Measurements of Hub Flow Interaction on Film Cooled Nozzle Guide Vane in Transonic Annular Cascade

An experimental study has been performed in a transonic annular sector cascade of nozzle guide vanes (NGVs) to investigate the aerodynamic performance and the interaction between hub film cooling and mainstream flow. The focus of the study is on the end-walls, specifically the interaction between the hub film cooling and the mainstream. Carbon dioxide (CO2) has been supplied to the coolant holes to serve as tracer gas. Measurements of CO2 concentration downstream of the vane trailing edge (TE) can be used to visualize the mixing of the coolant flow with the mainstream. Flow field measurements are performed in the downstream plane with a five-hole probe to characterize the aerodynamics in the vane. Results are presented for the fully cooled and partially cooled vane (only hub cooling) configurations. Data presented at the downstream plane include concentration contour, axial vorticity, velocity vectors, and yaw and pitch angles. From these investigations, secondary flow structures such as the horseshoe vortex, passage vortex, can be identified and show the cooling flow significantly impacts the secondary flow and downstream flow field. The results suggest that there is a region on the pressure side (PS) of the vane TE where the coolant concentrations are very low suggesting that the cooling air introduced at the platform upstream of the leading edge (LE) does not reach the PS endwall, potentially creating a local hotspot.