Steady Simulation of the Flow inside the Internal Combustion Engine Turbocharger’s Turbine

Turbocharger systems, can increase volumetric efficiency and decrease fuel consumption and emissions of an engine due to compressing the entering air to the engine. Flow characteristic inside turbine is sophisticated and several phenomena like flow separation and high turbulent flow can occur inside turbine. Determining exact performance behavior of turbine can alter the matching process of the turbocharger with the engine. The main goal of this research is 3D and steady simulation of the flow inside turbocharger’s turbine and analysis of the performance behavior of turbine under different working conditions. To this end, 3D flow inside turbine including volute, rotor, diffuser and wastegate passage is investigated steadily. Validating simulation results by experimental results shows that there exist 3 to 9 percent of error between these. In order to control the rotational speed of turbine, turbocharger is equipped with wastegate. By measuring the exact amount of wastegate opening in different working conditions of turbine on a test cell, flow simulation inside turbine is accomplished in different wastegate openings and the effect of wastegate opening on the turbine performance and isentropic efficiency is investigated. The results shows that opening of wastegate can reduce isentropic efficiency and power produced by the turbine significantly.