Numerical Analysis of Tip Clearance Effects in a Micro Radial Inflow Turbine

There are many difficulties in realizing Ultra-micro gas turbine system. Among them, the effects of tip clearance upon the micro turbine flowfield are discussed in this paper. The flowfield was investigated numerically with the Reynolds-averaged three-dimensional thin-layer Navier-Stokes equations. Calculations were conducted with clearance height from 0％ to 10% of the passage height. Leakage mass flow and deterioration of efficiency are proportional to the clearance height for the clearance height larger than 4%. However, in the case of 2% clearance, leakage flow is significantly reduced due to relative motion of the casing and as a result deterioration of efficiency is very small. It is difficult to control tip clearance in micro turbines, but the results of this study indicate that if the clearance height is controlled within a few per-cent of passage height, deterioration of stage performance will be small.