A Method for Evaluating the PIV Measurement Error in a Centrifugal Pump

Based on the equation of the mass conservation, a method of relative error analysis is presented in this paper. The two-dimensional and three-dimensional PIV data in the impeller and volute of the centrifugal pump are evaluated by this method. The maximum relative errors of two-dimensional flow fields in the impeller and volute are 2.85% and 10.50% respectively, which of three-dimensional are 3.41% and 2.59% respectively. It indicates that there is acceptable accuracy of the relative error using two-dimensional PIV to measure the flow fields in the impeller. Axial direction velocity can not be neglected near the outlet of the rotating impeller in the volute and the flow fields must be measured by three-dimensional PIV to obtain the reliable experimental data.