UTAT
Unsteady Transitional flows in Axial Turbomachines
Contract no. G4RD-CT-2001-00628
Project no. GRD1-2001-40192
Coordinator: MTU Aero Engine (D)
start: January 2002
duration: 36 months
status: sub-contractor
Contractors:
MTU Aeroengine (D), ALSTOM Power (UK), Avio Group (I), Industria de Turbopropulsores ITP (E), Rolls-Royce Deutschland (D), Snecma Moteurs (F), Turbomeca (F), Volvo Aero (S), DLR (D), Office National d'Etudes et de Recherche Aeronautique (F), Von Karman Institute for Fluid Dynamics VKI (B), Universiteit Gent (B), The Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine (UK), Kungliga Tekniska Högskolan KTH (S), University of Cambridge (UK)
Links:
Abstract:
The consortium consists of 15 partners from 7 countries within the community. This includes 8 industrial partners, i.e. the major European aeroengine and one stationary gas turbine manufacturer, with a common interest in the ultimate objective, i.e. improving life cycle cost, efficiency and safety of the turbomachines by increasing their numerical design capabilities to simulate unsteady transition in their production activities. The academic partners, including 4 universities and 3 research organizations are engaged in generic experimental investigation and numerical modeling of unsteady transition process. The partnership includes amongst them recognized world experts in the field of turbulence and transition.
The main aims of this project are to contribute to the improvement of the stage performance while reducing the number of blades in order to increase thrust to weight ratio by 40% as well as decrease the manufacturing costs and time to market and reduce the fuel consumption and the CO2 emissions by 20% within the next decade. In order to improve performance, life duration, weight targets/loading and S.F.C. of turbomachines for aircraft propulsion and stationary gas turbines unsteady design methods become a key issue. One of the phenomena in this context, which is still not fully understood, is the unsteady transition from laminar to turbulent flow. The flow transition has a direct influence on the overall efficiency, achievable blade load and thus the thrust to weight ratio, heat transfer, the interaction of the flow with the structure and the life of the machine. The physical understanding as well as the analytical and numerical modeling of the phenomenon of unsteady transition in axial flow turbomachines is necessary in the design process of new gas turbines.
Publications:
- Pacciani R., Spano E., 2006, "Numerical Investigation of the Effect of Roughness and Passing Wakes on LP Turbine Blades Performance", ASME Turbo Expo, Barcelona, Spain, 8-11 May, ASME paper GT2006-90221. Conf. Proc. Vol. 6: Turbomachinery, Parts A and B, Unsteady Flows in Turbomachinery, pp. 1713-1722. ISBN 0-7918-4241-X. DOI:10.1115/GT2006-90221