Influence of the Slot Fillet and Vane Root Fillet on the Turbine Vane Endwall Cooling Performance

Abstract

Due to machining techniques and dust deposition, gas turbine upstream slots and vane roots are always filleted, significantly affecting the cooling performance of the endwall. The effects of upstream slot fillet and vane root fillet on the cooling performance of the gas turbine endwall were investigated by solving the three-dimensional Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes (RANS) equations with the shear stress transport (SST) k–ω turbulence model. The results indicate that the velocity distribution of the slot coolant is effectively changed by introducing the upstream slot fillets. Among the four cases, the largest adiabatic cooling effectiveness was obtained for the case with two similar fillets, with a 42% increase in effective cooling area compared to the traditional slot. At MFR = 0.75%, the horseshoe vortex is weakened by the introduction of the vane fillet with a small radius, with a 53% increase in effective cooling area compared to the baseline. However, the vane fillet with a large radius makes the boundary layer flow separately prematurely, decreasing the cooling performance. The lateral coverage of the coolant jet from the filmhole embedded in the vane root fillet is greatly enhanced by increasing the vane root fillet radius. However, the streamwise coverage is decreased and the thermodynamic loss is increased.