The pulsating characteristics in turbulent flow are very important physical quantities. There are many studies focused on the temporal characteristics of pulsation. However, the spatial distribution of temporal states with pulsations rarely receives attention. Therefore, the pulsation tracking network (PTN) method is proposed to track the pulsating characteristics of turbulence. Based on the computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulation result, the PTN is arranged in a specific region of the flow domain. The fast Fourier Transform (FFT) method is used for time-frequency conversion. As shown in the example of trailing-edge vortex-shedding flow over NACA0009 hydrofoil, important pulsation quantities, including the total pulsation intensity, dominant frequencies, amplitude of frequencies, and the phase and phase difference, can be obtained with a high spatial resolution. The source, reason and attenuation of the vortex-shedding frequency f_vs and the 2 f_vs frequency caused by vortex-interaction are well indicated. The dominant regions of f_vs and 2 f_vs are shown and analysed. The propagation and attenuation of vortex-shedding induced pulsation are understood in detail. Based on the comparison against traditional analysis, PTN is found to function as a good supplement for the CFD post-processing by tracking unknown temporal and spatial characteristics. These findings represent a potential breakthrough in terms of solving actual pulsation-excited flow problems.

A large-scale, vaned-voluted centrifugal pump can be applied as the key component in water-transfer projects. Pressure pulsation will be an important factor in affecting the operation stability. This paper researches the propagation and spatial distribution law of blade passing frequency (BPF) and its harmonics on the design condition by numerical simulation. Experimental and numerical monitoring is conducted for pressure pulsation on four discrete points in the vaneless region, which shows that the BPF is dominant. The pulsation tracking network (PTN) is applied to research propagation law and spatial distribution law. It provides a reference for frequency domain information and visualization vaned diffuser. The amplitude of BPF and its harmonics decays rapidly in the vaneless region. BPF and BPF’s harmonics influence each other. BPF has local enhancement in the vaneless region when its harmonics attenuate. In the vaned diffuser, the pulsation amplitude of BPF attenuates rapidly, but the local high-pressure pulsation amplitude can be found on the vane blade concave side because of obstruction and accumulation of the vaned diffuser. In the volute, the pulsation amplitude of BPF is low with the decelerating attenuation. This study provides an effective method for understanding the pressure pulsation law in turbomachinery and other engineering flow cases.