Analysis of Modern Numerical Approaches to Film Cooling Simulation on a Flat Surface: Trends, Errors and Correlation Dependencies

Author

Oleh V. Shevchuk, National Technical University “Kharkiv Polytechnic Institute” (2, Kyrpychova str., Kharkiv, 61002, Ukraine), JSC “Ivchenko-Progress” (2, Ivanova str., Zaporizhzhia, 69068, Ukraine), e-mail: Oleh.Shevchuk@ieee.khpi.edu.ua, ORCID: 0000-0003-1837-6287

Abstract

An analysis of modern numerical methods for film cooling simulation on a flat surface, considering current CFD (Computational Fluid Dynamics) trends during 2019–2025, is presented in the paper. More than 25 recent studies devoted to 3D CFD simulations of film cooling effectiveness for various hole geometries – cylindrical, shaped, unsteady, and combined ones – are reviewed. The comparison of turbulence models, grid parameters, and validation methods against experimental data is provided. It is shown that even a small deviation in cooling effectiveness (± 0.02) can lead to temperature prediction errors exceeding 20 °C under real engine conditions. The study demonstrates that reverse-injection film cooling holes significantly increase effectiveness at high blowing ratios m, while forward-injection configurations perform better at low m. For shaped holes, the influence of the compound blowing angle β is found to be non-negligible and should be considered in engineering calculations. The importance of accounting for the ratio of specific heat capacities between coolant and mainstream gas during the scaling of laboratory data to engine conditions is emphasized. A comparative analysis of existing 1D correlations shows that the Baldauf formulas generally overpredict the effectiveness of cylindrical holes, while the Colban correlations underestimate that of shaped holes. This highlights the need for updated generalized dependencies that integrate modern CFD results and thermophysical parameters. Scientific novelty lies in the systematic review of modern CFD studies on film cooling, the identification of the influence of hole direction and blowing ratio m on cooling effectiveness, and the proposed inclusion of specific heat effects in scaling procedures.

Keywords: film cooling, CFD modeling, blowing ratio, cooling effectiveness, gas turbine engine, gas turbine, combustion chamber.

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Received 26 October 2025

Accepted 20 November 2025

Published 30 December 2025