Paradigmatic compressible one-dimensional flows provide insights regarding the loss mechanisms of fluid machinery components typical of power and propulsion systems, like turbomachines and heat exchangers. Their performance also depends on the working fluid, thus, on both molecular complexity and thermodynamic state. Four typical flow configurations have been investigated, namely, Rayleigh and Fanno flows, mixing of two co-flowing streams, and flow injection into a mainstream. It was found that the Grüneisen parameter allows the quantitative characterization of the influence of molecular complexity on losses. Moreover, the influence of dense vapor effects has been evaluated and assessed in terms of other fluid parameters. The analysis allowed the quantification of how, in Rayleigh flows, the energy transferred as heat is converted into kinetic and internal energy of the fluid, and, in Fanno flows, entropy is generated due to friction. In Rayleigh flow, the fluid at the inlet of the channel must have more energy for the flow to choke, depending on the molecular complexity. Similarly, in Fanno flows and for a given value of the compressibility factor, molecular complexity determines the choking point in the channel, and the higher its value the further downstream is the location. Moreover, for both Fanno and Rayleigh flows, if the flow is subsonic and dense vapor effects are relevant, the Mach number varies non-monotonically along the channel. Finally, it was proven that the amount of entropy generated in mixing flows increases with both the fluid molecular complexity and with the thermodynamic non-ideality of the fluid states.

The purpose of this paper is to present optimization method of an inducer blade shape to improve its suction performance and clarify the relationship between pump performance and design parameters. In order to conduct the optimization process a response surface based optimization framework was established. Baseline was designed in previous research [1]. The inducers were 3Dprinted in ABS plastic and their wetted and cavitating characteristics were measured. It was confirmed that the optimized inducer can maintain its wetted performance at lower cavitation numbers. A response surface is a mathematical model that approximates the relationship between the input parameters and the objective function from a finite number of learning points within the design space. The design space was defined by four parameters: sweep angle, sweep radius, incidence angle and blade solidity at the tip that controlled the blade shape. The performance of each design was evaluated with a CFD simulation established in a commercial solver. The optimization goal was to minimize the critical cavitation number that corresponds to a 5% drop of pressure increase through the pump due to cavitation. A starting point of the optimization was the industrial pump designed by a Japanese company Teral [1]. The results of the numerical optimization show that the critical cavitation number was decreased by 17.6% with respect to the baseline design. In the experimental results, an average improvement of 15.4% was achieved.

Carbon capture and storage could significantly reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. One of the major limitations of this technology is the energy penalty for the compression of CO₂ to supercritical conditions. To reduce the power requirements, supercritical carbon dioxide compressors must operate near saturation where phase change effects are important. Nonequilibrium condensation can occur at the leading edge of the compressor, causing performance and stability issues. The characterization of the fluid at these conditions is vital to enable advanced compressor designs at enhanced efficiency levels but the analysis is challenging due to the lack of data on metastable fluid properties. In this paper, we assess the behavior and nucleation characteristics of high-pressure subcooled CO2 during the expansion in a de Laval nozzle. The assessment is conducted with numerical calculations and corroborated by experimental measurements. The Wilson line is determined via optical measurements in the range of 41-82 bar. The state of the metastable fluid is characterized through pressure and density measurements, with the latter obtained in a first-of-its-kind laser interferometry setup. The inlet conditions of the nozzle are moved close to the critical point to allow for reduced margins to condensation. The analysis suggests that direct extrapolation using the Span and Wagner equation of state (S-W EOS) model yields results within 2% of the experimental data. The results are applied to define inlet conditions for a supercritical carbon dioxide compressor. Full-scale compressor experiments demonstrate that the reduced inlet temperature can decrease the shaft power input by 16%.

Rocket engine turbopump inducers can suffer from cavitation instabilities, dramatically limiting performance and life of the turbomachinery components. An unrestricted inducer geometry, representative of the Space Shuttle main engine low-pressure oxidizer pump inducer, is defined and serves as a platform for characterization of the cavitation dynamics. Experiments demonstrate rotating cavitation, alternate blade cavitation, and cavitation surge. Borrowing ideas from the modeling and assessment of rotating stall in aeroengine compressors, a previously established traveling wave energy analysis is applied. At flow coefficients higher than design, a single cell cavity occurs rotating at supersynchronous frequencies between 1.2 and 1.5 times rotor frequency. Optical measurements corroborate the findings and underlying mechanisms; the onset of rotating cavitation is governed by the interaction of the blade cavity with the leading edge of the adjacent blade. This leads to a change of incidence, which causes sheet cavity breakoff with periodic growth and collapse of cavities, yielding the apparent supersynchronous rotation of the cavities around the annulus. The paper breaks new ground in diagnostics of inducer dynamic behavior during rotating cavitation, alternate blade cavitation, and cavitation surge. The details of the unrestricted inducer geometry are provided for advancement of international research on rocket engine cavitation dynamics.