Performance analysis on a tesla bladed disc pump

Authors

Gerard Bois - ENSAM, University Lille
Yaguang Heng - Xihua University
Qifeng Jiang - Xihua University
Yuming Han - Xihua University
Huiyu Zhang - Xihua University
Weibin Zhang - Xihua University
Zhengwei Wang - Tsinghua University
Xiaobing Liu - Xihua University

Abstract

Tesla Bladed Disc (TBD) pumps are specifically designed to transport all kind of multiphase viscous mixtures and crude materials. A specific TBD prototype has been designed and tested in pure water for several rotational speeds. The pump impeller has radial straight blades fixed on two parallel disks separated by an open clearance gap. Because of their unusual impeller blade design and low specific speed value, analysis based on overall experimental performances for several geometries is first performed and discussed. The need for careful investigation on power balance terms is highlighted.  In addition, CFD results are one of the possible ways to get a better understanding on flow features that are developing in these pumps. First set of CFD results detect local inhomogeneities inside the impeller for different flow rates. This contribution is a starting point for further investigation about the ability of such a pump to drive multiphase flow mixtures and more specifically inlet gas-liquid conditions.