A robust extension to the triple plane pressure mode matching method by filtering convective perturbations

Time-periodic CFD simulations are widely used to investigate turbomachinery components. The triple-plane pressure mode matching method (TPP) developed by Ovenden and Rienstra extracts the acoustic part in such simulations. Experience shows that this method is subject to significant errors when the amplitude of pseudo-sound is high compared to sound. Pseudo-sound are unsteady pressure fluctuations with a convective character. The presented extension to the TPP improves the splitting between acoustics and the rest of the unsteady flow field. The method is simple: i) the acoustic eigenmodes are analytically determined for a uniform mean flow as in the original TPP; ii) the suggested model for convective pressure perturbations uses the convective wavenumber as axial wavenumber and the same orthogonal radial shape functions as for the acoustic modes. The reliability is demonstrated on the simulation data of a low-pressure fan. As acoustic and convective perturbations are separated, the accuracy of the results increases close to sources, allowing a reduction of the computational costs by shortening the simulation domain. The extended method is as robust as the original one--giving the same results for the acoustic modes in absence of convective perturbations.Comment: Accepted 15-05-11 by International Journal of Aeroacoustics to be published in the special issue focusing on turbomachinery aeroacoustic

IMPROVEMENT OF THE TRIPLE-PLANE PRESSURE MODE MATCHING TECHNIQUE AND APPLICATION TO HARMONIC BALANCE SIMULATIONS

The triple-plane pressure mode matching technique developed by Ovenden and Rienstra to analyse the acoustic field generated by turbomachine components is applied to Harmonic Balance calculations. Three extensions of the original method are assessed. They aim at improving the results with respect to i) the presence of swirl, ii) radial mean flow variations, and iii) the need to filter out convective pressure fluctuations. The method is applied to three generic test cases and two realistic examples: a low-speed fan stage and a high-pressure turbine exhibiting a strong swirl in the intra-stage. The extension to include radial variations of the mean flow in the calculation of the eigenmodes considerably improves the accuracy of the results, most notably for acoustic fields with a sparse modal content. At high Mach number, the accuracy of the simplistic analytical solution for a solid body swirl performs reasonably well because the large error made on each mode is statistically counterbalanced by the large number of contributing modes. The extension that includes an additional basis of convective pseudo-modes contributes to improve the results behind a cascade of blades, where wake perturbations are strong

Studying Turbulence Using Numerical Simulation Databases

The Seventh Summer Program of the Center for Turbulence Research took place in the four-week period, July 5 to July 31, 1998. This was the largest CTR Summer Program to date, involving thirty-six participants from the U. S. and nine other countries. Thirty-one Stanford and NASA-Ames staff members facilitated and contributed to most of the Summer projects. A new feature, and perhaps a preview of the future programs, was that many of the projects were executed on non-NASA computers. These included supercomputers located in Europe as well as those operated by the Departments of Defense and Energy in the United States. In addition, several simulation programs developed by the visiting participants at their home institutions were used. Another new feature was the prevalence of lap-top personal computers which were used by several participants to carry out some of the work that in the past were performed on desk-top workstations. We expect these trends to continue as computing power is enhanced and as more researchers (many of whom CTR alumni) use numerical simulations to study turbulent flows. CTR's main role continues to be in providing a forum for the study of turbulence for engineering analysis and in facilitating intellectual exchange among the leading researchers in the field. Once again the combustion group was the largest. Turbulent combustion has enjoyed remarkable progress in using simulations to address increasingly complex and practically more relevant questions. The combustion group's studies included such challenging topics as fuel evaporation, soot chemistry, and thermonuclear reactions. The latter study was one of three projects related to the Department of Energy's ASCI Program (www.llnl.gov/asci); the other two (rocket propulsion and fire safety) were carried out in the turbulence modeling group. The flow control and acoustics group demonstrated a successful application of the so-called evolution algorithms which actually led to a previously unknown forcing strategy for jets yielding increased spreading rate. A very efficient algorithm for flow in complex geometries with moving boundaries based on the immersed boundary forcing technique was tested with very encouraging results. Also a new strategy for the destruction of aircraft trailing vortices was introduced and tested. The Reynolds Averaged Modeling (RANS) group demonstrated that the elliptic relaxation concept for RANS calculations is also applicable to transonic flows with shocks; however, prediction of laminar/turbulent transition remains an important pacing item. A large fraction of the LES effort was devoted to the development and testing of a new algorithmic procedure (as opposed to phenomenological model) for subgrid scale modeling based on regularized de-filtering of the flow variables. This appears to be a very promising approach, and a significant effort is currently underway to assess its robustness in high Reynolds number flows and in conjunction with numerical methods for complex flows. As part of the Summer Program two review tutorials were given on Turbulent structures in hydrocarbon pool fires (Sheldon Tieszen), and Turbulent combustion modeling: from RANS to LES via DNS (Luc Vervisch); and two seminars entitled Assessment of turbulence models for engineering applications (Paul Durbin) and Subgrid-scale modeling for non-premixed, turbulent reacting flows (James Riley) were presented. A number of colleagues from universities, government agencies, and industry attended the final presentations of the participants on July 31 and participated in the discussions. There are twenty-six papers in this volume grouped in five areas. Each group is preceded with an overview by its coordinator

Annual Research Briefs: 1995

This report contains the 1995 annual progress reports of the Research Fellows and students of the Center for Turbulence Research (CTR). In 1995 CTR continued its concentration on the development and application of large-eddy simulation to complex flows, development of novel modeling concepts for engineering computations in the Reynolds averaged framework, and turbulent combustion. In large-eddy simulation, a number of numerical and experimental issues have surfaced which are being addressed. The first group of reports in this volume are on large-eddy simulation. A key finding in this area was the revelation of possibly significant numerical errors that may overwhelm the effects of the subgrid-scale model. We also commissioned a new experiment to support the LES validation studies. The remaining articles in this report are concerned with Reynolds averaged modeling, studies of turbulence physics and flow generated sound, combustion, and simulation techniques. Fundamental studies of turbulent combustion using direct numerical simulations which started at CTR will continue to be emphasized. These studies and their counterparts carried out during the summer programs have had a noticeable impact on combustion research world wide

A hybrid approach for inclusion of acoustic wave effects in incompressible LES of reacting flows

LLean premixed combustion systems, attractive for low NOx performance, are inherently susceptible to thermo-acoustic instabilities - the interaction between unsteady heat release and excited acoustic wave effects. In the present work, a hybrid, coupled Large Eddy Simulation (LES) CFD approach is described, combining the computational efficiency of incompressible reacting LES with acoustic wave effects captured via an acoustic network model. A flamelet approach with an algebraic Flame Surface Density (FSD) combustion model was used. The ORACLES experiments - a perfectly premixed flame stabilised in a 3D sudden expansion - are used for validation. Simulations of the inert flow agree very well with experimental data, reproducing the measured amplitude and distribution of turbulent fluctuations as well as capturing the asymmetric mean flow. With reaction the measured data exhibit a plane wave acoustic mode at 50Hz. The influence of this plane wave must be incorporated into the LES calculation. Thus, a new approach to sensitise the incompressible LES CFD to acoustic waves is adopted. First an acoustic network model of the experimental geometry is analysed to predict the amplitude of the 50Hz mode just before the flame zone. This is then used to introduce a coherent plane wave at the LES inlet plane at the appropriate amplitude, unlike previous LES studies, which have adopted a "guess and adjust" approach. Incompressible LES predictions of this forced flow then show good agreement with measurements of mean and turbulent velocity, as well as for flame shape, with a considerable improvement relative to unforced simulations. To capitalise on the unsteady flame dynamics provided by LES, simulations with varying forcing amplitude were conducted and analysed. Amplitude dependent Flame Transfer Functions (FTFs) were extracted and fed into an acoustic network model. This allowed prediction of the stable/unstable nature of the flame at each forcing amplitude. An amplitude at which the flame changed from unstable to stable would be an indication that this coupled approach was capable of predicting a limit cycle behaviour. With the current simple FSD combustion model almost all cases studied showed a stable flame. Predictions showed considerable sensitivity to the value chosen for the combustion model parameter but specially to the acoustic geometric configuration and boundary conditions assumed showing evidence of limit cycle behaviour for some combinations. Nevertheless, further work is required to improve both combustion model and the accuracy of acoustic configuration and boundary condition specification

Boundary Layer Flows

Written by experts in the field, this book, "Boundary Layer Flows - Theory, Applications, and Numerical Methods" provides readers with the opportunity to explore its theoretical and experimental studies and their importance to the nonlinear theory of boundary layer flows, the theory of heat and mass transfer, and the dynamics of fluid. With the theory's importance for a wide variety of applications, applied mathematicians, scientists, and engineers - especially those in fluid dynamics - along with engineers of aeronautics, will undoubtedly welcome this authoritative, up-to-date book

Reduced Order Models and Large Eddy Simulation for Combustion Instabilities in aeronautical Gas Turbines

Increasingly stringent regulations as well as environmental concerns have lead gas turbine powered engine manufacturers to develop the current generation of combustors, which feature lower than ever fuel consumption and pollutant emissions. However, modern combustor designs have been shown to be prone to combustion instabilities, where the coupling between acoustics of the combustor and the flame results in large pressure oscillations and vibrations within the combustion chamber. These instabilities can cause structural damages to the engine or even lead to its destruction. At the same time, considerable developments have been achieved in the numerical simulation domain, and Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) has proven capable of capturing unsteady flame dynamics and combustion instabilities for aforementioned engines. Still, even with the current large and fast increasing computing capabilities, time remains the key constraint for these high fidelity yet computationally intensive calculations. Typically, covering the entire range of operating conditions for an industrial engine is still out of reach. In that respect, low order models exist and can be efficient at predicting the occurrence of combustion instabilities, provided an adequate modeling of the flame/acoustics interaction as appearing in the system is available. This essential piece of information is usually recast as the so called Flame Transfer Function (FTF) relating heat release rate fluctuations to velocity fluctuations at a given point. One way to obtain this transfer function is to rely on analytical models, but few exist for turbulent swirling flames. Another way consists in performing costly experiments or numerical simulations, negating the requested fast prediction capabilities. This thesis therefore aims at providing fast, yet reliable methods to allow for low order combustion instabilities modeling. In that context, understanding the underlying mechanisms of swirling flame acoustic response is also targeted. To address this issue, a novel hybrid approach is first proposed based on a reduced set of high fidelity simulations that can be used to determine input parameters of an analytical model used to express the FTF of premixed swirling flames. The analytical model builds on previous works starting with a level-set description of the flame front dynamics while also accounting for the acoustic-vorticity conversion through a swirler. For such a model, validation is obtained using reacting stationary and pulsed numerical simulations of a laboratory scale premixed swirl stabilized flame. The model is also shown to be able to handle various perturbation amplitudes. At last, 3D high fidelity simulations of an industrial gas turbine powered by a swirled spray flame are performed to determine whether a combustion instability observed in experiments can be predicted using numerical analysis. To do so, a series of forced simulations is carried out in en effort to highlight the importance of the two-phase flow flame response evaluation. In that case, sensitivity to reference velocity perturbation probing positions as well as the amplitude and location of the acoustic perturbation source are investigated. The analytical FTF model derived in the context of a laboratory premixed swirled burner is furthermore gauged in this complex case. Results show that the unstable mode is predicted by the acoustic analysis, but that the flame model proposed needs further improvements to extend its applicability range and thus provide data relevant to actual aero-engine

Annual Research Briefs, 1990

The 1990 annual progress reports of the Research Fellows and students of the Center for Turbulent Research (CTR) are included. It is intended primarily as a contractor report to NASA, Ames Research Center. In addition, numerous CTR Manuscript Reports were published last year. The purpose of the CTR Manuscript Series is to expedite the dissemination of research results by the CTR staff. The CTR is devoted to the fundamental study of turbulent flow; its objectives are to produce advances in physical understanding of turbulence, in turbulence modeling and simulation, and in turbulence control

Large-eddy simulation of compressible flows using the stretched-vortex model and a fourth-order finite volume scheme on adaptive grids

2022 Spring.Includes bibliographical references.State-of-the-art engineering workflows are becoming increasingly dependent on accurate large-eddy simulations (LES) of compressible, turbulent flows for off-design conditions. Traditional CFD algorithms for compressible flows rely on numerical stabilization to handle unresolved physics and/or steep gradient flow features such as shockwaves. To reach higher levels of physical-fidelity than previously attainable, more accurate turbulence models must be properly incorporated into existing, high-order CFD codes in a manner that preserves the stability of the underlying algorithm while fully realizing the benefits of the turbulence model. As it stands, casually combining turbulence models and numerical stabilization degrades LES solutions below the level achievable by using numerical stabilization alone. To effectively use high-quality turbulence models and numerical stabilization simultaneously in a fourth-order-accurate finite volume LES algorithm, a new method based on scale separation is developed using adaptive grid technology for the stretched-vortex subgrid-scale (SGS) LES model. This method successfully demonstrates scheme-independent and grid-independent LES results at very-high-Reynolds numbers for the inviscid Taylor-Green vortex, the temporally-evolving double-shear-flow, and decaying, homogeneous turbulence. Furthermore, the method clearly demonstrates quantifiable advantages of high-order accurate numerical methods. Additionally, the stretched-vortex LES wall-model is extended to curvilinear mapped meshes for compressible flow simulations using adaptive mesh refinement. The capabilities of the wall-model combined with the stretched-vortex SGS LES model are demonstrated using the canonical zero-pressure-gradient flat-plate turbulent boundary layer. Finally, the complete algorithm is applied to simulate flow-separation and reattachment over a smooth-ramp, showing high-quality solutions on extremely coarse meshes