Experimental and numerical investigation of the unsteady flow field and tone generation in an isolated centrifugal fan impeller

In spite of a low circumferential Mach number the sound of isolated centrifugal fan impellers is sometimes dominated by distinctive tones at blade passing frequency (BPF) and integer multiples. This paper reports on an experimental and numerical investigation intended to unveil the tone generating mechanism. The sound spectra from three impellers operating at a large range of speed were measured and decomposed into Strouhal and Helmholtz number dependent functions. This led to the preliminary conclusion that the BPF related tones are exclusively flow-induced. Based on hot-wire and blade pressure fluctuation measurements and a subsequent correlation analysis, coherent flow structures different from those associated with the principal azimuthal flow pattern due to the blades were detected. Eventually a numerical three-dimensional unsteady flow simulation revealed an inlet vortex. It takes on a helical form, with the vortex core slowly varying its position with respect to the impeller center. As the blades cut through that quasi-stationary helical vortex they encounter blade force fluctuations, producing the BPF tones. Slow spin of the vortex core and slow variation of vortex strength were identified as the reasons for amplitude modulation of the BPF tone.     

不同叶轮形式下离心泵噪声特性对比研究

针对具有无短叶片和有短叶片两种叶轮形式的离心泵,对设计状态下离心泵内部流场进行了全三维、非定常数值模拟,对比分析了其非定常流场特性和噪声辐射特性。流场分析表明:叶轮叶片和蜗舌的相互作用造成了叶片表面强烈的压力脉动,对长短叶片的叶轮形式,在局部增加长叶片表面压力脉动的同时,短叶片表面的压力脉动保持较低水平;同时能够有效降低泵体进口压力脉动,但出口压力脉动有所增强。以叶轮叶片表面作为声源辐射面,对比分析了两种叶轮的偶极子噪声辐射特性,结果表明:长短叶片结构通过改变声能在频域上的分布,从而能有效降低总声压级。      

Numerical and experimental investigations of the unsteady aerodynamics and aero-acoustics characteristics of a backward curved blade centrifugal fan

A numerical study of the aerodynamic and aeroacoustic behaviors of a backward curved blade centrifugal fan was conducted under two important flow conditions: BEP and 1.3 × BEP. Three-dimensional numerical simulations of the complete unsteady flow field for the whole impeller-volute configuration were used to determine the aeroacoustic sources. To locate the unsteady flow and perturbations, the near field wall pressure fluctuations at different strategic points on the volute were computed using the URANS approach. Thus the intensities and positions of the aeroacoustic sources were identified by analyzing frequency spectra. The aeroacoustic sources caused by fluctuations in the interactions of the flows leaving the impeller and volute were close to the volute tongue, and the most effective noise sources related to the flow rate were near the impeller shrouds. In addition, the unsteady flow variables provided by CFD calculations were used as inputs in the Ffowcs Williams-Hawkings equation to estimate the noise tones of the fan. The aeroacoustic calculation results showed that the volute noise was much larger than the blade noise, and the noise mainly propagated from the outlet duct of the fan. Moreover, to account for the noise propagation, three calculation methods were used by applying different solid boundaries. Compared with the other methods, the FEM method, which accounted for the complex solid boundaries, produced good agreement and showed that the complex solid boundaries cannot be neglected in aeroacoustic predictions. The calculation results showed good agreement with the experimental results.     

大小叶片贯流风机内流特性分析与实验研究

为降低空调用贯流风机的噪声,改善音质,通过采用直叶片贯流风轮达到斜扭叶片贯流风轮的音质和低噪声特性,从而降低贯流风轮的制造成本,本文设计了大小叶片交错组合的新型非等距贯流风机,并采用滑动网格对其内流特性进行了非定常数值模拟,同时对其气动噪声特性进行了实验研究.大小叶片贯流风机的偏心涡基本稳定在叶轮中心与蜗舌相连的切线上,位于叶轮内圆周附近.风轮非定常运转时,偏心涡的涡核位置在直径为2mm的圆所围成的区域内变化.大小叶片交错组合的贯流风轮改变了叶轮与蜗舌的间距,有效地降低叶片通过频率噪声并改善了音质.采用大小叶片交错组合的贯流风轮能够达到斜扭叶片贯流风机的降噪效果.     

Prediction and validation of tonal noise from underwater propellers

Prediction and validation of low-frequency line spectrum noise from ship propeller under non-cavitating condition is presented.The flow field is analyzed with potential-based panel method,which requires the hydrodynamic forces to be integrated over the actual blade surface,rather than over the mean-chord surface.Then the pressure data is used as the input for Ffowcs Williams-Hawkings formulation to predict the far field acoustics.At the same time,propeller unsteady force is measured in hull-behind condition in China Large Cavitation Channel(CLCC).Line spectrum noise of the 1st blade passage frequency(BPF) of a five-bladed propeller operating in a non-uniform flow field is got according to the calculated and measured unsteady forces,in which good agreement is obtained,and the 1st BPF noise difference is within 3.0 dB.The investigation reveals that prediction precision of the propeller's 1st BPF unsteady force with panel method have reached engineering practical degree,providing significant parameters for prediction of propeller line spectrum noise.     

离心泵叶轮参数对进口回流的影响

本文对不同叶片进口角、叶片数、不同叶顶间隙的开式和闭式离心叶轮共12种叶轮的进口流场和回流发生情况进行了探针的动态测试和可视化观察．弄清了上述叶轮参数对进口回流初始流量和进口流场的影响．     

共轴双旋翼悬停状态气动噪声特性分析

结合CFD(Computational fluid dynamics)方法和FW-H(Ffowcs Williams-Hawkings)方程,建立了一套适合于悬停状态下共轴刚性双旋翼气动噪声特性计算方法。为了准确模拟共轴旋翼流场的涡干扰现象和非定常特性,基于运动嵌套网格技术与双时间推进方法,采用积分形式的可压雷诺平均Navier-Stokes(RANS)方程作为双旋翼非定常流场求解控制方程,湍流模型选用Baldwin-Lomax模型。通过Farassat 1A公式计算双旋翼气动噪声特性,每个声源微面的位置和载荷信息直接从桨叶表面网格中获取。然后,对水平面内和竖直面内观测点处共轴双旋翼厚度噪声、载荷噪声和总噪声的声压时间历程和频谱特性做了细致对比。模拟结果表明:上旋翼和下旋翼反向旋转的特点对声压时间历程影响显著,不同方向观察点的声压波形峰值对应的相位不同;共轴旋翼流场中存在的文丘里效应、桨-涡干扰现象以及下洗流的作用使得桨叶气动载荷呈现明显的非定常特征,导致共轴双旋翼的载荷噪声辐射强度较大;在低频段,总噪声受厚度噪声主导,而在高频段则受载荷噪声主导。      

Effect of blade wrap angle on efficiency and noise of small radial fan impellers—A computational and experimental study

Radial impellers have several technical applications. Regarding their aerodynamic performance, they are well optimized nowadays, but this is in general not true regarding acoustics. This work was therefore concerned with analyzing the flow structures inside isolated radial impellers together with the far-field sound radiated from them in order to optimize the aerodynamic and acoustic performance. Both numerical and experimental techniques were applied in order to study the effect of varying wrap angle and otherwise identical geometric configuration on aerodynamics and acoustics of the radial impellers. The results give a detailed insight into the processes leading to sound generation in radial impellers. Measurements were performed using laser Doppler anemometry for the flow field and microphone measurements to analyze the radiated noise. In addition, unsteady aerodynamic simulations were carried out to calculate the compressible flow field. An acoustic analogy was employed to compute far-field noise. Finally, the phenomena responsible for tonal noise and the role of the wrap angle could be identified. Using this knowledge, design guidelines are given to optimize the impeller with respect to the radiated noise. This work shows that improved aerodynamic efficiency for isolated impellers does not automatically lead to a smaller flow-induced sound radiation.     

船舶无空泡螺旋桨非定常推力脉动及其诱导线谱噪声分析

对船舶无空泡螺旋桨非定常推力脉动及其诱导的线谱噪声进行了研究,主要目的在于螺旋桨非定常推力脉动理论预报方法的验证。基于速度势面元法计算得到非均匀流场中无空泡螺旋桨的推力脉动,在大型循环水槽中利用非定常动力仪测试得到全附体船后螺旋桨的脉动推力,以脉动推力作为声源项预报得远场线谱噪声。一阶叶频非定常推力系数理论计算值与试验值最大相差29.3%,由此引起的线谱噪声差别为3.0 dB。上述结果表明,面元法预报船后螺旋桨非定常推力脉动已达到较高精度,为船舶螺旋桨低频线谱噪声的预报提供了物理基础和重要参数。      

Experiments on the unsteady flow field and noise generation in a centrifugal pump impeller

This paper reports on an experimental investigation of large-scale flowfield instabilities in a pump rotor and the process of noise generation by these instabilities. Measurements of the fluctuating components of velocity and surface pressure were made with hot-wire probes and surface mounted pressure transducers on a seven bladed back swept centrifugal water pump impeller operating with air as the working fluid. The impeller was operated without a volute or scroll diffuser, thereby eliminating any sound generation from pressure fluctuations on the volute cutoff. Thus the study focused on flow field and noise components other than the blade passage frequency (and its harmonics). The primary goal of the study was to provide fundamental information on the unsteady flow processes, particularly those associated with the noise generation in the device. It was further anticipated that detailed flow measurements would be useful for the validation of future computational simulations.The measured data at the discharge show a jet-wake type of flow pattern which results in a strong vorticity field. The flow with high velocity found on the pressure side of the impeller tends to move to the low-pressure region present at the suction side of the passage as a form of roll-up around the blade trailing edge. This motion causes an unsteady flow separation at the suction side of the blade and consequently disturbs the flow in the adjacent passage. By interacting with the impeller blades near the trailing edges, this instability flow causes a periodic pressure fluctuation on the blade surface and generates noise by a trailing edge generation mechanism. The spectrum of surface pressure measured at the trailing edge of each blade reveals a cluster of peaks which were identified with azimuthal mode numbers. The correlation between the acoustic farfield pressure and the surface pressure on the impeller blade has proven that the azimuthal modes synchronized with the number of impeller blades generate noise much more efficiently than the other modes. The paper also clarifies the correlation between unsteady flowfield measurements, in both impeller and laboratory co-ordinates, with the radiated noise properties. Thus some light is shed on the noise generation mechanisms of this particular device.     

An unsteady aerodynamic formulation for efficient rotor tonal noise prediction

An aerodynamic/aeroacoustic solution methodology for predction of tonal noise emitted by helicopter rotors and propellers is presented. It is particularly suited for configurations dominated by localized, high-frequency inflow velocity fields as those generated by blade–vortex interactions. The unsteady pressure distributions are determined by the sectional, frequency-domain Küssner–Schwarz formulation, with downwash including the wake inflow velocity predicted by a three-dimensional, unsteady, panel-method formulation suited for the analysis of rotors operating in complex aerodynamic environments. The radiated noise is predicted through solution of the Ffowcs Williams–Hawkings equation. The proposed approach yields a computationally efficient solution procedure that may be particularly useful in preliminary design/multidisciplinary optimization applications. It is validated through comparisons with solutions that apply the airloads directly evaluated by the time-marching, panel-method formulation. The results are provided in terms of blade loads, noise signatures and sound pressure level contours. An estimation of the computational efficiency of the proposed solution process is also presented.     

气冷涡轮级叶栅非定常流场数值模拟

采用具有三阶精度TVD性质的有限差分格式、自由型曲面网格技术、分区算法以及双时间步长的方法,对某型涡轮级叶栅流场进行了非定常NS方程数值求解,考察了在有、无冷气喷射条件下涡轮级气动性能的非定常变化。结果表明,上游静叶栅是否喷射冷气对下游动叶栅超音速区域的影响具有明显的区别,有冷气喷射时动叶栅前缘气动负荷降低,级效率下降约1%,但是不同动叶通道内气动性能随时间周期性变化的幅度明显减小了。     

A computational study of the interaction noise from a small axial-flow fan

Small axial-flow fans used for computer cooling and many other appliances feature a rotor driven by a downstream motor held by several cylindrical struts. This study focuses on the aerodynamic mechanism of rotor-strut interaction for an isolated fan. The three-dimensional, unsteady flow field is calculated using FLUENT, and the sound radiation predicted by acoustic analogy is compared with measurement data. Striking differences are found between the pressure oscillations in various parts of the structural surfaces during an interaction event. The suction surface of the blade experiences a sudden increase in pressure when the blade trailing edge sweeps past a strut, while the process of pressure decrease on the pressure side of the blade is rather gradual during the interaction. The contribution of the latter towards the total thrust force on the structure is cancelled out significantly by that on the strut. In terms of the acoustic contributions from the rotor and strut, the upstream rotor dominates and this feature differs from the usual rotor-stator interaction acoustics in which the downstream part is responsible for most of the noise. It is therefore argued that the dominant interaction mechanism is potential flow in nature.     

使用多孔蜗舌的贯流风机

将贯流风机的蜗舌替代为多孔板与容腔组合的结构,定性地研究其控制气动噪声的可行性。通过对气动特性和辐射声信号的实验测量,结合内部流场的非稳态雷诺平均数值模拟,分析了这种蜗舌改造对贯流风机的整体特性和内部流动特征的影响,结果表明多孔蜗舌对贯流风机的压力-流量曲线作用并不明显,但对风机的噪声有着重要的影响,改变蜗舌迎风面的穿孔率可以有效地控制贯流风机的噪声。     

伴流场中对转桨空化初生的判定与辐射噪声预报和校验

采用空化多相流瞬态模拟和边界元数值声学计算相结合的混合方法,预报了全附体假尾后对转桨在初生空化状态下的线谱和宽带谱噪声,分析了初生空化状态下对转桨噪声谱级相对于无空化状态的增量,提出了同时从流场与声场角度判定对转桨空化初生的四个充分条件。预报值与空泡水筒噪声测量值进行了比较。多相流瞬态模拟包括非定常雷诺时均模拟、尺度适应模拟和分离涡模拟三种方法。计算结果表明,在大范围进速系数范围内预报对转桨敞水性能曲线与测量值吻合很好。尺度适应模拟(SAS)和分离涡模拟(DES)在捕捉对转桨空化脉动压力时精度相当,均能满足非定常负载噪声预报的精度要求;雷诺时均模拟(URAN S)仅对于低频负载噪声来说基本适用。空泡体积脉动诱导线谱噪声在800 Hz处的预报误差小于4 dB;在800 Hz^3 kHz频段内,预报得到1/3oct中心频率处谱级的平均误差小于1.5 dB,总声级预报误差小于2.4 dB。空化初生的充分条件为:空化面积与桨盘面面积的比值小于2%、积分力和叶梢截面压力系数分布较无空化状态基本不变且中高频段噪声谱级增加8~10 dB。较好地解决了伴流场中对转桨空化初生判定和初生空化状态下辐射噪声预报的两个技术难题,可直接服务于高速、低噪声鱼雷的设计研发。      

宽弦高速跨音风扇颤振特性研究

颤振是航空发动机、燃气轮机等运行安全的重要威胁,但颤振稳定性与流动结构之间的关系尚不清晰。本文使用行波法和影响系数法,对某宽弦复合掠型高速跨音风扇转子的一阶模态进行了颤振特性研究,计算了在100%转速下从堵塞点到近失速点的颤振表现。使用影响系数法时,分析了不同通道数的计算域对气动阻尼计算的影响,并与行波法得到的结果进行了对比。研究了流动结构与叶片表面气动阻尼之间的关系,旨在提高对流动致颤机理的认识。结果表明影响系数法和行波法均能对叶片的气动阻尼进行较好的预测;流动结构方面,激波、激波附面层分离、叶尖泄漏流以及吸力面前缘叶顶附近的非定常压力波动,对叶片的气动阻尼分布有较大的影响。     

离心压气机叶轮的"可控涡"设计及其CFD比较分析

根据准三维气动没计方法,用Bezier曲线构造叶轮子午流道,样条曲线控制环量沿子午面流线的分布规律,气动设计离心式叶轮。通过CFD数值模拟对设计叶轮性能分析比较,结果表明利用准三维设计与三维流动分析相结合的途径是一种比较方便实用的设计方法,且控制参数(环量)的给定未必一定受库塔条件的限制。     

Nature of inlet turbulence and strut flow disturbances and their effect on turbomachinery rotor noise

Results of an investigation in which turbomachinery rotor sound spectra were correlated with aerodynamic measurements of the inlet turbulence, strut wake, and vortex flow strengths are reported. Aerodynamic measurements included mean velocity profiles, turbulence intensity, and axial length scales. Inlet turbulence data indicate that the major effect of flow contraction appears to be the elongation of turbulent eddies. Eddies of this size dominate the blade passing frequency (BPF) tones. Decreasing eddy size by use of a grid revealed vortex flow strength to be the second major sound source. A doubling of vortex flow strength produced a 6 dB increase in the SPL of the first BPF. The sound pressure level showed less than a 2 dB change with doubling of strut wake turbulence intensity or velocity defect. A discussion of the relative importance of various sources of noise due to flow non-uniformities at the inlet is given.     

NREL PhaseⅥ叶片气动性能数值分析

本文采用CFD软件包FINE~(TM)/Turbo,以两叶片NREL Phase Ⅵ风力机的风轮为对象,进行风轮三维绕流的定常黏性数值分析研究.详细对比了计算结果与实验数据,包括功率、叶片展向五个截面压力系数分布及沿展向载荷系数分布,并分析了三维黏性流场流动细节.结果显示在大部分风速条件下数值模拟可以很好地预估风力机气动性能,在所有计算风速条件下均能够较好地模拟叶片表面的压力分布和展向载荷分布.在失速条件下对根部大分离区的模拟有偏差.     

Effect of cutter geometric configuration on aerodynamic noise generation in face milling cutters

Aerodynamic noise spectrum of rotary face milling cutters consists of a broad range of high frequencies and discrete tones. This paper aims to develop a method to calculate the aerodynamic noise generation and propagation by rotary face milling cutters. The effects of milling cutter geometry on the generation of aerodynamic noise are analyzed. Based on the computational fluid dynamics (CFD) method, the Ffowcs Williams–Hawkings (FW–H) equation is used to predict the sound pressure level (SPL) of aerodynamic noise in face milling cutters. The accurate calculation of time-varying flow variables along with the rotation of cutter is very important for the prediction of aerodynamic noise. In this case, the Navier–Stokes (N–S) equation is employed to evaluate the pressure and velocity fields around the milling cutters, first in a steady mode with the Multiple Reference Frames (MRF) model, and then in an unsteady mode with sliding mesh technique (SMT) by introducing the steady flow variables as its initial fields. It is found that both the overall aerodynamic noise due to the entire cutter and the aerodynamic noise only due to the cutter gullet regions are significantly affected by the number of cutter teeth/gullet regions. Moreover, six representative milling cutters with different tooth numbers and geometries of gullet regions are chosen to study the effects of gullet configuration on aerodynamic noise generation, and the characteristics of noise spectra generated by the cutters are analyzed. The aerodynamic noise generated only by the cutter gullet regions is found to be strongly dependent on the gullet design-volume and shape. The results also reveal that the gullet design advantage of Cutter C in reducing noise generation among the eight-tooth designs, and the gullet design advantage of Cutter A in reducing noise generation among the five and seven-tooth designs in this investigation.