Tomohiko Jimbo

A High-Order LES Turbulent Model to Study Unsteady Flow Characteristics in a High Pressure Turbine Cascade

In this work, unsteady viscous flow analysis around turbine blade cascade using a High-Order LES turbulent model is carried out to investigate basic physical process involved in the pressure loss mechanism. This numerical analysis is assessed to the wind tunnel cascade test. Basically, all the physical phenomena occurring in nature are the effect of some cause, and the effect can somehow be measured. However, to understand the cause, detail information regarding the visualization of the phenomena, which are difficult to measure, are necessary. Therefore, in our work, firstly the computed results are compared with the measured data, which are the final outcome of the cause (of the phenomena under investigation), to verify whether our physics-based model could qualitatively predict the measured facts or not. It was found that the present model could well predict measured data. Therefore, the rest of the computed information, which were difficult to measure, were used to visualize the overall flow behavior for acquiring some knowledge of the physical process associated with the pressure loss mechanism. Our study led to an understanding that the interaction of the vortex generated on the suction and pressure surface of the blade and the secondary vortex generated on the end-wall, downstream the trailing edge resulted in the formation of a large vortex structure in this region. This unsteady three-dimensional flow characteristic is expected to play an important role in the pressure loss mechanism.Copyright

Studies on Characteristic Frequency and Length Scale of Shock Induced Motion in Transonic Diffuser Using a High Order LES Approach

Unsteady transonic flows in diffuser have become increasingly important, because of its application in new propulsion systems. In the development of supersonic inlet, air breathing propulsion systems of aircraft and missiles, detail investigations of these types of flow behavior are very much essential. In these propulsion systems, naturally present self-sustaining oscillations, believed to be equivalent to dynamically distorted flow fields in operational inlets, were found under all operating conditions. The investigations are also relevant to pressure oscillations known to occur in ramjet inlets in response to combustor instabilities. The unsteady aspects of these flows are important because the appearance of undesirable fluctuations generally impose limitation on the inlet performance. Test results of ramjet propulsion systems have shown undesirable high amplitude pressure fluctuations caused by the combustion instability. The pressure fluctuations originated from the combustor extend forward into the inlet and interact with the diffuser flow-field. Depending on different parameters such as the diffuser geometry, the inlet/exit pressure ratio, the flow Mach number, different complicated phenomena may occur. The most important characteristics are the occurrence of shock induced separation, the length of separation region downstream of the shock location, and the oscillation of shock location as well as the oscillation of the whole downstream flow. Sajben experimentally investigated in detail the time mean and unsteady flow characteristics of supercritical transonic diffuser as a function of flow Mach number upstream the shock location and diffuser length. The flows exhibited features similar to those in supersonic inlets of air-breathing propulsion systems of aircraft. A High-order LES turbulence model developed by the author is assessed with experimental data of Sajben on the self-excited shock oscillation phenomena. The whole diffuser model configuration including the suction slot located at certain axial location around the bottom and side walls to remove boundary layer, are included in the present computation model. The time-mean and unsteady flow characteristics in this transonic diffuser as a function of flow Mach number and diffuser length are investigated in detail. The results of study showed that in the case of shock-induced separation flow, the length and thickness of the reverse flow region of the separation-bubble change, as the shock passed through its cycle. The instabilities in the separated layer, the shock /boundary layer interaction, the dynamics of entrainment in the separation bubble, and the interaction of the travelling pressure wave with the pressure fluctuation region caused by the step-like structure of the suction slot play very important role in the shock-oscillation frequency.Copyright

Studies on Flow Transition Under Simulated Low Pressure Turbine Conditions Based on a High Order LES Model

Boundary layer transition is an important phenomenon experienced by the flow through gas turbine engines. A substantial fraction of the boundary layer on both sides of a gas turbine airfoil may be transitional. The extended transition zone exist due to strong favorable pressure gradients, found on both near the leading edge portion of the suction side and the pressure side, which serve to stabilize the boundary layer and consequently delay the transition process, even under high free-stream turbulence intensity (FSTI) in practical gas turbine. It is very important to properly model and predict the high FSTI transition mechanism, since boundary layer transition leads to substantial increase in friction coefficients and heat transfer rate. Near wall turbulence production is thought to be largely absent in the non-turbulent zone. The intermittent nature of transition need to be taken into account in developing improved transition model. Much has been learned from the to date, but the nature of separated flow transition is still not completely clear, and existing models are still not robust as needed for accurate prediction. Therefore, in the present work a high order LES turbulent model proposed by the author is used to predict the separated flow transition. The experimental data of Volino is chosen for this comparison purpose. In his experimental work, the flow through a single-passage cascade simulator is documented under both high and low FSTI conditions at several different Reynolds numbers. The geometry of the passage (in Volino’s work) corresponds to that of the “Pak-B” airfoil, which is an industry supplied research airfoil that is representative of a modern, aggressive LP turbine design. Volino’s data included a complete documentation of cases with Re as low as 25,000 and also the documentation of turbulent shear stress in the boundary layer under both high and low FSTI.Copyright

Unsteady Viscous Flow Simulation around Turbine Blade

In this study, 3-D unsteady viscous flow analysis around turbine blade cascade is carried out to investigate basic physical process involved in the pressure loss mechanism. In this regard, the strategy of the present study is first to compare the predicted results with the experimentally measurable data to check the prediction ability of numerical method. As a consequence of that the computed results agree with the experimental results. Therefore computed results could be used for visualization of the overall flow behavior to gather knowledge about what physical phenomena are associated with the mechanism of pressure loss. Because all the experimentally results compared so far with the computed results are the final outcome of the cause. From computed results, it turned that structure of vorticity from suction side and pressure side of turbine blade is a factor of pressure loss mechanism.