Volume 33, Issue 1 -

An integrated analytical method based on multidisciplinary optimization software Isight and general finite element software ANSYS was proposed in this paper. Firstly, a two-disk rotor system was established and the mode, humorous response and transient response at acceleration condition were analyzed with ANSYS. The dynamic characteristics of the two-disk rotor system were achieved. On this basis, the two-disk rotor model was integrated to the multidisciplinary design optimization software Isight. According to the design of experiment (DOE) and the dynamic characteristics, the optimization variables, optimization objectives and constraints were confirmed. After that, the multi-objective design optimization of the transient process was carried out with three different global optimization algorithms including Evolutionary Optimization Algorithm, Multi-Island Genetic Algorithm and Pointer Automatic Optimizer. The optimum position of the two-disk rotor system was obtained at the specified constraints. Meanwhile, the accuracy and calculation numbers of different optimization algorithms were compared. The optimization results indicated that the rotor vibration reached the minimum value and the design efficiency and quality were improved by the multidisciplinary design optimization in the case of meeting the design requirements, which provided the reference to improve the design efficiency and reliability of the aero-engine rotor.

The complex flow structures in a linear compressor cascade have been investigated under different incidences using both the Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes (RANS) and delayed detached eddy simulation (DDES) methods. The current study analyzes the development of horseshoe vortex and passage vortex in a compressor cascade based on DDES results and explores the effect of the passage vortex on corner separation using the RANS method. Results show that the effect of horseshoe vortex on three-dimensional corner separation is weak, whereas the effect of passage vortex is dominant. A large vortex breaks into many small vortices in the corner separation region, thereby resulting in strong turbulence fluctuation. The passage vortex transports the low-energetic flow near the endwall to the blade suction surface and enlarges corner separation in the cascade. Hence, total pressure loss increases in the cascade.

Thrust augmentation and acoustic performance of a Pulse Detonation Engine (PDE) with ejector system is experimentally investigated. For these tests the L Ejector / D Ejector is varied from 1.18 to 4 and the axial placement of the ejector relative to the PDE exhaust is varied from an x / D PDE of −3 to 3. Results from the tests show that the optimum L Ejector / D Ejector based on thrust augmentation and Overall Sound Pressure Level ( OASPL ) is found to be 2.61. The divergent ejector performed the best based on thrust augmentation, while the reduction effect for OASPL and Peak Sound Pressure Level ( PSPL ) at 60° is most prominent for the convergent ejector. The optimum axial position based on thrust augmentation is determined to be x / D PDE = 2, while, x / D PDE = 0 based on OASPL and PSPL .

Load spectra of aero-engines reflect the process of operating aircrafts as well as the changes of parameters of aircrafts. According to flight hours and speed cycle numbers of the aero-engines, the relationship between load spectra and the fatigue life of main components of the aero-engines is obtained. Based on distribution function and a generalized stress–strength interference model, the cumulative fatigue damage of aero-engines is then calculated. After applying the analysis of load spectra and the cumulative fatigue damage theory, the fatigue life of the first-stage turbine disks of the aero-engines is evaluated by using the S – N curve and Miner’s rule in this paper.

Effect of fuel spray cone angle in an aerogas turbine combustor has been studied using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and full-scale combustor testing. For CFD analysis, a 22.5° sector of an annular combustor is modeled and the governing equations are solved using the eddy dissipation combustion model in ANSYS CFX computational package. The analysis has been carried out at 125 kPa and 303 K inlet conditions for spray cone angles from 60° to 140°. The lean blowout limits are established by studying the behavior of combustion zone during transient engine operation from an initial steady-state condition. The computational study has been followed by testing the practical full-scale annular combustor in an aerothermal test facility. The experimental result is in a good agreement with the computational predictions. The lean blowout fuel–air ratio increases as the spray cone angle is decreased at constant operating pressure and temperature. At higher spray cone angle, the flame and high-temperature zone moves upstream close to atomizer face and a uniform flame is sustained over a wide region causing better flame stability.

Thermal stresses in a simplified steam turbine rotor model during a cold startup are analyzed using finite element analysis (FEA). In order to validate the numerical model, an experimental array is developed in which a hollow cylinder is heated with hot air in the external surface. At the thick wall of the cylinder, temperature distribution is measured in real time, while at the same time an algorithm computes thermal stresses. Additional computational fluid dynamics (CFD) calculations are made to obtain magnitudes of velocity and pressure in order to compute convective heat transfer coefficient. The experimental results show good agreement with the FEA computations. To evaluate the effect of rotor diameter size, FEA computations with variation in external and internal diameters are performed. Results show that thermal stresses are proportional to rotor diameter size. Also, zones of higher stress concentration are found in the external and internal surfaces of the rotor.

With both the advantages like attacking close targets and the disadvantages especially like dynamic coupling, helicopter deserves more investigations these days. This paper did dynamic study both in a simplified and a multi-degree of freedom, comprehensive helicopter model, so that to reveal the law of torsional vibration. In the simplified model, the law how arbitrary parameter affects the first-order vibration mode, is discussed. Then, the validation is done in a multi-degree of freedom model by means of the fast Fourier transformation (FFT) method. In this case, how the low-frequency vibration mode relates with the first-order vibration mode is clearly presented, as well as the research direction to design a filter. Lastly, a simple filter is designed with some simulations.

The aerodynamic performance, detailed unsteady flow and time-based excitations acting on blade surfaces of a radial flow turbine have been investigated with pulsation flow condition. The results show that the turbine instantaneous performance under pulsation flow condition deviates from the quasi-steady value significantly and forms obvious hysteretic loops around the quasi-steady conditions. The detailed analysis of unsteady flow shows that the characteristic of pulsation flow field in radial turbine is highly influenced by the pulsation inlet condition. The blade torque, power and loading fluctuate with the inlet pulsation wave in a pulse period. For the blade excitations, the maximum and the minimum blade excitations conform to the wave crest and wave trough of the inlet pulsation, respectively, in time-based scale. And toward blade chord direction, the maximum loading distributes along the blade leading edge until 20% chord position and decreases from the leading to trailing edge.

The combustion and flame blowout characteristics are investigated in a vitiated environment by placing the 60°, 90° and 120° V-gutters. The blowout is initiated through varying the equivalence ratio of reactants’ flow rates. The blowout is mainly investigated in ultra-lean condition where the equivalence ratio ranges from 0.18 to 0.8, by varying the length of the combustor; the blowout of flame takes place more quickly; it occurred in all tested gutter angles. On increasing the gutter angle from 60° to 120° the flame blowout takes place at Reynolds number from 2,500 to 6,000, which is inversely proportional to the gutter-induced angle of the gutter. The flame flashback possibility occurs due to aggression of the flame marching towards the blowout. The 120° V-gutter has possible flashback since the blowout takes place at very low Reynolds number. As the length of the combustor increases, it is also evident that flashback phenomenon occurred in the rigorous flame just before the flame blowout.