Analysis of swirling flow effects on the characteristics of unsteady hot-streak migration

The temperature of flow at the combustor exit is inherently non-uniform and the hot fluid is called hot-streak. An in-house CFD software, NUAA-Turbo, was used to carry out 3D unsteady simulations on the PW-E3 single-stage high-pressure turbine. The hot-streak effect based on real stator and combustor counts was approximately evaluated by the contraction/dilatation method on the interface. The unsteady attenuation and migration process of hot-streaks in the turbine passage were well captured. The general performance parameters for different circumferential positions of hot-streaks were relatively consistent. Then, the influences of hot-streaks on blade surface temperature were investigated by comparing results under hot-streak and uniform inflow conditions. Unsteady simulations with combined inlet hot-streak and swirling flow show that the core of a hot-streak migrates to the tip under the influence of a positive swirl, while the phenomenon is just opposite with a negative swirl. Therefore, the heat transfer environment of rotor blades shows great differences with different directions of inlet swirl.