Colloquium: Diego Lukens (FPT)

This thesis focuses on the preliminary design optimization and performance analysis of non-cavitating centrifugal turbopumps using a 1D lumped-parameter method. Centrifugal pumps are critical in various engineering applications due to their high efficiency in converting mechanical energy into fluid pressure. This study presents a computationally efficient model to design and predict flow properties along different pump stations, minimizing reliance on expensive CFD simulations. The methodology uses multiple design parameters to control impeller, diffuser, volute, and exit cone configurations for robust performance. A common challenge addressed is cavitation prediction and mitigation, using reduced-order models to avoid cavitating regimes through design adjustments. This thesis provides a comprehensive framework for optimizing centrifugal turbopumps by integrating validated loss models and a reduced-order modeling approach. The methodology is applied to develop a pump for the TU Delft ORCHID facility, demonstrating its feasibility and effectiveness. This research contributes a practical modeling tool for centrifugal turbopump optimization and performance analysis.

Supervisor: Matteo Pini