Hub Geometry Research Articles

Numerical Investigations and Artificial Neural Network-Based Performance Prediction of a Centrifugal Fan Having Innovative Hub Geometry Designs

It is a well-known fact that air approaches the eye region of the rotating impeller of a centrifugal fan with shock-less entry conditions in an ideal scenario. The flow in this region is associated with induced swirl losses, leading to cumulative performance losses. Proper flow guidance in the vicinity of the eye region is essential to minimize possible flow losses. The flow guiding structure may be in the form of a projection or extrusion connected to the rotating impeller of the turbo machines and is generally named a hub. These attachments enhance the overall flow augmentation of the turbo machines in terms of static pressure improvement by reducing a significant amount of inlet turning losses. This article attempts to highlight the efficacy of hubs of various shapes and sizes on the pressure rise of the centrifugal fan using Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD). Simulation results revealed that the optimized hub configuration yields about an 8.4% higher head coefficient and 8.6% higher relative theoretical efficiency than that obtained for the hub-less base configuration. This improvement in these paraments therefore also commemorates the global progress in energy efficiency as per the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, SDG 7 in particular. Simultaneously, in the Artificial Neural Network (ANN), a Multi-Layer Perceptron (MLP) model is used to forecast the performance of a centrifugal fan with an optimized hub design. The results predicted by the ANN model are found to be in close agreement with the optimized hub shape’s numerical results.

Investigation of Needle Characteristics Using an Animal Model for Improved Outcomes in Anterior Chamber Paracentesis.

Background/Aims: The current standard of care to perform an anterior chamber paracentesis involves the use of a multipurpose market needle and syringe. The use of standard needles for this purpose may result in injury to the patient due to increased force with insertion and increased globe displacement during the procedure. This research investigates the current market needle characteristics and the impact of each needle characteristic on force. Methods: Several comparative trials were conducted to evaluate the needles. Needle characteristics of interest were gauge, primary bevel angle, number of bevels in the lancet, and needle hub geometry. Measurements of corneal insertion forces were made using a synthetic thermoplastic polyurethane medium, and bovine and porcine models. Needle safety was investigated with corneal abrasion experiments. Results: Reduced insertion force was observed with lower lancet primary angle. There was no difference based on the number of bevels in the lancet. Rounded hub geometry had minimal distribution to the corneal epithelium. Conclusions: Needle characteristics impact the force needed for needle insertion into the tissue. Since higher force can lead to increased risk and less efficiency during the procedure, reducing this force may improve the outcomes of the procedure. Needle entry can be reduced by designing an improved needle that includes a lower gauge and reduced primary angle of the lancet.

Finite Element Analysis of the Influence of Chamfer Hub Geometry on the Stress Concentrations of Shrink Fits

The theoretical expressions commonly used in the design of interference fits do not take into account the huge stress concentrations located at the edges of the hub. This underestimation of the real stress state can induce the incorrect performance of the shaft–hub assembly. Among the different methods to address this problem is the use of chamfer hubs, which are used for reducing such stress concentrations. In this paper, an analysis, performed via finite element method, of the influence of the geometric parameters of a shrink fit with chamfer hubs was carried out with the aim of determining the optimal dimensions for the design of this type of mechanical assembly. To achieve this goal, different chamfer hub geometries were considered: (i) full–chamfer hubs defined by the chamfer angle and (ii) partial–chamfer hubs defined by the chamfer angle and the chamfer height. According to the obtained results, stress concentrations can be reduced by using a full–chamfer hub with chamfer angles within the range 13°–15° depending on the hub thickness. In addition, similar results can be obtained by using partial–chamfer hubs with a chamfer height of half of the hub thickness and chamfer angles within the range 13°–15°. By using these design recommendations, the theoretical equations can be used without underestimating the real stress state.

Full blended blade and endwall design of a compressor cascade

In the current state-of-the-art, high-loss flow in the endwall significantly influences compressor performance. Therefore, the control of endwall corner separation in compressor blade rows is important to consider. Based on the previous research of the Blended Blade and EndWall (BBEW) technique, which can significantly reduce corner separation, in combination with a non-axisymmetric endwall, the full-BBEW technique is proposed in this study to further reduce the separation in endwall region. The principle of the unchanged axial passage area is considered to derive the geometric method for this technique. Three models are further classified based on different geometric characteristics of this technique: the BBEW model, Inclining-Only EndWall (IOEW) model, and full-BBEW model. The most effective design of each model is then found by performing several optimizations at the design point and related numerical investigations over the entire operational conditions. Compared with the prototype, the total pressure loss coefficient decreases by 7%–9% in the optimized full-BBEW at the design point. Moreover, the aerodynamic blockage coefficient over the entire operational range decreases more than the other models, which shows its positive effect for diffusion. This approach has a larger decrease at negative incidence angles where the intersection of the boundary layer plays an important role in corner separation. The analysis shows that the blended blade profile enlarges the dihedral angle and creates a span-wise pressure gradient to move low momentum fluid towards the mainstream. Furthermore, the inclining hub geometry accelerates the accumulated flow in the corner downstream by increasing the pressure gradient. Overall, though losses in the mainstream grow, especially for large incidences, the full-BBEW technique effectively reduces the separation in corners.

Experimental investigations and empirical relationship on the influence of innovative hub geometry in a centrifugal fan for performance augmentation

BackgroundOne of the problem areas of fluid flow in the turbomachine is its inlet region, manifested by flow distortions due to the induced fluid swirl accompanied by improper flow incidence onto the impeller. Further, the hub forms one of the main components of many of the turbomachines and it is found that there has not been significant study on geometrical modifications of the same in centrifugal fans for augmented performance. This is partially due to designers trying to reduce the cost of the overall machine.ObjectiveThere is a scope for detailed parametric study and the present work involves an exploration of flow behavior by parametric variation of hub geometry in terms of both its shape and size.MethodsExperiments are carried out in order to determine the importance of hub with different size and shapes. The geometric models of hemi-spherical and ellipsoidal hubs are considered for the analyses in the present study.ResultsAn optimized ellipsoidal hub configuration is found to yield a relative improvement of about 7.5% for head coefficient and 7.7% increase in relative theoretical efficiency over the hub-less base configuration. Finally, correlations are developed for the optimized hub shape configurations.ConclusionIt is revealed from experimental analysis that hub plays a vital role in streamlining the flow at the inlet to the centrifugal fan and augments its performance.

Mathematical morphology approach to internal defect analysis of A356 aluminum alloy wheel hubs

A356 aluminum alloy is a material widely used in the production of automobile wheels. Internal defects such as gas holes and shrinkage cavities are likely to develop in the process of low pressure casting. X-ray images of the hub are able to provide some information on such defects. This paper proposes a defect extraction method which is built on mathematical morphology. It involves three operations, i.e., the top-hat transform, the top-hat reconstruction transform and the dilation reconstruction. A larger square structuring element and a small threshold are used firstly to obtain all potential defect areas of the hub. A structuring element of a suitable size are applied to different defect areas in subsequent extraction. A new threshold is then decided to get the final defect extraction results. The experimental results show that the above defect extraction method not only works on X-ray hub images, but is robust against the interference caused by noises and hub geometry, and hence can potentially be extensively applied to X-ray detection of hubs.

On the Influence of Blade Aspect Ratio on Aerodynamic Damping

AbstractIn order to change the blade count (BC) of axial rotor designs, a scaling technique can be applied where the blades are scaled in axial and circumferential directions while maintaining the solidity. This technique allows to adjust the blade count without changing the steady-state aerodynamics, but the influences on the aerodynamic damping are unknown. The present study is focused on the investigation of the change in aerodynamic damping of a subsonic axial compressor rotor, if the blade count is changed between 13 and 25 blades. The investigation is focused on the first bending mode family and the influences of the hub geometry on the modes are neglected. First, a comparison between the influence coefficient (IC) method and the traveling wave mode (TWM) method is conducted, which shows that the application of the IC method in combination with harmonic balance simulations offers a fast way to compute the aerodynamic damping without introducing significant errors compared with the TWM method simulations. Regarding the aerodynamic damping of the different rotor geometries, it can be noted that the amplitude of the work per cycle influence coefficient of the center blade scales linearly with the blade scaling factor and an increase in aerodynamic damping for an increase in blade count is observed. Furthermore, a simplified analytic theory is established, which explains the phase angle change of the blade influence coefficients due to the blade scaling. In the last part of the paper, an extrapolation method is proposed for the investigated geometry and mode family, which allows for the estimation of damping S-curves for scaled rotor geometries based on only one IC method simulation.

The effect of the entrance hub geometry on the efficiency in an axial flow fan

The improvement in efficiency of axial flow fans is major concern in turbomachinery industries including outdoor units of air conditioners. The end wall region is responsible for losses in axial flow fan. Researches on the relationship between the efficiency and the vortex occurring on the hub with a short length have been little found in the literature. Variations of the vortical flow field and the effects on the efficiency have been investigated with the entrance hub length and corner shape of the axial flow fan. The losses and the efficiency were evaluated by the stagnation pressure loss coefficient distribution calculated using commercial CFD solver SC/Tetra v12. The results show the efficiency was improved at specific entrance hub length due to the interaction between the hub vortex and the blade.

Actuator line simulation of a tidal turbine in straight and yawed flows

In this numerical study a tidal turbine in straight and yawed flows is simulated using the actuator line (AL) method coupled with Large Eddy Simulation (LES) of turbulence for the turbine previously studied experimentally by Bahaj et al. (2007). Importantly, the AL model is fully coupled to an existing GPU based computational fluid dynamic solver, enabling high resolution simulations in reasonable time frames using desktop size server systems. Simulation results using the blade element actuator disk (BEAD) method are also presented to support the results from the AL method and highlight its advantages over the BEAD method. Results obtained from this study show that the AL method is capable of capturing wake unsteadiness and the tip and root vortices resulting from the turbine blades. Predicted power and thrust coefficients agree well with experimental data, being within 0.77% and 1.91%, respectively, at the design tip speed ratio. However, the absence of hub geometry in this method affects the downstream wake pattern along its centerline.

Scaling and Configuration Effects on Helicopter Rotor Hub Interactional Aerodynamics

A 1:17 scale model of a notional rotor hub of a large helicopter was tested in the Pennsylvania State University Applied Research Laboratory 12 in. test-section water tunnel. Objectives of the experiment were to quantify the effects of Reynolds number, advance ratio, and hub geometry configuration on the drag and shed wake of the rotor hub. A range of flow conditions was tested, with hub-diameter-based Reynolds numbers ranging from to and advance ratios ranging from 0.2 to 0.6, as well as nonrotating cases. Five hub geometry configurations were tested with various combinations of components including blade stubs, spiders, scissors, the swashplate, pitch links, and beanie fairing. Measurements included the steady and unsteady hub drag and particle image velocimetry at two downstream locations. Results include time-averaged and phase-averaged analyses of the unsteady drag and wake velocity. A strong dependence of the steady and unsteady hub drag and wake on the advance ratio, Reynolds number, and configuration was observed, demonstrating the importance of adequate Reynolds number scaling for model helicopter rotor hub tests.

Experimental Investigation of a Friction Ventilator

Standard decentralized ventilation systems typically consist of two ventilators for inlet and exhaust air and a heat exchanger for the heat recovery. A recently developed device, a so called friction ventilator, combines these three elements into a single functional element. The ventilator consists of circular plates which are rotating centrally in between the inlet and the outlet duct of a ventilation system and generate a countercurrent flow in the two ducts. Furthermore, the discs act as a rotating heat exchanger between the two air flows. To increase understanding of the energy transfer from the rotating discs to the flow an experimental investigation on the effect of different rotor geometries was conducted. The study showed an interesting influence of the hub diameter on the characteristic curves with a higher pressure difference for an increase in diameter. The results of the heat recovery measurement however were only mildly affected by the hub geometry. Here the distance between the discs, the rotational speed of the discs and the volumetric flow seemed to have the greatest effect on heat recovery.

Validation of the actuator line and disc techniques using the New MEXICO measurements

Actuator line and disc techniques are employed to analyse the wake obtained in the New MEXICO wind turbine experiment. The New MEXICO measurement campaign done in 2014 is a follow-up to the MEXICO campaign, which was completed in 2006. Three flow configurations in axial flow condition are simulated and both computed loads and velocity fields around the rotor are compared with detailed PIV measurements. The comparisons show that the computed loadings are generally in agreement with the measurements under the rotor's design condition. Both actuator approaches under-predicted the loading in the inboard part of blade in stall condition as only 2D airfoil data were used in the simulations. The predicted wake velocities generally agree well with the PIV measurements.In the experiment, PIV measurements are also provided close to the hub and nacelle. To study the effect of hub and nacelle, numerical simulations are performed both in the presence and absence of the hub geometry. This study shows that the large hub used in the experiment has only small effects on overall wake behaviour.

Benefits of Nonaxisymmetric Endwall Contouring in a Compressor Cascade With a Tip Clearance

This paper describes the design of a nonaxisymmetric hub contouring in a shroudless axial flow compressor cascade operating at near stall condition. Although an optimum tip clearance (TC) reduces the total pressure loss, further reduction in the loss was achieved using hub contouring. The design methodology presented here combines an evolutionary principle with a three-dimensional (3D) computational fluid dynamics (CFD) flow solver to generate different geometric profiles of the hub systematically. The resulting configurations were preprocessed by GAMBIT© and subsequently analyzed computationally using ANSYSFluent©. The total pressure loss coefficient was used as a single objective function to guide the search process for the optimum hub geometry. The resulting three dimensionally complex hub promises considerable benefits discussed in detail in this paper. A reduction of 15.2% and 16.23% in the total pressure loss and secondary kinetic energy (SKE), respectively, is achieved in the wake region. An improvement of 4.53% in the blade loading is observed. Other complimentary benefits are also listed in the paper. The majority of the benefits are obtained away from the hub region. The contoured hub not only alters the pitchwise static pressure gradient but also acts as a vortex generator in an effort to alleviate the total pressure loss. The results confirm that nonaxisymmetric contouring is an effective method for reducing the losses and thereby improving the performance of the cascade.

Development status of AEOLDOS – A deorbit module for small satellites

A prototype CubeSat module to deploy a gossamer aerobrake, using strain stored in tape-springs, at end-of-life is described. A novel hub geometry to reduce bending shock at end-of-deployment while simultaneously permitting radial, as opposed to tangential, deployment is proposed. The rpm of the hub is measured under various deployment conditions to verify that the system offers highly-repeatable performance, while high-speed photography is used to characterise the behaviour of the tape-spring during unspooling and contrast it to the behaviour of a traditional tangential-deployment system. Secondly the folding pattern of the membrane, which takes advantage of the symmetrical deployment offered by the petal hub, is developed and the unfolding mechanism is verified by numerical and experimental analysis. Finally, the release of the stored strain is considered and a novel burn-though device is designed and prototyped to meet this requirement.

Interference Fit Stress Concentrations with Full Chamfered Hub

Quantitative determination of stress concentrations factors (SCF) in interference fits joints is highly relevant since they are not given by the theory of pressure cylinders commonly used for designing them. We study the capability of using a full chamfered hub as a geometrical design for reducing SCF. Stresses distributions and stresses concentrations factors are analyzed as a function of parameters that define the hub geometry with the aim of optimizing the design of proposed modified hubs. To achieve this goal, diverse numerical simulations by means of the finite element method (FEM) were carried out in order to quantitatively estimate the stress state existing at hub-shaft interface.

Stress Concentrations in Interference Fit Joints with Chamfered Hubs

A change in hub geometry with the aim of reducing or even removing the stress concentrations that appear in interference fits is proposed. This modification consists in including a chamfer in the hub. Stresses distributions and stresses concentrations factors are analyzed as a function of parameters that define the hub geometry with the aim of optimizing the design of proposed modified hubs.

Influence of the Blade Hub Geometry on the Performance of Low-Head Axial Flow Turbines

AbstractThe influence of geometric parameters, such as blade profile and hub geometry on axial flow turbines for micro hydro application remains poorly characterized. This paper first introduces a holistic theoretical model for studying the hydraulic phenomenon resulting from geometric modification to the blades. It then describes modification carried out on two runner stages, of which one has untwisted blades and the other has twisted blades obtained by modifying the inlet hub. The experimental results showed that the performance of the untwisted blade runner was satisfactory with a maximum efficiency of 68%. However, positive effects of twisted blades were clearly evident with an efficiency rise of more than 2%. This study also looks into the possible limitations of the model and suggests the extension of the experimental work and the use of computational tools to conduct a progressive validation of all experimental findings, especially on the flow physics within the hub region and the slip phenomena. T...

Evaluation of the Thermofluid Performance of an Automotive Engine Cooling-Fan System Motor

Experimental tests and computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations using the commercial code FLUENT were carried out to investigate the effects of the fan support hub geometry on the component heat transfer and cooling air flow through a simplified model of an electric motor for an automotive cooling-fan system, since little is known about the thermofluid dynamics of such machines. It has been found that the presence of radial ribs on the fan hub has a significant effect on drawing cooling air through the motor, particularly at lower air flowrates, regardless of the rotational speed. In addition, the rotational speed, hub diameter, fin height, and rib width are important parameters for inducing flow inside the hub while the tip gap and hub depth are not as influential. Increasing the number of ribs or fins has little impact on the performance of the hub. Good agreement was found between the experimental and predicted temperatures from heat transfer simulations of the motor for representative underhood environmental conditions. The present work shows that a valuable CFD tool can be developed to predict the temperature distribution inside the motor and offers a guide to the methodology whereby design modifications may be made to improve motor performance for a given application.

Optimization of Nonaxisymmetric Endwalls in Compressor S-Shaped Ducts

This paper presents a new design methodology for strutted S-shaped compressor ducts that allows for more aggressive designs while maintaining current levels of duct loss. A baseline duct geometry was selected, which had a radius change to length ratio that is 34% larger than current engine design limits. A large-scale low-speed model of the baseline duct was experimentally tested. The flow in the corner between the hub and the strut was found to separate due to the high local diffusion causing an increase in duct loss. Area ruling was applied to the baseline duct and was predicted to reduce the size and extent of the strut-hub corner separation, but the duct design was compromised. The duct loss coefficient at midpitch was predicted to increase compared with that of the baseline design. Nonaxisymmetric endwall profiling was then used on the duct wall, locally to the strut, to remove the strut-hub corner separation and thus reduce net duct loss, without compromising the duct design away from the strut. The endwall geometry was produced by numerical optimization. It was shown that the net duct loss was insensitive to casing profiling but highly sensitive to hub profiling. The optimal hub geometry was experimentally tested and shown to completely remove endwall strut-hub corner separation. The profiling was found to reduce the net duct loss by 16%. The paper shows that the key benefit to endwall profiling is that it can be used to safely increase the size of the design space in which aeroengine duct designers can operate.

Selective Carbon Fiber Reinforced Nylon 66 Spur Gears: Development and Performance

A new design methodology is developed to mold the polymer spur gears with high strength fiber reinforcement only in the highly stressed region. High performance high cost short carbon fiber reinforced Nylon 66 is used in the highly stressed tooth region and low cost unreinforced Nylon 66 is used in the hub region. Two different geometries, circular and spline shaped hubs were used for developing the selective reinforced gears by multi-shot injection-molding process. Joint strength of the selectively reinforced gear was estimated using shear tests. Clear hub and tooth region separation without any distortion was observed in joint shear tests. A molten material due to fusion bonding was observed at the interfaces. The joint strength was also evaluated by conducting gear fatigue tests using a power absorption test rig at various torque levels and at a constant gear rotational speed. Monolithic reinforced gear and selective reinforced gears with spline hub exhibited similar fatigue behavior. The failure mode depends upon the test torque level. The selective reinforced gears with circular hub showed joint failures at high-test torque levels. Absence of mechanical interlocking feature in the circular hub geometry contributes to the joint failure. Thermal bond, part interference and mechanical interlocking feature provide sufficient joint strength to the selective reinforced gear with spline hub.