As the complexity of multi-physics simulations increases, there is a need for efficient flow of information between components. Discrete 'coupler' codes can abstract away this process, improving solver interoperability. One such multi-physics problem is modelling the high pressure compressor of turbofan engines, where instances of rotor/stator CFD simulations are coupled. Configuring couplers and allocating resources correctly can be challenging for such problems due to the sliding interfaces between codes. In this research, we present CPX, a mini-coupler designed to model the performance behaviour of a production coupler framework at Rolls-Royce plc., used for coupling rotor/stator simulations. CPX, the first mini-coupler framework of its kind, is combined with a CFD mini-app to predict the run-time and scaling behaviour of large scale coupled CFD simulations. We demonstrate high qualitative and quantitative predictive accuracy with a less than 17% mean error. A performance model is developed to predict the 'optimum' configuration of resources, and is tested to show the high accuracy of these predictions. The model is also used to project the 'optimum' configuration for a 6 Billion cell test case, a problem size representative of current leading-edge production workloads, on a 100,000 core cluster and a 400 GPU cluster. Further testing reveals that the 'optimum' configuration is unstable if not set up correctly, and therefore a trade-off needs to be made with a marginally lessthan-optimal setup to ensure stability. The work illustrates the significant utility of CPX to carry out such rapid design space and run-time setup exploration studies to obtain the best performance from production CFD coupled simulations.
Sandcast lead sheets are characterised by their superior aesthetic performance and mottled surface. Lead sheet casting is widely used in the construction industry for roofing and flashing applications, while the roots of this process can be tracked back to the Roman times. In this study, two-dimensional Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulations have been performed to simulate the melt flow and solidification stages of the lead sandcasting process. The effects of process parameters such as pouring temperature, screed velocity and clearance between the screed and the sandbed on the final quality of the lead sheet are investigated. Lead sheet quality has been quantified by measuring the variance and the average value of the final sheet thickness over the sandbed length. The developed CFD model has been validated against experimental results by comparing the time evolution of the lead-sandbed interface temperature against data collected by thermocouples during the real-time process. The numerical results show that all of the aforementioned parameters affect the final quality of the cast product and suggest that superior quality lead sheets can be produced for a range of relatively low values of the pouring temperature and slow strickle motion.
In civil aircraft aeroengine bearing chambers it is sometimes difficult to feed oil to bearings using the traditional under-race or targeted jet approaches. In such situations one proposed solution is that of a scoop delivery system. Published experimental investigations into scoop performance show that scoop collection efficiency (the percentage of oil delivered by the scoop system to its destination compared to that supplied by the feed jet) is a function of many operational and geometric parameters. However even with high speed imaging it is impossible to experimentally determine in detail the factors that most contribute to reduction in collection efficiency and it is here particularly that a computational fluid dynamics (CFD) investigation has value. In the work reported here a commercial CFD code (ANSYS Fluent) is used to investigate vortex formation at the scoop tips and the effect these structures have on scoop collection efficiency. The computational domain, a 2D slice through the chosen scoop system, is discretized utilizing ANSYS Meshing. A Volume of fluid (VOF) method is used to model the multiphase flow of oil and air in the system and the RNG k-ε turbulence model is employed. The results obtained show that the formation of vortices from the tip of the rotating scoops leads to a reduction in pressure in the region near the tip of the oil jet, subsequently causing part of the jet to divert upwards away from the scoop creating a plumed tip. The pluming effect reduces capture efficiency because the oil plume moves outwards under centrifugal effects and this oil is not captured. The frequency of vortex shedding from the scooped rotor was investigated and the Strouhal numbers obtained were around 0.132. This compares well to 0.15 for an inclined flat plate. Two potential methods to reduce the jet pluming effect are investigated one in which the sharp tip of the scoop is blunted and the other in which the jet direction is reversed. The blunt tip increased capture efficiency by almost 2%. Reversing the jet orientation reduces jet pluming but also significantly reduces capture efficiency; it was found to be 10% lower for the case investigated.
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