Total Temperature Probe Performance for Subsonic Flows using Mixed Fidelity Modeling

Abstract

An accurate measurement of total temperature in turbomachinery flows remains critical for component life models and cycle performance optimization. While many techniques exist to measure these flows, immersed thermocouple based probes remain highly desirable due to well established practices for probe design and implementation in typical industrial flow applications. However, as engine manufacturers continue to push towards higher maximum cycle temperatures and smaller flow passages, the continued use of these probes requires new probe designs considering both improved sensor durability and measurement accuracy. Increased maximum temperatures introduce many challenges for total temperature measurements using conventional immersed probes, including increased influences of conduction, convection, and radiation heat transfer between the sensor, fluid and the surroundings due to large thermal gradients present in real turbomachinery systems. While these effects have been previously investigated, the available design models are very limited to specific geometries and flow conditions. In this Dissertation, a more fundamental understanding of the flow behavior around typical vented shield style total temperature probes as a function of probe geometry and operating condition is gained using results from high-fidelity Computational Fluid Dynamics simulations with Conjugate Heat Transfer. A parametric study was conducted considering three non-dimensional probe geometric ratios (vent location to shield length (0.029-0.806), sensor diameter to shield inner diameter (0.252-0.672), and shield outer diameter to strut/mount thickness (0.245-0.759)) and three operating conditions (total temperature (70, 850, 2500°F) and pressure (1, 1, 10 atm), respectively) at a moderate Mach number of 0.4. Results were further quantified in the form of new empirical correlations necessary for rapid thermal performance evaluations of current and future probe designs. Additionally, a new mixed-fidelity or Reduced Order Modeling technique was developed which allows the coupling of high fidelity surface heat transfer data from CFD with a generalized form of the 1-D conducting solid equations for evaluating radiation and transient influences on sensor performance.

These new flow and heat transfer correlations together with the new Reduced Order Modeling technique developed here greatly enhance the capabilities of designers to evaluate performance of current and future probe designs, with higher accuracy and with significant reductions in computational resources.