This paper describes a programme of work, largely experimental, which was undertaken with the objective of developing an improved blade profile for the low-pressure turbine in aero-engine applications. Preliminary experiments were conducted using a novel technique. An existing cascade of datum blades was modified to enable the pressure distribution on the suction surface of one of the blades to be altered. Various means, such as shaped inserts, an adjustable flap at the trailing edge, and changing stagger were employed to change the geometry of the passage. These experiments provided boundary layer and lift data for a wide range of suction surface pressure distributions. The data was then used as a guide for the development of new blade profiles. The new blade profiles were then investigated in a low-speed cascade that included a set of moving bars upstream of the cascade of blades 10 simulate the effect of the incoming wakes from the previous blade row in a multistage turbine environment. Results are presented for two improved profiles that are compared with a datum representative of current practice. The experimental results include loss measurements by wake traverse, surface pressure distributions, and boundary layer measurements. The cascades were operated over a Reynolds Number range from 0.7 × 105 to 4.0 × 105. The first profile is a “laminar flow” design that was intended to improve the efficiency at the same loading as the datum. The other is a more highly loaded blade profile intended to permit a reduction in blade numbers. The more highly loaded profile is the most promising candidate for inclusion in future designs. It enables blade numbers to be reduced by 20%, without incurring any efficiency penalty. The results also indicate that unsteady effects must be taken into consideration when selecting a blade profile for the low-pressure turbine.

This paper describes a program of work, largely experimental, which was undertaken with the objective of developing an improved blade profile for the low-pressure turbine in aero-engine applications. Preliminary experiments were conducted using a novel technique. An existing cascade of datum blades was modified to enable the pressure distribution on the suction surface of one of the blades to be altered. Various means, such as shaped inserts, an adjustable flap at the trailing edge, and changing stagger were employed to change the geometry of the passage. These experiments provided boundary layer and lift data for a wide range of suction surface pressure distributions. The data were then used as a guide for the development of new blade profiles. The new blade profiles were then investigated in a low-speed cascade that included a set of moving bars upstream of the cascade of blades to simulate the effect of the incoming wakes from the previous blade row in a multistage turbine environment. Results are presented for two improved profiles that are compared with a datum representative of current practice. The experimental results include loss measurements by wake traverse, surface pressure distributions, and boundary layer measurements. The cascades were operated over a Reynolds number range from 0.7 × 105 to 4.0 × 105. The first profile is a “laminar flow” design that was intended to improve the efficiency at the same loading as the datum. The other is a more highly loaded blade profile intended to permit a reduction in blade numbers. The more highly loaded profile is the most promising candidate for inclusion in future designs. It enables blade numbers to be reduced by 20 percent, without incurring any efficiency penalty. The results also indicate that unsteady effects must be taken into consideration when selecting a blade profile for the low-pressure turbine.

This paper presents a study of the three-dimensional flow field within the blade rows of a single stage highpressure axial turbine (low-speed, large-scale). Measurements have been performed in the stationary and rotating frames of reference. Time-mean data have been obtained using five-hole pneumatic probes. The transport mechanisms of the stator wake and passage vortices through the rotor blade row have been studied using smoke flow visualisation. Furthermore, unsteady measurements have been carried out using a three axis hot-wire. Steady and unsteady numerical simulations have been performed using a structured threedimensional Navier-Stokes solver to further understand the blade row interactions. The development of the stator exit flow field through the rotor blade row is described. The path of the stator passage vortices is altered by the rotor secondary flow. The rotor passage vortices are also affected by the transport of the stator secondary flow. The predicted flow field was interrogated from the perspective of loss production. The contribution of the unsteady flow to the stage loss has been evaluated using unsteady numerical simulations. The effect of stator viscous flow transport on the rotor flow angles is also discussed in brief. Finally, a simple model is proposed for the transport of the secondary flow vortices in the downstream blade row based on the understanding obtained from the measurements and numerical simulations.

A numerical scheme based on the k—e turbulences model has been employed to determine turbulent flow characteristics of servo-valve orifices. Numerical predictions of flow patterns, flow coefficients and pressure variations within the valve orifice are presented and their implications for control of spool forces and cavitation effects are considered. The limitations of the model are considered and a proposal for more effective servo-valve modelling, together with a comparable experimental study, is made.

This article presents a study of the development of the three-dimensional flowfield within the rotor blades of a low-speed, large-scale axial flow turbine. Measurements have been performed in the rotating and stationary frames of reference. Time-mean data have been obtained using miniature five-hole pneumatic probes, whereas the unsteady development of the flow has been determined using three-axis subminiature hot-wire anemometers. Additional information is provided by the results of blade-surface flow-visualization experiments and surfacemounted hot-film anemometers. The development of the stator exit flow, as it passes through the rotor blades, is described. Unsteady data suggest that the presence of the rotor secondary and tip leakage flows restricts the region of unsteady interaction to near midspan when the stator wakes and secondary flows are adjacent to the suction surface. Surface-mounted hot-film data show that this affects the suction-side laminar-turbulent transition process. Nomenclature C v = axial chord E = anemometer voltage E () = anemometer voltage under zero-flow conditions H = boundary-layer shape factor 8*19 P () = stagnation pressure Re = Reynolds number s = surface distance s* = fractional surface distance, s/s m . M T,, = intensity of random velocity fluctuations, rms/F re , t = time measured from once-per-revolution trigger t* = fractional time, tlr U m = mean blade velocity V = velocity V rcf = stator midspan mean exit velocity 8* = boundary-layer displacement thickness 0 = boundary-layer momentum thickness p = density T = periodic time r u . = wall shear stress, (E 2 IE^ -I) 3 , arbitrary units a) = stagnation pressure loss coefficient, AP () /ipV 2 ef = time-mean {( )} = ensemble-variance of ... ( ) = ensemble-mean of ...

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