Particle Deposition Effect of the Flow and Heat Transfer in a Turbine Vane Passage with Inlet Swirl

To understand the particle migration and deposition patterns within the high-pressure turbine, numerical simulations, in conjunction with user-defined functions (UDF) and dynamic mesh techniques, were performed for the first stage vanes of a high-pressure turbine in real engine conditions. The effects of inlet swirl on the particle deposition, flow fields, aerodynamic losses and heat transfer coefficients within the vane passage were investigated. Results reveal that the inlet swirl has significant impacts on the particle migration and deposition patterns, and most importantly, the deposit distribution patterns on two adjacent vanes become imbalanced. Increasing particle temperature only changes the deposit rate, but not the deposition pattern. Since the vane gains additional material after deposition, the flow-path area of the turbine passage becomes smaller, generating relatively higher Mach numbers. Additionally, the change of the airfoil profile may further lead to an increase in aerodynamic losses at the passage exit. In the presence of inlet swirl, not all deposits could generate higher heat transfer coefficients on the vane. The heat transfer characteristics are determined by the combined effects of inlet swirl and deposit pattern © 2021, Editorial Office of Journal of Xi'an Jiaotong University. All right reserved.