Effect of inlet wetness on transonic wet-steam and moist-air flows in turbomachinery

Abstract

This study investigates the effect of inlet wetness on transonic wet-steam and moist-air flows through turbine and compressor cascade channels. We first simulated the transonic wet-steam flows through a Bakhtar’s turbine cascade channel under wind-tunnel conditions with inlet wetness. We then predicted the effects of inlet wetness on the moist-air flows expected through an aircraft engine and an industrial gas turbine. For this purpose, we simulated the transonic moist-air flows through a transonic compressor cascade channel while changing the inlet wetness conditions. In both wet-stream and moist-air flows, the inlet wetness was quite sensitive to the growth and evaporation rates of the water droplets, and greatly influenced the shock location. Our results for moist-air flows suggest that the temperature beyond the shock is effectively decreased by a large number density of smaller water droplets.