TESLA TURBINE TORQUE MODELING

FOR CONSTRUCTION OF A DYNAMOMETER AND TURBINE

Tamir Ali Emran, B.S.

Thesis Prepared for the Degree of

MASTER OF SCIENCE

UNIVERSITY OF NORTH TEXAS

May 2011

APPROVED:
Matthew J. Traum, Major Professor
Kuruvilla John, Committee Member
Mitty Plummer, Committee Member
Costas Tsatsoulis, Dean of College of
Engineering
James D. Meernik, Acting Dean of the
Toulouse Graduate School

Emran, Tamir Ali. Tesla turbine torque modeling for construction of a dynamometer
and turbine. Master of Arts (Mechanical Engineering), May 2011, 80 pp., 10 tables, 23
illustrations, bibliography, 53 titles.
While conventional turbines have been extensively researched and tested, Tesla and
boundary layer type turbines have not. In order to construct a dynamometer, thermodynamic
flow apparatus and future turbines, we modeled the Tesla turbine using theoretical calculations
and preliminary experiments. Thus a series of experiments were run to determine stall torque
and maximum run speed for a known pressure range. This data was then applied to modeling
formulas to estimate stall torque over an extended range of variables. The data were then used
to design an appropriate dynamometer and airflow experiment. The model data also served to
estimate various specifications and power output of the future turbine.
An Obi Laser SSTG001 Tesla turbine was used in the experiments described.
Experimental stall torque measurements were conducted in two stages. Shaft speed
measurements were taken with an optical laser tachometer and Tesla turbine stall torque was
measured using a spring force gauge. Two methods were chosen to model Tesla turbine stall
torque: 1) flow over flat plate and 2) free vortex with a sink. A functional dynamometer and
thermodynamic apparatus were constructed once the model was confirmed to be within the
experimental uncertainty. Results of the experiments show that the experimental turbine at 65
PSI has a speed of approximately 27,000 RPM and a measured stall torque of 0.1279 Nm. 65
PSI is an important data point because that data set is the cutoff from laminar to turbulent
flow. Thus at 65 PSI, a rejection of the null hypothesis for research question one with respect to
the flow over flat plate method can be seen from the data, while the vortex model results in a

failure to reject the null hypothesis. In conclusion, the experimental turbine was seen to have a
laminar and a turbulent flow regime at different air pressures, rather than the assumed laminar
flow regime.
As a result of this model work, a new Tesla turbine of different dimensions was designed
to adjust for flaws in the experimental turbine. The theoretical stall torque models were then
applied to the new Tesla turbine design. Results of the models show that the vortex model sets
the upper bound for theoretical stall torque for the new and the flat plate flow model sets the
lower bound.

Copyright2011
by
TamirEmran

ii

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Iwouldliketothankmythesisadvisor,Dr.MatthewJ.Traum,whoIamgreatlyindebted
toforspendingmanyhoursrevising,providingvaluableadviceandencouragingmethroughout
my thesis research. I should not forget to thank Dr. Traum for providing me with funding
through my course of study, without which would have made this research a very difficult
undertaking.
IwouldalsoliketothankMr.DougBurns,ourtechnicianintheMechanicalandEnergy
Engineering Department, and Mr. Bobby Grimes, laboratory manager of the Engineering
Technology Department, for providing me with technical support and hardware assistance
throughoutmythesisresearch.
I would like to acknowledge that this research was funded in part by the National
Science Foundation Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) program (NSF Grant
NumberEEC100485)andbytheCenterfortheStudyofInterdisciplinarityattheUniversityOf
North Texas http://www.csid.unt.edu/. Additional UNT support was provided to Dr. Traum
throughtheJuniorFacultySummerResearchFellowship,theResearchInitiationGrantProgram
andbytheDepartmentofMechanicalandEnergyEngineering.IgratefullyacknowledgeSolar
Logic,Inc.ofMuenster,TX,whichprovidedaTeslaturbinefocusedsummercoopexperience
that,inpart,motivatedthisresearch.
I also acknowledge and thank Mr. William Tahil for providing a useful insight into the
modeling and operation of a Tesla Turbine, and to Paul Stoffregen, whose Teensy
Microcontroller greatly simplified and miniaturized the Hall Effect Tachometer that I
constructed.
iii

Finally,Iwouldliketothankmyparentsandmybrotherswhohavebeenacontinuous
sourceofinspirationforme.

iv

TABLEOFCONTENTS
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS.....................................................................................................................iii
LISTOFTABLES................................................................................................................................ix
LISTOFILLUSTRATIONS...................................................................................................................ix
CHAPTER1BACKGROUND..............................................................................................................1
1.1

Introduction......................................................................................................................1

1.2

StatementofProblem......................................................................................................4

1.4

ResearchQuestion...........................................................................................................5

1.5

LiteratureReview.............................................................................................................6

1.6

TheoryofOperation.........................................................................................................9

1.7

Assumptions...................................................................................................................12

1.8

Limitations......................................................................................................................13

CHAPTER2EXPERIMENTALMETHOD...........................................................................................14
2.1

TestApparatusandMeasurementTechniques.............................................................14

2.1.1

ForceandSpeedExperiments................................................................................14

2.1.2

AirLeakageExperiment..........................................................................................19

2.2

StallTorqueAnalyticalCalculation.................................................................................20

2.2.1

FlowoverFlatPlate.................................................................................................20

2.2.2

VortexMethod........................................................................................................24

2.2.3

MomentofMomentumMethodforaCentrifugalPump......................................26

2.2.4

FrictionalTorque,AcceleratingTorqueandAngularDeceleration........................27

2.3

ConstructionoftheDynamometer................................................................................28

2.4

DesignofProtectiveShield............................................................................................33

2.5

ConstructionofThermodynamicFlowApparatus.........................................................34

2.6

ExperimentswithDynamometerandFlowApparatus..................................................37

CHAPTER3RESULTSANDDISCUSSION........................................................................................39
3.1

PreliminaryExperimentalResults..................................................................................39

3.2

AirLeakageExperimentalResults..................................................................................42

3.3

FlowOverFlatPlateTheoreticalModelResults............................................................42

3.4

VortexMethodResults...................................................................................................44

3.5

Observations..................................................................................................................47

CHAPTER4CONCLUSIONS............................................................................................................49
CHAPTER5FUTURETURBINEDESIGN..........................................................................................50
APPENDIXAEXPERIMENTALRESULTS..........................................................................................56
APPENDIXBEXPERIMENTALAPPARATAE.....................................................................................61
B1

PreliminaryExperimentalApparatus.........................................................................62

B2

DynamometerApparatus...........................................................................................62

APPENDIXCPROEWILDFIREDRAWINGS....................................................................................63
vi

C1

EducationalTurbine....................................................................................................64

C2

ElectricDynamometer................................................................................................65

C3

AirFlowApparatus.....................................................................................................66

C4

BrakeDynamometer..................................................................................................67

C5

FutureTeslaTurbineDesign.......................................................................................68

APPENDIXDDESIGNOFOTHERCOMPONENTS.......................................................................69
D1

Tachometer................................................................................................................70

D2

LabViewTemperatureMeasurementProgram.........................................................73

BIBLIOGRAPHY..............................................................................................................................75

vii

LISTOFTABLES

Table1:Experimentalturbinedimensions,constantsandnumberofnozzles...........................19
Table2:Experimentalforce,speedandtorquedata...................................................................41
Table3:Airleakagevs.airpressure.............................................................................................42
Table4:Excerptoftableofflatplateflowmodel,testofnullhypothesis..................................43
Table5:Excerptoftableofvortexmodel,testofnullhypothesis...............................................45
Table6:Futureturbinedimensions,constantsandnumberofnozzles......................................54
TableA1:Completetableofexperimentalforce,speedandtorquedata...................................57
TableA2:Completetableofflatplateflowmodel,testofnullhypothesis.................................58
TableA3:Completetableofvortexmodel,testofnullhypothesis.............................................59
TableA4:FutureTeslaturbinestalltorquemodel.......................................................................60

viii

LISTOFILLUSTRATIONS

Figure1:Teslaturbinefrontandsidecutawayviews..................................................................10
Figure2:Teslaturbineduringspeedmeasurementexperiment................................................15
Figure3:SimpleTeslaturbinestatictorquemeasurementconfigurationshowingspringgauge
alignment......................................................................................................................................18
Figure4:TheanalyticalstatictorquemodelsimplifiesthegeometryofaTeslaturbinediskby
imaginingitseparatedintofourflatplates..................................................................................21
Figure5:Completeddynamometer..............................................................................................32
Figure6:Assembleddynamometer..............................................................................................32
Figure7:Thermodynamicflowapparatusairflowdiagram........................................................35
Figure8:Airflowapparatus,frontview.......................................................................................38
Figure9:Acomparisonbetweentheboundingvaluesofthesimpleanalyticalmodelandthe
measuredstalltorquedatarevealsreasonableagreementgiventheliberalassumptions
inherentinthemodel...................................................................................................................41
Figure10:Airpressurevs.flatplateflowmethodtorque...........................................................44
Figure11:Airpressurevs.vortexmethodtorque........................................................................46
Figure12:Experimental,flatplateflowandvortexstalltorque..................................................46
Figure13:Futureturbine,flatplateflowandvortexstalltorque................................................55
FigureC1:EducationalTeslaturbine............................................................................................64
FigureC2:Electricdynamometer.................................................................................................65
FigureC3:Airflowapparatus.......................................................................................................66
FigureC4:Brakedynamometer....................................................................................................67
FigureC5:FutureTeslaturbinedesign.........................................................................................68
FigureD1:TeensytachometerPCBdiagram................................................................................70
FigureD2:16x2LCDdisplayscreenfortachometer.....................................................................71

ix

FigureD3:TachometercomposedofaTeensymicrocontrolleronabreadboard,withwires
connectedtothesensorsandtheLCDscreen.ThereisaSocketmobilebatterypackfor
extendeduseawayfromapowerplug........................................................................................71
FigureD4:LabViewprograminterface.........................................................................................72
FigureD5:LabViewprogramcode................................................................................................73

CHAPTER1
BACKGROUND*
1.1

Introduction

ItwasdesiredtoconstructadynamometerandsubsequentmicroTeslaturbinefor

experimentalpurposes.Theturbineusedtogenerateexperimentaldatafortheoreticalmodels
inthisthesiswaspurchasedfromObiLaserProducts.Thebaseassumptionforexperiments
withtheTeslaturbineisNikolaTeslasstatementthathisturbinehadthecapabilitiestoachieve
highefficiencies.IseektodesignaturbinethatwillincreasecurrentTeslaturbineefficienciesto
reachthosepredictedbyTeslahimself.Evenraisingefficienciestobehigherthancurrent
efficiencieswillbeaconsiderableachievement.Ialsoseektominiaturizetheturbineforusein
geothermalpowerplantsaswellasforuseinmobilepowerpacksandasbloodpumps.[1,2,
23]
Whileconventionalturbineshavebeenextensivelyresearchedandtested,Teslaand
boundarylayertypeturbineshavenot.Inordertoconstructadynamometer,andthe
subsequentturbine,wemodeledtheTeslaturbineusingtheoreticalcalculationsand
preliminaryexperiments.Athermodynamicflowexperimentwasalsorequiredtoanalyzethe
efficiencyoftheturbinewithrelationtoinputandoutputairflow.Aseriesofpreliminary
experimentswereruntodeterminestalltorqueandmaximumrunspeed.Thenthisdatawas
appliedtomodelingformulastoestimatestalltorqueoveranextendedrangeofvariables.The

*PortionsofthischapterarereproducedfromT.Emran,M.Traum,M.DeMay,C.Stallings,andR.Alexander.
MethodtoAccuratelyEstimateTeslaTurbineStallTorqueforDynamometerLoadSelection.ASMEECTC
Conference.Oct2010,withpermissionfromtheAmericanSocietyofMechanicalEngineers.[10]

datawerethenusedtodesignanappropriatedynamometerandairflowexperiment.The
modeldataalsoservedtoestimatevariousspecificationsandpoweroutputofthefuture
turbine.
Availablemoderndiagnosticinstrumentsforsmallrotatingenginesbelow35kilowatts
(kW),thepoweroutputwheremanyresearchTeslaturbinesoperate,includeonly
dynamometersdesignedtomeasurehightorque,lowangularvelocityinternalcombustion
engines(IC).[3,4,5,6]Thesesmallcommercialdynamometers,meantforICengines,arenot
competentforTeslaturbinetestingasthedynamometercutintorqueexceedstheTesla
turbinestalltorque.Cutinreferstothetorquerequiredtobeginturningthedynamometer,
whilestallreferstoaloadtorqueslightlyhigherthanwhattheturbinecangenerateata
particularsetpoint,whichcausesitsrotationtoslowbelowadesirablelevelorevenstop.
Moreover,commercialdynamometersforsmallICenginescannotwithstandthehighangular
velocitiesTeslaturbinesproduce.CouplingconventionaldynamometerstoTeslaturbinesoften
requiresamechanicaladvantagesystem(i.e.,pulleysorgears),whichintroducetheirown
frictionlossesthatmustbequantifiedseparately.Asaresult,mostTeslaturbineresearch
beginswithdevelopmentofacustombuilthighspeed,lowtorquedynamometer.[5,6,7,8]
OptionsfordynamometerconstructionincludethePronybrake,thewaterbrake,
electromagneticbrakeandtheelectricdynamometer.Mostofthesemethodsarenotcapable
ofhandlingveryhighspeeds,noraretheycapableofhandlingverylowpoweroutputs.[9]
Thus,forthisresearchandourexperiments,wedecideduponanelectricmotorforuseinour
dynamometer.

OnerelativelyinexpensiveapproachtocustomTeslaturbinedynamometerdesignisto
drivetheshaftofacommercialofftheshelfelectricmotor.Thisapproachenables
measurementofturbinetorqueoutputbyeither1)measuringtheshafttorquedirectlyatthe
shaftcouplingor2)measuringtheforcerequiredtopreventthemotorhousingfromrotating.
Differentmotorloadsaresettoextractaturbinepowercurveasafunctionoftorqueor
angularvelocity.AnopticalorHallEffectsensormeasuringangularvelocityoftheshaft
providestheremainingneededinformationtosolveforpower.Asacorollary,togenerate
electricalpowerfromaTeslaturbine,ahighspeedelectricgeneratorcouldbecoupledtothe
powershaft.
OnedifficultyincouplinganelectricmotororgeneratortoaTeslaturbinefordiagnostic
orpowergenerationapplicationsisthattheelectricmotor/generatorcutintorquemight
exceedtheTeslaturbinesstalltorque.Thesameproblemariseswhentryingtomatea
conventionalICenginedynamometertoaTeslaturbine.Tospecifyanappropriate
motor/generatorfordiagnosticsorpowergeneration,aninexpensiveandstraightforwardTesla
turbinestalltorquecalculationmethodisneededtoensureturbinestalltorqueexceeds
motor/generatorcutinspeedatdesiredsetpointconditions.Moreover,tofacilitateinformed
engineeringdesignofbothTeslaturbinesandtheirassociateddynamometers(orgenerators),
developmentofapredictiveanalyticaltechniqueforstalltorqueestimationisneeded.
Inthisthesis,asimple,accurate,andinexpensivetechniqueformeasurementofTesla
turbinestalltorqueisreported,anditisfollowedbymultiplesupportinganalyticalmethods
thatpredictstalltorqueasafunctionofdesiredturbinesetpointparameters.Severalofthese
mentionedapproachesaredescribedinthepapersubmittedtotheASMEECTC2010
3

conference[10].Thequantitativeresultsarisingfromthesetechniquesarecomparedtoeach
othertoprovidevalidationandthenusedtoselectanappropriatebrushlessDCmotorfora
customdynamometerthatisslatedforfutureTeslaturbinetesting.Athermodynamic
efficiencyapparatuswasconstructedtodeterminetheefficiencyoftheTeslaturbine.Results
fromthefirstexperimentaredescribedinChapter3.1,whiledataisincludedinAppendixA,B1
andD3.Thesecondexperimenthasyettobeconducted,astheapparatusisnotcompleted,
buthasbeensignificantlypreparedsuchthatexperimentscanproceedassoonasthe
apparatusiscompleted.Basedonconclusionsmadefromtheseexperiments,amicroTesla
turbineisbeingdesignedwiththeintentionofconstruction,suchthatfutureresearchcanbe
conductedwiththisnewdesign.ApreliminarydesignofthisturbineisincludedinAppendixC4.

1.2

StatementofProblem
Theproblemaddressedinthisresearchisthelackofalowcosthighspeedlowtorque

dynamometer.Toconstructthisdynamometer,weneedtocalculatestalltorqueofthe
experimentalTeslaturbinewewishtotest.Currently,publishedresearchdoesnotdiscusshow
toconstructhighspeedlowtorquedynamometers,nordoesitdiscusshowtoderiveTesla
turbinestalltorquecalculations.

1.3

Purpose

Thepurposeofthisresearchwastotestthecurrentexperimentalturbineinorderto

determineitsoperatingcharacteristics.Thisknowledgecanbeappliedtodesignandbuild

AmericanSocietyofMechanicalEngineersEarlyCareerTechnicalConference,2010

futureTeslaturbines.Thustotestourturbine,weplannedtoconstructadynamometer.Since
existingliteratureprovidesnoguidanceoncalculatingTeslaturbinestalltorque,wesoughtto
developanexperimentalmethodandmultipletheoreticalmethodstoestimatestalltorque.

1.4

ResearchQuestion
Thereweretworesearchquestionsaddressedbythisthesis.Thefirstquestion

addressesthetheoreticalmethods:
1. WillthetheoreticalmodelsestimateTeslaturbinestalltorquewithinexperimental
uncertaintyoverarangeofinletairpressures?
Thisquestionhasacorrespondingnullhypothesis1 H

:thetheoreticalmodelsdo

notaccuratelyestimatethestalltorque.Thisresearchquestionalsohasanalternatehypothesis
1 H

:themodelsdoaccuratelyestimatethestalltorquesuchthatdataiscomparablewith

experimentaldata.
Thesecondresearchquestiondealswiththedynamometerconstruction.Thisresearch
questionalongwithresearchquestion1helpeddetermineaTeslaturbinedesignthatimproves
uponthecurrentturbinedesign.Researchquestion2was:
2. Willwebeabletoconstructahighspeedlowtorquedynamometerbasedontheresultswe
gather?
Thisquestionhasacorrespondingnullhypothesis2 H

:thedatadonotprovideenough

informationtoconstructafunctionaldynamometer.Likewise,thisresearchquestionhasan
alternatehypothesis2 H

:afunctionaldynamometerwasconstructedbasedontheresults

gathered.
5


1.5

LiteratureReview
DespitetheextensivebodyofliteratureonTeslaturbinemodeling,design,andtesting

(anexcellentrecentreviewisgivenbyRice[11,12])noliteraturecouldbefoundreporting
Teslaturbinestalltorquemeasurementorpredictiveanalysistechniques.
TheinitialTeslaturbineinventionandpatentdisclosure[3,4]hasgeneratedprolific
academicresearchonbladelessturbinedesign,diagnostics,andoptimization.AfterTeslas
patentexpired,Leaman[8]experimentedusingafourdiskTeslaturbinewithanovelhollow
powershaftallowingforfluidexhaust.Heevaluateddifferentdisksurfacefinishesandnozzle
configurationstomaximizeefficiencyresultinginaparabolicrelationshipbetweenangular
velocityandefficiencywithapeakefficiencyof8.6%at85.75watts(0.115HP).Thisearlywork
laidthefoundationforover50yearsofsubsequentresearch.
Beans[13]analyzedthesimilaritiesbetweenTeslaturbinesanddragturbines.Henoted
thatbecausenoliftisgeneratedineitherconfiguration,boththeseturbinetypesrotateno
fasterthantheonsetfluidvelocity;akeyphenomenonappliedtothestalltorqueanalysis
presentedinthiscurrentpaper.Murataetal.[14]analyzedwhetherflowbetweenTesla
turbinedisksislaminarorturbulentandfoundthattheflowislaminarwithintheturbine
exceptontheinnerandouterdiskperipherieswhereinsteadtheyobservedvortexflow.Based
onthisanalysis,theanalyticalmodelsusedinthispaperassumelaminarflowbetweenthe
disks.Recentimprovementsincomputermodelingcapabilityenablevisualizationandanalysis
offlowinsidetheTeslaturbinehousing.

Forexample,Harwood[15]simulatedinternalTeslaturbineflowsusingANSYSsoftware
tocorroboratetheobservedresultsofMurataetal.[14]bydemonstratingexistenceofinternal
Teslaturbinevortexrotationalflowstructuresandbackpressure.Harwood[15]alsofoundthat
peakTeslaturbineefficiencyisachievedatlowReynoldsnumber,whichfurthervalidatesthe
assumptionoflaminarflowusedinthisanalysisasadesirableTeslaturbineoperating
condition.
Guidanceforthedynamometerexperimentalapparatusdescribedinsection2.3was
gleanedfromHoyaandGuhawhocomprehensivelydescribedhowtodesignandbuildaTesla
turbineanddiagnosticTeslaturbinedynamometer.[7]Theyalsodiscussedhowtodesignan
experimenttotesttheefficiencyoftheirturbine.
Mr.TahildiscussedhowflowinaTeslaturbineoperatesasseenwithhisFlowoverFlat
Platemethod,andhisVortexmethod[16,17].Thesederivationsprovedthattherewasin
factsomeoneelsethathadattemptedasimilarderivationtoouranalysis.However,itis
importanttonotethatTahilsderivationsarespecifictosteadystatetorque,whileour
derivationsarespecifictostalltorque.Tahilsworkhelpedtestourassumptionsandverifythat
ourmethodmaywork.
Dr.RiceexperimentedwithTeslaturbinesalso,andgaveaninsightastomaximum
efficienciespossible,andvariousdesignsthatgivethebestresults.Hisresearchalsogavean
insightastohowtoconductanexperimentwithaTeslaturbine,andwhataveragedatato
expectwhenexperimentingwithaTeslaturbine.Dr.Ricesresearchpavedthewayformore
extensiveresearchondisksurfaceroughness,nozzlesize,disksizeanddiskthickness,andhow
theyrelatetoperformance.[11,12]
7

In1962,BreiterandPohlhausenresearchedTeslatypeturbinesandpumpsatthe
AeronauticalResearchLaboratoryattheOfficeforSponsoredResearch,whichisadivisionof
theUnitedStatesAirForce.Theirresearchinvestigatedviscousflowbetweenparallelrotating
plates.Itwasfoundthatflowhassimilaritiestocentrifugalpumps.Amodelwasderivedto
estimatethevelocityprofilebetweenthedisks.Pumpefficiencywascalculatedusingthegain
oftotalpressureandthemeasuredtorqueoftheshaft.[18]
In1972,LawndesignedamodelforlaminarflowofanincompressibleNewtonianfluid
betweenparallelrotatingdisks.Thismodelaccountedforvelocityprofilesandperformance
dataofthedevicebeingmodeled.Dimensionlesscharacteristicdatawasfoundusingthe
model;thesisdatawerethenusedasfunctionsofReynoldsnumbertocreateperformance
mapstocomparewithotherdevicesmodeled.[19]
In1976,MurataandYukatadiscoveredthatdiskfrictionpumpsonlyworkinlaminar
regimes,exceptforflowontheinnerandouterperipheriesofthedisks.Theydesignedamodel
toestimateperformanceoftheirpumps,andcomparedthattheoreticaldatawithexperimental
data.[14]
In2004,Kusumbalaidthefoundationsfordevelopingacostefficientalternativeto
moreexpensivedynamometersavailableonthemarket.Hisresearchgavebackgroundonthe
differencesbetweenvariousdynamometertypes,andwhichdesignworksbestforhighangular
velocityandlowtorqueapplications.Thisresearchalsodiscussedtheuseofpermanentmagnet
motorsfortesting,andhowtocontrolthemtodetermineexactfeedbackofperformance.[8]
Againin2004,Ladinopublishedapaper,inwhichheusedacomputationalfluid
dynamicstooltomodeltheflowinsideaTeslaturbine.Simulationswereconductedusing
8

laminarandturbulentregimestodeterminehowtheseflowtypeshaveaneffectonthe
turbine,andwhichofthetwotypesismoreprevalent.Resultsshowthathis2Dtwodiskmodel
hasalaminarflowregime,whichcorrelateswithotherresearchconductedinthisfield.[20]
In2006,Coutoetal.introducedworkonTeslaturbineoperationprinciplesaswellasa
theoreticalestimateforthenumberofdisksinaturbine.Thisresearchwasusedofteninthe
designofthefutureturbinedescribedinthisthesis.Thepaperalsodiscussedturbine
performanceandhowitrelatestoboundarylayertheory.[21]Ofcourse,noreviewoftheTesla
turbineliteraturewouldbecompletewithoutacknowledgingtheprolificandongoing
contributionsofSwithenbank[22]tothisfield.
Finally,in2010,Emranetal.derivedamodeltoestimatestalltorqueofTeslaturbinesin
ordertodesignahighspeed,lowtorquedynamometer.Adynamometerwassubsequently
constructedtotestTeslaturbineperformance.Finally,anewturbinedesignwasdrawnina
CADprogramtocorrectdeficienciesintheeducationalturbineusedforpreliminary
experiments.[10]

1.6

TheoryofOperation
Teslaturbinesarebladelessrotatingturbomachinerycomponentsthattransform

enthalpyinaworkingfluidintoshaftwork.[37,9,11,16,17,2326]Whiletheirpurposeis
identicaltoconventionalgasturbines,themechanismofenergyconversioninTeslaturbinesis
verydifferent.Conventionalgasturbinesexpandtheworkingfluidoveraerodynamicblades,
producingaliftforceoneachbladethatinducestorqueaboutarotatingdriveshaft.Tesla
turbinesrelyonfluidshearingforceattheinterfacebetweentheworkingfluidandaninternal
9

setofbladelessdiskstogeneratetorqueaboutthedriveshaft,asshowninAppendixB1,
FiguresB2andB3.[37,9,11,12,13,16,17,19,27]
Asflowenterstheturbine,thefluidinteractswiththesurfaceofthedisksthroughthe
boundarylayereffectandadhesiontoenableashearingstressonthesurfaceofthedisks.A
cutawayviewoftheturbineisshowninFigure1togetabetterunderstandingofthis
explanation.Thereforethisshearingstressinducesaforce,whichinturncreatesrotationinthe
turbine.Thusinitiallyastheturbineisstalled,preliminaryrotationisresultsfromflowoverflat
plate,otherwiseknownasBlasiusflow.[1]Sincethereisapressuregradientbetweentheinlet
nozzleandthecenterofthedisks,wheretheinletisathigherpressurethanthecenterofthe
disks,arotatingsourcesinkflowconfigurationoccurs,whichinducesavortex.Thevortex
combinedwiththeboundarylayereffectthenacceleratestheturbinetosteadystate.[3,4,7,
9,11,16,17]

FRONTVIEW
(Cutaway)

INPUTNOZZLE

EXHAUSTPORTS

SIDEVIEW(Cutaway)
TurbineDisks
TURBINE
DISKS

FLUID
FLOW

Output
Shaft
TURBINESHAFT

TURBINECASING

Figure1:SchematicTeslaturbinefrontandsideviews.

10

Spacers

ConventionalgasturbinesandTeslaturbinesmanifestpoweroutput,P,verydifferently;
Pistheproductoftorque,,andangularvelocity,,asseeninEq.1.1.
[1.1]

EvenifaconventionalgasturbineandTeslaturbineweregeneratingthesamepoweroutput,
thewaythisoutputwouldbemeasuredandutilizedisdifferent.Conventionalbladedgas
turbinesproducerelativelyhightorqueandlowangularvelocitycomparedtoTeslaturbines,
whichtypicallyproducelowtoqueathighangularvelocity.
AnotherfactorinTeslaturbineoperation,isentropicexpansion,operatesusing
fundamentalthermodynamicprinciples.ThisassumptionismadebasedonworkdonebyRice,
Tahilandothers,whoseresearchhasproventhatisentropicexpansionoccursasairentersthe
turbine.[10,19,2628]Asflowenterstheturbine,airexpandswithintheturbine,thus
droppingpressure.Weassumethevolumeofairstaysconstant,whereastemperatureand
pressurecanchange.Theequations1.2,1.3,and1.4highlightthisrelation.[1,14,2830]
ln

ln

[1.2]

[1.3]

[1.4]

Where

isthetemperatureoftheairattheinletoftheturbine

isthetemperatureoftheairattheoutletoftheturbine
11

isthepressureoftheairattheinletoftheturbine

isthepressureoftheairattheoutletoftheturbine

isthevolumeoftheairattheinletoftheturbine

isthevolumeoftheairattheoutletoftheturbine

isthespecificheatcapacityatconstantpressureoftheair

isthespecificheatcapacityatconstantvolumeoftheair

isthegasconstantofair

1.7

Assumptions

Severalassumptionsforourresearchneedtoberecognized:

IncompressibleFlow

InviscidFlowwithregardstotheVortexmodel

BlasiusFlowasopposedtoCouetteorPoiseuilleflow

Multiplediskgapshaveaneffectonflow

Tangentialspeedofthedisksisequaltotheinletspeedoftheair.

Constructionofthedynamometerwasconsideredtobeconsistentwithtechniques
usedinthefieldbecauseourdesigncloselyresembledotherdynamometerdesigns,
exceptthatoursishighspeedlowtorque.

ProEngineerWildFireisanindustryacceptedCADprogramforallourdesigns,sowe
arewithinindustrystandardsintheeventthisresearchistobeduplicatedinthefuture.

12

1.8

Limitations

Afewlimitationsforourresearchneedtoberecognized:

Adheringtoindustrystandardswithdesignandconstructionofcomponents,limited
ourabilitytocreatemoresophisticateddesigns.

Machiningoperationslimitournozzledimensionstobenosmallerthanourtools,thus
wecouldnotdesigncomponentsthatwerenotmachinableinourmachineshop.

Sincetheexperimentalturbineexhaustairspeedisbelowthespeedofsound,Mach1,
therearelimitedoptionsforTeslaturbineapplications.

13

CHAPTER2
EXPERIMENTALMETHOD*

2.1

TestApparatusandMeasurementTechniques

2.1.1 ForceandSpeedExperiments
AnObiLaserSSTG001Teslaturbine[31]wasusedintheexperimentsheredescribed.
Thisturbineismadeofstainlesssteelandcontainsfourdisksof37.6millimeter(mm)outer
radius(

)and34.0mminnerradius(

)eachspacedapartby5.0mmstarshaped

spacers.Theturbinehasfourairinletsevenlyspacedaroundtheperiphery,andithasfour
outletportsnearthecenter.Thepowershaftradiusis4.0mm.Thespecificdiskandnozzle
shapesareshownintheProEdrawingfortheeducationalturbineinAppendixC1;these
detailedgeometricfeaturesdonotimpactthegeneralexperimentaloranalyticalresults.
Shopairatconstantpressurewasintroducedtotheexperimentalapparatusthrougha
regulatorfiltercombinationthatkeptthesupplylinepressurizedbetween90and120pounds
persquareinch(PSI)regardlessoftheflowdemandfromtheturbine.Asmallercontrol
regulatorconnectedtotheturbineinletmanifoldprovidedpreciseturbineinletpressure
adjustment;duringtheexperiment,thecontrolregulatorwasadjustedfrom15PSIto85PSIin
5PSIincrementstoestablishtherangeofexperimentalsetpoints.Thepressureregulatorset
pointuncertaintywas2.5PSI.85PSIwasneverexceededtoensurefluctuationsinthesupply
linepressure(90120PSI)didnotadverselyimpactresults.Theinletmanifoldsplittheflow

*PortionsofthischapterarereproducedwithpermissionfromASME.[10]

14

fromtheregulatorintofourpathsanddeliveredtheworkingfluidtoeachoftheturbineinlets
asshowninFigure2.

Figure 2: Tesla turbineduring speed measurementexperiment, withfour input

nozzlesconnectedtomanifold.Pressureregulatorisseenthebackground,while
thelasertachometerisseenintheforeground.
Experimentalstalltorquemeasurementsproceededintwostages.First,theturbinewas
setuptospinwithnoloadontheshaft.Outputshaftangularvelocityfortheturbinewas
determinedusingaNeiko20713Adigitallaserphototachometerthatregisteredtherotational
frequencyofapieceofblackelectricaltapefixedtotheshaft.Foreachpressuresetpointfrom
15to85PSI,20uniquerotationalfrequencydatapointsweretaken,androtationalvelocitywas
calculatedfromshaftgeometry.Theaverageofthese20readingswasthereportedangular
velocitywhilethestandarddeviationamongthemwasthereportedmeasurementuncertainty.
15

Atfirstglance,itmayseemoddtomeasureaturbinesstalltorquebyallowingittorun
unloaded:theantithesisofthestallcondition.However,astherewasnodirectmeansto
measuretheinternalturbineflowvelocityfromtheinletnozzles,unloadedturbinedisklinear
velocityatRouterapproximatedthefluidflowvelocity.Asmentionedabove,Beans[13]argued
thatthelinearvelocityoftheouteredgeofaTeslaturbinediskcannotexceedinternalairflow
velocitybecausemomentumtransferfromtheflowtothediskoccursentirelybyshear.Infact,
inthelimitwherethereisnooutsidefrictionforce(i.e.,nobearingfriction)toslowtherotating
disksofanunloadedTeslaturbine,thelinearvelocityofthediskassemblysouteredgewill
exactlymatchtheflowvelocityfromthenozzles.
TheassumptionthatdissipativefrictionforcesslowingtheTeslaturbinesrotationare
extremelysmallwasvalidatedbyquantitativecalculationandqualitativeexperiment.
[2.1]

Where

isthefrictionaltorqueforabearing.
Fisthedownwardforceoftheshaft.
isthecoefficientoffrictionforthebearings,

0.0015 .

UsingEq.2.1,thelargestbearingfrictiontorqueencounteredduringanystatictest
reportedinthiscurrentpaperwas4.03x105Newtonmeter(Nm).Toputthisvaluein
perspective,thesmalleststalltorqueencounteredduringanystatictestreportedhereinwas
1.03x103Nm;25.6timeslarger.Moreover,intheunloadedtestswherediskvelocitywas
measuredtoapproximatenozzlevelocity,therewasnolinearforcethroughtheshaft
supportedbythebearing.So,thegiven4.03x105Nmfrictiontorqueestimateisanupper
16

boundontheactualfrictiontorquepresentduringthesemeasurements.Inorderto
demonstratethatthemagnitudeofrotationalfrictiontorqueisminiscule,theunloadedturbine
wasspunuptosteadystateat85psiinletpressureandallowedtospindownduetofriction.
Thisprocesstookover15minutestostoptheturbine.Thesetwofrictionquantification
approachesdemonstratethatfrictionforcesarenegligiblewhenusingtheunloadedturbine
rateofrotationasasurrogatetoestimateinternalflowvelocity.
ThisinternalflowvelocityestimationapproachisgenerallyapplicabletoallTesla
turbinesregardlessofthespecificbladeconfigurationornozzlegeometry.Asstatedabove,
specificinternalgeometrydoesnotaffectthedesiredoutcome,whichisanestimationofthe
fluidvelocityovertheTeslaturbinediskswhentheyarefixedandstationary.Theresulting
inferredflowvelocityasafunctionofinletpressureisappliedtotheanalyticalstalltorque
estimationmethodoutlinedinthesection2.2,TheStallTorqueAnalyticalCalculation.
Inthesecondexperiment,thestatictorqueproducedbytheturbinewasdirectly
measuredacrossthesamerangeofinletpressuresusedtodetermineinternalflowvelocity,15
85PSI.Importantly,thestatictorqueandstalltorquedefinitionsusedinthisthesisaresubtly
different.StatictorqueismeasuredthroughaforcegaugethatintentionallyholdstheTesla
turbinepowershaftstationarysoitcannotspin.Stalltorqueisencounteredwhiletheturbineis
spinning,andthedemandedloadincreasesabovetheavailableturbinetorqueatitsparticular
setpointconditionsandangularvelocity.Whilegasfromtheinternalturbinenozzlescontinues
issuingatasetvelocity,theturbineslows(e.g.,stalls)inresponsetothehigherloadtoalower
rotationalvelocity.Atthisnewslowerrotationrate,thedifferencebetweentheinternalfluid
flowvelocityandrotatingdiskvelocityishigherandtheresultingproducedtorqueisgreater.
17

Thus,aturbinecanstallwithoutstopping.However,statictorqueisaspecialsubsetofstall
torqueinwhichthedemandedloadisjustgreatenoughtocausetheturbinetostopspinning
altogether.Inthiscondition,thevelocitydifferencebetweentheinternalflowvelocityand
bladevelocityismaximized,andthereforetheresultingtorqueproducedbytheturbineis
maximizedforthegivensetpointconditions.Measuredstatictorqueisthusanupperbound
ontheturbinesstalltorqueataparticularsetpointcondition.
Tesla
Turbine
From
Regulator

NozzleValves
Fishing
String

Spring
Force
Gauge

Desk
Surface

Drawer
Handle

Figure3:SimpleTeslaturbinestatictorquemeasurement
configurationshowingspringgaugealignment.
AsshowninFigure4,turbinestatictorquewasmeasuredusingaspringforcegauge.
Oneendofthespringforcegaugewasanchoredtoaprotrudingdrawerhandle.Then
approximately20cmoffishinglineconnectedtheotherendofthespringforcegaugetothe
turbinepowershaft.Thespringgaugewascarefullypositionedtoensureitsforce
measurementremainedtangenttotheshaft.Aburstofairintotheturbineallowedthefishing
linetowindaroundtheshaftuntilitwastightanditstensionstalledtheturbineintoastatic
condition.Onlyonelayeroffishinglinewindingwasallowedtoaccumulateontheshaftto
18

maintainprecisecontrolovertheshaftleverarm(i.e.,thepowershaftradius).Staticforce
generatedbytheturbine,F,wasmeasuredatturbineinletpressuresfrom15to85psiat5psi
increments,andassociatedstalltorque,

ateachsetpointwascalculatedinequation2.2.

[32,3338]
[2.2]

Where
isthestalltorqueoftheturbine.

istheradiusoftheshaft.

istheforceatwhichtheturbinestalls.

VariousTeslaturbinespecificationsrequiredfortorquemodelingisfoundinTable1.
Table1:ExperimentalTurbineDimensions,ConstantsandNumberofNozzles

[m]
0.00395
0.0005

[m]
0.03759
0.0005

[m]
0.03394
0.0005

[kg/m3]
1.177
0.04

[kg/ms]
0.0000184
0.0000004

Active
Faces
[]
7

Number
of
Nozzles

Nozzles
pergap

[m]
0.0005
0.0002

[]
4

[]
4

2.1.2 AirLeakageExperiment
Another experiment that was conducted was the measure of air leakage from the
turbine casing. This was done using a hotwire anemometer held in place with laboratory
clamps. The anemometer sat about 2cm away from the side of the casing to measure the

19

velocityofairflowescapingfromthesidesoftheturbine.Resultsforthisexperimentareshown
insection3.2.

2.2

StallTorqueAnalyticalCalculation

2.2.1 FlowoverFlatPlate
Tounderstandwhywehavechosenthisinitialtechnique,thestrengthsandweaknesses
oftheflatplateflowmethodarediscussed.Theprimaryreasonswhywehavechosenflowover
aflatplateasamethodtotheoreticallycalculatestalltorqueis:

Utilizesthefluidflowvelocityprofileofaccurateshapeincloseproximitytotheblade
surfaceowingtofluidviscosityandnoslipcondition.

Allowsshearcalculationwithoutknowledgeofthepressuregradientacrossthe
turbine.

UtilizestheBlasiussolution,amodelwhichincludestheboundarylayereffectsso
criticaltotheturbinesproperfunction.

Severaldownsidesofusingflatplatefloware:

Themodelmakesanunderlyingassumptionoflaminarflowwhichisnottrueat
higherinletvelocitiesandReynoldsnumbers.

Themodeldoesnotincorporateeffectsonthevelocityprofileshapeowingtoclose
proximityofmultiplediskstoeachother.

Themodeldoesnttakeintoaccountmomentumlossesassociatedwiththe
curvatureoftheflowfieldaboutthecentralaxisoftheturbine.

20

TheproposedanalyticalTeslaturbinestalltorqueapproximationreliesupontheexact
equationforshearinducedbylaminarflowoveraflatplate,showninequation2.3.

Here,

0.332U

[2.3]

istheshearstressalongthewallofaturbinedisk,Uisthelinearvelocityof

flowalongtheturbinedisk,andaretheworkingfluiddensityandviscosityrespectively,and
xisacoordinatelocationalongaflatdiskfromaturbineinletnozzle.[1,18]

Figure 4: The analytical static torque model simplifies the

geometry of a Tesla turbine disk (left) by imagining it separated
intofourflatplates.Forceonthesefourplatesisestimatedusing
thelaminarflatplateshearequation.Theproductofshearforce
andtheleverarm,Rave,calculatestheresultingstatictorque.
Importantly,thelineardiskvelocitymeasuredduringtheunloadedturbinetests
describedaboveapproximatesUinEq.2.3.AsillustratedgraphicallyinFigure4,theanalytical
modelisdevelopedbybreakingacompleteturbinediskintofourseparatepieces(onequarter
diskforeachinletport).Eachpiecehasalengthequaltoaquarterofthediskscircumference,
andeachhasawidthequaltothedifferencebetweentheouterandinnerdiskradii.Thesheer
21

forceinducedbytheflowoverthesefourseparatepiecesisimaginedtoactatasinglepointat
thecenterofeachplate.Theresultingtorqueiscalculatedbymultiplyingtheseforcesbya
leverarmequaltothedistancefromthediskcentertohalfthediskswidth,withRaveshown
Figure4.

[2.4]
2

Thetorquethenarisingfromoneexposedfaceofthefourflatplatesrepresentingasingle
turbinediskisshowninequation2.5.

[2.5]

Herethenetforceoneachplate,F,istheproductofshearforceandsurfacearea.In
differentialformthisexpressionisshowninequation2.6.
[2.6]

dA

Thedifferentialelementofthisflatplate,

,isdefinedinequation2.7.
[2.7]

Oncethetorqueononediskfaceisestimated,theresultismultipliedby8(thetotal
numberofdisksurfaces)toprovidetheoverallestimateoftheTeslaturbinestatictorque,
which(asexplainedabove)isanupperboundontheexpectedstalltorqueforgivensetpoint
conditions.

22

CombiningEquations2.3,2.5,2.6and2.7andintegratingfrom0

/2,which

representsthelocationofthenozzlesinsidetheturbinewithrespectcylindricalcoordinates
(thelengthofoneplateisaquarterofthediskscircumference)gives
T

0.332

[2.8]

SubstitutingtheexpressioninEq.2.6intoEq.2.7,completingtheintegration,and
multiplyingby8,thetotalnumberofdiskfacesengagedinshearmomentumtransfergivesthe
desiredequation:
T

32 0.664

[2.9]

Certainly,thismodelisaveryroughapproximationtothetrueTeslaturbinegeometry
andinternalflowstructure.Moreover,thismodelnecessitatesmanyadditionalengineering
assumptions:1)flowoverthedisksislaminar,2)thevelocityprofilebetweenthedisks
approximatesflowoveraflatplateasBlasiusflowinsteadofplanePoiseuillefloworCouette
flow,3)theradialspiralingcomponentoftheflowaddsnegligiblecontribution,and4)allofthe
disksarefullyengagedbyflowatfreestreamvelocity, .Nonetheless,thereasonable
correspondencebetweenmeasuredstatictorquevaluesoftheTeslaturbineandthissimple
analyticalmodeliscompellingenoughtomakeitavaluableorientationcalculationfor
estimationofTeslaturbinestalltorque.

23

2.2.2 VortexMethod
Tounderstandwhywehavechosenthismethod,thestrengthsandweaknessesofthe
vortexmethodarediscussed.Theprimaryreasonwhywehavechosenvortexflowasamethod
totheoreticallycalculatestalltorqueis:

Itprovidesarepresentativesolutionusingpotentialflowconceptsinacylindrical
coordinateframe.

TheliteraturereportsvortextypeflowarisinginTeslaturbines.

Thevortexmodelcapturescompoundingfluidinteractionsbetweenparalleldisks.

Thedownsidestousingthismethodare:

Stablevortexflowisestablishedathigherturbinepressuregradientscorrespondingto
theturbulentregime,whereReynoldsnumberexceeds4000.

Withfouroutletports,thegeometryoftheeducationalturbineisnotatrueunitary
sourcesinkconfiguration.
Anotherapproachforcalculatingtorqueactingonaturbinedisktakesintoaccountthe

centrifugalflowwithintheTeslaturbineinsteadofflowoveraflatplate.Centrifugalflowinthis
senseisaspiralvortexwithinwardrotation.Therearetwotypesofvortices:thefirstisaforced
vortex,asseeninastirringmachinewherethevortexisforcedbyanexternalmechanism.The
secondkindofvortexiscalledfreevortex;thisiswhereflowitselfisrotatingduetophysical
limitationsofspace,andthiscreatesavortex.Thecurrentstalltorquemethodassumesthat
thereisafreevortex.Anotherfactorthatmustbenotediswhetherthecenterofthevortexisa
sourceoffloworasink;inthiscase,itisasink.Therefore,weassumethatatstallconditions,a
24

freespiralvortexwithasinkholeoccurs.Thefollowingderivationexplainssystematicallyhow
ourmethodwasdeveloped.AccordingtoMunsonetal.,flowinafreevortexwithasinkholeis
giveninequation2.10.[1]

Here,

ln

[2.10]

representsthevelocitypotentialinafreevortex,and

ln

representsvelocitypotentialinavortexwithasink.Inthisformula,representsthecirculation
ofthevortex,

istheconstantfortheradialcomponentofthefluidvelocity.Forasource

ispositive,andnegativeforasink.Inourcase,

isnegative,thusthevelocitypotentialfor

thesinkissubtractedfromthevelocitypotentialforthefreevortex.Weknowthat
and

.Differentiating withrespectto ,yieldsequation2.11.[1]

[2.11]

Thusthisyieldstheangularvelocityprofileofavortexwithasink.Ifweknowthatour
velocityintheturbineisthesameasthisangularvelocityprofile,wecanusethisequationinto
theonefortorquetocalculatethestalltorqueatthisflowconditions.However,formy
approach,weassumedthatateachnozzle,thevelocityoftheflowwasequal.Sothevelocityof
onenozzlewasmultipliedbythenumberofnozzlesinvolvedpereachgap.Theassumptionis
thatthevorticesareadditive,thusthevelocitiesarealsoadditive,whichiswhatisshownin
equation2.12.

[2.12]

25

[2.13]

InEq.2.13, representsthevelocityofthediskrotationateachdiskspacing,and
representstheouterdiameterofthedisks.Therefore,bycombiningequations2.12and2.13,
wegetthetotalvortexcirculation,

,asshowninEq.2.14.
2

[2.14]

,andsimplifyingthisequation,yieldsEq.2.15.

Assumingthat

[2.15]

,and

Soifweknowthat

.Thus

.Thisthenyieldsequation

2.16,whereisgiveninEq.2.15.
3
2

[2.16]

2.2.3 MomentofMomentumMethodforaCentrifugalPump
Thismethodwasnotdevelopedingreatdetail,butitdidprovideinsightasapossible
alternativetocalculatingtheoreticaltorqueoftheturbine.Momentofmomentumrequires
measurementofthemassflowrateoftheturbineandthetangentialvelocitiesattheentrance
andexitoftheturbine.Thecombinationofthesevaluescanbeshowninequation2.2.2.5.
[2.17]

Iftheangletotangentisknown,thetheoreticalequationfortorqueisshowninequation
2.2.2.6.[33,34]
cos

[2.18]

26

2.2.4 FrictionalTorque,AcceleratingTorqueandAngularDeceleration
Thefrictionaltorquemethod,likethemomentofmomentummethodinsection2.18,is
shownforfutureworkthatwishestoexpandonthetopic,butisnotuseddirectlyin
calculationsforthisresearch.Therearetwokindsoffrictionaltorque:torqueonthebearings,
andtorqueontheshaft.Whilefrictionaltorqueonthebearingsisassumednegligiblewhen
usingceramicorhybridceramicbearings,forverysmalltorquevalues,oneshouldcalculate
frictionaltorqueandsubtractthatfromtheactualcalculatedtorque.Equation2.19showsthe
frictionaltorqueoneachbearing.[3337]
[2.19]

Frictionaltorqueontheshaftrequirestimetoturbinestall,whileacceleratingtorque
requirestimetorunningsteadystate,assumingthereisnoloadontheshaft.Soonewould
starttheturbineoperation,andusingastopwatch,measurethetimeittakesfortheturbineto
reachsteadystateoperation.Thenoneremovestheairsourcefromtheturbine,andagain
measuresthetimetostoprotation.Equation2.2.20showshowthisisstructured,assumingno
loadontheshaft.[3334]
[2.20]

Assumingfinalangularvelocityiszero,andinitialtimeiszero,thefrictionaltorqueontheshaft
isshowninequation2.21.
[2.21]

Similarly,foracceleratingtorque,timetosteadystateisimportant,asistheinertiaoftheshaft.
Thisyieldsequation2.22.

27

[2.22]

308

TheairflowapparatusdiscussedlaterinSection2.3wasbuilttomeasuretimetosteady
stateaswellastimetostall.Somethodsintroducedinthissectioncanbeexpandeduponby
futureresearchersoperatingtheapparatus.

2.3

ConstructionoftheDynamometer
Our dynamometer was designed based on the requirements of torque and speed,

similartothosefoundinHoyaandGuha,andKusumba.[7,8]Atthedynamometersheartisa
Banebots RS550 brushed DC motor rated to 19,300 rpm. [39] The Obi Laser SSTG001 Tesla
turbine hasalready successfully spun up this motor, further validating the experimental static
torquemeasurementtechniquepresentedhere.Detaileddrawingsofthedynamometerandair
flowapparatusareincludedinAppendixC.
ThedynamometerwasmachinedandconstructedintheMachineshopofthe
MechanicalandEnergyEngineeringDepartment.MaterialswerepurchasedfromMcMaster
Carr.Theprocedureforconstructionofthedynamometermaynotbethebestorthemost
economical,theendresultwasquitesatisfactory.Ifadynamometerwastobeconstructedin
thefuture,manyoperationscouldbereducedandmachineoperationsshouldbechangedin
ordertospeedupmachiningtime,andtoreducewastedmaterials.
Thedynamometerconsistsofsevenprimarycomponents:thebasepanel,thepillow
bearingplates,thetwobearings,themotorhousingandaloadingmotor.Thebasepanel,
pillowbearingplatesandmotorhousingweremachinedoutof6061Aluminum.[46,52]First,
thebasepanelwascutoutofasolidaluminumblocktobeapproximatelyhalfaninchthick,
28

and6inchesby6inches.Ourmachiningprocessesrequiredasignificantamountoftimetobe
investedtocutthesolidaluminumblocktothesizeandthicknesswerequired.Asaresult,time
betterspentonothermachiningprocesseswaswastedoncuttingandmachiningthese
componentsdowntosize.Hadweknownthatthepreparationandmachiningtimeforthisbase
panelwouldhavetakensolong,wewouldhavepurchasedapieceofaluminumtoathickness
moreappropriatetosaveontimeandoperations.Instead,weassumedthatalargeblockof
aluminumwouldprovideuswithexcessmaterialincaseweneededit.Thenextsteptoprepare
thispanelwastomachineitontheComputerNumericalControl(CNC)endmilltofaceboth
sidesoftheblock.Thesemillingoperationssquaredthepanel,andreducedthethicknessofthe
paneltoaquarterofaninch.Initiallymillingoperationsrequiredroughcuts,butinthefinal
passes,finecutsweretakentoensureexactprecisiontofivethousandthsofaninch.Finally,
holesweredrilledinthepanelsothatthepillowblockscouldbeattached.Alsoaslotwas
machinedsothattheforcesensorcouldbecarefullymountedandstillhaveroomtobe
adjusted.
ThepillowblockswererequiredtobemachinedonaCNCendmillusingatechnique
calledcircularinterpolation.WiththistechniquetheCNCprogramrequiresthediameterofthe
circletobecutandtheabsolutelocationofthematerialfacesinordertodeterminethe
circularpathofthetool.Wecompensatedforthediameterofthetoolsothatthecircle
machinedwasofthecorrectdimensions.Ordinarilythemillwillcutthecircletobelargerthan
thecirclediameter,sincethetoolwillfollowanimaginarylinesetbythedimensionsofthe
circle.Oncethecirclewasmachinedoutoftherawmaterialtothecorrectdepth,theplatewas
thenmachinedonitsleftandrightsidestocreatetabsforthebasesothatthepillowblockswill
29

besupportedwhentheyareassembled.Thusthepillowblocksbecamerectangularinshape
insteadoftheoriginalsquarerawmaterial.Twosmallsetscrewholesweredrilledsothatthe
bearingscouldbesecurelyheldinplace.Facingoperationsforthebasepanelandbothpillow
blocksweredonewithahalfinchendmill,slotoperationsweredonewithafiveeighthsinch
endmill,andthecircularinterpolationoperationwasdonewithaquarterinchendmill.Milling
operationswereconducteddrywithoutanycoolant.
Thenextcomponentmachinedwasthemotorhousing.Itisinessenceacupdesignedto
holdthemotorandmountinthedynamometerinsuchawayastoallowtheforcesensorto
attachtoit.First,wecutapieceofaluminumfromourthreeinchdiameterstocktomeasure
roughlythreeincheslong.Thispiecewasthenchuckonthelathe,andturnedtoadiameterof
2.5inches.Thelengthofthepiecewasmachineduntilitdecreasedto2.5incheslong.Thenthe
centerofthepiecewasboredoutuntiltheinnerdiameterofthepartwastwoinchesin
diameter.Thelengthoftheborewas1.75incheslong.Thus,wemachinedacuptomountthe
motor;thisalsoallowedustomounttheforcesensortotheoutsideofthemotorwithout
alteringthemotor.Oncethecupwasfiledandsmoothedwithabrasivepaper,twoholeswere
drilledandthreadedontheendofthecuptomountthemotortoit,andoneholewasdrilled
andthreadedonthesideofthecuptoattachoneendoftheforcesensortoit.
ThebearingswereorderedfromMcMasterCarrsincetheywerespecialbearingsthat
wecouldnotpurchaseonourownfromthelocalhardwarestore.Theinnerdiameterofthe
bearingswasapproximately2.5inchesindiameter,andtheouterdiameterwasapproximately
2.75inchesindiameter.Thematerialofthebearingswasmadeofhighspeedsteel,andwas
sufficientforthetask.
30

WeorderedvariablerheostatsfromSurplusSalesofNebraska,toprovidealoading
sourceforthemotoraswetestloadingtorque.Wechoserheostatsinsteadofvariableresistors
(potentiometers),sincewewereexpectingahighpoweroutputfromthemotorasitwasbeing
runingeneratormode.Ourassumptionwasbasedonthefactthatthemotorwas12V,andit
hadaresistanceof125Ohms,thus,thewattagerequiredtorunit(alsothepoweritoutputs),
wouldbe1.12watts,asshowninequation2.23.
1.12

[2.23]

Where

Pispowerproducedwhenthemotorisrunasagenerator

Iiscurrentratingofthemotor

isresistanceofthemotor
Althoughwecouldhavejustused2Wattresistorsofmultipleresistances,wechosethe

simplerexperimentalapparatusthatusedasingle2Wattrheostatthatwouldbeadjustedfor
everyexperiment.Itmightbemoreefficientandreliabletouseknownresistancesinsteadof
therheostatsothattheresistancecanbetrustedtoremainconstantallthroughoutan
experiment.
TheforcesensorwasorderedfromFutekSensors.ThedeviceismodelLRM200,witha
maximumloadingcapacityof2.5N.Thissensorwillbemeasuringrealtimestallforceofthe
dynamometerasweapplyaloadtoit.Thevalueitismeasuringisnotthesameasthestall
forcemeasuredbeforeandcalculatedstalltorque.Thestalltorqueisrequiredtodeterminethe
appropriateloadingmotor.Steadystatetorqueisusedtodeterminetheefficiencyofthe
turbine.Onesideofthesensorwasattachedtothedynamometerbaseplateusing1/428

31

lubricationfreehighperformanceballjointlinkages,andtheothersidewasattachedtothe
motorhousing,andtheothersideattachedtothebasepanel.Thecompleteddynamometeris
seeninFigures5and6.

Figure 5: Completed dynamometer, partially assembled and

missingtheforcesensor.

Figure6:Assembleddynamometerduringinitialoperationtests.

32

2.4

DesignofProtectiveShield
Aprotectiveshieldwasdesignedtofendoffanyshrapnelincaseofcatastrophicfailure

oftheturbine.Thisshieldwascomposedoftwoplexiglasssheetswithaheavysteelmesh
sandwichedinbetween.Simplecalculationsweredrawnuptodetermineifthisshieldwas
appropriateenoughtostopanyshrapnel,bothsteelandtitanium,aswasintendedforthe
futureturbine.Twoapproachesforthiswereconducted:anabsolutetheoreticalupperbound
forthematerialatwhichitwouldliquefyfromtheimpact,andapracticalupperboundat
whichthematerialwouldbeabletoabsorbtheimpact,andnotyield.Bothmethodsrequired
calculatingmomentofinertiaoftheturbineatitsmaximumspeed,assumingthecasingofthe
turbinewillnotinterferewiththefragmentsoftheturbineafteracatastrophicfailure.Alsoit
wasassumedthatthefragmentswouldbeexactlyhalfoftheturbinedisks,andhitthe
protectiveshieldonitsthinedge,soastomaximizetheimpactforcesinvolved.
Since the disk surface area is 7.068 in2 and the shaft surface area is 0.3046 in2 and slot
surface area is 1.2707 in2, the resulting surface area then becomes 5.4933 in2. Converting
Imperial units into Metric units, results in 0.0035 m2. Equation 2.24, will yield us with the
energyrequiredtomeltthispartofthedisk,where ,representsthelatentheatoffusionand
isthedensityofthematerial.
[2.24]

Pluggingallthevaluesin,resultsin:
0.003544

7850

0.52

0.0019

27,910.00

33

481

21.1

Anotherimportantcalculationisthemechanicalenergyoftheturbineitself,showninequation
2.25.
1
2

Thiscalculationyields,

1
2

[2.25]

3241 .Thusthe

.Thismeansthattheturbinewill

not melt on impact of any object in its way. It would take 9 times the mechanical energy
producedbytheturbinetomeltthesteelturbinedisksonimpactwiththeshield.

2.5

ConstructionofThermodynamicFlowApparatus
Thisexperimentconsistsofflowmeasurementhardwaretoanalyzethevolumeflow

rateintoandoutoftheturbinetocalculatetheefficiencyoftheturbine.ProEdrawingsare
includedinAppendixC2.Asairflowsovertheturbinerotors,theairnaturallygivesuppotential
energy,whichistransferredintomechanicalenergyintheturbine.Thisenergyexchangeis
measureablethroughthethermodynamicpropertiesoftheworkingfluidthatcanbeusedto
calculatetheefficiencyoftheturbine.Efficiencyisinputenergydividedbyoutputenergy.
Figure6displaysasimpleviewofhowtheapparatusoperates.Figure7showsaflowdiagram
ofhowtheflowapparatusisexpectedtofunction.

34


FlowMeter

FlowMeter

Pressure
Gauge

To
Turbine

Ttype
Thermocouple

Pressure
Gauge

ExhaustAir

From
Turbine

Figure7:Thermodynamicflowapparatusairflowdiagram.
Theflowapparatuswasconstructedstartingwithaquarterinchthickaluminumplate
thatis6inchesby16inches.Holesweredrilledandtappedinevenlyspacedgroupsonthe
platetomountvariouscomponentstothebaseplate.5/16inchtappedholesweremachined
inthecornerstomountstabilizingrubbersoledfeet.Notethesymbol,,usedhereafter,
representsinches.Weusedanidenticalsetofmeasuringdevicesontheinletandoutletsideof
theturbine.MeasurementdevicesincludeOmegaTtypethermocouplestomeasure
temperatureinthepipes,volumerategauges,andglycerinfilledpressuregauges.By
measuringthevariousthermodynamiccharacteristicsoftheinletandoutletflows,this
instrumentenablescalculationoftheturbinesefficiency.Pressurereadingsandvolumeflow
readingswerereadmanuallyatregularintervals,whilethetemperaturewasloggedusinga
NationalInstrumentsUSB8211dataacquisitiondevice,connectedtoacomputerandlogging
usingLabView.

AsseenintheComputerAidedDesign(CAD)drawings,thepressuregaugeisattached

toasetofNPTthreadedfittingstositata45degreeangleinordertobeviewableandstill
allowthehosesandconnectorstofit.ThisalsoallowedtheTtypethermocoupletobeattached
35

intothefittingsandbecompactinordertofitintothespaceallotted.Fortheinletflow
assembly,everythingwastightlyfittedtogetherandsealedusingTeflontape.Thenthiswas
repeatedagainfortheexhaustingflowassembly.Theassemblywasmountedtoafrontpanel,
whichhadappropriatesizedholescutoutofittoactasviewports.Theassemblieswereboth
mountedtothefrontpanelusingzincplatedsteel20byUbolts.Thetwoassemblies
wereevenlyspacedonthefrontpaneltoallowthevolumetricflowratemeterstobeabletobe
mountedwithamplespacefromallsides.outerdiameter,polyurethanetubingwasused
thenconnectedtotheassembliesusingYorLoktubefittingadapters,whichthenscrewedinto
theNPTpipefittings.Oncethemeasurementdevicesweresecurelymountedtothefront
panel,thepanelwasthenattachedtothebaseplateusing20bysocketscrewswithlock
washersandfirmlysecured.
Forthedataacquisitionunitmount,twopiecesofsteelwerecuttoabout5inchesin
length,andbentintoanLbracket,andholesweredrilledformounting.Thebracketswere
alsoattachedtothebaseplatewith20screws.Twodinrailpieceswerecutfroma6foot
pieceinto1.5footlongsectionseach,andweremountedontotheLbracketsusingmetricM5,
25mmlongscrewsandM5nuts.ANationalInstruments8816DataAcquisitionDevicewasthen
mountedtothefrontfacingdinrailandsecuredinplace.Tubingwasthenpipedintotwo
manifolds,onefortheinputflowandonefortheexhaustingflow.Anexhaustflowmufflerwas
addedtotheexhaustportonthevolumetricflowmeterintheexhaustflowassembly.Thisis
intendedtomufflethenoiseoftheexhaustflowby25decibelsanddoesnothindertheflow
rate.

36

2.6

ExperimentswithDynamometerandFlowApparatus
OurexperimentsweredevisedwithassistancefromDean[40],HoyaandGuha[7],

Leaman[9]andMurataetal.[14].Anewtechniqueformeasurementoftherequireddatawas
developed,oncetheapparatusiscompleted,experimentscanbeconductedusingourplan.
Thedesignoftheexperimentsistoruntheturbineat5PSIincrementsfrom5PSIto75PSIand
recordvariousdatafromthedynamometerandtheflowapparatus.Inthefuture,weexpect
measuredelementstoincludetimetosteadystate,timetorest,volumetricflowrateinand
out,temperatureinandout,absolutepressureinandout,andthespeedoftheturbine.The
numberofreadingstakenateachofthesepressuresshouldbetakenatnoloadinitially,then
theloadshouldbeincreasedontheturbineusinga2wattrheostat,takingconstantreadingsof
alltheelementsrequiredforeach100ohmincrementintherheostat.Theturbinewillhaveto
bespunuptosteadystate,thenpoweredoffandspundownuntilrest.Thusintotal,there
shouldbeninemeasureddatum,foreachpressureincrement,andeachloadappliedtothe
turbine;thisbecomes1350datumpointsintotal.Thisnumberseemsveryhigh,butitis
necessarytogetaverygoodunderstandingofhowtheturbineoperatesinallenvironments,
andtodetermineapreciseefficiencyoftheturbine.Figure8showsthecompletedairflow
apparatus.

37

Figure8:ThermodynamicAirFlowApparatus,FrontView.

38

CHAPTER3
RESULTSANDDISCUSSION*
3.1

PreliminaryExperimentalResults
Afterextensivepreliminaryexperiments,itwasfoundthatourturbinewasableto

handleairpressureupto90PSI,whichwasthemaximumlimit,andwasnotconsideredasafe
operatingpressure.Abovethisrateofrotation,however,theturbine,generatedrotationthat
washighlyunstable.So,measurementstakenhigherthan85PSIwereignored.Theturbinehad
anunbalancedshaft,soourmeasurementtoolsregistereddoublereadingsattwoofthe
pressureswerantheturbineat.Thisproblemoccurredat35PSIandagainat65PSI,whenthe
turbinehitacriticalvibrationpointatwhichtheslightvibrationscausedbytheunbalanced
shaftreachtheirmaximum.Thereadingswerefoundtobeexactlydoubleoftheirnormal
values,sodataatthosetwopointswasadjustedsothattheydisplaywhatisactuallybeing
measuredratherthantheerroneousdoubledvalues.
Itwasfoundthattheturbineatnoload,stalledwithairpressurelessthan30PSI.Since
nowwehaddeterminedanupperboundandlowerboundofairpressurestotestat,webegan
ourexperimentsat35PSI,andtook5PSIincrementsuntil85PSI.Thispressurerangeallowed
ustoobservehowtheturbineperformedundernoload.Whenrunningthefirstexperiment
withthespringforcegauges,itwasdeterminedthatnotjustonespringforcegaugewas
sufficientformeasurement.Weusedthe1,5and10Newtonspringforcegaugestotake
measurementsofstallforce.Thisisthereasonwhyourforcegaugeerrorincreasesastheforce

*PortionsofthischapterarereproducedwithpermissionfromASME.[10]

39

decreases.The10Nforcegaugewasinincrementsof2.0N,whilethe5.0Nforcegaugewasin
incrementsof0.5Nandthe1.0Nforcegaugewasinincrementsof0.2N.
Inthesecondexperiment,theturbineangularvelocitytopped33,000RPM,whichquite
highcomparedtovaluesfoundinMurataandYukuta.[14]WithregardstoRice,Leamanand
Tesla,however,thesemeasuredvaluesofspeedconcurwiththeaveragespeed.[3,7,9,11,13]
Thus,ourinitialexperimentaswecalibratedourmeasurementdevicesgaveinaccuratedata
sinceitresultedinveryhighangularvelocities.Thisinitialdataisshownintheappendixaswell
asthesecondandthirdexperiments.Thedatashowsthataspressuredecreases,sodoes
angularvelocity,andlikewise,aspressuredecreases,torquedecreases.However,themass
flowrateremainsconstantduringthisexperiment.ThedataisshowninTable1,whiledetailed
resultsaregiveninTableA1.
Itwasfoundthatat65PSIachangeoccursfromlaminarflowtoturbulentflow.This
jumpisattributedtoachangeinthefluidflowregimearoundthispressure.AsshowninFigure
9,ajumpoccursneartangentialvelocityequalto100m/s.AsdiscussedintheASMEECTC
paperbyEmranetal.[10],thefollowingcanbesaid:
Onepossibilityischangeoverfromlaminartransitionflowtoturbulentflowinthegaps
between the disks at this velocity. The internal flow Reynolds number (using the disk
spacingasthecharacteristicdimension)isabout3200atflowV
100 / ,whichis
towards the top end of the transition flow regime, assuming that fully turbulent flow
(Re 4000)occursataboutV 125 / .Anotherflowregimechangemayoccur
aroundinlet
100 / istheonsetofcompressibilityeffectsastheMachnumber
isabout0.3.However,weexpectedthatthesecompressiblefloweffectswouldemerge
graduallyinsteadofappearinginstantaneouslyaswasexperimentallyobserved.

40

Table2:ExcerptofExperimentalSpeedandTorqueData

[PSI]
80
75
70
65
60
55
50

[N]
6.2
6.0
5.8
5.0
3.7
3.5
3.1

[N]
0.1
0.1
0.1
0.1
0.05
0.05
0.05

[RPM]
32118.6
31087.8
28684.7
26780.1
26413.7
24761.8
23178.0

[Rad/s]
3363.451
3255.506
3003.857
2804.410
2766.041
2593.054
2427.199

[m/s]
126.44
122.39
112.93
105.43
103.98
97.48
91.25

[Nm]
0.0245
0.0237
0.0229
0.0197
0.0146
0.0138
0.0122

[Nm]
0.1274
0.1275
0.1275
0.1279
0.1271
0.1272
0.1274

Figure 9: A comparison between the bounding values of the simple analytical

modelandthemeasuredstalltorquedatarevealsreasonableagreementgiventhe
liberalassumptionsinherentinthemodel.*

*ThisfigureistakenwithpermissionofASME.[10]

41

3.2

AirLeakageExperimentalResults
Theairleakageoftheturbinewasfoundtobe2.0m/swhentestedat50PSI,andit

rangedallthewayto6.0m/sat85PSI.Thecasingwasfoundtoleakasignificantamountofair
duetoalackofgasketsbetweenthelayersofthecasing.Oncetheairpressurebegantobuild,
thelayerswereforcedapart,allowingmoreairtoleakout,andhinderingturbineperformance,
whichisseeninTable3.
Table3:AirLeakagevs.AirPressure
AirLeakage
AirPressure
Velocity
[lb/in2]
85
80
75
70
65
60
55
50

[m/s]
6.00
5.25
5.00
4.60
4.00
4.10
3.80
2.00

3.3

FlowOverFlatPlateTheoreticalModelResults
Thedataresultingfromapplyingthefirsttheoreticalmethodshowsthatthetheoretical

stalltorqueverycloselyalignswithactualstalltorque,withtheerrorinmeasurements
accountingforbothanupperboundandalowerboundwithrespecttoactualdataasseenin
Table4.Althoughthetheoreticalstalltorqueperfaceisoneorderofmagnitudeofffromthe
actualstalltorque,theactualstalltorqueisoftheentireturbine,whichtakesintoaccountall
theturbinedisks,whichinteractwiththeflow.Thus,thattheoreticalstalltorqueperfacemust
bemultipliedbythenumberoffacesinteractingwiththeflowwithintheturbine.Our
42

assumptionisthatthenumberoffacesinteractingwiththeflowisequaltooneminusthetotal
numberoffaces,sinceflowdoesnotinteractwiththefirstdiskface.Whenthetheoreticalstall
torqueperfaceismultipliedbythenumberofactivefaces,thetotaltheoreticalstalltorque
closelymatchestheactualstalltorque.Itmustbenotedthattheerrorofmeasurementforthe
actualstalltorqueis13%.Theerrorofmeasurementforthetheoreticalis9%sincethe
theoreticalmodeldependsonrotationalvelocitydata,whichcarriesanerror.
Table4andFigure10correspondtoresearchquestion1:Willthetheoreticalmodels
estimatethestalltorquewithin15%oftheexperimentaldata?Theobjectivecriteriontoreject
thenullhypothesisisthatresultsmustbewithinexperimentaluncertainty.Detailedresultsare
giveninTableA2.
Table4:FlatPlateFlowModel,TestofNullHypothesis
Actualvs.

Total

Theory

perface perfacein%
Error

[PSI]
80
75
70
65
60
55
50

[Nm]
0.02452
0.02373
0.02294
0.01978
0.01463
0.01384
0.01226

[Nm]
0.00287
0.00273
0.00242
0.00219
0.00214
0.00194
0.00176

[Nm]
0.09664
0.09392
0.09492
0.09422
0.09399
0.09393
0.09392

43

[Nm]
0.02013914
0.01917745
0.01699738
0.01533294
0.01501935
0.01363266
0.01234586

[%]
17.8698
19.1848
25.9018
22.4630
2.6367
1.5159
0.6962

Question1
Null
Hypothesis
FailtoReject
FailtoReject
Fail toReject
FailtoReject
Reject
Reject
Reject

0.04

StallTorque[Nm]

0.03

0.02

0.01

0.00
0

10

20

30
40
50
60
70
AirPressure[PoundsperSquareInch]
Experiment
Theory

80

90

Figure10:Airpressureversusflatplatestalltorque.

3.4

VortexMethodResults
Thevortexmodelyieldedinterestingresults;thevortexmethodbestmodeledhigher

pressureflowwithintheturbinebecauseathigherpressures,flowwithintheturbineisinthe
turbulentregimeratherthanthelaminarregime.Whiletheflowoverflatplatemethodbestfit
themidtolowerpressureranges,thisonebestfitthehigherpressurerangeswetestedat.
TheseresultsareseeninTable5.Sinceitwasoriginallyassumedthatflowatlowpressuresacts
likeflowoverflatplate,andflowathigherpressurescreatesavortex,thisdataprovesthatthis
assumptioniscorrect.
Pressureisforceoverarea;thusifareaisconstant,whenpressureincreases,forcewill
increase.Therefore,whenforceincreases,theshearingstressonthediskswillincrease,
therebyresultinginincreasedrevolutionsperminute.Allofthiscombinedwithalackofroom
44

forthefluidtoflowfreelyin,createsaforcedvortexathigherpressures.Thisisallassuming
thatmassflowandvolumeflowremainconstant.

Thus,analyzingtherelationshipamongvariables,thefollowingistrue:

Asaresult,assumingtheturbineisstillatstall,whenthepressureincreases,the
circulationintheturbinewillincrease,yieldingavortexeffectratherthanaflowoverflatplate
effect.
Similarly,Table5,andFigures11and12correspondtoresearchquestion1:Willthe
theoreticalmodelsestimatethestalltorquewithin15%oftheexperimentaldata?The
objectivecriteriontorejectthenullhypothesisisthatresultsmustbewithin15%ofthe
experimentaldata.DetailedresultsaregiveninTableA3.

[PSI]
80
75
70
65
60
55
50

[Nm]
0.02452
0.02373
0.02294
0.01978
0.01463
0.01384
0.01226

Table5:VortexModelTestofNullHypothesis
Actualvs.
Total

Total

Theory
perface

Error
[Nm]
0.02013
0.01917
0.01699
0.01533
0.01501
0.01363
0.01234

[Nm]
0.00172
0.00166
0.00153
0.00143
0.00141
0.00132
0.00124

[Nm]
0.02413
0.02336
0.02155
0.02012
0.01985
0.01861
0.01741

45

[%]
1.582187
1.564922
6.404447
1.748435
26.28529
25.61807
29.61708

Null
Hypothesis

Reject
Reject
Reject
Reject
FailtoReject
FailtoReject
FailtoReject

0.04

Torque[Nm]

0.03

0.02

0.01

0.00
0

10

20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
AirPressure[PoundsperSquareInch]
Experiment
VortexTheory

Figure11:Airpressureversusfreevortexwithsinkstalltorquetheoreticalmethod.

0.04

StallTorque[Nm]

0.03

0.02

0.01

0.00
0

10

20

30
40
50
60
70
80
AirPressure[PoundsperSquareInch]
Experiment
FlowTorque
VortexTorque

90

Figure12:AirPressureversusexperimentalstalltorqueversusboththeoreticalmethods.

46

3.5

Observations
Thereareseveralobservationsofexperimentsandthecorrespondingdatagathered

thatmeritdiscussion;theyarelistedbelow:

Resultsfromtheairleakageexperimentshowthatturbinedesignsthatarecomposedof
manylayersofmaterialsshouldsandwichgasketsinbetweenthelayersforabetter
compressionseal.Icanconcludethataturbinedesigninthefutureshouldhavethe
minimumnumberoffacesthatneedtobesealedwithgaskets,inordertoprevent
leakageofairduringtests.Thefutureturbinedesigndoesexactlythat,minimizingthe
layersdownfrom9layersand20exposedfacesthatrequiresealsinbetween,downto
3layers,composedof4exposedfaceswhichneedtobesealedtogether.Imustnote
thatwhilethepreviousturbinehadaningeniousdesignforthenozzles,themanylayers
composingtheturbinedefeatedthepurposeoftheturbine,andpotentiallycreateda
pressuredropwhichloweredpossibleperformanceoftheturbine.Ournewturbine
doesnotshowtohavethesesameproblems,asthelayershavebeenreducedand
thickened.Acombinationofcopperandrubbergasketsoughttopreventanykindofair
pressureleakagefromtheturbine.

Wecaninferfromthedatainthepreliminaryexperimentsthattheprecisionofourstall
forcemeasurementscouldhavebeengreatlyincreasedhadwehaddigitalsensorsto
measurethesequantities,ratherthananalogopticalmeasurementtools.Thiswould
haveresultedinlowererrors,thusmorereliabledata.OursubsequentHallEffect
tachometerismoreprecisethantheprevioustachometer,andinfutureexperiments,it
oughttoyieldmorereliabledatathanourpreviousresults.
47

Anothermajorflawofthepreviousturbinethathasbeenfixedisthewaythedisksare
mountedupontheshaft.Thenewdesignhaskeysmachinedoutoftheshaftinwhich
thediskscanslideontotheshaftandlockintoplace.Anendcapthenscrewsintoplace
withalefthandedthread,asopposedtoarighthandedthread,therebytighteningthe
endcapastheturbinespins.Thisdesigninnovationremovesanyopportunityfor
accidentaldisassemblyduringtests.Thisimprovementcombinedwiththefactthatthe
endcapwillbeinsidetheturbineratherthanoutside,oughttopreventtheturbine
bladesfromslidingbackandforthinsidetheturbineduringoperationanddamagingthe
disks.

Finally,theinletsandoutletsforairflowhavebeenmovedsuchthatflowtubingcanbe
routedproperlyaroundtheturbinefortests.Theeducationalturbineweusedinour
preliminaryexperimentshad4inletsand4outletsonthesamesideoftheturbine,in
verycloseproximitytooneanother.Thisconfigurationmadepipingverydifficult,and
expensive.Thenewdesignplacesthe4exhaustportsononefaceclosetotheshaft,and
theinletportonthetopleftsideoftheturbine,therebyremovinganyconflictsof
piping,andreducingthecostofconnectingairlinestotheturbine.

48

CHAPTER4
CONCLUSIONS
Ourmissionsinthisresearchwere:1)tomodelthestalltorqueofaturbine,2)designa
dynamometerapparatusbasedonthoseresults,and3)designanewturbineusingthe
theoreticalmodels.Afurthergoalofthisresearchwastodetermineiftheflowregimeinside
theturbineislaminarorturbulent.
Analysisoftheresearchdatafortheflowoverflatplatemodelresultedinfailingto
rejectthenullhypothesisfortheresearchquestion1forallstalltorquevaluesexceptfour
instances:stalltorquescalculatedrangingfrom45PSIto65PSI.Thedataforvortexmodel
resultedinfailingtorejectthenullhypothesisinallbutfiveinstances:stalltorquescalculated
rangingfrom65PSIto85PSI.Sincethemodelsprovidedenoughinformationtobuilda
dynamometer,wewereabletoconstructourdynamometer,thuswerejectthenullhypothesis
forresearchquestion2.
Finally,wecanconcludefromtheplotsofthemodelsthattheflowoverflatplatemodel
bestrepresentsthelaminarregimeatlowerairpressures.Likewise,thevortexmodelbest
representstheturbulentregimeathigherairpressures.Despitetheassumptionthattheflow
regimewithintheturbineissolelylaminar,ourresultsshowthatthereisbothlaminarand
turbulentflowregimesoccurringwithintheTeslaturbinedependingontheairpressurethe
testisconductedat.

49

CHAPTER5
FUTURETURBINEDESIGN
Theturbinethatiscurrentlyindesigntobeconstructedwillbesmallerthanourcurrent
turbine,anditwillincorporateafewchanges.Therotorshaveincreasedsurfaceareatoallow
forgreaterinteractionofthefluidwiththedisks.Theshaftiscustomdesignedsothatthe
rotorsstaymountedontheshaftwithoutdamagingthebearings.Theshafthasbothkeyingfor
thedisks,andalefthandedthreadforanendlockcap.Thecaseisalsocustomdesignedsuch
thatthemainunitstaysasonebodyratherthanmanylayers;twoendcapssealtheturbineand
holdtheturbinerotorinplace.
Calculationsfornozzledimensionsandmaximumoperatingspeedoftheturbineare
providedbyLeaman,buthavenotbeensufficientlyexplored.[9]Drawingsofthecurrent
experimentalturbineandthisfutureturbineareincludedinAppendixC1andC4,respectively.
Therewereseveraldesignscreated,butonewaschosentobethemostappropriate,
andeasiesttomachine.Forexample,thefirstturbinedesignwaslargeandbulkyandwasmore
appropriateasafuelburningmacroscaleturbine,withoneseal,asopposedtomanyseals
seeninotherturbinedesigns,includingourowncurrentexperimentalturbine.Thenewturbine
designdiffersfromtheexistingturbinedesignasshowninthefollowingchanges:
1. OurcurrentexperimentalTeslaturbinehasmultiplecasinglayersthatrequire
multiplegasketstoensureaproperpressuresealwithintheturbine.Thefuture
designminimizesthenumberofcasingcomponentsasmuchaspossible,whilestill
keepingtheturbinerelativelyeasytomachine.Thus,thenewturbinedesign
reducedthenumberofcasingpartsfromadozendowntothreecomponents:two
50

endplatesandanozzleplate.Thecasingwouldthensealtogetherusingrubberor
coppergasketstocreateaperfectseal,withboltsholdingeverythingtogether.
2. Thenewcentercasingcomponentincorporatesthenozzlesintothecasingmaterial
insuchawayastosimplifymachiningoperationsdramatically.Thisideawas
inspiredbyaturbinethatVanderbiltUniversityhadbuiltfortheirresearchon
MobilePowerPacksforSoldiers[2].Theirturbinehasfournozzlesspacedevenly
aroundtheturbinecasing,andusesahelicalsweeptograduallyintroduceflowinto
theturbine.However,ourdesignkeepsthenozzlecasingasonepiece,insteadof
multiplepiecesastheVanderbiltturbineisdesigned;multicomponentnozzlesare
theresultofthroughandthroughmachining.Thehelicalsweepourdesignemploys
isimportantbecauseitreducesthenumberofcornersatwhichflowmustbe
redirectedbeforeitenterstheturbine.Asinglehelicalchannelgreatlyreducesany
flowlossesintheturbine.
3. Ouroriginalturbinehasdisksandspacersmachinedfromsteel.While,thisis
satisfactoryformostprojects,regularsteelisnothighstrengthenoughtoendure
highrotationalspeedsoftheturbine.Thus,carbonfiberwaschosentobeusedfor
thedisks,sinceithasahightensilestrength,resemblingthatofhighstrengthsteel
ortitaniumandismucheasiertomachinethansteel.[52,53]
4. ThenewTeslaturbinediskshaveagreatersurfaceareaforwhichfluidtoflowover
thanourcurrentexperimentalturbine.Thisshouldincreaseareaofboundarylayer
interactionoccurringbetweenthefluidandthedisks,thereforeincreasingtorque.

51

5. Theexperimentalturbineshaftwasasimplescrewboltwithanendcapthatcould
beaccidentallyunscrewedduringturbineoperation.Theendcapsatseparatefrom
thebearingontheend,asitstuckoutoftheturbine,withtheshaftitselfrestingin
thebearing.Thenewturbinedesigncorrectsthisflawbychangingtwoitems:the
endscrewcapisnowalefthandedscrewthreadratherthanarighthandedscrew
threadandtheendcapsitsbehindoneofthebearingspreventingthatendcapfrom
everaccidentallyunscrewingduringoperation.
6. Whenevertheshaftendcaploosenedtheclamponthedisks,diskscouldfreely
rotateabouttheshaft,therebydamagingtheinsideoftheturbineaswellasthe
disksthemselves.Thenewdesignimplementsakeyingtotheshafttopreventthe
disksfrombeingabletorotateabouttheshaftifanylooseningoccurs.
7. Thespacersintheexperimentalturbinewerestarshaped,therebyactingasblades
ratherthanjustspacers.Thiswasfoundtointerferewiththeflow,sothenew
turbinechangesthespacerdesignsothatitactstospacethedisksapart,andto
enforcethemtopreventbendingofthedisks.Thetwoendspacersincreasesupport
ofthedisksaswell,showninFigureC17.
8. Theinletandoutletportswereononesideintheexperimentalturbine,whichmade
routingtubingtotheturbineverydifficult.Thenewturbinedesignhasoneinletthe
topoftheturbineperpendiculartotheoutletwhichisononesideoftheturbine.
9. Outletportsonthecasingandonthedisksofthenewturbineweredesigned
followingexamplespreviouslyshowninTeslaspatents,aswellasRice,Leaman,and
others.[3,4,9,11,22,41,42,4750]
52

10. Casingmaterialwasmadeofsteel,aswerethedisks,andshaft.Thenewdesign
changesthosematerialsinordertomeetsafetyfactors,aswellasresource
constraints.Thusthecasingishighstrength6061aluminum,theshaftisstainless
steel,andthedisksarecarbonfiber.[46,51]
11. Theexperimentalturbinehadopenendedbearingstoaccommodatelateral
movement.Usingthistypeofbearingincreaseschancesforthebearingstocome
aparteverytimetheturbineisdisassembled.Alsothebearingswerenotdesigned
forhighspeed,thusweassumefrictioninsidethebearingscausedsome
interferencewithourspeedmeasurements.Thenewturbineuseshighspeed
SiliconNitrideball,hybridsealedbearings.[52]
12. Animportantfactortobeconsideredforthedisksisthesurfaceroughness.The
currentexperimentalturbinehasanunknownfrictionfactor.Soboundarylayer
conditionsareunknown.Withcarbonfiberasthediskmaterialthesurfaceofthese
sheetsisusuallyamirrorfinish,therebyallowingustoroughenthesurface
dependingonourspecifications.Aperfectlysmoothdiskwillnotallowadhesionof
fluidtothedisk,andfluidwillflowrightacrossthediskwithoutcreatingthe
necessaryboundarylayereffect.Toomuchsurfaceroughnesscreatesturbulent
flow,whichthenhindersturbineperformance.Thusthesurfacemusthavesome
roughness,inordertocreatetheboundarylayereffect.Duetoalackoftime,a
frictionfactorwasassumedbasedonLeamanscalculations.[9]Assumingtherewas
moretime,andwithpreviousassumptionsstatedintheoreticalmodels,the

53

optimumsurfaceroughnesscanbecalculatedthenthesurfaceofthematerialcould
bepolishedtomatchthatsurfaceroughnessvalue.
ThetheoreticalmodelswerethenappliedinordertojustifythatthefutureTesla
turbineiswithinthestalltorquerangeresultingfromthecurrentexperimental.Figure12
showsanupperboundforstalltorquegivenbytheVortexmodel,andalowerboundgivenby
theflatplateflowmodel.Assumingtheflowregimeinsidetheturbineislaminar,theflowover
flatplate,coloredblue,isabetterrepresentationoflikelystalltorqueofthenewturbine
design.Themodeldoesnotshowerrorbarsaspreviousgraphsdo,becausethismodelrelieson
angularvelocitydata,whichwouldotherwisebemeasured.Thespeedsusedarearbitrary
numberspickedtodemonstratehowtheturbinewillperformathigherspeedsthanthecurrent
turbine.SpecificationsoftheturbineareshowninTable6.Detailedresultsofthismodelare
giveninTableA4.

[m]
0.0063
0.0005

Table6:FutureTurbineDimensions,ConstantsandNumberofNozzles
Total
Active
h
Num

Faces
Nozzles
[m]

[m]

0.05710 0.0114
0.0005 0.0005

[kg/m3]

[kg/ms]

[]

[m]

[m]

1.177
0.04

0.0000184
0.0000004

10

0.000787
0.00025

16

54

1.00
0.90

ModeledStallTorque[Nm]

0.80
0.70
0.60
0.50
0.40
0.30
0.20
0.10
0.00
0

20

40

60

80

100

AirPressure[PoundsperSquareInch]
FlatPlateFlow
VortexFlow
Figure 13: Future turbine, flat plate flow model and vortex model with
respecttoStallTorquevs.AirPressure.

55

APPENDIXA
EXPERIMENTALRESULTS

56

TableA1:CompleteTableofExperimentalForce,SpeedandTorqueData

[PSI]
85
80
75
70
65
60
55
50
45
40
35
30
25
20
15

[N]
6.800
6.200
6.000
5.800
5.000
3.700
3.500
3.100
2.500
2.150
1.750
1.300
0.920
0.560
0.260

[N]
0.1
0.1
0.1
0.1
0.1
0.05
0.05
0.05
0.05
0.025
0.025
0.025
0.025
0.025
0.025

[RPM]
33634.900
32118.600
31087.800
28684.725
26780.150
26413.750
24761.850
23178.050
21645.550
19930.700
17969.600
15695.975
13629.950
11138.600
9080.600

[RPM]
23.8745
179.4103
4.1244
97.0228
49.4286
23.6929
7.2422
2.7429
7.3016
7.2772
5.3054
28.2498
29.3983
11.9358
8.9877

[Rad/s]
3522.2385
3363.4519
3255.5068
3003.8574
2804.4108
2766.0414
2593.0549
2427.1997
2266.7167
2087.1380
1881.7721
1643.6787
1427.3250
1166.4315
950.9182

57

[Rad/s]
2.50013
18.78780
0.43190
10.16020
5.17615
2.48112
0.75841
0.28724
0.76462
0.76207
0.55558
2.95831
3.07858
1.24991
0.94119

[m/s]
132.4186
126.4490
122.3908
112.9300
105.4318
103.9893
97.4859
91.2506
85.2172
78.4660
70.7452
61.7941
53.6603
43.8520
35.7498

[m/s]
0.01332
0.01443
0.01330
0.01372
0.01343
0.01333
0.01330
0.01330
0.01330
0.01330
0.01330
0.01342
0.01347
0.01334
0.01334

[Nm]
0.02689
0.02452
0.02373
0.02294
0.01978
0.01463
0.01384
0.01226
0.00989
0.00850
0.00692
0.00514
0.00364
0.00221
0.00103

[Nm]
0.12727
0.12745
0.12752
0.12759
0.12799
0.12714
0.12723
0.12745
0.12799
0.12696
0.12723
0.12788
0.12931
0.13407
0.15883

[PSI]
85
80
75
70
65
60
55
50
45
40
35
30
25
20
15

[Nm]
0.02689
0.02452
0.02373
0.02294
0.01978
0.01463
0.01384
0.01226
0.00989
0.00850
0.00692
0.00514
0.00364
0.00221
0.00103

TableA2:CompleteTableofFlatPlateFlowModel,TestofNullHypothesis
Actualvs.
Actualvs.
per

perface
Total
FlatPlate

FlatPlate
Model
face
in%

ModelError
Error
[Nm]
0.00308314
0.00287702
0.00273964
0.00242820
0.00219042
0.00214562
0.00194752
0.00176369
0.00159170
0.00140634
0.00120397
0.00098286
0.00079533
0.00058756
0.00043249

[Nm]
0.093967396
0.096644275
0.093924383
0.094929734
0.094223780
0.093993992
0.093930394
0.093924065
0.093932893
0.093934621
0.093930538
0.094209018
0.094333571
0.094024374
0.094009469

58

[Nm]
0.02158197
0.02013914
0.01917745
0.01699738
0.01533294
0.01501935
0.01363266
0.01234586
0.01114189
0.00984441
0.00842779
0.00688000
0.00556733
0.00411293
0.00302746

[Nm]
0.197517
0.178698
0.191848
0.259018
0.224630
0.026367
0.015159
0.006962
0.126866
0.157723
0.217668
0.338131
0.530076
0.857023
1.944136

[%]
19.7517
17.8698
19.1848
25.9018
22.4630
2.6367
1.5159
0.6962
12.6866
15.7723
21.7668
33.8131
53.0076
85.7023
194.4136

Question1
Null
Hypothesis

FailtoReject
FailtoReject
FailtoReject
FailtoReject
FailtoReject
Reject
Reject
Reject
Reject
FailtoReject
FailtoReject
FailtoReject
FailtoReject
FailtoReject
FailtoReject

TableA3:CompleteTableofVortexModel,TestofNullHypothesis

[PSI]
85
80
75
70
65
60
55
50
45
40
35
30
25
20
15

[Nm]
0.02689
0.02452
0.02373
0.02294
0.01978
0.01463
0.01384
0.01226
0.00989
0.00850
0.00692
0.00514
0.00364
0.00221
0.00103

Total

[Nm]
0.02158197
0.02013914
0.01917745
0.01699738
0.01533294
0.01501935
0.01363266
0.01234586
0.01114189
0.00984441
0.00842779
0.00688000
0.00556733
0.00411293
0.00302746

perface

Total

[Nm]
0.00180562
0.00172422
0.00166888
0.00153988
0.00143764
0.00141797
0.00132929
0.00124426
0.00116200
0.00106994
0.00096466
0.00084261
0.00073170
0.00059795
0.00048747

[Nm]
0.02527867
0.02413907
0.02336437
0.02155831
0.02012691
0.01985153
0.01861003
0.01741971
0.01626794
0.01497913
0.01350524
0.01179648
0.01024373
0.00837133
0.00682462

59

Actualvs.
Vortex
ModelError

Actualvs.
VortexModel
Error

Question1
Null
Hypothesis

[Nm]
0.063901
0.015822
0.015649
0.064044
0.017484
0.262853
0.256181
0.296171
0.392210
0.432327
0.487514
0.564150
0.644797
0.735430
0.849325

[%]
6.390108
1.582187
1.564922
6.404447
1.748435
26.28529
25.61807
29.61708
39.22096
43.23268
48.75139
56.41495
64.47975
73.54304
84.9325

Reject
Reject
Reject
Reject
Reject
FailtoReject
FailtoReject
FailtoReject
FailtoReject
FailtoReject
FailtoReject
FailtoReject
FailtoReject
FailtoReject
FailtoReject

TableA4:FutureTeslaTurbineStallTorqueModel

[lbs/in2]
85
80
75
70
65
60
55
50
45
40
35
30
25
20
15

[Rev/min]
50000.000
45000.000
40000.000
35000.000
30000.000
25000.000
23000.000
21000.000
19000.000
17000.000
12000.000
10000.000
5000.000
2000.000
1000.000

[Rad/s]
5235.9878
4712.3890
4188.7902
3665.1914
3141.5927
2617.9939
2408.5544
2199.1149
1989.6753
1780.2358
1256.6371
1047.1976
523.5988
209.4395
104.7198

[m/s]
299.23670
269.31303
239.38936
209.46569
179.54202
149.61835
137.64888
125.67941
113.70995
101.74048
71.81681
59.84734
29.92367
11.96947
5.98473

per

Total

face

[Nm]
0.03451
0.02947
0.02470
0.02021
0.01604
0.01220
0.01077
0.00939
0.00808
0.00684
0.00406
0.00309
0.00109
0.00028
0.00010

[Nm]
0.34514
0.29468
0.24696
0.20213
0.16041
0.12202
0.10768
0.09394
0.08085
0.06842
0.04058
0.03087
0.01091
0.00276
0.00098

60

[N]
6.03915
5.15632
4.32127
3.53690
2.80674
2.13516
1.88414
1.64380
1.41466
1.19728
0.71006
0.54016
0.19097
0.04831
0.01708

perface

Total

[Nm]
0.04731
0.04258
0.03785
0.03312
0.02839
0.02366
0.02176
0.01987
0.01798
0.01609
0.01136
0.00946
0.00473
0.00189
0.00095

[Nm]
0.94629
0.85166
0.75703
0.66240
0.56778
0.47315
0.43529
0.39744
0.35959
0.32174
0.22711
0.18926
0.09463
0.03785
0.01893

[N]
16.558
14.902
13.246
11.590
9.934
8.279
7.616
6.954
6.292
5.629
3.973
3.31161
1.65581
0.66232
0.33116

APPENDIXB
EXPERIMENTALAPPARATAE

61

B1

B2

PreliminaryExperimentalApparatus

AirCompressorAtlasCopcoZT45(x2),60HP,average227cubicfeetperminute
(cfm)
NeikoOpticalTachometer
Anemometer
CalibratedTorsionSpringForceGauge(10N,5N,1N)
DynamometerApparatus

Banebots12VDCBrushedMotor
FutekLRM2002.5NForceSensor
Variable1KOhmRheostats

62

APPENDIXC
PROENGINEERWILDFIREDRAWINGS

63

C1

EducationalTurbine

FigureC1:EducationalTeslaTurbine.

64

C2

ElectricDynamometer

FigureC2:ElectricDynamometer.
65

C3

AirFlowApparatus

FigureC3:AirFlowApparatus.
66

C4

BrakeDynamometer

FigureC4:BrakeDynamometer.

67

C5

FutureTeslaTurbineDesign

FigureC5:FutureTeslaTurbineDesign.

68

APPENDIXD
DESIGNOFOTHERCOMPONENTS

69

D1

Tachometer

Originally,ourexperimentswereconductedwithanopticallasertachometer.Resultsofour

experimentsshowedthatturbinevelocitydatapointsvariedwildly,andtheopticaltachometer
wasnotaccurateenoughtogiveusreliabledata.Asolutionofthisproblemwasdevised:aHall
Effect Tachometer using a Teensy 2.0 microcontroller, which uses a sensor that detects a
magneticfield,ratherthanusingalaser.[43]Thatwayitwouldnotmatteriftheshaftofthe
turbinehasanydefects,westillwillgetanaccuratereadingofrotationsperminute.Thereare
three main components to the tachometer: the microcontroller, the LCD screen and the Hall
Effect sensor itself. The way I have devised this tachometer is that the halleffect sensor will
detect the magnetic field, and send this detection as a signal to the microcontroller. As the
shaftoftheturbinerotates,thisdetectionsignalwillbecomeafrequencyofon/offsignals.The
microcontroller will then analyze this frequency and count the number of times it detects a
risingedge in the wave per minute. This value is the speed at which the turbine shaft is
rotating. A PCB diagram, drawn in Eagle 5.11, of the Tachometer is shown in Appendix D1,
Figures10.[44]APJRCTeensyMicrocontrollerwithanATMELATMEGA32u4runningArduino
variant C code was used to create the tachometer.[45] Figures D2 and D3, show the
experimentallyoperationaltachometer.

FigureD1:TeensyTachometerPCBDiagram.

70

FigureD2:16x2LCDDisplayScreenforTachometer.

71


Figure D3: Tachometer composed of a Teensy Microcontroller on a
breadboard,withwiresconnectedtothesensorsandtheLCDscreen.There
is a Socket mobile battery pack for extended use away from a power plug.

72

D2

LabViewTemperatureMeasurementProgram

ItwasrequiredtouseaNationalInstrumentsDAQunittomeasuredatacomingfromtheT

type thermocouples in the airflow apparatus, discussed in section 2.4 and again in the
Appendix, section 6.2.2. A Program was developed to read in temperature values from both
sensors,thenlogthatdataintoaMicrosoftExcelrecognizedformat,knownascsv.FiguresD4
andD5,showthevisualcodeandtheuserinterfacetotheprogram.

FigureD4:LabViewProgramInterface.

73

FigureD5:LabViewProgramCode.

74

BIBLIOGRAPHY

[1]

Munson,BruceR.,DonaldF.Young,T.H.Okiishi,andWadeW.Huebsch.Fundamentals
ofFluidMechanics.4thed.Hoboken,NJ:Wiley,2002.Print.

[2]

Caroll,ThomasB.,andE.J.Barth."DCES,TeslaTurbineforSmallScaleElectricalPower
Generation."DCESVanderbiltUniversity|Nashville,Tennessee.VanderbiltUniversity
SchoolofEngineering,Aug.Sept.2008.Web.07Mar.2011.
http://www.vanderbilt.edu/dces/tesla.html.

[3]

N.Tesla(1913),Turbine,6thMay1913,USPatent1,061,206

[4]

N.Tesla(1913),FluidPropulsion,6thMay1913,USPatent1,061,142

[5]

TrikDyno,LLCWebsite(2010),URL:http://www.trikdyno.com/,accessed9/6/2010.

[6]

LandandSea,Inc.Website(2010),DynomiteDynamometer,URL:http://www.land
andsea.com/,accessed9/6/2010.

[7]

Hoya,G.P.andGuha,A.(2009)TheDesignofaTestRigandStudyofthePerformance
andEfficiencyofaTeslaDiskTurbine.ASMEJournalofPowerandEnergy,Vol.223,pp.
451665.

[8]

Kusumba,Srujan(2004)DynamometerProportionalLoadControl,MastersThesis,
ClevelandStateUniversity,URL:
http://academic.csuohio.edu/embedded/Publications/Thesis/Srujan_thesis.pdf,
accessed9/6/2010.

[9]

Leaman,A.B.(1950)TheDesign,ConstructionandInvestigationofaTeslaTurbine,
MastersThesis,UniversityofMaryland.

75

[10]

T.Emran,M.Traum,M.DeMay,C.Stallings,andR.Alexander.MethodtoAccurately
EstimateTeslaTurbineStallTorqueforDynamometerLoadSelection.ASMEECTC
Conference.Oct2010.
http://districts.asme.org/DistrictF/ECTC/ECTC_2010_Journal_Part_04_Papers_21
28_11910.pdf

[11]

Rice,W.(2003)TeslaTurbomachinery,HandbookofTurbomachinery,2ndEd:Revised
andExpanded,eds.ELogan,JrandR.Roy,pp.867880.

[12]

W.Rice,"AnAnalyticalandExperimentalInvestigationofMultipleDiskPumpsand
Compressors,"ASMETrans.J.Eng.Power,85:191198.(1963)

[13]

Beans,E.W.(1961)PerformanceCharacteristicsofaFrictionDiskTurbine,Doctoral
Dissertation,PennsylvaniaStateUniversity.

[14]

Murata,S.,Yukata,M.,andYoshiyuki,I.(1976)AStudyonaDiskFrictionPump,
BulletinoftheJapaneseSoceityofMechanicalEngineers,Vol.19,pp.168178.

[15]

Harwood,P.(2008)FurtherInvestigationintoTeslaTurbomachinery,SeniorProject
Report,MechanicalEngineeringDepartment,UniversityofNewcastle,URL:
http://www.scribd.com/doc/27375893/teslapumpsandcompressors,accessed
9/6/2010.

[16]

Tahil,William."TheoreticalAnalysisofaDiskTurbine."TeslaEngineBuildersAssociation
Dec.1998:1819.Print.

[17]

Tahil,William."TheoreticalAnalysisofaDiskTurbine(2)."TeslaEngineBuilders
AssociationMay1999:1516.Print.

76

[18]

M.C.BreiterandK.Pohlhausen,"LaminarFlowBetweenTwoParallelRotatingDisks,"
ARL62318,AeronauticalResearchLaboratory,OSR,USAF,WrightPattersonAFB,
March(1962).

[19]

Lawn,M.J.Jr.,AnInvestigationofMultipleDiskTurbinePerformanceParameters,
MastersThesis,ArizonaStateUniversity(1972).

[20]

Ladino,A.F.R.,NumericalSimulationoftheFlowFieldinaFrictionTypeTurbine(Tesla
Turbine),DipThesis,ViennaUniversityofTechnology,Vienna,2004.

[21]

Couto,H.S.,J.B.F.Duarte,andD.BastosNetto."TheTeslaTurbineRevisited."Asia
PacificInternationalSymposiumonCombustionandEnergyUtilization.Proc.of8thAsia
PacificInternationalSymposiumonCombustionandEnergyUtilization,Sochi,Russian
Federation.Print.October1012,2006.

[22]

Swithenbank,A.M.(2008)Website:TheTeslaBoundaryLayerTurbine,
URL:http://www.stanford.edu/~hydrobay/lookat/tt.html,accessed9/6/2010.

[23]

S.Sastry,J.R.Kadambi,J.M.SankovikandV.Izraelev,StudyofaFlowFieldinan
AdvancedBladelessRotaryBloodPumpUsingParticleImageVelocimetry.13th
InternationalSymposiumonApplicationsofLaserTechniquestoFluidMechanics.June
2006.

[24]

Dr.H.Schlichting.BoundaryLayerTheory,2ndEdition,UniversityofBraunschweig,
Germany.

[25]

CaliforniaEnergyCommissionSponsorsSuccessfulTeslaTurbineTests,TEBANews,
22:p.4.

77

[26]

J.A.Hayes,BoundaryLayerBreakthrough:TheTeslaTurbine,
http://users.rcn.com/zap.dnai/turbine.txt(2008).

[27]

N.Tesla&J.Glenn,TheCompletePatentsofNikolaTesla,Barnes&NobleInc.1994.

[28]

Boyce,MeherwanP.GasTurbineEngineeringHandbook.Boston:GulfProfessionalPub.,
2006.Print.

[29]

Benson,Tom."IsentropicCompressionorExpansion."IsentropicExpansionor
Compression.NASA,GlennResearchCenter,JulyAug.2008.Web.07Mar.2011.
http://www.grc.nasa.gov/WWW/K12/airplane/compexp.html.

[30]

"IsothermalandIsentropicProcesses."Weblogpost.IsothermalandIsentropic
Processes.EngineeringToolbox.Web.7Mar.2011.
http://www.engineeringtoolbox.com/compressionexpansiongasesd_605.html.

[31]

ObiLaserProductsWebsite(2010),URL:http://www.obilaser.com/,accessed9/6/2010.

[32]

Antonsson,ErikK.,andKarlH.Grote.SpringerHandbookofMechanicalEngineering.
Berlin:SpringerBerlin,2007.Print.

[33]

O.W.Eshbach,HandbookofEngineeringFundamentals,2ndEdition,Wiley
Engineering.NewYork.August1952.

[34]

W.Kent,R.T.Kent,KentsMechanicalEngineersHandbook:DesignShopPractice,11th
Edition.WileyEngineering,NewYork.January1949.

[35]

T.G.Hicks,StandardHandbookofEngineeringCalculations,1stEdition,McGrawHill,
NewYork.1972.

[36]

R.Budynas,K.Nisbett,ShigleysMechanicalEngineeringDesign,8thEdition,McGraw
Hill,NewYork.2006.
78

[37]

F.Kreith,D.Y.Goswami,TheCRCHandbookofMechanicalEngineering,2ndEdition,
CRCPress,NewYork.2005.

[38]

P.R.N.Childs,MechanicalDesign,2ndEdition,ElsevierButterworthHeinemann,
Oxford.2004.

[39]

BanebotsRobotPartsWebsite,(2010)BanebotsRS550brushedDCmotor,URL:
http://banebots.com/pc/MOTORBRUSH/M2RS550120,accessed9/6/2010.

[40]

Dean,Angela,andDanielVoss.DesignandAnalysisofExperiments.NewYork:Springer,
2008.Print.

[41]

K.Reili,RebirthoftheTeslaTurbine,ExtraordinaryTechnology.
www.phoenixnavigation.com.July2003.

[42]

N.TeslaandB.Johnston,MyInventions:TheAutobiographyofNikolaTesla,Hart
Brothers.1stEdition,1989.

[43]

Stoffregen,Paul.Teensyduino.Programdocumentation.PJRC:ElectronicProjectswith
ComponentsAvailableWorldwide.Web.07Mar.2011.http://www.pjrc.com.

[44]

EAGLE.Computersoftware.CadSoftOnline:HomeoftheEAGLELayoutEditor.Vers.
5.11.NewarkCorporation.Web.07Mar.2011.http://www.cadsoftusa.com/.

[45]

Arduino.Programdocumentation.ArduinoHomePage.Web.07Mar.2011.
http://arduino.cc/.

[46]

E.A.BrandesandG.B.Brook,SmithellsMetalsReferenceBooks,7thEdition(1992)

[47]

AbsoluteAstronomy.TeslaTurbine:Facts,DiscussionForumandEncyclopediaArticle.
http://www.absoluteastronomy.com/topics/Tesla_turbine#encyclopedia.2009.

[48]

DiscFloDiscPumpTechnology.http://www.discflo.com/Iwater.htm.2004.
79

[49]

TeslaTurbineTheory,PneumaticOptionsResearchLibrary,2ndEdition.
www.AirCarAccess.com.

[50]

Hayes,JefferyA.Tesla'sEngine:aNewDimensionforPower.Milwaukee,WI:Tesla
EngineBuildersAssociation,1994.Print.

[51]

J.B.Kaufman,E.L.Rooy,andtheAmericanFoundrySociety,AluminumalloyCastings:
Properties,Processes,andApplications.ASMInternational.2004.

[52]

DragonPlatebyAllredandAssociatesInc.http://www.dragonplate.com/.Accessed
03/01/2011.

[53]

VXB.comBallBearings,NationSkanderCaliforniaCorp.http://www.vxb.com/.Accessed
03/01/2011.

80