Dynamic Stall Inception and Evolution Process Measured by High-Frequency PIV System in Low Specific Speed Impeller

Stall in centrifugal pumps is a complicated flow phenomenon, which is detrimental to the pumps' safety and stable operation. Using a high-frequency PIV system (f=10k Hz) and a bench-scale refractive index matching experimental setup, two measurement methods are introduced to observe the dynamic stall inception and evolution. In the first method, the flow rate was continuously reduced at an interval of 0.005Qd and the experiment was carried out under stable flow rate condition. It shows the flow adjacent to the blade suction side gradually evolved from the flow separation into a broken vortex. The stall vortex moved toward the impeller's inlet and continuously grew, and resulted in significant changes in the main flow direction at the channel inlet. The formation and development of the other vortex structures in channel were closely related to the stall vortex at the inlet. The second method is the dynamic flow rate measurement and the results show that the stall is not caused by the increase in the relative inflow angle. It was obtained that the velocity value in the stall channel near the suction side rapidly decreased; however in the non-stall channel, the velocity value increased at the channel inlet. By analyzing the velocity distribution in both flow channels before and after the stall, the mechanism of alternating stall is well explained. Meanwhile, it was obtained that the stall was more likely to originate from the flow separation near the blade suction side for low specific speed impeller

Anti-icing hot air jet heat transfer augmentation employing inner channels

Many approaches exist today that employ hot-air from aircraft compressor bleed for anti-icing critical aircraft surfaces. This paper introduces and numerically analyzes the novel application of an inner or etched channel to augment heat transfer from a hot-air jet impinging on a curved surface representing the inner surface of an aircraft wing’s leading edge or slat. The study shows that proper positioning, geometry, and flow characteristics of a channel along the inner surface of the leading edge can significantly enhance heat transfer, boost the anti-icing system performance, and greatly enhance flight safety during critical icing weather conditions. Commercially available CFD software, ANSYS Fluent is used to model and analyze the effect of different geometric and flow parameters typical of those found in small to medium category commercial transport aircraft to help determine the optimum arrangement. These parameters include: (1) jet nozzle height-to-slot diameter ratios from 4 to 8, (2) channel width-to-slot diameter ratios from 0.4 to 1.8, and (3) inner-channel inlet location angles from 10° to 60°. Each configuration resulting from a combination of the above parameters was simulated at Reynolds numbers based on jet-slot diameter of 30,000, 60,000, and 90,000. Empirical relations based on available experimental data are used to validate the results. The main findings of the study reveal that the jet height-to-slot diameter ratio of 6, inner channel height-to-slot diameter ratios of 1.8, and inner-channel inlet angular locations of 10° combination resulted in the highest heat transfer at all Reynolds number as well as higher at increased Reynold numbers.

Development Length of Fluids Modelled by the gPTT Constitutive Differential Equation

In this work, we present a numerical study on the development length (the length from the channel inlet required for the velocity to reach 99% of its fully-developed value) of a pressure-driven viscoelastic fluid flow (between parallel plates) modelled by the generalised Phan–Thien and Tanner (gPTT) constitutive equation. The governing equations are solved using the finite-difference method, and, a thorough analysis on the effect of the model parameters α and β is presented. The numerical results showed that in the creeping flow limit (Re=0), the development length for the velocity exhibits a non-monotonic behaviour. The development length increases with Wi. For low values of Wi, the highest value of the development length is obtained for α=β=0.5; for high values of Wi, the highest value of the development length is obtained for α=β=1.5. This work also considers the influence of the elasticity number.

Optimal Control of Colloidal Trajectories in Inertial Microfluidics Using the Saffman Effect

In inertial microfluidics colloidal particles in a Poiseuille flow experience the Segré-Silberberg lift force, which drives them to specific positions in the channel cross section. An external force applied along the microchannel induces a cross-streamline migration to a new equilibrium position because of the Saffman effect. We apply optimal control theory to design the time protocol of the axial control force in order to steer a single particle as precisely as possible from a channel inlet to an outlet at a chosen target position. We discuss the influence of particle radius and channel length and show that optimal steering is cheaper than using a constant control force. Using a single optimized control-force protocol, we demonstrate that even a pulse of particles spread along the channel axis can be steered to a target and that particles of different radii can be separarted most efficiently.

Airflow Characteristics During the Rotor Spun Composite Yarn Spinning Process

Rotor spun composite yarn shows compound performances when combined with staple fibres and filaments, such as excellent hand feeling as well as extreme elasticity and strength. Air characteristics including pressure and speed are critical factors of the rotor spun composite yarn spinning process. In this paper, air flow characteristics in a rotor composite yarn spinning unit are simulated and analysed by Ansys, and then verified by experiments. The results show that with the same spinning conditions, static pressure within the filament guide tube is lowest: -9 kPa and in rotor around -5 kPa. The speed of the airstream accelerates from the transfer channel inlet to the outlet, and reaches the largest value of 386 m/s at the outlet. As the rotor speed increases, the airflow velocity increases; the static pressure decreases; the breaking strength and CV of the composite yarn increase, and the breaking elongation and hairiness decrease according to the experiment results.

Effects of a Circumferential Feed-Back Channel on Aerodynamic Performance of a Single-Stage Transonic Axial Compressor

This paper presents an investigation of a circumferential feed-back channel located on shroud surface in rotor domain to find its effects on aerodynamic performance of a single-stage axial compressor, NASA Stage 37, using three-dimensional Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes equations. Validation of numerical results was performed using experimental data for both of single rotor and single-stage compressors. A parametric study of the feed-back channel was performed using various geometric parameters related to the locations and shapes of the channel inlet and outlet. The numerical results showed that a reference circumferential feed-back channel increased the stall margin by 26.8% with 0.14% reduction in the peak adiabatic efficiency, compared to the case without the feed-back channel.

Combined Experimental and Numerical Studies of Multi-Channel Inlet Design for Ocean Basin

Multiple-channel inlet design is commonly used in artificial ocean basins for improving the uniformity of current flows in horizontal direction, as well as for the generation of uniform or sheared currents in vertical direction. However, boundary layers developing along the walls between the channels result in lower velocities after the fluid leaves the ducts and enters the basin, which is undesired. To reduce the effects of the boundary layers and increase the flow uniformity at the basin inlet, the present work aims to improve the inlet design. Experimental study are performed in a wind tunnel at wind velocity of 20 m/s. To simulate the walls, a Perspex plate with thickness of 20mm is fixed at the center of wind tunnel test section. A triangle end tip with tip angle of 7° is attached to the training edge of the plate. Four configurations of honeycombs are applied to study the effects of honeycombs on the flow uniformity. Among the four configurations, honeycomb with thickness t = 50 mm and cell size dg = 5 mm is used as bench mark case. In the second and third configurations, the thickness of vertical central 80mm region is reduced to be 25 mm. In the fourth configuration, the central region is then replaced by honeycomb with thickness of 50mm, but with cell size of 10mm. The experimental results show the possibility to eliminate the lower velocity region by using shaped honeycomb or honeycomb with various cell sizes. With the experimental results as validation, the honeycomb configuration is then optimized using numerical simulation with OpenFoam.

Rotor spinning transfer channel design optimization via computational fluid dynamics

The conventional rotor spinning unit generates flow vortices in the transfer channel upstream region which affect the fiber configuration and consequently yarn properties. Geometry and spinning parameters such as transfer channel length, inlet width, rotor outlet pressure, opening roller speed, and diameter were found to be key parameters influencing airflow characteristics. To reduce the flow vortices in the upper stream region, modifications of the transfer channel were proposed, and their airflow fields were analyzed using computational fluid dynamics. Three designs were studied: a round transfer channel inlet, a bypass channel for extra air supply, and one with both the bypass and the round inlet. Analysis of airflow revealed that the design with both round transfer channel inlet and a bypass proved to be very effective in properly directing the flow and minimizing vortices. The design was also characterized by smoother velocity streamlines and maximum mass flow across the transfer channel. A conventional rotor spinning unit was modified in which a round transfer channel inlet corner and a bypass channel were utilized to conduct the experimental tests. Three sets of yarn samples were produced using the conventional and modified rotor spinning units under different rotor speed conditions. Yarn properties were tested. Properties such as tenacity, CVm%, and thin and thick places of the spun yarns produced by the new design improved compared to that of the conventional yarn.