Internal flow numerical simulation of double-suction centrifugal pump using DES model

Abstract

It is a challenging task for the flow simulation for a double-suction centrifugal pump, because the wall effects are strong in this type of pumps. Detached-eddy simulation (DES), referred as a hybrid RANS-LES approach, has emerged recently as a potential compromise between RANS based turbulence models and Large Eddy Simulation. In this approach, the unsteady RANS model is employed in the boundary layer, while the LES treatment is applied to the separated region. In this paper, S-A DES method and SST k−ω DES method are applied to the numerical simulation for the 3D flow in whole passage of a double-suction centrifugal pump. The unsteady flow field including velocity and pressure distributions is obtained. The head and efficiency of the pump are predicted and compared with experimental results. According to the calculated results, S-A DES model is easy to control the partition of the simulation when using near wall grid with 30 < y+<300 control approach. It also has better performance on efficiency and accuracy than SST k − ω DES method. S-A DES method is more suitable for solving the unsteady flow in double-suction centrifugal pump. S-A DES method can capture more flow phenomenon than SST k − ω DES method. In addition, it can accurately predict the power performance under different flow conditions, and can reflect pressure fluctuation characteristics.