Rotor-Stator Interaction in Radial Turbomachines: Experimental and Numerical Investigation

The interaction between rotating and stationary parts affects the flow field inside both components, modifying the machine performance in terms of operating stability, structural vibrations, noise and pressure pulsations. The aim of this book is to improve the understanding of the rotor-stator interaction phenomena with an extensive in-depth investigation of their characteristics, origin, development and effects on the machine performance. An unusual acoustical approach, aimed at identifying a possible connection between noise emissions and inner fluid-dynamics, was proposed and combined with a PIV experimental analysis in order to study the unsteady flow phenomena developing inside the pump vaned diffuser. These analysis, coupled with a numerical analysis on the same turbomachine, allowed to analyze in-depth the effects of the rotor-stator interaction on the machine flow field and hence on its performance.