Analysis on Inlet Nozzle Design Geometry of Tesla Turbine

Abstract

Tesla turbine is a bladeless turbine that uses a set of discs arranged at a certain distance to rotate and one of the parameters controlling turbine performance is the inlet parameter. The purpose of this study is to optimize the design of the inlet nozzle and analyse its effects on the flow of the fluid. A total of four nozzle designs have been proposed using CATIA while the Solidworks Flow Simulator is used to analyse the fluid flow at various inlet velocities. Then, the most efficient design is then fabricated via 3D printing and put to test by connecting it with the actual Tesla turbine model. Through the results obtained from the analysis, it is observed that Design 4 is the most efficient of all tested nozzles and the highest RPM and output voltage achieved from the nozzle is 7940 RPM and 13.56 V. The difference in velocity and pressure increases as the area of the nozzle outlet reduces, whereas nozzle efficiency decreases as the inlet velocity increases. The result of this study is a source material for increasing the effectiveness of an alternative power turbine in generating electricity by manipulating the inlet design geometry.