Parametric analysis of the effects of blade exit angle on the cavitation characteristics in a hydraulic torque converter

Hydraulic torque converters are prone to cavitation due to their high impeller rotational speeds and their complex three-dimensional flow characteristics. Since the blades are the core components of torque converters, the shapes of the blades are important to the hydraulic performance and cavitation characteristics. Different cavitation computational fluid dynamics (CFD) models for a torque converter were developed to simulate the internal cavitation flow for different pump and turbine blade exit angles, and the influence of the blade angles on the cavitation characteristics and cavitation flow field in the torque converter was investigated. Experimental prototypes were produced and tested for verification. The results indicate that the pump and turbine blade exit angles had significant effects on the cavitation number of the torque converter. Increasing the pump and turbine blade exit angles promotes the generation and intensification of cavitation, resulting in severe changes in the shapes and locations of the cavitation bubbles due to changes in the fluid impact angles. Additionally, cavitation is quickly suppressed and the performance is improved when the blade exit angles are reduced within an appropriate range, in particular, that of the turbine blade. These research results can provide guidance for the design of a high-performance hydraulic torque converter cascade system and the suppression of cavitation for practical engineering applications. Published under an exclusive license by AIP Publishing.