Unsteady surface signature of a pulsed vortex generator jet

Abstract  

Porous pressure-sensitive paint (PSP) is employed as a visualization technique for unsteady flow features on a low-pressure turbine blade. Recognizing that the measurement of high-frequency pressure fluctuations in unsteady flows—especially in turbomachinery—has proven to be difficult, recent advancements in the development of porous PSP have enabled the high-resolution measurement of pressure fields with frequency content of at least 20 kHz. In this work, PSP is applied to an L1A low-pressure turbine blade section (Re = 20,000 based on axial chord) to visualize the surface dynamics of a vortex generator jet (VGJ) pulsed at 10.6 Hz with nitrogen gas. Intensity-based, time-resolved PSP measurements reveal the development and the surface structure of the VGJ as well as the spanwise variation in the blowing profile.