This study investigates the influence of various inducer configurations on the single-phase and two-phase flow behavior. Three pitch values (*P* = 0.151, 0.251, and 0.351 m), as well as three different number of blades (N = 2, 3, and 4 blades), were studied, leading to a total of 9 different inducer geometries. The main objective of the present study is to analyze and compare the corresponding performances and the mixing behavior when pumping a gas/liquid mixture. For this purpose, 3D steady-state simulations using the Moving Reference Frame approach were applied for single-phase flows, while a transient setup using a moving-mesh approach was employed for two-phase simulations. Turbulence was modeled by the Reynolds Stress Model, whereas the standard Volume of Fluid method was applied to model air-water interactions. The results show that an increase in the number of blades leads to a high drop in performance at overload (high-flow) conditions and only a slight performance enhancement at part-load (low-flow) conditions. Additionally, the effective range in which the inducer efficiency is high becomes narrower for a higher number of blades. Concerning now the inducer pitch, at part-load conditions, a lower pitch is slightly beneficial to smoothly suck the flow and damp low-flow vortices. On the contrary, employing a high pitch at these conditions results in intensified flow vortices, reducing the performance. Furthermore, the blade pitch strongly impacts the performance at optimal and overload conditions, where a lower pitch causes flow blockage, leading to significant performance deterioration. Generally, it is found that the inducer configuration affects the performance much more at overload compared to part-load conditions. Concerning two-phase flows, the highest pitch provides the best mixing since the inducer is able to effectively churn the two phases, as compared to low-pitch inducers. Similarly, an increase in the number of blades amplifies the turbulence between the two phases, thus improving mixing. Overall, higher pitches and low to moderate number of blades are favorable to ensure high performance over a wide range of flow conditions and to improve pumping of two-phase flows.


Influence of Blade Pitch and Number of Blades of a Pump Inducer on Single and Two-Phase Flow Performance

Division / Sponsor:
International Gas Turbine Institute (IGTI)

Paper Proceedings: https://asmedigitalcollection.asme.org/GT/GT2020/volume/84058

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