Turbopump is the core component of liquid rocket engine, which drives fuel pump and oxidizer pump through gas turbine. The cavitation of inducer of high-speed turbopump directly determines the launch reliability of rocket. Recently, the zhangdesheng research group of the national water pump and system engineering technology research center has made the latest research progress in the cavitation instability mechanism and pressure fluctuation characteristics in view of the scientific problems of the cavitation multiphase flow hydraulic instability of the turbine pump inducer Effect of cavitation structures and flow rates on pressure pulsation in the inducer: An experimental investigation  It was published in the International Journal of multiphase flow, an internationally renowned journal in the field of multiphase flow. Jiangsu University is the first completion unit, Zhang Hui, a doctoral student of the national water pump center, is the first author of the paper, and Professor zhangdesheng is the corresponding author.

The research team found three typical cavitation types of the turbine pump inducer under different working conditions, and characterized the cavitation behavior evolution law of the inducer under all working conditions. Hub vortex cavitation and circumfluence vortex cavitation occur under (0.6-0.8) QD conditions; Vertical vortex cavitation occurs under (0.8-1.0) QD condition; Vortex cavitation occurs under (1.0-1.2) QD conditions, and tip leakage vortex cavitation generally exists under all conditions. A quantitative correlation model between transient pressure fluctuation and cavitation dynamic behavior is established. It is found that QD under low flow conditions (0.6-0.8) induces high-frequency pressure fluctuation greater than 636hz, while QD under high flow conditions (1.0-1.2) only induces low-frequency pressure fluctuation less than 322hz. This research work has realized the graphical analysis of the cavitation behavior of the inducer under all working conditions, revealed the cavitation pressure dynamic coupling mechanism, and confirmed that the cavitation collapse is the core excitation source of high-frequency pressure fluctuation under small flow conditions, which provides a theoretical basis for the prediction and suppression of cavitation instability mechanism of Aerospace turbopump.

This research work is jointly supported by the National Science Fund for Distinguished Young Scholars (52425903) and the joint key project of the National Natural Science Foundation (u2106225).

Paper links https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijmultiphaseflow.2025.105272