Transonic Turbine Blade Tip Aero-Thermal Performance With Different Tip Gaps: Part I—Tip Heat Transfer

2010 ◽  
Author(s):  
Q. Zhang ◽  
D. O. O’Dowd ◽  
L. He ◽  
M. L. G. Oldfield ◽  
P. M. Ligrani
Keyword(s):  
Heat Transfer ◽  
Thermal Performance ◽  
High Speed ◽  
Hot Spot ◽  
Structural Characteristics ◽  
Surface Heat ◽  
Tip Leakage Flow ◽  
Surface Heat Transfer ◽  
Numerical Predictions ◽  
Blade Tip

A closely combined experimental and CFD study on a transonic blade tip aero-thermal performance at engine representative Mach and Reynolds numbers (Mexit = 1, Reexit = 1.27×106) is presented in this and its companion paper (Part II). The present paper considers surface heat transfer distributions on tip surfaces, and on suction and pressure side surfaces (near-tip region). Spatially-resolved surface heat transfer data are measured using infrared thermography and transient techniques within the Oxford University High Speed Linear Cascade research facility. The Rolls-Royce PLC HYDRA suite is employed for numerical predictions for the same tip configuration and flow conditions. The CFD results are generally in good agreement with experimental data, and show that the flow over a large portion of the blade tip is supersonic for all three tip gaps investigated. Mach numbers within the tip gap become lower as the tip gap decreases. For the flow regions near the leading edge of the tip gap, surface Nusselt numbers decrease as the tip gap decreases. Opposite trends are observed for the trailing edge region. Several ‘hot spot’ features on blade tip surfaces are attributed to enhanced turbulence thermal diffusion in local regions. Other surface heat transfer variations are attributed to flow variations induced by shock waves. Flow structure and surface heat transfer variations are also investigated numerically when a moving casing is present. The inclusion of moving casing leads to notable changes to flow structural characteristics and associated surface heat transfer variations. However, significant portions of the tip leakage flow remain transonic with clearly identifiable shock wave structures.

Transonic Turbine Blade Tip Aerothermal Performance With Different Tip Gaps—Part I: Tip Heat Transfer

2011 ◽  
Vol 133 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Q. Zhang ◽  
D. O. O’Dowd ◽  
L. He ◽  
M. L. G. Oldfield ◽  
P. M. Ligrani
Keyword(s):  
Heat Transfer ◽  
High Speed ◽  
Hot Spot ◽  
Structural Characteristics ◽  
Leading Edge ◽  
Surface Heat ◽  
Tip Leakage Flow ◽  
Surface Heat Transfer ◽  
Numerical Predictions ◽  
Blade Tip

A closely combined experimental and computational fluid dynamics (CFD) study on a transonic blade tip aerothermal performance at engine representative Mach and Reynolds numbers (Mexit=1,Reexit=1.27×106) is presented here and its companion paper (Part II). The present paper considers surface heat-transfer distributions on tip surfaces and on suction and pressure-side surfaces (near-tip region). Spatially resolved surface heat-transfer data are measured using infrared thermography and transient techniques within the Oxford University high speed linear cascade research facility. The Rolls-Royce PLC HYDRA suite is employed for numerical predictions for the same tip configuration and flow conditions. The CFD results are generally in good agreement with experimental data and show that the flow over a large portion of the blade tip is supersonic for all three tip gaps investigated. Mach numbers within the tip gap become lower as the tip gap decreases. For the flow regions near the leading edge of the tip gap, surface Nusselt numbers decrease as the tip gap decreases. Opposite trends are observed for the trailing edge region. Several “hot spot” features on blade tip surfaces are attributed to enhanced turbulence thermal diffusion in local regions. Other surface heat-transfer variations are attributed to flow variations induced by shock waves. Flow structure and surface heat-transfer variations are also investigated numerically when a moving casing is present. The inclusion of moving casing leads to notable changes to flow structural characteristics and associated surface heat-transfer variations. However, significant portions of the tip leakage flow remain transonic with clearly identifiable shock wave structures.

Linear Cascade and Wind Tunnel Development for Turbine Blade Tip Heat Transfer Investigations With and Without Film Cooling

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Sampson ◽  
Avery Fairbanks ◽  
Jacob Moseley ◽  
Phillip M. Ligrani ◽  
Hongzhou Xu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Heat Transfer ◽  
Boundary Layer ◽  
Film Cooling ◽  
Boundary Layer Thickness ◽  
Surface Heat ◽  
Heat Transfer Characteristics ◽  
Surface Heat Transfer ◽  
Linear Cascade ◽  
External Cooling ◽  
Blade Tip

Abstract Currently, there is a deficit of experimental data for surface heat transfer characteristics and thermal transport processes associated with tip gap flows, and a lack of understanding of performance and behavior of film cooling as applied to blade tip surfaces. As a result, many avenues of opportunity exist for development of creative tip configurations with innovative external cooling arrangements. Overall goals of the present investigations are to reduce cooling air requirements, and reduce thermal loading, with equivalent improvements of thermal protection and structural integrity. Described is the development of experimental facilities, including a Supersonic/Transonic Wind Tunnel and linear cascade, for investigations of surface heat transfer characteristics of transonic turbine blade tips with unique squealer geometries and innovative film cooling arrangements. Note that data from past investigations are used to illustrate some of the experimental procedures and approaches which will be employed within the investigation. Of interest is development of a two-dimensional linear cascade with appropriate cascade airfoil flow periodicity. Included are boundary layer flow bleed devices, downstream tailboards, and augmented cascade inlet turbulence intensity. The present linear cascade approach allows experimental configuration parameters to be readily varied. Tip gap magnitudes are scaled so that ratios of tip gap to inlet boundary layer thickness, ratios of tip gap to blade axial chord length, and ratios of tip gap magnitudes to blade true chord length match engine hardware configurations. Ratios of inlet boundary layer thickness to tip gap range from 3 to 5. Innovative film cooling configurations are utilized for one blade tip configuration, and scaled engine components are modelled and tested with complete external cooling arrangements. Blade tip and geometry characteristics are also considered, including squealer depth and squealer tip wall thickness. With these experimental components, results will be obtained with engine representative transonic Mach numbers, Reynolds numbers, and film cooling parameters, including density ratios, which are achieved using foreign gas injection with carbon dioxide. Transient, infrared thermography approaches will be employed to measure spatially-resolved distributions of surface heat transfer coefficients, adiabatic surface temperature, and adiabatic film cooling effectiveness.

Aerothermal Measurements and Predictions of an Intermediate Turbine Duct Turning Vane

2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin Johansson ◽  
Jonathan Mårtensson ◽  
Hans Abrahamsson ◽  
Thomas Povey ◽  
Kam Chana
Keyword(s):  
Heat Transfer ◽  
Experimental Data ◽  
High Speed ◽  
Test Facility ◽  
Spanwise Direction ◽  
Tip Leakage Flow ◽  
Current Configuration ◽  
Speed Test ◽  
Intermediate Turbine Duct ◽  
Numerical Predictions

Flow in a turbine duct is highly complex, influenced by the upstream turbine stage flow structures, including tip leakage flow and non-uniformities originating from the upstream HPT vane and rotor. The complexity of the flow makes the prediction using numerical methods difficult, hence there exists a need for experimental validation. This paper presents experimental data including both aerodynamic and heat transfer measurements within an intermediate turbine duct. These have been conducted in the Oxford Turbine Research Facility, a short duration high speed test facility enabling the use of an engine sized turbine, operating at the correct non-dimensional parameters relevant for aerodynamic and heat transfer measurements. The current configuration consists of a HPT stage and a downstream duct including a turning vane, for use in a counter rotating turbine configuration. With a stator-to-stator vane count of 32-to-24, instrumentation was installed on three adjacent intermediate turbine duct vanes and endwalls to investigate its influence. Flow phenomena such as trailing edge wakes and vortex structures from the upstream HPT vane travels through the rotor and forms an inlet condition to the intermediate turbine duct with tangential variations. Time-averaged experimental data show this effect to be distinguishable although varying in the spanwise direction. Comparisons with results from numerical predictions are included to further analyse the flow through the 1.5 stage.

Experimental and Numerical Characterization of Droplet-Induced Spreading-Splashing Transition in Surface Cooling

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Taolue Zhang ◽  
J. P. Muthusamy ◽  
Jorge Alvarado ◽  
Anoop Kanjirakat ◽  
Reza Sadr
Keyword(s):  
Heat Transfer ◽  
Heat Flux ◽  
Surface Temperature ◽  
Weber Number ◽  
High Speed ◽  
Single Phase ◽  
Surface Heat ◽  
Droplet Impingement ◽  
Surface Heat Transfer ◽  
Dry Out

The effects of droplet train impingement on spreading-splashing transition and surface heat transfer were investigated experimentally and numerically. Experimentally, a single stream of HFE-7100 droplet train was generated using a piezo-electric droplet generator with the ability to adjust parameters such as droplet impingement frequency, droplet diameter and droplet impingement velocity. A thin layer of Indium Tin Oxide (ITO) was coated on a translucent sapphire substrate, which was used as heating element. High-speed and infrared imaging techniques were employed to characterize the hydrodynamics and heat transfer of droplet train impingement. Numerically, the high frequency droplet train impingement process was simulated using ANSYS-Fluent with the Volume of Fluid (VOF) method [1]. The heat transfer process was simulated by applying constant heat flux conditions on the droplet receiving surface. Droplet-induced spreading-splashing transition behavior was investigated by increasing the droplet Weber number while holding flow rate constant. High speed crown propagation images showed that at low-Weber number (We < 400), droplet impingements resulted in smooth spreading of the droplet-induced crown. However, within the transitional droplet Weber number range (We = 400–500), fingering and splashing (i.e. emergence of secondary droplets) could be observed at the crown’s rim. At high droplet Weber number (We > 800), breakup of the crown was observed during the crown propagation process in which the liquid film behaved chaotically. Droplet-induced spreading-splashing transition phenomena were also investigated numerically. Reasonable agreement was reached between the experimental and numerical results in terms of crown morphology at different droplet Weber number values. The effects of spreading-splashing transition on surface heat transfer were also investigated at fixed flow rate conditions. Time-averaged Infrared (IR) temperature measurements indicate that heat flux-surface temperature curves are linear at low surface temperatures and before the onset of dry-out, which indicate that single phase forced convection is the primary heat transfer mechanism under those conditions. Numerical heat transfer simulations were performed within the single phase forced convection regime only. Instantaneous numerical results reveal that droplet-induced crown propagation effectively convect heat radially outward within the droplet impingement zone. Under high heat flux conditions, a sharp increase in surface temperature was observed experimentally when dry-out appeared on the heater surface. It was also found that strong splashing (We > 800) is unfavorable for heat transfer at high surface temperature due to the onset of instabilities seen in the liquid film, which leads to dry-out conditions. In summary, the results indicate that droplet Weber number is a significant factor in the spreading-splashing transition and surface heat transfer.

Effects of gap size for parallel 45 degree angled rib turbulators

2016 ◽  
Vol 26 (6) ◽  
pp. 1768-1786 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jongmyung Park ◽  
Samgyu Park ◽  
Phillip M Ligrani
Keyword(s):  
Heat Transfer ◽  
Nusselt Number ◽  
Structural Characteristics ◽  
Turbulent Transport ◽  
Surface Heat ◽  
Gap Size ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Surface Heat Transfer ◽  
Rib Turbulators ◽  
Insight Into

Purpose – Turbulent air flows within a channel with 45° angled rib turbulators on the top and bottom walls are numerically predicted using the numerical code. For the predictions, a v2-f turbulence model (velocity variance scale and elliptic relaxation factor model) is utilized. The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach – Three different rib arrangements with or without gap are investigated to present information on the effects of gap size on flow structure and heat transfer characteristics. Three-dimensional turbulent transport, and detailed flow structural characteristics are considered to provide new insight into the mechanisms which result in surface heat transfer augmentations. Findings – Compared to the baseline rib arrangement, the numerically predicted results show that the parallel ribs with gap (where the width of the gap is two times of rib height) shows the highest local Nusselt number ratios. This is a result of locally increased vorticity distributions, as well as augmented local magnitudes of mixing, secondary flows, and turbulent transport. Local transport changes are less pronounced when the gap width of gap is 0.5 times of rib height. As a result, associated local and spatially averaged Nusselt number ratios are also lower for this arrangement. Practical implications – Results will give improved heat transfer augmentation technologies. Originality/value – The present investigation provides new information and insight into flow structural characteristics in a channel with rib turbulators, both with and without gaps, especially the mechanisms which result in surface heat transfer augmentations, which are not available in any other existing numerical or experimental investigation.

Experimental and Numerical Investigation of Optimized Blade Tip Shapes—Part I: Turbine Rainbow Rotor Testing and Numerical Methods

2018 ◽  
Vol 141 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Bogdan C. Cernat ◽  
Marek Pátý ◽  
Cis De Maesschalck ◽  
Sergio Lavagnoli
Keyword(s):  
Heat Transfer ◽  
High Speed ◽  
High Performance ◽  
Numerical Data ◽  
Secondary Flows ◽  
Design Strategies ◽  
Flow Physics ◽  
Leakage Flows ◽  
Numerical Predictions ◽  
Blade Tip

Blade tip design and tip leakage flows are crucial aspects for the development of modern aero-engines. The inevitable clearance between stationary and rotating parts in turbine stages generates high-enthalpy unsteady leakage flows that strongly reduce the engine efficiency and can cause thermally induced blade failures. An improved understanding of the tip flow physics is essential to refine the current design strategies and achieve increased turbine aerothermal performance. However, while past studies have mainly focused on conventional tip shapes (flat tip or squealer geometries), the open literature suffers from a shortage of experimental and numerical data on advanced blade tip configurations of unshrouded rotors. This work presents a complete numerical and experimental investigation on the unsteady flow field of a high-pressure turbine, adopting three different blade tip profiles. The aerothermal characteristics of two novel high-performance tip geometries, one with a fully contoured shape and the other presenting a multicavity squealer-like tip with partially open external rims, are compared against the baseline performance of a regular squealer geometry. The turbine stage is tested at engine-representative conditions in the high-speed turbine facility of the von Karman Institute. A rainbow rotor is mounted for simultaneous aerothermal testing of multiple blade tip geometries. On the rotor disk, the blades are arranged in sectors operating at two different clearance levels. A numerical campaign of full-stage simulations was also conducted on all the investigated tip designs to model the secondary flows development and identify the tip loss and heat transfer mechanisms. In the first part of this work, we describe the experimental setup, instrumentation, and data processing techniques used to measure the unsteady aerothermal field of multiple blade tip geometries using the rainbow rotor approach. We report the time-average and time-resolved static pressure and heat transfer measured on the shroud of the turbine rotor. The experimental data are compared against numerical predictions. These numerical results are then used in the second part of the paper to analyze the tip flow physics, model the tip loss mechanisms, and quantify the aero-thermal performance of each tip geometry.

Experimental and Numerical Investigation of Optimized Blade Tip Shapes—Part II: Tip Flow Analysis and Loss Mechanisms

2018 ◽  
Vol 141 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Marek Pátý ◽  
Bogdan C. Cernat ◽  
Cis De Maesschalck ◽  
Sergio Lavagnoli
Keyword(s):  
Heat Transfer ◽  
High Speed ◽  
Thermal Stresses ◽  
Flow Analysis ◽  
Vortical Flow ◽  
Turbine Stage ◽  
Tip Leakage Flow ◽  
Blade Tip ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Blade Tip Geometry

The leakage flows within the gap between the tips of unshrouded rotor blades and the stationary casing of high-speed turbines are the source of significant aerodynamic losses and thermal stresses. In the pursuit for higher component performance and reliability, shaping the tip geometry offers a considerable potential to modulate the rotor tip flows and to weaken the heat transfer onto the blade and casing. Nevertheless, a critical shortage of combined experimental and numerical studies addressing the flow and loss generation mechanisms of advanced tip profiles persists in the open literature. A comprehensive study is presented in this two-part paper that investigates the influence of blade tip geometry on the aerothermodynamics of a high-speed turbine. An experimental and numerical campaign has been performed on a high-pressure turbine stage adopting three different blade tip profiles. The aerothermal performance of two optimized tip geometries (one with a full three-dimensional contoured shape and the other featuring a multicavity squealer-like tip) is compared against that of a regular squealer geometry. In the second part of this paper, we report a detailed analysis on the aerodynamics of the turbine as a function of the blade tip geometry. Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) simulations, adopting the Spalart–Allmaras turbulence model and experimental boundary conditions, were run on high-density unstructured meshes using the numecafine/open solver. The simulations were validated against time-averaged and time-resolved experimental data collected in an instrumented turbine stage specifically setup for the simultaneous testing of multiple blade tips at scaled engine-representative conditions. The tip flow physics is explored to explain variations in turbine performance as a function of the tip geometry. Denton's mixing loss model is applied to the predicted tip gap aerodynamic field to identify and quantify the loss reduction mechanisms of the alternative tip designs. An advanced method based on the local triple decomposition of relative motion is used to track the location, size and intensity of the vortical flow structures arising from the interaction between the tip leakage flow and the main gas path. Ultimately, the comparison between the unconventional tip profiles and the baseline squealer tip highlights distinct aerodynamic features in the associated gap flow field. The flow analysis provides guidelines for the designer to assess the impact of specific tip design strategies on the turbine aerodynamics and rotor heat transfer.

Effects of High Frequency Droplet Train Impingement on Crown Propagation Dynamics and Heat Transfer

2016 ◽  
Vol 138 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
J. P. Muthusamy ◽  
Taolue Zhang ◽  
Jorge Alvarado ◽  
Anoop Kanjirakat ◽  
Reza Sadr
Keyword(s):  
Heat Transfer ◽  
Numerical Simulations ◽  
High Frequency ◽  
High Speed ◽  
Numerical Data ◽  
Surface Heat ◽  
Camera System ◽  
Ansys Fluent ◽  
Surface Heat Transfer ◽  
Propagation Dynamics

The objective of this study is to investigate the hydrodynamics and heat transfer phenomena due to high frequency droplet train impingement on a pre-wetted solid surface for electronic cooling applications. The effects of crown propagation dynamics and surface heat transfer were investigated experimentally and numerically. Experimentally, a single stream of mono-dispersed HFE-7100 droplets was generated using a piezo-electric droplet generator at a frequency ( f ) of 6000 Hz with a droplet Weber number (We) of 280. Droplet-induced crater and crown were imaged using a high speed camera system. Numerically, the ANSYS Fluent CFD tool was used to simulate the droplet train impingement process. A reasonable agreement was reached between experimental and numerical data in terms of crown propagation dynamics. Numerical simulations reveal that at the instant of initial spot formation, the magnitude of droplet velocity is almost identical to the crown's radial velocity. The instantaneous temperature field obtained by numerical simulations shows that heat transfer was most effective within the crown propagation region due to the radial momentum generated by the droplets, which leads to a large velocity gradient within the liquid film. A significant increase in surface temperature was observed beyond a radial position of 500 μm. In summary, high frequency droplet impingement leads to a very small temperature gradient in the radial direction within the droplet-induced impact crater. This study will benefit in understanding the relationship between the droplet parameters and surface heat transfer for different cooling applications involving impinging droplets.

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