An investigation on effect of geometrical parameters on spray cone angle and droplet size distribution of a two-fluid atomizer

A visual study is conducted to determine the effect of geometrical parameters of a two-fluid atomizer on its spray cone angle. The liquid (water) jets exit from six peripheral inclined orifices and are introduced to a high speed gas (air) stream in the gravitational direction. Using a high speed imaging system, the spray cone angle has been determined in constant operational conditions, i.e., Reynolds and Weber numbers for different nozzle geometries. Also, the droplet sizes (Sauter mean diameter) and their distributions have been determined using Malvern Master Sizer x. The investigated geometrical parameters are the liquid jet diameter, liquid port angle and the length of the gas-liquid mixing chamber. The results show that among these parameters, the liquid jet diameter has a significant effect on spray cone angle. In addition, an empirical correlation has been obtained to predict the spray cone angle of the present two-fluid atomizer in terms of nozzle geometries.     

Flow characteristics of back supported V-cone flowmeter (wafer cone) using PIV

The present experimental study has been carried out to evaluate the performance and flow characteristics of the Wafer cone flowmeter using Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV). Two equivalent diameters (β) of 0.62 and 0.72 with combination of two vertex angles (ϕ) namely 30°and 45°are used for the evaluation of the performance of the flowmeter in the range of Reynolds number of 3 × 10³ to 8.19 × 10⁴. The investigation shows that the coefficient of discharge seems to be independent of β-value with the increase in vertex angle. Further, the appropriate location of the downstream pressure tap is also estimated for the cone configuration of β = 0.62 and ϕ = 30°. It is observed that the downstream pressure tap location of 0.8D distance gives a higher value of discharge coefficient compared to 0.0D distance with the error being also lower marginally. PIV data has been analysed for the cone configuration of β = 0.62 and ϕ = 30°at four Reynolds numbers of 3028, 6057, 52755 and 74488 in terms of axial velocity and turbulent intensity. The measurements reveal an interesting phenomenon in terms of the rapid decay of turbulent kinetic energy on the downstream of the cone. This may be due to the interference of the cone wake with the support wake resulting in fast decay. This unique phenomenon leads to the reduction in the requirement of the downstream straight length for the Wafer cone flow meter, unlike other obstruction type flowmeters.     

Study on the design and performance of a bi-directional cone flowmeter

The present study explores a novel design of cone flowmeter for bi-directional flow metering application. Two identical cone shapes are machined with their base circle surfaces joined together with a small step in between them and differential pressure measurement is done across the apex of the cones. The bi-directional cone flowmeter is tested under fully developed flow conditions and its performance under double 90° bend (out-of-plane) is also evaluated. The bi-directional cone flowmeter is tested in a circular pipe (inside diameter of 101 mm) with water as the working medium for the flow Reynolds number ranging from 1.18×10⁵ to 5.48×10⁵. Influence of the half cone angle (α) and the location of static pressure taps on the coefficient of discharge (C_d) of a cone flowmeter are studied. Two cones with half cone angles α=30° and α=45° with a constant constriction ratio (β) of 0.75 are studied. Static pressure taps are located on both sides of the bi-directional cone. Two sets of locations of static pressure taps are studied. First set includes two static pressure taps on the pipe wall in the planes of apexes of the bi-directional cone—called apex taps. Second set includes pressure taps on the pipe wall in the planes at a distance D/4 away from the apexes of the bi-directional cone—called D/4 taps. Double 90° bend (out-of-plane) is placed at 1.5D, 5.5D, 9.5D and 13.5D upstream to the bi-directional cone flowmeter. It is observed that the apex static pressure taps located in the plane of apexes of the bi-directional cone result in statistically consistent coefficient of discharge for all Reynolds numbers covered in this study. The results suggest that the bi-directional cone flowmeter is insensitive to the swirl created by double 90° bend (out-of-plane) placed at the upstream of cone flowmeter, if placed at a distance of 9.5D or more.     

Experimental study of effects of circular-cross-section riblets on the aerodynamic performance of Risø airfoil at transient flow regime

New drag reduction methods have received much attention due to the importance of drag reduction in airplanes and wind turbines. One of the ways for drag reduction is the use of riblets. We investigated the effects of riblets on the aerodynamic performance of the Risø airfoil quantitatively. By installing a load cell and using the one-sided force measurement method, the drag and lift coefficients of the Risø airfoil were measured in two modes: With and without riblets at three different arrangements. The shape of riblets is a circularcross- section and the ratio of riblets’ diameter to the airfoil chord is equal to 0.005. The tests were carried out in transient flow regime (Two Reynolds numbers of 2.02×10⁵ and 1.4×10⁵), and at attack angles from 0 to 20 degrees. The results indicate that the extent of the riblets effect on the aerodynamic performance of the airfoil depends on the angle of attack, Reynolds number, and arrangement of the riblets on the airfoil. The maximum drag reduction at the Reynolds numbers of 2.02×10⁵ and 1.4×10⁵ is about 29.7 % and 54 %, respectively, that occurs at an attack angle of 7 degrees for both two Reynolds numbers.     

Comparison of flow characteristics around an equilateral triangular cylinder via PIV and Large Eddy Simulation methods

The flow structures around an equilateral triangular cylinder, which is commonly used as a vortex shedder in the vortex flowmeter, were investigated experimentally and numerically. Flow characteristics such as vorticity contours, patterns of sectional streamlines, velocity vectors, velocity fields, Reynolds stress correlations, Strouhal numbers and drag coefficients were examined using the Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) technique and the Large Eddy Simulation (LES) turbulence model. Experimental studies were performed in an open water channel for Re=2.9×10³, Re=5.8×10³ and Re=1.16×10⁴ based on the equilateral triangle edge. A sharp-tip corner of the cylinder with a triangle cross-section was exposed to the upstream side while the other two sharp-tip corners were placed on the downstream side. Numerical studies were also completed at Reynolds numbers in the range of 2.9×10³≤Re≤1.16×10⁵ to obtain the changes in the Strouhal numbers and drag coefficients. When the results of PIV and LES are considered in the same interval of Reynolds numbers, the maximum and minimum values of each flow pattern were nearly the same. The time-averaged patterns had considerable symmetry with respect to the axis line passing through the sharp-tip corner of the cross-section of the triangular cylinder. The Strouhal number was independent of the Reynolds number and was found to be approximately 0.22. The drag coefficient decreased with increasing Reynolds numbers while increasing the Power Spectral Density (PSD) and the vortex shedding frequency. For the same Reynolds numbers, the experimental and numerical results were in good agreement. Therefore, the LES turbulence model is recommended for applications of flow around this type of bluff body that is generally used in the design of vortex flowmeters to generate vortex shedding.     

Reynolds number effects on the non-nulling calibration of a cone-type five-hole probe for turbomachinery applications

The effects of Reynolds number on the non-nulling calibration of a typical cone-type fivehole probe have been investigated for the representative Reynolds numbers in turbomachinery. The pitch and yaw angles are changed from −35 degrees to 35 degrees with an angle interval of 5 degrees at six probe Reynolds numbers in range between 6.60 × 10³ and 3.17× 10⁴. The result shows that not only each calibration coefficient itself but also its Reynolds number dependency is affected significantly by the pitch and yaw angles. The Reynolds-number effects on the pitchand yaw-angle coefficients are noticeable when the absolute values of the pitch and yaw angles are smaller than 20 degrees. The static-pressure coefficient is sensitive to the Reynolds number nearly all over the pitch- and yaw-angle range. The Reynolds-number effect on the totalpressure coefficient is found remarkable when the absolute values of the pitch and yaw angles are larger than 20 degrees. Through a typical non-nulling reduction procedure, actual reduced values of the pitch and yaw angles, static and total pressures, and velocity magnitude at each Reynolds number are obtained by employing the calibration coefficients at the highest Reynolds number (Re=3.17×10⁴) as input reference calibration data. As a result, it is found that each reduced value has its own unique trend depending on the pitch and yaw angles. Its general tendency is related closely to the variation of the corresponding calibration coefficient with the Reynolds number. Among the reduced values, the reduced total pressure suffers the most considerable deviation from the measured one and its dependency upon the pitch and yaw angles is most noticeable. In this study, the root-mean-square data as well as the upper and lower bounds of the reduced values are reported as a function of the Reynolds number. These data would be very useful in the estimation of the Reynolds-number effects on the non-nulling calibration.     

Pressure measurement technique and installation effects on the performance of wafer cone design

The present study explores novel pressure averaging technique for wafer cone flowmeter design and its robustness in the presence of double 90° bend (out-of-plane) and gate valve as a source of upstream flow disturbance. The wafer cone flowmeter is tested in a circular pipe (inside diameter of 101 mm) with water as the working medium for the flow Reynolds number ranging from 1.19×10⁵ to 5.82×10⁵. Influence of the half cone angle (α) on the coefficient of discharge (C_d) of wafer cone flowmeter is studied with this new pressure averaging technique. Half cone angles considered in this study are 30° and 45° with a constant constriction ratio (β) of 0.75. The upstream static pressure tap is located at 1D upstream of the wafer cone. The downstream pressure averaging technique comprises eight circumferential holes of diameter 2 mm on the maximum diameter step of the wafer cone. The pressure taps are communicated through the support strut which serves as a downstream static pressure tap. The disturbance causing elements are individually placed at 1.5D, 5.5D, 9.5D and 13.5D upstream to the wafer cone flowmeter. The wafer cone flowmeter is also tested with gate valve opening of 25%, 50% and 75% for all the arrangements considered. The 30° cone is found to be better than 45° cone for the range of Reynolds number covered in the present study. The results show that the 30° wafer cone flowmeter with novel downstream pressure averaging technique is insensitive to the swirl flow created by a double 90° bend (out-of-plane) and requires an upstream length of 9.5D with a gate valve as a source of flow disturbance.     

Shape optimization of the cone body for the improved performance of the V-cone flowmeter: A numerical study

The present study has been carried out to optimize the shape of the cone body by providing a curved surface (the radius of curvature (R)) at the base of the cone element for improving the performance of the V-cone flowmeter using CFD. Radii of curvature of 20 mm (hemispherical, R/d = 0.5), 22 mm (R/d = 0.55) 25 mm (R/d = 0.625) and 27.62 mm (R/d = 0.6905) are taken in order to gradually reduce the arc length keeping the chord length constant. In addition a semi-elliptical based cone with 20 mm semi-major axis and10 mm semi-minor axis has also been investigated in the present study. The centre of the spheres and ellipse lie on the axis either in the frustum or cylindrical part of the cone. The equivalent diameter ratio (β) has been taken as 0.6 while three different fore-vertex angles (φ) namely 60°, 75° and 90° have been investigated. The Reynolds number has been varied in the range of 1 × 10³ to 1 × 10⁶. The results have been compared with the slant surface based cone. It is seen that introduction of a curved surface at the cone base has profound effect on the coefficient of discharge of the V-cone flowmeter. The coefficient of discharge is dependent on Reynolds number for the flowmeter with hemispherical and semi-elliptical based cone element. The coefficient of discharge is seen to be a weak function of Reynolds number for Re = 4000 and beyond for the other three curvatures. The cone flowmeter with a curved base cone of R/d equals to 0.55 has higher coefficient of discharge and smaller standard deviation compared to a device with an aft vertex cone.     

Static pressure measurement error for wall taps with high Reynolds number turbulent pipe flow

An experimental study on a static pressure measurement errors in wall taps was conducted using a high Reynolds number actual flow facility (Hi-Reff). The bulk Reynolds number Re_D examined was up to 1.3 × 10⁷ and tap Reynolds number Re_t was up to 8.5 × 10⁴. The behavior of the static pressure measurement error at high Reynolds numbers was clarified experimentally. The static pressure measurement error normalized by wall shear stress increases with Reynolds number and reaches an asymptotic value. Its maximum value is 7.1 at Re_t = 8470. The asymptotic value increases with the size of the tap diameter up to 6 mm and then becomes constant for tap diameters exceeding 6 mm. The universal curve reported in previous studies is observed for only a limited range of tap Reynolds numbers of below 700 and of tap diameters below 4 mm.     

Vortical flow structures behind a torus with an aspect ratio of three

A torus could replace an orifice flow meter with the benefit of a lower pressure loss. The flow structure of a torus with an aspect ratio of three was scrutinized in a wind tunnel. This study details the vortical structures at 5, 7, 10 and 15 core diameters downstream of the torus. This paper also studied the drag coefficient of the torus. The Reynolds numbers based on core diameter and free stream velocity are 9 × 10³, 1.2 × 10⁴ and 1.5 × 10⁴. Of particular interest is the resulting Strouhal number through the opening. This was evaluated through detailed flow turbulence characterization.     

Direct measurement of skin-friction in shock/boundary-layer interaction flows

The direct measurement of skin friction at high speed is extraordinarily complicated due to the interference from various extraneous forces and the short test-time of high-speed facilities. The present study deals with the design and performance assessment of a skin friction sensor in a hypersonic flowfield with shock-boundary layer interaction, which is a predominant high-speed flow phenomenon. The experiment was conducted in the IIT Bombay Shock Tunnel (IITB-ST); the sensor was exposed to a flow with freestream Mach number, total enthalpy, and Reynolds number of 8.4, 0.69 MJ/kg, and 2.60 × 10⁶ m⁻¹, respectively. The shock-boundary layer interaction was induced by an oblique shock impinged on a flat plate, with a flow turn angle of 15°. The low magnitude average skin friction could be measured with an uncertainty of ±21%. The comprehensive study conducted confirmed the suitability of the skin friction sensor for high-speed applications in impulse facilities.     

Unsteady boundary layer for a pitching airfoil at low Reynolds numbers

An experimental study was conducted in order to investigate unsteady boundary layers for a pitching airfoil. An NACA0012 airfoil sinusoid-pitched at quarter chord was employed, and its mean angle-of-attack and oscillation amplitude were 0° and 6°, respectively. To explore the unsteady boundary layers, smoke-wire visualization and surface-mounted probe measurements were pursued for three different cases, varying with Reynolds numbers (Re_c=2.3×10⁴, 3.3×10⁴, and 4.8×10⁴). A reduced frequency of 0.1 was identically set in all cases. Results show that in the presented Reynolds number range, the separation bubble dependent on both angle-of-attack and Reynolds number was observed, accompanied with unsteady laminar separation after reattachment. The unsteady laminar separation occurred at the saddle point, which was formed by the two vortices, the wall, and the external flow, and it was independent of reverse flow. This result indicates that the unsteady laminar separation occurs during the process of transition after the reattachment of separated boundary layer for an unsteady flow. The reverse flow observed over the trailing edge significantly interacted with the trailing edge vortex that rotates in the streamwise direction. This trailing edge vortex prevents the uppermost of the reverse flow from reaching to the unsteady laminar separation point during the upstroke, and this induces that the boundary layer breakdown does not occur in spite of the occurrence of laminar separation. The discrete vortices are formed by unsteady laminar separation, and its formation is ultimately affected by the Reynolds number. Consequently, it is obvious that the unsteady boundary layers are ultimately sensitive to Reynolds number in a low Reynolds number regime.     

Experimental and numerical investigations of the factors affecting the S-type Pitot tube coefficients

In greenhouse gas emission monitoring from industrial stacks, the most common device used to measure stack gas velocity is the S-type Pitot tube. Various factors such as the Reynolds number and misalignment of the installation angle can be additional error sources for the S-type Pitot tube coefficients due to harsh environments. Manufacturing quality of the S-type Pitot tube is also a factor affecting on the measurement uncertainty of stack gas velocity. In the present study, wind tunnel experiments were conducted in Korea Research Institute of Standards and Science (KRISS) standard air speed system to examine the effects of various factors on the S-type Pitot tube coefficients. Numerical simulations were also used to understand flow phenomena around the S-type Pitot tube in the presence of misalignment and distortion of the geometry. The results indicate that misalignment of the pitch and yaw angle change within ±10° changes the S-type Pitot tube coefficients by approximately 2% compared with normal values. The manufacturing quality resulted in unstable values of the coefficients within 2%. However, variations of the Reynolds number (Re_D=3.0×10³–2.2×10⁴) had no significant effect on the S-type Pitot tube coefficients.     

Discharge coefficient equation for critical-flow toroidal-throat venturi nozzles covering the boundary-layer transition regime

A single, simple correlating equation between the discharge coefficient of critical-flow Venturi nozzles (CFVNs) having an ISO 9300 toroidal throat and their Reynolds number is proposed in the Reynolds number range from 2.1×10⁴ to 3.2×10⁷. The equation covers the whole Reynolds number range from laminar to turbulent boundary-layer regimes and can thus be used instead of the two correlating equations defined in ISO 9300 : 2005. The deviation of the discharge coefficients of well-made CFVNs is expected to be less than ±0.2% throughout the Reynolds number range. Tolerances for the diffuser length, inlet curvature and inlet diameter are also proposed. It is shown that the widely-accepted theories that estimate the core flow distribution result in significant error when the inlet curvature is small and that removing the third term in Hall׳s equation results in very good agreement with the experimental data regardless of the magnitude of the inlet curvature. The use of CFVNs with the inlet curvature of 1.0D is discussed in order to reduce the uncertainty owing to undefined boundary-layer transition Reynolds number. A possibility is shown that such a CFVN may not have an apparent boundary-layer transition in the investigated Reynolds number range from 1.5×10⁴ to 2.0×10⁶.     

Characteristic flow patterns and aerodynamic performance on a forward-swept wing

This investigation elucidates the effects of Reynolds number (Re) and angle of attack (??) on the boundary-layer flow patterns, aerodynamic performance, flow behaviors and vortex shedding. This investigation applies a finite NACA 0012 forward-swept wing with the forward-sweep angle (??) of 15°. The Reynolds numbers were tested in the range of 4.6 × 10⁴ < Re < 10⁵. The wing chord length is 6 cm and the semi-wing span is 30 cm, such that the full-span wing aspect ratio is 10. The surface oil-flow scheme was utilized to visualize the boundary-layer flow structures. The hot-wire anemometer was applied to measure the vortex-shedding frequency behind the forwardswept wing. Furthermore, a force-moment sensor was applied to measure the aerodynamic loadings. The surface oil-flow patterns are classified into six characteristic flow modes ?? separation, separation bubble, secondary separation, leading-edge bubble, bubble extension and bluff-body wake modes. Additionally, the output of force-moment sensor and the visualized boundary-layer flow configurations indicate that the aerodynamic performance is closely related to the boundary-layer flow behaviors. Furthermore, the boundary-layer flow stalled in the leading-edge bubble mode. Moreover, the vortex-shedding frequency behind the forward-swept wing shows that the vortexshedding frequency at low ?? exceeds that at high ??.     

Flow conditioning system for tri-sonic high pressure aerothermal testing

Blowdown testing offers a cost-effective experimental tool to replicate the aerothermal conditions in numerous high speed systems. The wind tunnel must replicate the inlet operating conditions, while the spatial and time dependent inlet flow conditions should be assessed carefully. This paper provides a design methodology and rules that ensure adequate flow conditioning in high inlet pressure wind tunnels suitable for subsonic and supersonic operation with mass-flow limits ranging from 1 kg/s to 25 kg/s, Reynolds numbers from 10³ (1/m) to 4x10⁷ (1/m), and Mach numbers from 0.01 up to 6. The quality of the proposed flow conditioning system was evaluated using stereo PIV measurements combined with hotwire, Pitot probe, and total flow temperature traverses.     

Numerical and experimental investigation of vortex breaker effectiveness on the improvement in launch vehicle ballistic parameters

The focus of the present study is to investigate the effectiveness of installing vortex breakers at the outlet of launch vehicle tanks on postponing vortex formation and decreasing the critical height of propellants while discharging. Analytical results in the absence of a vortex breaker show that the effects of the Weber and Reynolds numbers in the flow field can be ignored for values greater than 720 and 1.1 × 10⁵, respectively; and critical height can be considered as a function of Froude number under aforementioned conditions. The analytical criteria are verified by two-dimensional, axis symmetrical, transient and two-phase numerical model. Eventually, some experiments are conducted to examine the effectiveness of the applied vortex breakers in reduction of the critical height of propellant. Experimental results show that a 30% decrease can be achieved in critical height by using a particular type of vortex breaker. Additionally, the carried out simulations for an existing two-stage launch vehicle indicate a 13% increase in orbital altitude, which in turn proves the considerable improvement in launch vehicle mass/energetic capabilities.     

Experimental hover performance evaluation on a small-scale rotor using a rotor test stand

This paper presents the work being carried out in order to deduce hover performance of a small-scale single rotor blade as a preliminary study of a small coaxial rotor helicopter development. As an initial research, a test stand capable of measuring thrust and torque of a small-scale rotor blade in hover state was constructed and fabricated. The test stand consists of three parts; a rotating device, a load measuring sensor and a data acquisition system. Thrust and torque were measured with varying collective pitch angle at fixed RPM. Through this research, hover performance tests were conducted for a small-scale single rotor blade operating in low Reynolds numbers (Re ≈ 3 × 10⁵). The rotor blades investigated in this paper have maximum FM values varying from 0.59 to 0.65, which are low relative to modern full-scale helicopters. From these differences in FM between a small and a full-scale helicopter, the induced power factor is determined as varying from 1.35 to 1.42. Through this study, tests of hover performance were conducted for a single small-scale rotor blade, as well as verifying the test stand itself for the acquisition of hover performance.     

Flow around a pipeline and its stability in subsea trench

Offshore subsea pipelines must be stable against external loadings, which are mostly due to waves and currents. To determine the stability of a subsea pipeline on the seabed, the Morrison equation has been applied with prediction of inertia and drag forces. When the pipeline is placed in a trench, the force acting on it is reduced considerably. Therefore, to consider the stability of a pipeline in a trench, one must employ reduction factors. To investigate the stability of various trenches, we numerically simulated flows over various trenches and compared them with experimental data from PIV (Particle Image Velocimetry) measurements. The present results were produced at Reynolds numbers ranging from 6×10³ to 3×10⁵ based on the diameter of the cylinder. Quasi-periodic flow patterns computed by large-eddy simulation were compared with experimental data in terms of mean flow characteristics for typical trench configurations (W/H=1 and H/D=3, 4). The stability for various trench conditions was addressed in terms of mean amplitudes of oscillating lift and drag, and the reduction factor for each case was suggested for pipeline design.     

Control of flow around a square cylinder at incidence by using a splitter plate

Passive control of vortex shedding behind a square cylinder at incidence has been conducted experimentally by using a stationary splitter plate for the Reynolds numbers of 3.0×10⁴. The splitter plate was located at the center of the rear face of the square cylinder in tandem. The width of the cylinder and the plate were both chosen to be 30 mm and the incidence angle of the square cylinder was rotated between 0° to 45°. In this study, the combined effects of the splitter plate and angle of incidence on the pressure distributions and vortex-shedding phenomenon were investigated. Vortex shedding frequency was obtained from velocity measurements and aerodynamic force coefficients acted on the cylinder were calculated from pressure distributions. Characteristics of the vortex formation region and location of the flow attachments, reattachments and separation were observed by using the smoke–wire flow visualization technique. For the case with the plate, there is a sudden jump in the Strouhal number in the vicinity of 13° which corresponds to a minimum value of the drag coefficient. At zero angle of incidence, Strouhal number and a drag coefficient of the square cylinder decreased about 20% by means of the splitter plate. Drag reduction was minimum at about 13° and reached its maximum value at about 20°.