EFFECT OF GEOMETRIC PARAMETERS ON THE PERFORMANCE OF A RADIAL FLOW PRESSURE EXCHANGE EJECTOR

The "Pressure exchange" is a novel concept in turbomachinery whereby two fluids, at different energy levels, come in direct contact with each other to transfer, energy and momentum between them through non-steady interface pressure forces. The rotating jets of the high pressure primary fluid, often referred to as pseudoblades, resemble solid blades on the impeller of a conventional turbomachine. The low pressure secondary fluid, ahead of the pseudoblades, is pressurized by the action of interface pressure forces. The current paper seeks to provide an insight into the complex flow phenomena occurring inside the radial flow pressure exchange ejector. This research presents the results of the first successful numerical simulation to explore the effects of spin angle, rotor cone angle and number of nozzles on the performance of a radial flow pressure exchange ejector. If this new concept is shown to be viable for gas compression at sufficiently high pressure ratios, then, in refrigeration applications, it would enable environmentally benign refrigerants to replace the harmful chlorofluorocarbons (CFC) and reduce the effluence of greenhouse gases. Applications in many other areas, where conventional ejectors are currently used, are also possible.