Cavitation control on a two-dimensional hydrofoil by means of continuous tangential injection

Abstract

The onset of instabilities of various types, including those caused by cavitation, in ducts of hydraulic systems negatively affects the efficiency, reliability and safety of hydrotechnical and hydropower equipment. This fact makes it necessary to develop different means to control such flows. The main aim of the study is to determine the possibility of applying and assessing the effectiveness of the method of gas-vapor cavity dynamics management based on continuous tangential injection of liquid. The methods used in the study. In order to study the stages of evolution and spatial structure of partial cavities as well as to estimate their integral characteristics, the high-speed visualization was applied. Spatial distributions of the mean velocity and turbulent characteristics in one- and two-phase flows around the model hydrofoil were measured by Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV). The results. The investigation was carried out for a modified model of guide vanes of a high-pressure turbine equipped with a spanwise slot channel in its surface to produce a wall jet to feed slowed down layers of liquid with a supplementary momentum over the suction side. In the experiments, the angle of attack of the model profile was changed from zero to nine degrees and various flow conditions were achieved by varying the cavitation number in a wide range. Basing on visual analysis of occurring flow regimes, starting from cavitation inception and finishing with developed unsteady cavities, the influence of injection on cavitation was determined. The effect of liquid injection with different velocities on the flow hydrodynamics was evaluated by measuring ensembles of instantaneous velocity which were used to calculate distributions of mean and turbulent characteristics. It was shown that the low-speed injection of liquid along the hydrofoil surface leads to intensification of turbulent fluctuations in the boundary layer and, thereby, hinders the development of an attached cavity due to production of additional perturbations in the flow. Injection with a high velocity, in its turn, causes a rise of the local flow velocity and reduction of turbulent fluctuations near the wall, which allows increasing the lift coefficient of the foil and its hydrodynamic quality owing to a pressure drop over the suction side at relatively low energy consumptions to generate the wall jet. However, in such a case the gas-vapor cavity becomes longer. Thus, the low-speed injection turns out to be effective to mitigate cavitation but the injection at a high velocity is more preferable from the standpoint of the flow hydrodynamics. Consequently, the implemented method of flow control is quite an efficient tool to manipulate hydrodynamic characteristics of the foil and decrease the intensity of vaporization and, under certain conditions, even to suppress instabilities linked with cavitation.

Keywords

• cavitation
• partial cavities
• instability
• flow control
• continuous tangential injection
• guide vane