Large Eddy Simulation of Bypass Transition in Vane Passage With Freestream Turbulence

High Reynolds flow over a nozzle guide-vane with elevated inflow turbulence was simulated using wall-resolved large eddy simulation (LES). The simulations were undertaken at an exit Reynolds number of 0.5 × 106 and inflow turbulence levels of 0.7% and 7.9% and for uniform heat-flux boundary conditions corresponding to the measurements of Varty and Ames (2016, “Experimental Heat Transfer Distributions Over an Aft Loaded Vane With a Large Leading Edge at Very High Turbulence Levels,” ASME Paper No. IMECE2016-67029). The predicted heat transfer distribution over the vane is in excellent agreement with measurements. At higher freestream turbulence, the simulations accurately capture the laminar heat transfer augmentation on the pressure surface and the transition to turbulence on the suction surface. The bypass transition on the suction surface is preceded by boundary layer streaks formed under the external forcing of freestream disturbances which breakdown to turbulence through inner-mode secondary instabilities. Underneath the locally formed turbulent spot, heat transfer coefficient spikes and generally follows the same pattern as the turbulent spot. The details of the flow and temperature fields on the suction side are characterized, and first- and second-order statistics are documented. The turbulent Prandtl number in the boundary layer is generally in the range of 0.7–1, but decays rapidly near the wall.

Evaluation of Turbulent Spot Production Rate in Boundary Layers Under Variable Pressure Gradients for Gas Turbine Applications

The paper presents several results from an experimental data base on transitional boundary layers developing on a flat plate installed within a variable area opening endwall channel. Measurements have been carried out by means of time-resolved particle image velocimetry (PIV). The overall test matrix spans three Reynolds numbers, four freestream turbulence intensity levels, and four different flow pressure gradients. For each condition, 16,000 instantaneous flow fields have been acquired in order to obtain high statistical accuracy. The flow parameters have been varied in order to provide a gradual shift of the mode of transition from a by-pass process to separated flow transition. In order to quantify the influence of the flow parameter variation on the boundary layer transition process, the transition onset and end positions, and the turbulent spot production rate have been evaluated with a wavelet-based intermittency detection technique for every condition exhibiting a complete transition process. The by-pass transition mode has the longest transition length that decreases with increasing the Reynolds number. The transition length of the separated flow case is smaller than the by-pass one, and the variation of the flow parameters has a similar impact. The variation of the inlet turbulence intensity has a small influence on this parameter except for the condition at the highest turbulence intensity that always shows the lowest turbulent spot production rate because a by-pass type transition occurs. This large amount of data has been used to develop new correlations used to predict the spot production rate and the transition length in attached and separated flows.

Large Eddy Simulation of Bypass Transition in Vane Passage With Freestream Turbulence

High Reynolds flow over a nozzle guide-vane with elevated inflow turbulence was simulated using wall-resolved large eddy simulation (LES). The simulations were undertaken at an exit Reynolds number of 0.5×106 and inflow turbulence levels of 0.7% and 7.9% and for uniform heat-flux boundary conditions corresponding to the measurements of (Varty, J. W., and Ames, F. E., 2016, ASME Paper No. IMECE2016-67029). The predicted heat transfer distribution over the vane is in excellent agreement with measurements. At higher freestream turbulence, the simulations accurately capture the laminar heat transfer augmentation on the pressure surface and the transition to turbulence on the suction surface. The bypass transition on the suction surface is preceded by boundary layer streaks formed under the external forcing of freestream disturbances which breakdown to turbulence through inner mode secondary instabilities. Underneath the locally formed turbulent spot, heat transfer coefficient spikes and generally follows the same pattern as the turbulent spot. The details of the flow and temperature fields on the suction side are characterized and first and second order statistics are documented. The turbulent Prandtl number in the boundary layer is generally in the range of 0.7–1, but decays rapidly near the wall.

Evaluation of Turbulent Spot Production Rate in Boundary Layers Under Variable Pressure Gradients for Gas Turbine Applications

The paper presents an experimental data base on transitional boundary layers developing on a flat plate installed within a variable area opening endwall channel. Measurements have been carried out by means of time-resolved PIV. The overall test matrix spans 3 Reynolds numbers, 4 free-stream turbulence intensity levels and 4 different flow adverse pressure gradients. For each condition, 16000 instantaneous flow fields have been acquired in order to obtain high statistical accuracy. The flow parameters have been varied in order to provide a gradual shift of the mode of transition from a bypass process occurring with mild adverse pressure gradients at high free-stream turbulence, to separated flow transition, occurring with low Reynolds number, low free-stream turbulence intensity and elevated adverse pressure gradient. In order to quantify the influence of the flow parameter variation on the boundary layer transition process, the transition onset and end positions, and the turbulent spot production rate have been evaluated with a wavelet based intermittency detection technique. This post-processing technique is in fact able to identify the vortical structures developing within the boundary layer, the intermittency function is then automatically evaluated for each tested condition counting the number of such structures and defining the cumulative probability function. The by-pass transition mode has the longest transition length that decreases with increasing the Reynolds number. The transition length of the separated flow case is smaller than the by-pass one, and the variation of the flow parameters has a similar impact. Similarly, the dimensionless turbulent spot production rate reduces when the Reynolds number is increasing. The variation of the inlet turbulence intensity has a small influence on this parameter except for the condition at the highest turbulence intensity, that always shows the lowest turbulent spot production rate because a by-pass type transition occurs. This large amount of data has been used to develop new correlations used to predict the spot production rate and the transition length in attached and separated flows.

Correlations for the Prediction of Intermittency and Turbulent Spot Production Rate in Separated Flows

Experimental data describing laminar separation bubbles developing under strong adverse pressure gradients, typical of ultra-high-lift turbine blades, have been analyzed to define empirical correlations able to predict the main features of the separated flow transition. Tests have been performed for three different Reynolds numbers and three different free-stream turbulence intensity levels. For each condition, around 4000 particle image velocimetry (PIV) snapshots have been acquired. A wavelet-based intermittency detection technique, able to identify the large scale vortices shed as a consequence of the separation, has been applied to the large amount of data to efficiently compute the intermittency function for the different conditions. The transition onset and end positions, as well as the turbulent spot production rate, are evaluated. Thanks to the recent advancements in the understanding on the role played by Reynolds number and free-stream turbulence intensity on the dynamics leading to transition in separated flows, guest functions are proposed in the paper to fit the data. The proposed functions are able to mimic the effects of Reynolds number and free-stream turbulence intensity level on the receptivity process of the boundary layer in the attached part, on the disturbance exponential growth rate observed in the linear stability region of the separated shear layer, as well as on the nonlinear later stage of completing transition. Once identified the structure of the correlation functions, a fitting process with own and literature data allowed us to calibrate the unknown constants. Results reported in the paper show the ability of the proposed correlations to adequately predict the transition process in the case of separated flows. The correlation for the spot production rate here proposed extends the correlations proposed in literature for attached (by-pass like) transition process, and could be used in γ–Reϑ codes, where the spot production rate appears as a source term in the intermittency function transport equation.