Unsteady fluid flow in smart material actuated fluid pumps

Smart materials' ability to deliver large block forces in a small package while operating at high frequencies makes them extremely attractive for converting electrical to mechanical power. This has led to the development of hybrid actuators consisting of co-located smart material actuated pumps and hydraulic cylinders that are connected by a set of fast-acting valves. The overall success of the hybrid concept hinges on the effectiveness of the coupling between the smart material and the fluid. This, in turn, is strongly dependent on the resistance to fluid flow in the device. This paper presents results from three-dimensional unsteady simulations of fluid flow in the pumping chamber of a prototype hybrid actuator powered by a piezo-electric stack. The results show that the forces associated with moving the fluid into and out of the pumping chamber already exceed 10% of the piezo stack blocked force at relatively low frequencies 120 Hz and approach 40% of the blocked force at 800 Hz. This reduces the amplitude of the piston motion in such a way that the volume flow rate remains approximately constant above operating frequencies of 500 Hz while the efficiency of the pump decreases rapidly.