Numerical and Experimental Investigations to Assess the Impact of an Oil Jet Nozzle with Double Orifices on the Oil Capture Performance of a Radial Oil Scoop

Abstract

To study the influence of orifice spacing on the oil–air two-phase flow and the oil capture efficiency of an oil scoop in an under-race lubrication system, an experimental platform for under-race lubrication was built, and a calculation model for the oil–air two-phase flow field was established. The rationality of the experiment and the validity of the numerical model were verified by comparing the experimental and numerical results. The results showed that under the same oil supply pressure, the captured oil mass flow rate of the double-orifice structure was much higher than that of the single-orifice structure, though it was still less than twice that of the single-orifice structure. When applying a tandem layout structure of double orifices to an under-race lubrication system, the orifice spacing of the tandem layout structure should be determined based on a full evaluation of the influence of the orifice spacing and working condition parameters on the oil capture performance. Otherwise, it may lead to a decrease in oil capture efficiency, with the maximum reduction even reaching 12%.

Keywords

• aero-engine
• under-race lubrication
• two-phase flow
• orifice spacing
• oil capture efficiency