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![[Dept of Engineering]](http://www.eng.cam.ac.uk/images/house_style/engban-s.gif){kind=small}
Professor N.A. Cumpsty
Professor J.D. Denton
Professor W.N. Dawes
Dr I.J. Day
Dr H.P. Hodson
Dr T.P. Hynes
Dr J.P. Longley
Dr J.B. Young
The Whittle Laboratory's experimental and computational resources are applied to improving our knowledge of turbomachinery flows(B1-B15), primarily for application to gas turbines in jet engines. The group is building on its already strong ties with industry and on collaborative ties with overseas teams; the involvement with industry ensures that the work done is of interest and relevance whilst contact with other universities is especially valuable in the training of young researchers.
Unsteady effects are being studied and gradually understood. This understanding has required experimental and computational work; whereas many unsteady effects are undesirable (noise and vibration, for example) it has been found that the effects of wakes from upstream blades can in some cases reduce losses by affecting transition. The combined use of experiment and computation is unravelling the complexities of three-dimensional flow; in turbomachinery the flow is strongly three-dimensional and often includes regions of complicated separated flow(B19). Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD), using codes written in the Whittle Laboratory, has been used to analyse conventional blades and then design new blades which are predicted to have less separation. These newly designed blades have been manufactured and tested for both a compressor and for two different styles of turbine.
For non-equilibrium wet steam flows in turbines an analytical solution for the nucleation and droplet growth has been incorporated into the gas dynamic flow solver, reducing the computational cost, improving the accuracy and facilitating extension to three-dimensional and unsteady flows(B17). A project, has been investigating the processes by which small particles (such as coal ash) are transported through turbulent boundary layers to solid surfaces. This has resulted in a new theory of particle deposition from turbulent flows which holds promise of wide-ranging applications in areas far removed from the original brief(B18).
This last year has seen the launch of three major new project areas aimed at taking advance of mature CFD capability. The first looks at primary-secondary path interactions in axial compressors using unstructured mesh, solution-adaptive methodologies. The second embeds a blade-blade 3D N-S solver within design optimisation software with geometry parametrisation. The third has started to look at the acoustics of transonic fans subject to acoustic liners in the presence of downstream circumferential non-uniformities (pylons etc). Work continues on the vital enabling technology of mesh generation/CAD linkage and on transition/turbulence modelling.
B1. Camp, T. R., Day, I. J. A study of spike and modal stall phenomena in a low-speed axial compressor. Proceedings, ASME Turbo Expo 97, Land, Sea and Air, 42nd Gas Turbine and Aeroengine Congress, Users' Symposium and Exposition, Orlando, FL, USA, ASME Paper 97-GT-526 (June 1997).
B2. Cumpsty, N. A. Jet Propulsion. (Cambridge University Press, 1997).
B3. Curtis, E.M., Hodson, H.P., Bangieghbal, M.R., Denton, J.D., Howell, R.J., Harvey, N.W. Development of blade profiles for low pressure turbine applications. Transactions of the ASME Journal of Turbomachinery, 119, (3), 531-538 (1997).
B4. Day, I. J., Breuer, T., Escuret, J., Cherrett, M., Wilson, A. Stall inception and the implications for active control in four high sped compressors. Proceedings, ASME Turbo Expo 97, Land, Sea and Air, 42nd Gas Turbine and Aeroengine Congress, Users' Symposium and Exposition, Orlando, FL, USA, ASME Paper 97-GT-281 (June 1997).
B5. Deckers, M., Denton, J. D. The aerodynamics of trailing-edge-cooled transonic turbine blades: Part 1 - experimental approach. Proceedings, ASME Turbo Expo 97, Land, Sea and Air, 42nd Gas Turbine and Aeroengine Congress, Users' Symposium and Exposition, Orlando, FL, USA, ASME Paper 97-GT-518 (June 1997).
B6. Deckers, M., Denton, J. D. The aerodynamics of trailing-edge-cooled transonic turbine blades: Part 2 - theoretical and computational approach. Proceedings, ASME Turbo Expo 97, Land, Sea and Air, 42nd Gas Turbine and Aeroengine Congress, Users' Symposium and Exposition, Orlando, FL, USA, ASME Paper 97-GT-519 (June 1997).
B7. Demargne, A.A.J., Longley, J.P. Comparisons between measured and calculated stall development in four high-speed multi-stage compressors. Proceedings, ASME Turbo Expo 97, Land, Sea and Air, 42nd Gas Turbine and Aeroengine Congress, Users' Symposium and Exposition, Orlando, FL, USA, ASME Paper 97-GT-467 (June 1997).
B8. Denton, J. D., Wallis, A. M., Borthwick, D., Grant, J., Ritchey, I. The three-dimensional design of low aspect ratio 50% reaction turbines. Institution of Mechanical Engineers, Latest Advances in the Aerodynamics of Turbomachinery with Special Emphasis upon Unsteady Flows Seminar, London, 109-120. IMechE Seminar Publication 1996-21 (December 1996).
B9. Freeman, C., Wilson, A. G., Day, I. J., Swinbanks, M. A. Experiments in active control of stall on an aeroengine gas turbine. Proceedings, ASME Turbo Expo 97, Land, Sea and Air, 42nd Gas Turbine and Aeroengine Congress, Users' Symposium and Exposition, Orlando, FL, USA, ASME Paper 97-GT-280 (June 1997).
B10. Halstead, D.E., Wisler, D.C., Okiishi, T.H., Walker, G.J., Hodson, H.P., Shin, H-W. Boundary layer development in axial compressors and turbines. Part 1 of 4: composite picture. Transactions of the ASME Journal of Turbomachinery, 119, (1), 114-127 (1997).
B11. Halstead, D.E., Wisler, D.C., Okiishi, T.H., Walker, G.J., Hodson, H.P., Shin, H-W. Boundary layer development in axial compressors and turbines. Part 2 of 4: compressors. Transactions of the ASME Journal of Turbomachinery, 119, (3), 426-444 (1997).
B12. Halstead, D.E., Wisler, D.C., Okiishi, T.H., Walker, G.J., Hodson, H.P., Shin, H-W. Boundary layer development in axial compressors and turbines. Part 3 of 4: LP turbines. Transactions of the ASME Journal of Turbomachinery, 119, (2), 225-237 (1997).
B13. Halstead, D.E., Wisler, D.C., Okiishi, T.H., Walker, G.J., Hodson, H.P., Shin, H-W. Boundary layer development in axial compressors and turbines. Part 4 of 4: computations and analyses. Transactions of the ASME Journal of Turbomachinery, 119, (1), 128-139 (1997).
B14. Konrad, W., Brehm, N., Kameler, F., Freeman, C., Day, I. J. Combustion instability investigations on the BR710 jet engine. Proceedings, ASME Turbo Asia Conference, Jakarta, Indonesia, ASME Paper 96TA-36 (November 1996).
B15. Longley, J.P. Calculating the flowfield behaviour of high-speed multi-stage compressors. Proceedings, ASME Turbo Expo 97, Land, Sea and Air, 42nd Gas Turbine and Aeroengine Congress, Users' Symposium and Exposition, Orlando, FL, USA, ASME Paper 97-GT-468 (June 1997).
B16. Schulte, V.S., Hodson, H.P. Prediction of the becalmed region for LP turbine profile design. Proceedings, ASME Turbo Expo 97, Land, Sea and Air, 42nd Gas Turbine and Aeroengine Congress, Users' Symposium and Exposition, Orlando, FL, USA, ASME Paper 97-GT-398 (June 1997).
B17. Young, J.B. Non-equilibrium condensing flows in turbomachinery. Gesellschaft für Angewandte Mathematik und Mechanik Annual Meeting, GAMM 97, Regensburg, Germany, Multi-phase flows special topic paper (March 1997).
B18. Young, J.B., Leeming, A.D. A theory of particle deposition in turbulent pipe flow. Journal of Fluid Mechanics, 340, 129-159 (1997).
B19. Zhong, S.K., Hodson, H.P., Ireland, P.T. Visualisation of turbulent spots with temperature sensitive liquid crystals. International Conference on Heat and Mass Transfer, Antwerp, Belgium (June 1997).