Numerical Calculation of the Flow Inside Pump Impellers Using 3D Euler Equations

Authors: KEMAL SARIOĞLU, ERKAN AYDER

Abstract: The flow pattern inside an impeller should be determined for maximum efficiency and performance. The effects of the design parameters on the pump performance can be determined using numerical calculations instead of empirical equations. Incompressible 3D time-dependent Euler equations, written in a conservative form, are used. An artificial pressure term is added to preserve the hyperbolic character of the equations. A finite-volume technique is used for space discretization. A fourth-order Runge-Kutta time-stepping scheme is used for time discretization. A steady-state solution is achieved using time-marching technique. An industrial pump impeller with known experimental data was used to calculate the flow in the impeller. The comparison of the calculated and measured data reveals that the use of these calculations enables the prediction of impeller performance.

Keywords: Centrifugal Pump,3D Euler Equations, Finite-Volume Technique, Impeller Performance

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