Subject

The subject of this monograph is the fluid dynamics of liquid turbomachines, particularly pumps. Rather than attempt a general treatise on turbomachines, we shall focus attention on those special problems and design issues associated with the flow of liquid through a rotating machine. There are two characteristics of a liquid that lead to these special problems, and cause a significantly different set of concerns than would occur in, say, a gas turbine. These are the potential for cavitation and the high density of liquids that enhances the possibility of damaging unsteady flows and forces.

Cavitation

The word cavitation refers to the formation of vapor bubbles in regions of low pressure within the flow field of a liquid. In some respects, cavitation is similar to boiling, except that the latter is generally considered to occur as a result of an increase of temperature rather than a decrease of pressure. This difference in the direction of the state change in the phase diagram is more significant than might, at first sight, be imagined. It is virtually impossible to cause any rapid uniform change in temperature throughout a finite volume of liquid. Rather, temperature change most often occurs by heat transfer through a solid boundary. Hence, the details of the boiling process generally embrace the detailed interaction of vapor bubbles with a solid surface, and the thermal boundary layer on that surface.