technology at Technische Universität Darmstadt. Additionally further published measurement data is used to validate the method.

scholarly journals Effects of Tip Clearance and Casing Recess on Heat Transfer and Stage Efficiency in Axial Turbines

1998 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. A. Ameri ◽  
E. Steinthorsson ◽  
David L. Rigby
Keyword(s):  
Heat Transfer ◽  
Suction Side ◽  
Tip Clearance ◽  
Flow Conditions ◽  
Tip Leakage Flow ◽  
Tip Leakage ◽  
Blade Tip ◽  
Axial Turbines ◽  
Gap Height ◽  
Stage Efficiency

Calculations were performed to assess the effect of the tip leakage flow on the rate of heat transfer to blade, blade tip and casing. The effect on exit angle and efficiency was also examined. Passage geometries with and without casing recess were considered. The geometry and the flow conditions of the GE-E3 first stage turbine, which represents a modern gas turbine blade were used for the analysis. Clearance heights of 0%, 1%, 1.5% and 3% of the passage height were considered. For the two largest clearance heights considered, different recess depths were studied. There was an increase in the thermal load on all the heat transfer surfaces considered due to enlargement of the clearance gap. Introduction of recessed casing resulted in a drop in the rate of heat transfer on the pressure side but the picture on the suction side was found to be more complex for the smaller tip clearance height considered. For the larger tip clearance height the effect of casing recess was an orderly reduction in the suction side heat transfer as the casing recess height was increased. There was a marked reduction of heat load and peak values on the blade tip upon introduction of casing recess, however only a small reduction was observed on the casing itself. It was reconfirmed that there is a linear relationship between the efficiency and the tip gap height. It was also observed that the recess casing has a small effect on the efficiency but can have a moderating effect on the flow underturning at smaller tip clearances.

Aerodynamic Investigation of the Tip Leakage Flow for Blades With Different Tip Squealer Geometries at Transonic Conditions

2009 ◽  
Author(s):  
Toma´sˇ Hofer ◽  
Tony Arts
Keyword(s):  
Heat Transfer ◽  
Mass Flow ◽  
Suction Side ◽  
Loss Coefficient ◽  
Leakage Flow ◽  
Pressure Side ◽  
Tip Leakage Flow ◽  
Tip Leakage ◽  
Gap Flow ◽  
Tip Gap Flow

Modern high pressure turbines operate at high velocity and high temperature conditions. The gap existing above a turbine rotor blade is responsible for an undesirable tip leakage flow. It is a source of high aerodynamic losses and high heat transfer rates. A better understanding of the tip flow behaviour is needed to provide a more efficient cooling design in this region. The objective of this paper is to investigate the tip leakage flow for a blade with two different squealer tips and film-cooling applied on the pressure side and through tip dust holes in a non-rotating, linear cascade arrangement. The experiments were performed in the VKI Light Piston Compression Tube facility, CT-2. The tip gap flow was investigated by oil flow visualisations and by wall static and total pressure measurements. Two geometries were tested — a full squealer and a partial suction side squealer. The measurements were performed in the blade tip region, including the squealer rim and on the corresponding end-wall for engine representative values of outlet Reynolds and Mach numbers. The main flow structures in the cavity were put in evidence. Positive influence of the coolant on the tip gap flow and on the aerodynamic losses was found for the full squealer tip case: increasing the coolant mass-flow increased the tip gap flow resistance. The flow through the clearance therefore slows down, the tip gap mass-flow and the heat transfer respectively decreases. No such effect of cooling was found in the case of the partial suction side squealer geometry. The absence of a pressure side squealer rim resulted in a totally different tip gap flow topology, indifferent to cooling. The influence of cooling on the overall mass-weighted thermodynamic loss coefficient, which takes into account the different energies of the mainstream and coolant flows was found marginal for both geometries. Finally the overall loss coefficient was found to be higher for the partial suction side squealer tip than for the full squealer tip.

Effect of Endwall Motion on Blade Tip Heat Transfer

2003 ◽  
Vol 125 (2) ◽  
pp. 267-273 ◽  
Author(s):  
V. Srinivasan ◽  
R. J. Goldstein
Keyword(s):  
Mass Transfer ◽  
Suction Side ◽  
Tip Clearance ◽  
Pressure Gradients ◽  
Tip Leakage Flow ◽  
Blade Loading ◽  
Linear Cascade ◽  
Tip Leakage ◽  
Blade Tip ◽  
Wind Tunnel Data

Local mass transfer measurements were conducted on the tip of a turbine blade in a five-blade linear cascade with a blade-centered configuration. The tip clearance levels ranged from 0.6 to 6.9% of blade chord. The effect of relative motion between the casing and the blade tip was simulated using a moving endwall made of neoprene mounted on the top of the wind tunnel. Data were obtained for a single Reynolds number of 2.7×105 based on cascade exit velocity and blade chord. Pressure measurements indicate that the effect of endwall motion on blade loading at a clearance of 0.6% of blade chord is to reduce the pressure gradients driving the tip leakage flow. With the introduction of endwall motion, there is a reduction of about 9% in mass transfer levels at a clearance of 0.6% of chord. This is presumably due to the tip leakage vortex coming closer to the suction side of the blade and ‘blocking the flow,’ leading to reduced tip gap velocities and hence lower mass transfer.

scholarly journals Investigation of Unsteady Tip Clearance Flow in a Low-Speed One and Half Stage Axial Compressor With LES and PIV

2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chunill Hah ◽  
Michael Hathaway ◽  
Joseph Katz ◽  
David Tan
Keyword(s):  
Axial Compressor ◽  
Suction Side ◽  
Flow Fields ◽  
Tip Clearance ◽  
Gap Size ◽  
Tip Clearance Flow ◽  
Gap Flow ◽  
Clearance Flow ◽  
Single Structure ◽  
Tip Clearance Vortex

The primary focus of this paper is to investigate how a rotor’s unsteady tip clearance flow structure changes in a low speed one and half stage axial compressor when the rotor tip gap size is increased from 0.5 mm (0.49% of rotor tip blade chord, 2% of blade span) to 2.4 mm (2.34% chord, 4% span) at the design condition are investigated. The changes in unsteady tip clearance flow with the 0.62 % tip gap as the flow rate is reduced to near stall condition are also investigated. A Large Eddy Simulation (LES) is applied to calculate the unsteady flow field at these three flow conditions. Detailed Stereoscopic PIV (SPIV) measurements of the current flow fields were also performed at the Johns Hopkins University in a refractive index-matched test facility which renders the compressor blades and casing optically transparent. With this setup, the unsteady velocity field in the entire flow domain, including the flow inside the tip gap, can be measured. Unsteady tip clearance flow fields from LES are compared with the PIV measurements and both LES and PIV results are used to study changes in tip clearance flow structures. The current study shows that the tip clearance vortex is not a single structure as traditionally perceived. The tip clearance vortex is formed by multiple interlaced vorticities. Therefore, the tip clearance vortex is inherently unsteady. The multiple interlaced vortices never roll up to form a single structure. When phased-averaged, the tip clearance vortex appears as a single structure. When flow rate is reduced with the same tip gap, the tip clearance vortex rolls further upstream and the tip clearance vortex moves further radially inward and away from the suction side of the blade. When the tip gap size is increased at the design flow condition, the overall tip clearance vortex becomes stronger and it stays closer to the blade suction side and the vortex core extends all the way to the exit of the blade passage. Measured and calculated unsteady flow fields inside the tip gap agree fairly well. Instantaneous velocity vectors inside the tip gap from both the PIV and LES do show flow separation and reattachment at the entrance of tip gap as some earlier studies suggested. This area at the entrance of tip gap flow (the pressure side of the blade) is confined very close to the rotor tip section. With a small tip gap (0.5mm), the gap flow looks like a simple two-dimensional channel flow with larger velocity near the casing for both flow rates. A small area with a sharp velocity gradient is observed just above the rotor tip. This strong shear layer is turned radially inward when it collides with the incoming flow and forms the core structure of the tip clearance vortex. When tip gap size is increased to 2.4 mm at the design operation, the radial profile of the tip gap flow changes drastically. With the large tip gap, the gap flow looks like a two-dimensional channel flow only near the casing. Near the rotor top section, a bigger region with very large shear and reversed flow is observed.

scholarly journals Numerical Investigation of Different Tip Clearances Effect on the Hydrodynamic Performance of Pumpjet Propulsor

2018 ◽  
Vol 15 (05) ◽  
pp. 1850037 ◽  
Author(s):  
Denghui Qin ◽  
Guang Pan ◽  
Qiaogao Huang ◽  
Zhengdong Zhang ◽  
Jiujiu Ke
Keyword(s):  
Numerical Simulation ◽  
Rotor Blade ◽  
Fluid Dynamic ◽  
Open Water ◽  
Suction Side ◽  
Close Relation ◽  
Tip Clearance ◽  
Tip Vortex ◽  
Hydrodynamic Performance ◽  
Cfd Method

Previous studies show that the tip clearance loss limits the improvement of turbomachinery performance, and it is roughly in close relation with the gap size. In this study, a pumpjet propulsor (PJP) with different sizes of tip clearances ([Formula: see text], 0.5, 1, 2, 3[Formula: see text]mm) has been presented to investigate the influence of tip clearances on PJP. This analysis is based on computational fluid dynamic (CFD) method, and the SST k-[Formula: see text] turbulence model is applied. Calculations are carried out with a worldwide employed ducted propeller (the Ka4-70 propeller in 19A duct) to verify the numerical simulation. And the grid independence validation is discussed. The numerical simulation of PJP flow with different tip clearances is carried out. Results show that the open water efficiency decreases gradually with the increase of tip clearance. The efficiency decreasing is caused by the tip flow loss. The shape of tip vortex of PJP which consisted of tip-separation vortex and tip-leakage vortex is presented. Furthermore, the formation and spread process of tip vortex at different tip clearances are discussed. Then, the effect of different tip clearances on the pressure field of rotor blade is investigated. The main pressure area affected by different tip clearances is mainly concentrated in the area above 0.9 spanwise of the suction side of rotor blade. Beyond that, the effects of different tip clearances on the velocity field of PJP has been studied.

scholarly journals Effects of Simulated Rotation on Tip Leakage in a Planar Cascade of Turbine Blades: Part I — Tip Gap Flow

1991 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. I. Yaras ◽  
S. A. Sjolander
Keyword(s):  
Flow Field ◽  
Relative Motion ◽  
Wall Motion ◽  
Turbine Blades ◽  
Pressure Probe ◽  
Tip Leakage ◽  
Gap Flow ◽  
Axial Turbines ◽  
Downstream Flow ◽  
Tip Gap Flow

The paper presents further results from a continuing study on tip leakage in axial turbines. Rotation has been simulated in a linear cascade test section by using a moving-belt tip wall. Measurements were made inside the tip gap with a three-hole pressure probe for a clearance size of 3.8 percent of the blade chord. Two wall speeds are considered and the results are compared with the case of no rotation. As in other experiments, significant reduction in the gap mass flow rate is observed due to the relative motion. The detailed nature of the measurements allows the dominant physical mechanism by which wall motion affects the tip gap flow to be identified. Based on the experimental observations, an earlier model for predicting the tip gap flow field is extended to the case of relative wall motion. Part II of the paper examines the effect of the relative motion on the downstream flow field and the blade loading.

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