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Handbook of Turbomachinery Second Edition Revised - Ventech!

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y composing them <strong>of</strong> nested cones rather than flat disks has been shown to<br />

produce no performance advantages and to introduce structural handicaps<br />

[20, 79].<br />

CONCLUSION<br />

Tesla-type turbomachinery probably cannot prove competitive in an<br />

application in which more conventional machines have adequate efficiency<br />

and performance. Thus, it cannot be expected to displace conventional<br />

water pumps or conventional water turbines or gas turbines. Tesla-type<br />

turbomachinery should be considered in applications in which conventional<br />

machines are inadequate. This includes applications for small shaft power,<br />

or the use <strong>of</strong> very viscous fluid or non-Newtonian fluids. There is some<br />

reason to believe that multiple-disk turbomachines can operate with<br />

abrasive two-phase flow mixtures with less erosion <strong>of</strong> material from the<br />

rotor. For that reason, they should be further investigated for applications<br />

to produce power from geothermal steam and particle-laden industrial gas<br />

flows. There may also be unique applications possible using ceramic disks.<br />

There is considerable evidence that multiple-disk turbomachinery can be<br />

quieter in operation than is conventional machinery and that the noise<br />

produced is more nearly ‘‘white’’ noise without a prevailing sound signature.<br />

Multiple-disk pumps are well known to resist cavitation [20, 49]. It is the<br />

only type <strong>of</strong> turbomachinery that can be easily constructed in a relatively<br />

primitive machine shop.<br />

ACKNOWLEDGMENT<br />

This review was presented earlier, in Rice [80].<br />

REFERENCES<br />

1. V. Popovic´, R. Horvat, and N. Nikolic´, ‘‘Nikola Tesla, 1856–1943, Lectures,<br />

Patents, Articles,’’ Nikola Tesla Museum, Belgrade, Yugoslavia (1956).<br />

2. ‘‘Tesla’s New Method <strong>of</strong> and Apparatus for Fluid Propulsion,’’ Electrical Rev.,<br />

Sept. 9: 515–517 (1911).<br />

3. ‘‘The Tesla Turbine,’’ Electrical Rev., Sept. 30: 637 (1911).<br />

4. ‘‘Bladeless Turbines,’’ Engineering, 92: 637 (1911).<br />

5. ‘‘The Tesla Steam Turbine,’’ Eng. News, 66: 448–449 (1911).<br />

6. ‘‘The Tesla Steam Turbine,’’ Sci. Am., Sept. 30: 296–297 (1911).<br />

Copyright © 2003 Marcel Dekker, Inc.

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