Numerical simulation and experimental visualization of the separated cavitating boundary layer over NACA2412

Abstract

Cavitation is physical phenomenon of crucial impact on the operation range and service lifetime of the hydraulic machines (pumps, turbines, valves etc.). Experimental measurement of cavitation is expensive and time consuming process, while some important characteristic of the flow are difficult to measure due to the nature of the phenomenon. Current possibilities of computational fluid dynamics provide a way for deeper understanding of cavitation which is important for many applications in the hydraulic machines industry such as expanding operation range or extending lifetime of the hydraulic machines. Simplified model consists of NACA 2412 hydrofoil with 8 degrees angle of attack fixed in between the walls of cavitation tunnel. Present investigation focuses on comparison of vapor volume fractions obtained by 3D CFD simulations and high speed visualization of the real cavitation phenomena. Several operating regimes corresponding to different cavitation numbers are studied with aim to assess the dynamics of the separated cavitating sheets/clouds