On 3-D Inverse Design of an Automotive Torque Converter Pump Impeller in Shear Flow

The blade geometry of a pump impeller of an automotive torque converter was designed by using a 3D inverse design method in which the circulation distribution is specified.  In this design, the circulatory velocity upstream of the pump was based on numerical prediction for the conventional impeller and showed considerable spanwise variation.  The impeller blades were therefore designed to take account of the shear flow at inlet to the pump by using the “Secondary Flow” approximation in which the Bernoulli surfaces (or surfaces of constant rotary stagnation pressure) were convected by the tangentially mean velocity field.  Comparison of predicted flow field in the conventional and inverse designed impeller indicates that the exit flow field in the inverse designed impeller is more uniform as a result of reduction in secondary flows in the impeller.  This as resulted in a predicted 15% reduction in losses in the inverse designed impeller.

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