A Comparison of Turbulence Levels From PIV and CTA Downstream of a Low-Pressure Turbine Cascade at High-Speed Flow Conditions

Author(s):  
Silvio Chemnitz ◽  
Reinhard Niehuis

Abstract The development and verification of new turbulence models for RANS equations based numerical methods require reliable experimental data with a deep understanding of the underlying turbulence mechanisms. High accurate turbulence measurements are normally limited to simplified test cases under optimal experimental conditions. This work presents comprehensive three-dimensional data of turbulent flow quantities, comparing advanced constant temperature anemometry (CTA) and stereoscopic particle image velocimetry (PIV) methods under realistic test conditions. The experiments are conducted downstream of a linear, low-pressure turbine cascade at engine relevant high speed operating conditions. The special combination of high subsonic Mach and low Reynolds number results in a low density test environment, challenging for all applied measurement techniques. Detailed discussions about influences affecting the measured result for each specific measuring technique is given. The presented time mean fields, as well as total turbulence data demonstrate with an average deviation of ΔTu < 0.4% and ΔC/Cref < 0.9% an extraordinary good agreement between the results from the triple sensor hot-wire probe and the 2D3C-PIV setup. Most differences between PIV and CTA can be explained by the finite probe size and individual geometry.

2020 ◽  
Vol 142 (7) ◽  
Author(s):  
Silvio Chemnitz ◽  
Reinhard Niehuis

Abstract The development and verification of new turbulence models for Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes (RANS) equation-based numerical methods require reliable experimental data with a deep understanding of the underlying turbulence mechanisms. High accurate turbulence measurements are normally limited to simplified test cases under optimal experimental conditions. This work presents comprehensive three-dimensional data of turbulent flow quantities, comparing advanced constant temperature anemometry (CTA) and stereoscopic particle image velocimetry (PIV) methods under realistic test conditions. The experiments are conducted downstream of a linear, low-pressure turbine cascade at engine relevant high-speed operating conditions. The special combination of high subsonic Mach and low Reynolds number results in a low density test environment, challenging for all applied measurement techniques. Detailed discussions about influences affecting the measured result for each specific measuring technique are given. The presented time mean fields as well as total turbulence data demonstrate with an average deviation of ΔTu&lt;0.4% and ΔC/Cref&lt;0.9% an extraordinary good agreement between the results from the triple sensor hot-wire probe and the 2D3C-PIV setup. Most differences between PIV and CTA can be explained by the finite probe size and individual geometry.


Author(s):  
Tobias Schubert ◽  
Silvio Chemnitz ◽  
Reinhard Niehuis

Abstract A particular turbine cascade design is presented with the goal of providing a basis for high quality investigations of endwall flow at high-speed flow conditions and unsteady inflow. The key feature of the design is an integrated two-part flat plate serving as a cascade endwall at part-span, which enables a variation of the inlet endwall boundary layer conditions. The new design is applied to the T106A low pressure turbine cascade for endwall flow investigations in the High-Speed Cascade Wind Tunnel of the Institute of Jet Propulsion at the Bundeswehr University Munich. Measurements are conducted at realistic flow conditions (M2th = 0.59, Re2th = 2·105) in three cases of different endwall boundary layer conditions with and without periodically incoming wakes. The endwall boundary layer is characterized by 1D-CTA measurements upstream of the blade passage. Secondary flow is evaluated by Five-hole-probe measurements in the turbine exit flow. A strong similarity is found between the time-averaged effects of unsteady inflow conditions and the effects of changing inlet endwall boundary layer conditions regarding the attenuation of secondary flow. Furthermore, the experimental investigations show, that all design goals for the improved T106A cascade are met.


1987 ◽  
Vol 109 (2) ◽  
pp. 201-209 ◽  
Author(s):  
H. P. Hodson ◽  
R. G. Dominy

The ability of a given blade profile to operate over a wide range of conditions is often of the utmost importance. This paper reports the off-design performance of a low-pressure turbine rotor root section in a linear cascade. Data were obtained using pneumatic probes and surface flow visualization. The effects of incidence (+9, 0, −20 deg), Reynolds (1.5, 2.9, 6.0 × 105), pitch-chord ratio (0.46, 0.56, 0.69), and inlet boundary layer thickness (0.011, 0.022 δ*/C) are discussed. Particular attention is paid to the three dimensionality of the flow field. Significant differences in the detail of the flow occur over the range of operating conditions investigated. It is found that the production of new secondary loss is greatest at lower Reynolds numbers, positive incidence, and the higher pitch-chord ratios.


2021 ◽  
pp. 1-12
Author(s):  
Tobias Schubert ◽  
Silvio Chemnitz ◽  
Reinhard Niehuis

Abstract A particular turbine cascade design is presented with the goal of providing a basis for high quality investigations of endwall flow at high-speed flow conditions and unsteady inflow. The key feature of the design is an integrated two-part flat plate serving as a cascade endwall at part-span, which enables a variation of the inlet endwall boundary layer conditions. The new design is applied to the T106A low pressure turbine cascade for endwall flow investigations in the High-Speed Cascade Wind Tunnel of the Institute of Jet Propulsion at the Bundeswehr University Munich. Measurements are conducted at realistic flow conditions (M2th = 0.59, Re2th = 200 000) in three cases of different endwall boundary layer conditions with and without periodically incoming wakes. The endwall boundary layer is characterized by 1DCTA measurements upstream of the blade passage. Secondary flow is evaluated by Five-hole-probemeasurements in the turbine exit flow. A strong similarity is found between the time-averaged effects of unsteady inflow conditions and the effects of changing inlet endwall boundary layer conditions regarding the attenuation of secondary flow. Furthermore, the experimental investigations show, that all design goals for the improved T106A cascade are met.


Author(s):  
M. D. Polanka ◽  
R. J. Anthony ◽  
David G. Bogard ◽  
Mark F. Reeder

Film cooling technology has been around for many decades and many significant advances in cooling effectiveness have been made at many different facilities using several different methods. A large proportion of film cooling research is successfully carried out using simplified scaled-up models in wind tunnels coupled with novel measurement techniques. These tests have been very effective in assessing basic film cooling parameters for many cooling hole geometries, patterns, and blowing ratios. In real engines, however, film cooling designs are ultimately subjected to highly unsteady 3-D secondary flows and rotational effects. Few film cooling experiments have quantified these effects on real, true scale turbine hardware in a rotating test environment. The Turbine Research Facility (TRF) at the Air Force Research Laboratory has been acquiring uncooled heat transfer measurements on full scale metallic airfoils both with and without rotation for several years. The addition of cooling flow to this type of facility has provided new capability, and new challenges. The primary two issues being that the film temperature is unknown and that the airfoil is no longer semi-infinite. This makes it more difficult to extract the adiabatic effectiveness and the heat transfer coefficient from the measurements of surface temperature and surface heat transfer since conventional methods used in most other experiments are not valid in this case. In contrast another cooling parameter, the overall effectiveness, is readily obtained from measurements of surface temperature, internal coolant temperature, and mainstream temperature. The overall effectiveness is a normalized measure of metal surface temperatures expected for actual operating conditions. It is the goal of this paper to evaluate how measurements, obtained from a transient blowdown facility like the TRF, can be used to quantify the expected performance of a film cooled turbine airfoil. Additionally, it is imperative to properly correlate these experimental results to the true engine conditions. The data required for this analysis has been collected using an array of surface mounted thermocouples and thin film gauges in a series of experiments where freestream temperatures and coolant temperatures and mass flow rates were varied. The airfoil used in this investigation was a thin walled metallic airfoil with a showerhead cooling scheme and several rows of normal holes on both the pressure and suction sides of the airfoil. The flow is typical of that seen in a modern high pressure turbine — that is an inlet Mach number of about 0.1 accelerating toward sonic at the throat with a high inlet freestream turbulence level of about 20%.


Author(s):  
Elisa Pescini ◽  
Fedele Marra ◽  
Maria Grazia De Giorgi ◽  
Luca Francioso ◽  
Antonio Ficarella

The present study intends to investigate the potentiality of the single dielectric barrier discharge plasma actuators (SDBDPAs) to reattach the separated flow, occurring at low Reynolds numbers. For this aim, a curved wall plate, which profile shape was designed to reproduce the suction surface of a low-pressure turbine (LPT) blade, was installed in the test section of a closed loop wind tunnel and a SDBDPA was placed in a groove made over it, at the front of the adverse pressure gradient region. The flow behavior in absence of actuation has been experimentally investigated by particle image velocimetry (PIV) and laser Doppler velocimetry measurements (LDV). Moreover, sinusoidal voltage excitation with amplitude of 8 kV and frequency of 2 kHz was applied to the SDBDPA and PIV measurements were also performed in presence of actuation. The applied voltage and the discharge current have also been recorded simultaneously, and they have been used for the determination of the device dissipated power. Different wind tunnel free stream velocities were investigated, both in absence and presence of actuation. The effect of the active flow control was then studied in the entire measurement domain by analyzing the velocity fields, the turbulence intensity (Tu) values, the momentum coefficient (cμ) and the boundary layer shape factor (H12). In absence of actuation, a large reverse flow and a turbulence intensity up to ≈60% was observed in the separation region. Good agreement was found between the flow results obtained by the two velocity measurement techniques. Considering the actuated cases, it was found that, in all the tested operating conditions, actuation implied a reduction of the separated region and the turbulence intensity, even if a low flow control effect was noticed at the highest tested velocity.


Author(s):  
H. P. Hodson ◽  
R. G. Dominy

The ability of a given blade profile to operate over a wide range of conditions is often of the utmost importance. This paper reports the off-design performance of a low pressure turbine rotor root section in a linear cascade. Data were obtained using pneumatic probes and surface flow visualisation. The effects of incidence (+9, 0, −20 deg.), Reynolds No. (1.5, 2.9, 6.0×105), pitch-chord ratio (0.46, 0.56, 0.69) and inlet boundary layer thickness (0.011, 0.022 δ*/C) are discussed. Particular attention is paid to the three-dimensionality of the flow field. Significant differences in the detail of the flow occur over the range of operating conditions investigated. It is found that the production of new secondary loss is greatest at the lower Reynolds numbers, positive incidence and the higher pitch-chord ratios.


Author(s):  
Nathan Fletcher ◽  
Christopher R. Marks ◽  
Molly H. Donovan

Abstract Due to the significant losses contributed by the secondary flow features, an active flow control system was implemented in a low-pressure turbine linear cascade which consisted of localized endwall jets with small mass ratios to perturb the dominant passage vortex. Benefits included significant area-averaged total pressure loss reduction and improved exit angle deviations which help to open the design envelope to application of high-lift front-loaded blades. This report looks to reveal the impact of steady and pulsed endwall blowing on the secondary flow dynamics. High-speed stereoscopic particle image velocimetry for an in-passage measurement plane was utilized to investigate the time-dependent behavior of key flow features such as the passage vortex. At baseline conditions, the passage vortex is characterized by time-varying oscillatory motion in the pitchwise direction, streamwise undulation, bursting, and fluctuating strength. Upon actuation of endwall jets, some of these defining dynamics of key flow features were greatly affected. A complementary investigation of the endwall jets mounted outside of a turbine environment in order to study the emitted structures at varying conditions was used to explain the observations found in the turbine passage. Insights into the secondary flow responsiveness demonstrated that loss reduction was realized by inducing reduced coherence of the passage vortex. Despite pulsed blowing at discrete frequencies associated with the passage vortex, there was no indication that instability excitation was exploited. Rather, the endwall jets acted as a periodic shape-change to the endwall which weakened the passage vortex and forced it closer to the suction-surface.


1987 ◽  
Vol 109 (2) ◽  
pp. 177-185 ◽  
Author(s):  
H. P. Hodson ◽  
R. G. Dominy

This paper describes an experimental study of the three-dimensional flow within a high-speed linear cascade of low-pressure turbine blades. Data were obtained using pneumatic probes and a surface flow visualization technique. It is found that in general, the flow may be described using concepts derived from previous studies of high-pressure turbines. In detail, however, there are differences. These include the existence of a significant trailing shed vortex and the interaction of the endwall fluid with the suction surface flow. At an aspect ratio of 1.8, the primary and secondary losses are of equal magnitude.


Author(s):  
Jan Philipp Heners ◽  
Stephan Stotz ◽  
Annette Krosse ◽  
Detlef Korte ◽  
Maximilian Beck ◽  
...  

Unsteady pressure fluctuations measured by fast-response pressure transducers mounted in a low-pressure turbine cascade are compared to unsteady simulation results. Three differing simulation approaches are considered, one time-integration method and two harmonic balance methods either resolving or averaging the time-dependent components within the turbulence model. The observations are used to evaluate the capability of the harmonic balance solver to predict the transient pressure fluctuations acting on the investigated stator surface. Wakes of an upstream rotor are generated by moving cylindrical bars at a prescribed rotational speed that refers to a frequency of f∼500 Hz. The excitation at the rear part of the suction side is essentially driven by the presence of a separation bubble and is therefore highly dependent on the unsteady behavior of turbulence. In order to increase the stability of the investigated harmonic balance solver, a developed Lanczos-type filter method is applied if the turbulence model is considered in an unsteady fashion.


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