Numerical Analysis of the Inlet and Outlet Diameter Effects on Pulsation Dynamics and Cavitation in the Lobe Pump

To investigate the impact of inlet and outlet diameters on the performance of lobe pumps, this paper analyses six lobe pumps with an inlet and outlet diameter ratio of 1, as well as five lobe pumps with varying inlet and outlet diameter ratios, while keeping other conditions constant. Three-dimensio...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: H. Zhou, P. Zhou, L. Meng, J. Li, C. Xiang, H. Qian
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Isfahan University of Technology 2025-03-01
Series:Journal of Applied Fluid Mechanics
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.jafmonline.net/article_2625_e84ab384ba1f37effc89939ca11ceded.pdf
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1849761101674184704
author H. Zhou
P. Zhou
L. Meng
J. Li
C. Xiang
H. Qian
author_facet H. Zhou
P. Zhou
L. Meng
J. Li
C. Xiang
H. Qian
author_sort H. Zhou
collection DOAJ
description To investigate the impact of inlet and outlet diameters on the performance of lobe pumps, this paper analyses six lobe pumps with an inlet and outlet diameter ratio of 1, as well as five lobe pumps with varying inlet and outlet diameter ratios, while keeping other conditions constant. Three-dimensional unsteady numerical simulations of the pumps were conducted using the full cavitation model and the re-normalization group (RNG) k-ε turbulence model. The results show that for the lobe pumps with internal diameters between 40 mm and 100 mm, the shaft power is reduced by 17.6%, the pressure is reduced by 0.4 MPa, the pulsation coefficient is reduced by 18%, the variation of the gas volume fraction at the gap is in the range of 0.2 to 0.8, and the maximum value of the radial force in the X-direction decreases from 58.36 to 17.6 kN, and that the maximum value of the radial force in the Y-direction decreases from 14.56 to 3.25 kN. When the scale is increased from 0.6 to 1, the shaft power decreases by 25.9%, the pressure decreases by 0.1 MPa, the pulsation coefficient decreases by 6%, the volume fraction of gas at the gap varies between 0.1 and 0.8, and the maximum radial force in the X-direction decreases from 17.63 to 12.52 kN, and in the Y-direction decreases from 7.68 to 6.32 kN. This shows that choosing a suitable inner diameter can reduce the cavitation tendency of the lobe pump, enhance its anti-cavitation ability, optimize the fluid flow characteristics, and thus improve its reliability and stability.
format Article
id doaj-art-2039e4f173014f6fbdebb208c8e3265e
institution DOAJ
issn 1735-3572
1735-3645
language English
publishDate 2025-03-01
publisher Isfahan University of Technology
record_format Article
series Journal of Applied Fluid Mechanics
spelling doaj-art-2039e4f173014f6fbdebb208c8e3265e2025-08-20T03:06:09ZengIsfahan University of TechnologyJournal of Applied Fluid Mechanics1735-35721735-36452025-03-011851189120410.47176/jafm.18.5.30932625Numerical Analysis of the Inlet and Outlet Diameter Effects on Pulsation Dynamics and Cavitation in the Lobe PumpH. Zhou0P. Zhou1L. Meng2J. Li3C. Xiang4H. Qian5College of Metrology Measurement and Instrument, China Jiliang University, Hangzhou, 310018, ChinaCollege of Metrology Measurement and Instrument, China Jiliang University, Hangzhou, 310018, ChinaKey Laboratory of River Basin Digital Twinning of Ministry of Water Resources, Beijing, 310018, ChinaCollege of Metrology Measurement and Instrument, China Jiliang University, Hangzhou, 310018, ChinaSchool of Mechanical Engineering, Zhejiang University of Water Resources and Electric Power, Hangzhou 310018, ChinaSchool of Mechanical Engineering, Zhejiang University of Water Resources and Electric Power, Hangzhou 310018, ChinaTo investigate the impact of inlet and outlet diameters on the performance of lobe pumps, this paper analyses six lobe pumps with an inlet and outlet diameter ratio of 1, as well as five lobe pumps with varying inlet and outlet diameter ratios, while keeping other conditions constant. Three-dimensional unsteady numerical simulations of the pumps were conducted using the full cavitation model and the re-normalization group (RNG) k-ε turbulence model. The results show that for the lobe pumps with internal diameters between 40 mm and 100 mm, the shaft power is reduced by 17.6%, the pressure is reduced by 0.4 MPa, the pulsation coefficient is reduced by 18%, the variation of the gas volume fraction at the gap is in the range of 0.2 to 0.8, and the maximum value of the radial force in the X-direction decreases from 58.36 to 17.6 kN, and that the maximum value of the radial force in the Y-direction decreases from 14.56 to 3.25 kN. When the scale is increased from 0.6 to 1, the shaft power decreases by 25.9%, the pressure decreases by 0.1 MPa, the pulsation coefficient decreases by 6%, the volume fraction of gas at the gap varies between 0.1 and 0.8, and the maximum radial force in the X-direction decreases from 17.63 to 12.52 kN, and in the Y-direction decreases from 7.68 to 6.32 kN. This shows that choosing a suitable inner diameter can reduce the cavitation tendency of the lobe pump, enhance its anti-cavitation ability, optimize the fluid flow characteristics, and thus improve its reliability and stability.https://www.jafmonline.net/article_2625_e84ab384ba1f37effc89939ca11ceded.pdflobe pumpsinlet diameteroutlet diametercavitationshaft powerpressure pulsationdynamic grid technique
spellingShingle H. Zhou
P. Zhou
L. Meng
J. Li
C. Xiang
H. Qian
Numerical Analysis of the Inlet and Outlet Diameter Effects on Pulsation Dynamics and Cavitation in the Lobe Pump
Journal of Applied Fluid Mechanics
lobe pumps
inlet diameter
outlet diameter
cavitation
shaft power
pressure pulsation
dynamic grid technique
title Numerical Analysis of the Inlet and Outlet Diameter Effects on Pulsation Dynamics and Cavitation in the Lobe Pump
title_full Numerical Analysis of the Inlet and Outlet Diameter Effects on Pulsation Dynamics and Cavitation in the Lobe Pump
title_fullStr Numerical Analysis of the Inlet and Outlet Diameter Effects on Pulsation Dynamics and Cavitation in the Lobe Pump
title_full_unstemmed Numerical Analysis of the Inlet and Outlet Diameter Effects on Pulsation Dynamics and Cavitation in the Lobe Pump
title_short Numerical Analysis of the Inlet and Outlet Diameter Effects on Pulsation Dynamics and Cavitation in the Lobe Pump
title_sort numerical analysis of the inlet and outlet diameter effects on pulsation dynamics and cavitation in the lobe pump
topic lobe pumps
inlet diameter
outlet diameter
cavitation
shaft power
pressure pulsation
dynamic grid technique
url https://www.jafmonline.net/article_2625_e84ab384ba1f37effc89939ca11ceded.pdf
work_keys_str_mv AT hzhou numericalanalysisoftheinletandoutletdiametereffectsonpulsationdynamicsandcavitationinthelobepump
AT pzhou numericalanalysisoftheinletandoutletdiametereffectsonpulsationdynamicsandcavitationinthelobepump
AT lmeng numericalanalysisoftheinletandoutletdiametereffectsonpulsationdynamicsandcavitationinthelobepump
AT jli numericalanalysisoftheinletandoutletdiametereffectsonpulsationdynamicsandcavitationinthelobepump
AT cxiang numericalanalysisoftheinletandoutletdiametereffectsonpulsationdynamicsandcavitationinthelobepump
AT hqian numericalanalysisoftheinletandoutletdiametereffectsonpulsationdynamicsandcavitationinthelobepump