LAPSE:2023.28109
Published Article
LAPSE:2023.28109
Improving the Modeling of Pressure Pulsation and Cavitation Prediction in a Double-Volute Double-Suction Pump Using Mosaic Meshing Technology
April 11, 2023
Over the years, Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) has been an integral part of most pump design processes. Unfortunately, as calculation schemes and flow investigations become more complicated, the cost of conducting numerical simulations also becomes more expensive in terms of computational time. To remedy this, cutting-edge technology, together with novel calculation techniques, are continuously introduced with the end target of producing more accurate results and faster computing time. In this paper, CFD simulations are run on a numerical model of a double-volute double-suction pump prepared using ANSYS Fluent Mosaic meshing technology. Poly-Hexcore, the first application of Mosaic technology, fills the bulk region with octree hexes, keeps a high-quality layered poly-prism mesh in the boundary layer, and conformally connects these two meshes with general polyhedral elements. This technology promises to provide a lower number of cells along with a significant increase in computing speed. In this paper, steady state results of the model with Mosaic Poly-Hexcore mesh with ~37% fewer cells produced comparable results with a similarly sized model prepared with multi-block structured hexagonal mesh. The predicted pump head, efficiency and shaft power under the design conditions were within 1% for both models, while calculation time was reduced by ~25%. Additional simulations using the Poly-Hexcore mesh showed that the model was able to closely predict the pump’s NPSH3 for 0.8QD, 1.0QD, and 1.2QD compared with the manufacturer’s data. Under cavitating flow conditions, the formation of vapor bubbles was observed on the suction side, starting at the leading edge of the blade and slowly forming as thin sheets towards the trailing edge as the suction pressure is reduced. Lastly, pressure fluctuations were observed from pressure coefficient data collected at several monitoring points in the volute and the impeller. It was seen that due to the interaction between the stationary casing and the rotating impeller, pulsations were equivalent to the blade passing frequency and its harmonics.
Keywords
cavitation, Computational Fluid Dynamics, double-volute pump, NPSH
Suggested Citation
Arocena VM, Danao LAM. Improving the Modeling of Pressure Pulsation and Cavitation Prediction in a Double-Volute Double-Suction Pump Using Mosaic Meshing Technology. (2023). LAPSE:2023.28109
Author Affiliations
Arocena VM: Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of the Philippines Diliman, Quezon City 1101, Philippines [ORCID]
Danao LAM: Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of the Philippines Diliman, Quezon City 1101, Philippines [ORCID]
Journal Name
Processes
Volume
11
Issue
3
First Page
660
Year
2023
Publication Date
2023-02-22
Published Version
ISSN
2227-9717
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Original Submission
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PII: pr11030660, Publication Type: Journal Article
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LAPSE:2023.28109
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doi:10.3390/pr11030660
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Apr 11, 2023
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