Application of a compressible flow solver and barotropic cavitation model for the evaluation of the suction head in a low specific speed centrifugal pump impeller channel

Abstract

Commonly, for the simulation of cavitation in centrifugal pumps incompressible flow solvers with VOF kind cavitation models are applied. Since the source/sink terms of the void fraction transport equation are based on simplified bubble dynamics, empirical parameters may need to be adjusted to the particular pump operating point. In the present study a barotropic cavitation model, which is based solely on thermodynamic fluid properties and does not include any empirical parameters, is applied on a single flow channel of a pump impeller in combination with a time-explicit viscous compressible flow solver. The suction head curves (head drop) are compared to the results of an incompressible implicit standard industrial CFD tool and are predicted qualitatively correct by the barotropic model.