Assessment of laminar-turbulent transition models for turbomachinery flow computations

This paper provides a thorough comparison of different laminar-to-turbulent bypass transition models. The models are based on combinations of two transition-onset correlations and three intermittency factor models. They have been embedded in a Reynolds averaged Navier–Stokes solver employing a low-Reynolds number k–ω turbulence model. The performance of the transition models have been validated by computing three well documented incompressible flows over a flat plate, namely, test T3A, T3B, and T3C2 of ERCOFTAC SIG 10, with different free-stream conditions, the latter being characterized by non-zero pressure gradient. Finally, a more complex test case, namely the two-dimensional compressible flow through a linear turbine cascade, has been considered, for which detailed experimental data are available in the literature.