Short round diffuser with a high area ratio and a permeable partition

The parameters of a short round diffuser whose channel diameter increases threefold along a length equal to about half the inlet diameter, are experimentally investigated. The absence of flow separation in this diffuser is ensured by specially selecting the channel profile and mounting a hydraulic resistance in the form of a permeable partition at the diffuser outlet. The experiments were carried out at the inlet flow Mach numbers up to 0.2. When the flow at the diffuser entry is steady, an axisymmetric flow is formed immediately downstream of the entry. The static pressure in the flow that has passed through the diffuser increases by 20% of the ram pressure at the entry. There is a possibility of optimizing the diffuser parameters.     

小型高速离心压气机级内部的三维流场分析

利用三维数值模拟技术对微型燃气轮机中的离心压气机部分进行了数值分析,得到了离心压气机设计转速下的级特性曲线和各通流部件中的流动情况。数值分析表明:设计转速下压气机的级特性非常陡峭;整个特性线范围内离心叶轮基本在亚音速情况下工作,而径向扩压器是在跨音速条件下工作,离心压气机整机的最大流量是由径向扩压器的喉部面积决定的;离心压气机级内部各通流部件之间流动的相互干扰是引起流动分离的重要原因,各通流部件之间流动的相互匹配和协调将决定了离心压气机整机的性能和稳定性。     

Sensitivity of an asymmetric 3D diffuser to plasma-actuator induced inlet condition perturbations

Experiments were conducted for the flow in a straight-walled 3D diffuser fed by a fully developed turbulent duct flow. Previous work found that this diffuser has a stable 3D separation bubble whose configuration is affected by the secondary flows in the upstream duct. Dielectric barrier discharge plasma actuators were used to produce low-momentum wall jets to determine if the separation behavior could be modified by weak forcing. Actuators producing a streamwise force along the wall where separation occurred in the baseline flow had a relatively small effect. However, spanwise acting plasma actuators that produced a pair of streamwise vortices in the inlet section of the diffuser had a strong effect on the diffuser pressure recovery. The diffuser performance could be either improved or degraded depending on the actuation parameters, including the actuator modulation frequency, duty cycle, and drive voltage. Velocity profile measurements in the diffuser inlet showed that the streamwise vortices affect the uniformity of the streamwise mean velocity accounting for some of the performance changes. However, phase-locked hotwire measurements at the diffuser exit indicate that the periodic nature of the forcing also plays an important role for cases with enhanced pressure recovery.     

Turbulent flow in a circular separationless diffuser at Reynolds numbers smaller than 2000

The results of experimental and numerical investigation of flow in a circular conical diffuser with a small conicity angle ensuring separationless flow are presented. The measurements are carried out in an air flow with the Reynolds number Re₂ in the diffuser exit section ranging from 600 to 3000. A considerable effect of the channel expansion on the flow pattern is found to exist. It is shown that, as distinct from a tube, in which only laminar flow can be realized as steady for Re < 2000, in the exit section of a diffuser with the generator slope of 0.3° and a length equal to 70 entry diameters a developed turbulent flow is formed for Re₂ > 1000. For Re₂ > 1300 this flow is steady, that is, almost independent of the turbulence level at the entry, and is determined by the Reynolds number Re₂ in the exit section. For Re₂ ≈ 1000 the turbulent flow continuously goes over into a laminar flow. The flow parameters measured at the diffuser exit correspond to calculations in accordance with the threeequation turbulence model.     

Experimental performance analysis of an annular diffuser with and without struts

In this paper, the performance analysis of an annular diffuser is presented. In a typical industrial gas turbine diffuser, a certain number of structural members, called struts, serve both as load bearings support and as passages for cooling air and lubricant oil.

Measurements were made in a 35% scaled down model of a PGT10 gas turbine exhaust diffuser with and without struts in order to determine the total and static pressure development and the effect of struts on both the local phenomena and the overall performance. More realistic flow conditions are made available by a ring of 24 axial guide vanes at inlet, which represent the last turbine rotor. The model has been tested on a wind tunnel facility developed at the University of Perugia with inlet speed around 80 m/s, allowing satisfactory accuracy for flow measurements and similarity with the PGT10 diffuser in terms of Reynolds number. Static pressure taps located at various streamwise positions on the hub and the casing allowed the estimation of pressure recovery development. A Pitot tube and a hot split-film anemometer were used to determine static and total pressure inside the diffuser at different axial positions. The comparison between the two cases, with and without the struts, was made also by the use of global parameters, which correlate static and total pressure.

In a previous paper, a detailed three-dimensional analysis of the flow path inside the diffuser was presented and the detrimental effect of the struts, in terms of flow separation and unsteadiness, was discussed. The stationary flow measurements and the investigation of the diffuser without the struts are presented in this paper. The whole research project represent a complete diffuser investigation available to develop an optimal design and to advance the computational and design tools for gas turbine exhaust diffusers.     

Heat Transfer Influenced by Turbulent Airflow Inside an Axially Rotating Diffuser

The paper presents a study of heat transfer between the turbulent airflow and the inner wall surface of an axial diffuser rotating around its longitudinal axis. Heat transfer was assessed through the measurement of a time-dependent temperature field of the diffuser inner wall surface. Measurements of the instantaneous flow velocity components were performed by a laser–Doppler anemometry system, which delivered information on mean velocity components as well as on the turbulence intensity. A significant increase of all three mean velocity components was observed near the rotating diffuser wall in comparison with a non-rotating diffuser. Temperature field measurements were carried out by means of infrared thermography. The experiment showed a significant dependence of the temperature field on the turbulent flowfield induced by diffuser rotation. A strong influence of the flow separation and reattachment on the temperature distribution was observed, while rotation was found to suppress the occurrence of flow separation from the diffuser wall. Properties of the velocity field such as turbulent kinetic energy were directly coupled with the temperature distribution in order to gain the information on how to enhance or reduce heat transfer by changing the integral parameters of the diffuser (e.g. rotation frequency or amount of flow).     

NUMERICAL STUDY OF PERIODICAL FLOWS OF PIEZOELECTRIC VALVELESS MICROPUMP FOR BIOCHIPS

IntroductionMicro-pump is one of the most important fluid-driving elements in biochips. Workingprinciple of micropumps is quite different from traditional macro-scale pumps. Currently,valveless piezoelectric micropump is one of the most popular micropumps…     

Low frequency sound generated by flow separation in a conical diffuser

The sound field in a circular pipe generated by a concentric jet flow entering the pipe is studied. In the first case the air flow enters the pipe through a convergent nozzle only. In the second case a short diffuser is attached to the nozzle. When the diffuser half angle is small enough to ensure attached flow conditions, the sound pressure level in the duct is reduced over the entire frequency range measured. When the diffuser angle is increased up to the point where flow separation occurs, an increase in the duct sound pressure level is observed. It is shown by means of cross-correlation measurements involving the unsteady wall pressures in the diffuser and the sound pressure in the duct that the increased sound levels are in fact caused by the flow separation in the diffuser.     

The structure of instantaneous reversals in highly turbulent flows

Structure of instantaneous flow reversals has been measured in a highly turbulent axisymmetric diffuser flow using pulsed-wire anemometry. In this 8° nominal included angle conical diffuser, the adverse pressure gradient (APG) is strong enough to cause appreciable instantaneous flow reversals (instantaneous backflow up to 30% of the time), but the time-averaged flow is non-separated. The results are compared with the other severe APG separating flows reported in literature. An increase in entry Reynolds number indicated a decrease in the size of near-wall instantaneous reversals region as well as a decrease in the magnitude of instantaneous backflow. Also, the region of instantaneous reversals moves slightly downstream at appreciably higher Reynolds numbers. The initiation and growth of instantaneous reversals in a conical diffuser was found to strongly influence the wall-layer and the central region. Present results also suggest that the instantaneous backflow should be considered for modelling of instantaneously-separating diffuser flows. In the final stages of a conical diffuser, the magnitudes of cross-stream pressure gradient were found to be appreciably larger than that of the longitudinal pressure gradient, indicating that accurate representation of a conical diffuser flow can not be achieved without considering V-momentum equation. A comparison of various separating flows revealed remarkable similarity of instantaneous reversals regions and distributions even in different flow configurations.     

跨超声速风洞扩散段流动分离控制设计参数研究

为抑制跨超声速风洞扩散段的分离,提出了一种较为完备的设计方法。由于影响扩散段性能的参数较多,完全通过试验方法进行设计的成本过高,该方法通过数值模拟,结合适当的边界条件,详细描述了扩散段角度、分流锥角度与长度、孔板开孔率对扩散段性能的影响;从数值模拟的结果可以看出,孔板开孔率和扩开角对扩散段性能有显著影响,通过比较得出较为合理的参数匹配,提高了扩散段的防分离性能,并改善了出口气流质量。数值结果与试验结果结论一致,表明本文所用的方法用于扩散段气动设计是可行的,为数值模拟方法应用于风洞部段气动设计创造了一定的条件。     

An experimental investigation of gas-particle flows through diffusers in the freeboard region of fluidized beds

The phenomenon of particulate loss (elutriation) from fluidized beds is important in many industrial processes. Results reported in Kale & Eaton (1984a) showed that very-wide-angle diffusers located in the freeboard above a fluidized bed substantially reduce elutriation—a result that was contrary to intuition. The present experiment was designed to explain these results. The same fluidized bed apparatus (Kale & Eaton 1984a) was used—150 mm square in cross section with a variable-angle diffuser in the freeboard region. Glass beads (nominally 50–100 μm in diameter) were fluidized by air at atmospheric pressure in the bubbling regime. Gas-phase velocity measurements were made using a single-component laser-Doppler anemometer. Four diffuser configurations (0, 20, 40 and 60° full opening angle) were studied. One set of measurements was made with the bed in place and a second set with the bed material removed. The flow structure was drastically altered by the presence of the fluidized bed below the diffuser. The single-phase flow was separated in the diffuser for the 20, 40 and 60° cases. However, the flow did not separate in the presence of the bed, and the peak fluid velocities were lower than those in the separated flow. This behavior is responsible for the decrease in the elutriation rate with increasing diffuser opening angle. A simple analysis suggests that suspended particles in the diffuser flow are responsible for the change in the flow structure. Momentum loss from the gas to the suspended particles reduces the pressure gradient, thereby eliminating the tendency to separate.     

The use of perforated plates to control the flow emerging from a wide-angle diffuser,with application to electrostatic precipitator design

The flow through a wide-angle, pyramidal diffuser of area ratio 6.8, in which two perforated plates are used to control the emergent velocity distribution was investigated. (Wide-angle diffusers combined with perforated plates find application in electrostatic precipitator flow systems. The efficacy of these systems depends critically on the uniformity of the gas flow within the collection chamber downstream of the diffuser outlet plane.) The main results of the study are (i) the establishment of the main factor influencing the flow at the diffuser exit plane, (ii) the determination of plate characteristics which produce a uniform velocity profile in the collection chamber, and (iii) the establishment of the corresponding pressure drop characteristics of the plate—diffuser combinations. The results also extend the range of diffuser geometries for which two perforated plates provide uniform velocity profiles at exit.     

Effects of swirl on flow separation and performance of wide angle diffusers

Experimental investigations have been carried out to determine whether the introduction of a circumferential velocity component can produce worthwhile improvements in the performance of, and eliminate flow separation in, wide angle conical diffusers. The swirl generator is a 24 flat-bladed, radial intake type. Systematic experimentation has been carried out for one diffuser configuration fitted with a tailpipe (16.5° and 4.4 area ratio) using varying strengths of inlet swirl and introducing the dissipated mechanical energy as the main criterion of diffuser performance. The best inlet swirl strength produced about 60% reduction of the total diffuser losses in swirl-free flow. The analysis of these results, together with information obtained from flow visualisation experiments, suggests that increasing the swirl beyond an observed threshold completely eliminated flow separation, but it also gave rise to a central zone of recirculating flow and hence additional dissipative losses. We conclude that the optimum improvement achievable in wide angle diffuser performance using swirl does not require the addition of more energy than it saves     

Inverse design of supersonic diffuser with flexible walls using a Genetic Algorithm

An efficient algorithm for the design optimization of the compressible fluid flow problem through a flexible structure is presented. The methodology has three essential parts: first the behavior of compressible flow in a supersonic diffuser was studied numerically in quasi-one-dimensional form using a flux splitting method. Second, a fully coupled sequential iterative procedure was used to solve the steady state aeroelastic problem of a flexible wall diffuser. Finally, a robust Genetic Algorithm was implemented and used to calculate the optimum shape of the flexible wall diffuser for a prescribed pressure distribution.     

Pulsating flow in a planar diffuser upstream of automotive catalyst monoliths

The flow distribution across automotive exhaust catalysts has a significant effect on their conversion efficiency. The exhaust gas is pulsating and flow distribution is a function of engine operating condition, namely speed (frequency) and load (flow rate). This study reports on flow measurements made across catalyst monoliths placed downstream of a wide-angled planar diffuser presented with pulsating flow. Cycle-resolved particle image velocimetry (PIV) measurements were made in the diffuser and hot wire anemometry (HWA) downstream of the monoliths. The ratio of pulse period to residence time within the diffuser (defined as the J factor) characterises the flow distribution. During acceleration the flow remained attached to the diffuser walls for some distance before separating near the diffuser inlet later in the cycle. Two cases with J ∼ 3.5 resulted in very similar flow fields with the flow able to reattach downstream of the separation bubbles. With J = 6.8 separation occurred earlier with the flow field resembling, at the time of deceleration, the steady flow field. Increasing J from 3.5 to 6.8 resulted in greater flow maldistribution within the monoliths; steady flow producing the highest maldistribution in all cases for the same Re.     

Lift enhancement of airfoil and tip flow control for wind turbine

Two techniques that improve the aerodynamic performance of wind turbine airfoils are described. The airfoil S809, designed specially for wind turbine blades, and the airfoil FX60-100, having a higher lift-drag ratio, are selected to verify the flow control techniques. The flow deflector, fixed at the leading edge, is employed to control the boundary layer separation on the airfoil at a high angle of attack. The multi-island genetic algorithm is used to optimize the parameters of the flow deflector. The results indicate that the flow deflector can suppress the flow separation, delay the stall, and enhance the lift. The characteristics of the blade tip vortex, the wake vortex, and the surface pressure distributions of the blades are analyzed. The vortex diffuser, set up at the blade tip, is employed to control the blade tip vortex. The results show that the vortex diffuser can increase the total pressure coefficient of the core of the vortex, decrease the strength of the blade tip vortex, lower the noise, and improve the efficiency of the blade.     

Turbulent flow in a conical diffuser: A review

This is a review of experimental studies of turbulent flow in a conical diffuser by eight Ph.D. students, eleven M.Sc. students, one M.Eng. student, and myself in the past 29 years. During this time, two conical diffusers were constructed: the first was of cast aluminum construction, and the second was of plastic fabrication. These two diffusers were basically the same in geometry except that the pipe section was constructed as an integral part of the plastic diffuser to avoid the lip at the junction of the inlet pipe and the diffuser. The conical diffuser had a total divergence angle of 8°, an area ratio of 4:1, and an inlet diameter of 0.1016 m (4 in.).

The flow at the inlet of the diffuser was usually fully developed pipe flow, but sometimes it was boundary layer grown on the pipe wall. Hot-wire and pulse-wire anemometry together with computer facilities were used to obtain the results of complex flow present in the conical diffuser. Mean velocity profiles were obtained throughout the diffuser, which in turn were used to obtain strain rates and their principal direction. Turbulence moments up to fourth order were measured. The results were used to assess momentum, turbulent kinetic energy, and shear stress equations. Other features such as instantaneous flow reversals in the wall region, relative strength of large eddies, extra strain rate, and the production of kinetic energy also were investigated to find the dynamical picture in the diffuser flow.     

采用不同黏性处理方法的宽无叶扩压器不稳定流动研究

径向无叶扩压器的全局稳定性可能受到核心主流失稳,出口回流与壁面边界层分离等因素影响,对于宽无叶扩压器,无黏核心主流与壁面边界层流动对不稳定扰动诱发的作用机理是当前研究的重点.本文首先通过数值计算获得了大宽度比孤立无叶扩压器平均流动,然后基于小扰动理论和周向均质假设,分别对欧拉方程与 Navier-Stokes 方程进行线性化,建立了基于无黏核心流动的稳定性分析方法,以及基于涡黏性与分子黏性的混合稳定性分析方法;通过与实验结果的对比,验证了混合稳定性分析方法预测所得流动失稳频率和全局直接模态的准确性;最后基于伴随方法获得了特征值的结构敏感性,揭示了不同黏性处理条件下宽无叶扩压器内全局不失稳扰动的源发区域.在只考虑核心主流的无黏条件下,宽无叶扩压器内流动不稳定扰动来源于流场中部,为二维的离心失稳;在同时考虑核心主流与边界层的作用时,宽无叶扩压器不稳定扰动不仅来源于扩压器流场中部的核心主流,壁面回流对于不稳定扰动的产生了重要影响.      

级环境下叶片扩压器流场的实验与数值研究

为了研究离心压缩机级环境下的非定常干扰的基本流动现象,并验证多级叶轮机械的CFD软件的分析能力, 对一大尺度离心压缩机的叶片扩压器流场进行了实验测量和数值计算. 实验采用了固定热线、相位锁定------系综平均技术,用常温热线风速仪对叶轮后的叶片扩压器通道内不同周向、径向和轴向位置处的非定常速度进行了测量,同时提出了非定常强度的概念,以定量考核非定常的影响.实验结果表明, 叶片扩压器内的非定常流动非常复杂,其时间周期并非叶轮叶片通过时间,随着与离心叶轮之间的距离增大,非定常扰动逐渐减弱,但一直延续到叶片扩压器的出口.另外,对该实验压缩机级开展了两个不同的数值计算,并与实验数据进行了比较：定常数值计算软件采用了作者发展的确定应力模型,非定常数值计算是用商业软件NUMECA实现的,计算采用了滑移界面技术. 两个计算结果与实验在扩压器的进口截面处吻合得很好.     

Laser velocimetry measurements in a laboratory vaned diffuser

Laser velocimetry measurements were made within a laboratory radial vaned diffuser with three different blade configurations. Measurements were made through passages with four, six and eight blades installed at off design conditions. Also, in the eight blade diffuser measurements were made between the blade passage exit and diffuser exit so that the complete secondary flow could be defined. The flow was found to separate from the blades and form large separation zones. The separation zones consisted primarily of two vortices rotating in opposite directions. At the passage exit the separation region encompassed 23% of the circumferential area for the four blade diffuser, 45% for the six blade and 40% in the eight blade diffuser. Separation occurred at 23%, 27% and 50% from the leading edge of the blades for the 4, 6 and 8 bladed diffusers, indicating that more blades better controlled the separation. Turbulence intensities ranged from approximately 5% to 15% in the primary flow and reached a few hundred percent in the secondary flow within the separation regions.