Microfluidic devices are becoming increasingly common and are seen in applications ranging from biology to nanotechnology and manufacturing. Flow behavior in these small domains can often be counterintuitive because of the low Reynolds number or the relative importance of surface forces. Micro-particle image velocimetry (μPIV) is a quantitative method that can be used to characterize the performance of such microfluidic systems with spatial resolutions better than one micron. Illustrating the impact of this measurement technique, more than 100 journal articles are published per year that feature μPIV velocity measurements. This article discusses the fundamentals of the technique, its theoretical background, and several applications.

Recent Advances in Micro-Particle Image Velocimetry

Particle image velocimetry (PIV) measurements at varying resolutions focus on the flow structures in the tip region of a water-jet pump rotor, including the tip-clearance flow and the rollup process of a tip leakage vortex (TLV). Unobstructed views of these regions are facilitated by matching the optical refractive index of the transparent pump with that of the fluid. High-magnification data reveal the flow non-uniformities and associated turbulence within the tip gap. Instantaneous data and statistics of spatial distributions and strength of vortices in the rotor passage reveal that the leakage flow emerges as a wall jet with a shear layer containing a train of vortex filaments extending from the tip of the blade. These vortices are entrained into the TLV, but do not have time to merge. TLV breakdown in the aft part of the blade passage further fragments these structures, increasing their number and reducing their size. Analogy is made between the circumferential development of the TLV in the blade passage and that of the starting jet vortex ring rollup. Subject to several assumptions, these flows display similar trends, including conditions for TLV separation from the shear layer feeding vorticity into it.

Measurements of the tip leakage vortex structures and turbulence in the meridional plane of an axial water-jet pump

The complex flow field in the tip region of a turbomachine rotor, including the tip leakage flow and tip leakage vortex (TLV), has been studied for decades. Yet many associated phenomena are still not understood. This paper provides detailed data on the instantaneous and phase averaged inner structure of the tip flow, and evolution of the TLV. Observations are based on series of high resolution planar particle image velocimetry measurements performed in a transparent waterjet pump fitted into an optical refractive index matched test facility. Velocity distributions and turbulence statistics are obtained in several meridional planes inside the rotor. We observe that the instantaneous TLV structure is composed of several unsteady vortex filaments that propagate into the blade passage. These filaments are first embedded into a vortex sheet generated at the suction side of the blade tip, and then they wrap around each other and roll up into the TLV. These vortices do not have sufficient time to merge into a single compact structure within the blade passage. We also find that the leakage vortex induces flow separation at the casing endwall and entrains the casing boundary layer with its counter-rotating vorticity. As it propagates in the rotor passage, the TLV migrates towards the pressure side of the neighboring blade. Unsteadiness associated with observed vortical structures is also investigated. We notice that, at early stages of the TLV evolution, turbulence is elevated in the vortex sheet, in the flow entrained from the endwall, and near the vortex core. Interestingly, the turbulence observed around the core is not consistent with the local distribution of turbulent kinetic energy production rate. This mismatch indicates that, given a TLV section, production likely occurs at preceding stages of the vortex evolution. Then, the turbulence is convected to the core of the TLV, and we suggest that this transport has substantial component along the vortex. Because we observe that the meandering of vortex filaments dominate the flow in the passage, we decompose the unsteadiness surrounding the TLV core to contributions from interlaced vortices and broadband turbulence. Results of this decomposition show that the two contributions are of the same order of magnitude. The TLV is investigated also beyond the trailing edge of the rotor blade. During these late stages of its evolution, the TLV approaches the pressure side of the neighboring blade and vortex breakdown occurs, causing rapid broadening of the phase average core, with little change in overall circulation. Associated turbulence occupies almost half the width of the blade passage and turbulence production there is also broadly distributed. Proximity of the TLV to the pressure side of the neighboring blade also affects entrainment of flow into the incoming tip region.Copyright © 2010 by ASME

The Internal Structure of the Tip Leakage Vortex Within the Rotor of an Axial Waterjet Pump

The tip leakage vortex (TLV) cavitating flow in an axial flow pump was simulated based on an improved shear stress transport (SST) k-ω turbulence model and the homogeneous cavitation model. The generation and dynamics of the TLV cavitation throughout the blade cascades at different cavitation numbers were investigated by the numerical and experimental visualizations. The investigation results show that the corner vortex cavitation in the tip clearance is correlated with the reversed flow at the pressure side (PS) corner of blade, and TLV shear layer cavitation is caused by the interaction between the wall jet flow in the tip and the main flow in the impeller. The TLV cavitation patterns including TLV cavitation, tip corner vortex cavitation, shear layer cavitation, and blowing cavitation are merged into the unstable large-scale TLV cloud cavitation at critical cavitation conditions, which grows and collapses periodically near trailing edge (TE).

Numerical and Experimental Investigation of Tip Leakage Vortex Cavitation Patterns and Mechanisms in an Axial Flow Pump

Stereo particle image velocimetry measurements focus on the flow structure and turbulence within the tip leakage vortex (TLV) of an axial waterjet pump rotor. Unobstructed optical access to the sample area is achieved by matching the optical refractive index of the transparent pump with that of the fluid. Data obtained in closely spaced planes enable us to reconstruct the 3D TLV structure, including all components of the mean vorticity and strain-rate tensor along with the Reynolds stresses and associated turbulence production rates. The flow in the tip region is highly three-dimensional, and the characteristics of the TLV and leakage flow vary significantly along the blade tip chordwise direction. The TLV starts to roll up along the suction side tip corner of the blade, and it propagates within the passage toward the pressure side of the neighboring blade. A shear layer with increasing length connects the TLV to the blade tip and initially feeds vorticity into it. During initial rollup, the TLV involves entrainment of a few vortex filaments with predominantly circumferential vorticity from the blade tip. Being shed from the blade, these filaments also have high circumferential velocity and appear as swirling jets. The circumferential velocity in the TLV core is also substantially higher than that in the surrounding passage flow, but the velocity peak does not coincide with the point of maximum vorticity. When entrainment of filaments stops in the aft part of the passage, newly forming filaments wrap around the core in helical trajectories. In ensemble-averaged data, these filaments generate a vortical region that surrounds the TLV with vorticity that is perpendicular to that in the vortex core. Turbulence within the TLV is highly anisotropic and spatially non-uniform. Trends can be traced to high turbulent kinetic energy and turbulent shear stresses, e.g., in the shear layer containing the vortex filaments and the contraction region situated along the line where the leakage backflow meets the throughflow, causing separation of the boundary layer at the pump casing. Upon exposure to adverse pressure gradients in the aft part of the passage, at 0.65–0.7 chord fraction in the present conditions, the TLV bursts into a broad turbulent array of widely distributed vortex filaments.

Three-dimensional flow structures and associated turbulence in the tip region of a waterjet pump rotor blade

An aerodynamic instability known as stall occurs in axial compressors as the mass flow rate is reduced and the blade loading reaches its limit. At this limiting condition, an easily recognizable flow breakdown process, known as spike-type stall inception, is observed in most modern compressors. This article begins by examining measurements from both low- and high-speed compressors to explain the characteristic features of spike-type stall. This is followed by a review of past work on compressor stability and an assessment of recent advances in this field. Included here is a study of the three-dimensional flow features that typify spike formation and its eventual growth into a mature stall cell. We also consider the formation criteria for spike-type stall and the means for early detection and possible control. On the computational side, a possible mechanism for spike formation is identified from three-dimensional studies of the flow in the rotor tip region. This mechanism involves tip-clearance backflow at the blade's trailing edge in combination with forward spillage of tip-leakage flow at the leading edge. This flow pattern implies that a successful stall-control technology will have to rely on an effective means of suppressing tip-clearance backflow and forward spillage.

C.S. Tan

Papers

Spike-Type Compressor Stall Inception, Detection, and Control