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This paper aims to provide a validation of a state‐of‐the‐art methodology for computing three‐dimensional transitional flows in turbomachinery.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to provide a validation of a state‐of‐the‐art methodology for computing three‐dimensional transitional flows in turbomachinery.
Design/methodology/approach
The Reynolds‐averaged Navier‐Stokes equations for compressible flows are solved. Turbulence is modeled using an explicit algebraic stress model and k−ω turbulence closure. A numerical method has been developed, based on a cell‐centered finite volume approach with Roe's approximate Riemann solver and formally second‐order‐accurate MUSCL extrapolation. The method is validated versus two severe test cases, namely, the subsonic flow through a turbine cascade with separated‐flow transition; and the transonic flow through a compressor cascade with transitional boundary layers, shock‐induced separation and corner stall. For the first test case, the transition model of Mayle for separated flow has been employed, whereas, for the second one, the transition has been modeled employing the Abu‐Ghannam and Shaw correlation.
Findings
The comparison of numerical results with the experimental data available in the literature shows that, for such complex flow configurations, an improved numerical solution could be achieved by employing transition models. Unfortunately, the available models are case‐dependent, each of them being suitable for specific applications.
Originality/value
A state‐of‐the‐art numerical methodology has been developed and applied to compute very complex flows in turbomachinery. Through an original analysis of the results, the merits and limits of the considered approach have been assessed. The paper points up the fundamental role of transition modeling for turbomachinery flow simulations.
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Zhen Chen, Zhengqi Gu and Zhonggang Wang
This paper aims to propose a precise turbulence model for vehicle aerodynamics, especially for vehicle window buffeting noise.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to propose a precise turbulence model for vehicle aerodynamics, especially for vehicle window buffeting noise.
Design/methodology/approach
Aiming at the fact that commonly used turbulence models cannot precisely predict laminar-turbulent transition, a transition-code-based improvement is introduced. This improvement includes the introduction of total stress limitation (TSL) and separation-sensitive model. They are integrated into low Reynolds number (LRN) k-ε model to concern transport properties of total stress and precisely capture boundary layer separations. As a result, the ability of LRN k-ε model to predict the transition is improved. Combined with the constructing scheme of constrained large-eddy simulation (CLES) model, a modified LRN CLES model is achieved. Several typical flows and relevant experimental results are introduced to validate this model. Finally, the modified LRN CLES model is used to acquire detailed flow structures and noise signature of a simplified vehicle window. Then, experimental validations are conducted.
Findings
Current results indicate that the modified LRN CLES model is capable of achieving acceptable accuracy in prediction of various types of transition at various Reynolds numbers. And, the ability of this model to simulate the vehicle window buffeting noise is greater than commonly used models.
Originality/value
Based on the TSL idea and separation-sensitive model, a modified LRN CLES model concerning the laminar-turbulent transition for the vehicle window buffeting noise is first proposed.
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M. Wrona and E. Tuliszka‐Sznitko
The linear and non‐linear stability of an incompressible swept attachment‐line boundary layer are analysed, within the Görtler‐Hämmerlin framework. The system of perturbation…
Abstract
The linear and non‐linear stability of an incompressible swept attachment‐line boundary layer are analysed, within the Görtler‐Hämmerlin framework. The system of perturbation equations is solved using spectral collocation method based on Chebyshev polynomials. The global solution method utilised for solving the eigenproblem yields the full spectrum of the least damped waves. The influence of suction and blowing on critical Reynolds numbers is analysed. A comparison of the present paper linear solutions for both zero suction and a layer in which blowing and suction are applied with the Spalart's DNS solutions (obtained for small initial disturbances) shows very good agreement. The transition Reynolds numbers have been predicted using well known exp(n) method and results are compared with the experimental data of Powilleit.
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Vera D’Oriano, Raffaele Savino and Michele Visone
This paper aims to present an aerothermodynamic analysis of a new concept of a small hypersonic airplane. Aerodynamics characteristics for different flow conditions encountered…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to present an aerothermodynamic analysis of a new concept of a small hypersonic airplane. Aerodynamics characteristics for different flow conditions encountered during the missions are analyzed. The effects of elevons deflection for pitch control and of the presence of engines on aerodynamic performances are also investigated for different flight conditions. The effects of boundary layer laminar–turbulent transition on aerodynamic heating are studied to preliminarily identify proper materials that can sustain the hypersonic phase.
Design/methodology/approach
Aerodynamic characteristics are predicted by means of the semi-empirical aerodynamic prediction code Missile DATCOM and computational fluid dynamics simulations. Computational fluid dynamics analysis is also performed to investigate aerodynamic heating phenomenon.
Findings
Major discrepancies between the results offered by the two methods have been registered in transonic regime, whereas in subsonic and super-hypersonic conditions, Missile DATCOM confirms to be a suitable tool for preliminary design steps. The results of the analysis show that for the identification of the materials that can sustain the hypersonic phase, the turbulent solution must be taken into account. Carbon fiber reinforced ceramics composite materials seem particularly well suited for the nose, wing and vertical tail leasing edges and control surfaces, while titanium alloys could be used for the rest of the vehicle surface.
Originality/value
This new concept of vehicle is designed both for point-to-point medium range hypersonic transportation and long duration suborbital space tourism missions, by integrating available technologies developed for aeronautical and space systems.
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Pawel Rzucidlo, Grzegorz Henryk Kopecki, Klaus deGroot, Anna Kucaba-Pietal, Robert Smusz, Mariusz Szewczyk and Marek Szumski
This paper aims to describe an idea for an integration process and tests of flight parameters measurement system, which supports infrared thermography (IRT) boundary layer mapping.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to describe an idea for an integration process and tests of flight parameters measurement system, which supports infrared thermography (IRT) boundary layer mapping.
Design/methodology/approach
The study of flow changes in the boundary layer with the use of IRT requires registration of the thermal images of the selected area of a wing or the fuselage, as well as synchronous recording of flight parameters. These tasks were realized by the supplementary measurement system mounted on the PW-6U glider. Two examples of the determination of the laminar-turbulent transition areas on the left wing of a PW-6U glider are also presented in the paper.
Findings
Optical methods can be used in several research areas, for example, aerodynamics and strength analysis. For instance, the measurement of the infrared radiation from surfaces with the use of IRT can be used for the measurement, with high accuracy, of surface temperature distribution. Moreover, the thermography is used for the analysis of the boundary layer. Performed in-flight experiments confirm the possibility of practical usage of the IRT method even on the board of a glider.
Practical implications
The use of optical methods will, in many cases, be less expensive than assembly of an additional measurement and data acquisition systems. Implementation of optical methods for industrial purposes has many advantages, and, hence, they will probably become very common in the future.
Originality/value
The study introduces advanced measurement and visualization techniques in general aviation.
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The purpose of this paper is to numerically study inflow turbulence effects on the transitional flow in a high pressure linear transonic turbine at the design incidence.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to numerically study inflow turbulence effects on the transitional flow in a high pressure linear transonic turbine at the design incidence.
Design/methodology/approach
The three‐dimensional (3‐D) compressible turbulent flow in a turbine inlet guide vane is simulated using a finite volume based fluid solver coupled with dynamic large eddy simulation (LES) computations to investigate the effects of varying inflow turbulence length scale and the turbulence intensity on the aero‐thermal flow characteristics and the laminar‐turbulent transition phenomena. The computational analyses are extended to very high exit Reynolds number flow conditions to further study the effect of high exit Reynolds numbers on the transitional behavior of the present flow around the inlet guide vane cascades of the turbine. The calculations are performed with varying degree of inflow turbulence intensity values ranging from 0.8 to 6 percent and the inflow turbulence length scales ranging from one to five percent of pitch for different exit isentropic Mach and Reynolds numbers.
Findings
The numerical predictions in comparison with the experimental data demonstrate that the level of inflow turbulence closure provided by the present LES computations offers a reliable framework to predict complex turbulent flow and transition phenomena in high free‐stream turbulence environments of high pressure linear turbines.
Originality/value
This is the first instance in which both artificially modified random flow generation method in association with the dynamic procedure of LES application is employed to represent the realistic inflow turbulence conditions in the high pressure turbine and to resolve the transitional flow in a dynamic approach.
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Kazuo Matsuura, Kotaro Matsui and Naoki Tani
This paper aims to investigate global pressure fluctuations in compressible transitional flows in a low-pressure turbine cascade because of variations in the free-stream…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to investigate global pressure fluctuations in compressible transitional flows in a low-pressure turbine cascade because of variations in the free-stream turbulence and its interaction with the boundary layers.
Design/methodology/approach
Transition process resolving numerical simulations are performed with different types of inflow turbulence. The unsteady three-dimensional fully compressible Navier–Stokes equations are solved using a sixth-order compact difference and a tenth-order filtering method. First, simulations of both K-regime and bypass transitions are conducted for a flat plate boundary layer to validate the use of the filter in computing different transition routes. Second, computations of the cascade flows are conducted. Cases of no free-stream turbulence, isotropic free-stream turbulence of 5 per cent and wakes from an upstream cylinder are compared. For wakes, variations in wake trajectory depending on the cylinder blade relative position are also taken into account.
Findings
The different transition routes are successfully reproduced by the present method even with strong filtering. When feedback phenomena occur near the trailing edge, high-frequency oscillations dominate in the flow field. Low-frequency oscillations become dominant when the blade boundary layer becomes turbulent. Thus, the effects of the free-stream turbulence and its interaction with the boundary layer appear as changes in the global pressure fluctuation.
Originality/value
The free-stream turbulence qualitatively affects global pressure fluctuations, which become a medium to convey boundary-layer information away from the cascade.
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Xiang Shen, Eldad Avital, Zaheer Ikram, Liming Yang, Theodosios Korakianitis and Laurent Dala
This paper aims to investigate the influence of smooth curvature distributions on the self-noise of a low Reynolds number aerofoil and to unveil the flow mechanisms in the…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to investigate the influence of smooth curvature distributions on the self-noise of a low Reynolds number aerofoil and to unveil the flow mechanisms in the phenomenon.
Design/methodology/approach
In this paper, large Eddy simulation (LES) approach was performed to investigate the unsteady aerodynamic performance of both the original aerofoil E387 and the redesigned aerofoil A7 in a time-dependent study of boundary layer characteristics at Reynolds number 100,000 and angle of attack (AoA) 4-degree. The aerofoil A7 is redesigned from E387 by removing the irregularities in the surface curvature distributions and keeping a nearly identical geometry. Flow vorticity magnitude of both aerofoils, along with the spectra of the vertical fluctuating velocity component and noise level, are analysed to demonstrate the bubble flapping process near the trailing edge (TE) and the vortex shedding phenomenon.
Findings
This paper provides quantitative insights about how the flapping process of the laminar separation bubble (LSB) within the boundary layer near the TE affects the aerofoil self-noise. It is found that the aerofoil A7 with smooth curvature distributions presents a 10% smaller LSB compared to the aerofoil E387 at Reynolds number 100,000 and AoA 4-degree. The LES results also suggest that curvature distribution smoothing leads to a 6.5% reduction in overall broadband noise level.
Originality/value
This paper fulfils an identified need to reveal the unknown flow structure and the boundary layer characteristics that resulted in the self-noise reduction phenomenon yielded by curvature distribution smoothing.
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Massoud Tatar, Mojtaba Tahani and Mehran Masdari
In this paper, the applicability of shear stress transport k-ω model along with the intermittency concept has been investigated over pitching airfoils to capture the laminar…
Abstract
Purpose
In this paper, the applicability of shear stress transport k-ω model along with the intermittency concept has been investigated over pitching airfoils to capture the laminar separation bubble (LSB) position and the boundary layer transition movement. The effect of reduced frequency of oscillations on boundary layer response is also examined.
Design/methodology/approach
A two-dimensional computational fluid dynamic code was developed to compute the effects of unsteadiness on LSB formation, transition point movement, pressure distribution and lift force over an oscillating airfoil using transport equation of intermittency accompanied by the k-ω model.
Findings
The results indicate that increasing the angle of attack over the stationary airfoil causes the LSB size to shorten, leading to a rise in wall shear stress and pressure suction peak. In unsteady cases, both three- and four-equation models are capable of capturing the experimentally measured transition point well. The transition is delayed for an unsteady boundary layer in comparison with that for a static airfoil at the same angle of attack. Increasing the unsteadiness of flow, i.e. reduced frequency, moves the transition point toward the trailing edge of the airfoil. This increment also results in lower static pressure suction peak and hence lower lift produced by the airfoil. It was also found that the fully turbulent k-ω shear–stress transport (SST) model cannot capture the so-called figure-of-eight region in lift coefficient and the employment of intermittency transport equation is essential.
Practical implications
Boundary layer transition and unsteady flow characteristics owing to airfoil motion are both important for many engineering applications including micro air vehicles as well as helicopter blade, wind turbine and aircraft maneuvers. In this paper, the accuracy of transition modeling based on intermittency transport concept and the response of boundary layer to unsteadiness are investigated.
Originality/value
As a conclusion, the contribution of this paper is to assess the ability of intermittency transport models to predict LSB and transition point movements, static pressure distribution and aerodynamic lift variations and boundary layer flow pattern over dynamic pitching airfoils with regard to oscillation frequency effects for engineering problems.
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Vincent Gleize, Michel Costes and Ivan Mary
The purpose of this paper is to study turbulent flow separation at the airfoil trailing edge. This work aims to improve the knowledge of stall phenomenon by creating a QDNS…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to study turbulent flow separation at the airfoil trailing edge. This work aims to improve the knowledge of stall phenomenon by creating a QDNS database for the NACA412 airfoil.
Design/methodology/approach
Quasi-DNS simulations of the NACA 4412 airfoil in pre-stall conditions have been completed. The Reynolds number based on airfoil chord and freestream velocity is equal to 0.35 million, and the freestream Mach number to 0.117. Transition is triggered on both surfaces for avoiding the occurrence of laminar separation bubbles and to ensure turbulent mixing in the wake. Four incidences have been considered, 5, 8 10 and 11 degrees.
Findings
The results obtained show a reasonably good correlation of the present simulations with classical MSES airfoil simulations and with RANS computations, both in terms of pressure and skin-friction distribution, with an earlier and more extended flow separation in the QDNS. The database thus generated will be deeply analysed and enriched for larger incidences in the future.
Originality/value
No experimental or HPC numerical database at reasonable Reynolds number exists in the literature. The current work is the first step in that direction.
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