Non-Deterministic CFD Simulation of a Transonic Compressor Rotor

2009 ◽  
Author(s):  
Naveen Prasad Gopinathrao ◽  
David Bagshaw ◽  
Christophe Mabilat ◽  
Sohail Alizadeh
Keyword(s):  
Gas Turbine ◽  
Total Pressure ◽  
Polynomial Chaos ◽  
Cfd Simulation ◽  
Pressure Ratio ◽  
Industrial Applications ◽  
Operating Conditions ◽  
Stochastic Methods ◽  
Transonic Compressor ◽  
Compressor Rotor

The compressor is one of the most sensitive components in a gas turbine. Small variations in geometry or operating conditions can have a detrimental effect on component performance, efficiency and life. During the past few years, significant effort has been invested in modelling the propagation of input uncertainties for CFD simulations using stochastic methods. Due to the large number of variables involved in typical industrial applications, problems often involve intensive computations, making the use of stochastic methods impractical. Therefore in addition to accuracy issues, the desire to reduce the computational overhead is also a key consideration in industrial applications. This work investigates the propagation of uncertainty within a transonic compressor rotor (NASA Rotor-37), using a Non Intrusive Polynomial Chaos methodology. Extensive computational research of this geometry has previously been undertaken and provides comparative data sets. The Non Intrusive Polynomial Chaos methodology is an inexpensive approach based on the spectral representation of the uncertainty parameters. The polynomial coefficients are evaluated using the Probabilistic Collocation method providing an exponential convergence for arbitrary probability distributions. Results will be shown for variations in inlet total pressure. The resulting performance parameters, including total pressure ratio and adiabatic efficiency, are presented along with their uncertainties. The paper serves as a description of the application of the Polynomial Chaos methodology, within a general purpose CFD software, to a gas turbine aerodynamics problem.

A Comparison between Measured and Computed Flow Fields in a Transonic Compressor Rotor

1980 ◽  
Vol 102 (4) ◽  
pp. 883-889 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. W. McDonald ◽  
C. R. Bolt ◽  
R. J. Dunker ◽  
H. B. Weyer
Keyword(s):  
Mach Number ◽  
Total Pressure ◽  
Pressure Ratio ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Axial Compressor ◽  
Computational Procedure ◽  
Operating Conditions ◽  
Transonic Compressor ◽  
Compressor Rotor ◽  
Pressure Profiles

The flow field within the rotor of a transonic axial compressor has been computed and compared to measurements obtained with an advanced laser velocimeter. The compressor was designed for a total pressure ratio of 1.51 at a relative tip Mach number of 1.4. The comparisons are made at 100 percent design speed (20,260 RPM) with pressure ratios corresponding to peak efficiency, near surge, and wide open discharge operating conditions. The computational procedure iterates between a blade-to-blade calculation and an intrablade through flow calculation. Calculated Mach number contours, surface pressure distributions, and exit total pressure profiles are in agreement with the experimental data demonstrating the usefulness of quasi three-dimensional calculations in compressor design.

Experimental Investigation of Stepped Tip Gap Effects on the Performance of a Transonic Axial-Flow Compressor Rotor

1998 ◽  
Vol 120 (3) ◽  
pp. 477-486 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. W. Thompson ◽  
P. I. King ◽  
D. C. Rabe
Keyword(s):  
Mass Flow ◽  
Pressure Ratio ◽  
Axial Flow ◽  
Operating Conditions ◽  
Tip Clearance ◽  
Axial Flow Compressor ◽  
Transonic Compressor ◽  
Compressor Rotor ◽  
Percent Improvement ◽  
Flow Compressor

The effects of stepped-tip gaps and clearance levels on the performance of a transonic axial-flow compressor rotor were experimentally determined. A two-stage compressor with no inlet guide vanes was tested in a modern transonic compressor research facility. The first-stage rotor was unswept and was tested for an optimum tip clearance with variations in stepped gaps machined into the casing near the aft tip region of the rotor. Nine causing geometries were investigated consisting of three step profiles at each of three clearance levels. For small and intermediate clearances, stepped tip gaps were found to improve pressure ratio, efficiency, and flow range for most operating conditions. At 100 percent design rotor speed, stepped tip gaps produced a doubling of mass flow range with as much as a 2.0 percent increase in mass flow and a 1.5 percent improvement in efficiency. This study provides guidelines for engineers to improve compressor performance for an existing design by applying an optimum casing profile.

Experimental Investigation of Stepped Tip Gap Effects on the Performance of a Transonic Axial-Flow Compressor Rotor

1997 ◽  
Author(s):  
Donald W. Thompson ◽  
Paul I. King ◽  
Douglas C. Rabe
Keyword(s):  
Mass Flow ◽  
Pressure Ratio ◽  
Axial Flow ◽  
Operating Conditions ◽  
Tip Clearance ◽  
Axial Flow Compressor ◽  
Transonic Compressor ◽  
Compressor Rotor ◽  
Compressor Performance ◽  
Flow Compressor

The effects of stepped tip gaps and clearance levels on the performance of a transonic axial-flow compressor rotor were experimentally determined. A two-stage compressor with no inlet guide vanes was tested in a modern transonic compressor research facility. The first-stage rotor was unswept and was tested for an optimum tip clearance with variations in stepped gaps machined into the casing near the aft tip region of the rotor. Nine casing geometries were investigated consisting of three step profiles at each of three clearance levels. For small and intermediate clearances, stepped tip gaps were found to improve pressure ratio, efficiency, and flow range for most operating conditions. At 100% design rotor speed, stepped tip gaps produced a doubling of mass flow range with as much as a 2.0% increase in mass flow and a 1.5% improvement in efficiency. This study provides guidelines for engineers to improve compressor performance for an existing design by applying an optimum casing profile.

Non-Axisymmetric End Wall Profiling in Transonic Compressors—Part II: Design Study of a Transonic Compressor Rotor Using Non-Axisymmetric End Walls—Optimization Strategies and Performance

2009 ◽  
Author(s):  
Steffen Reising ◽  
Heinz-Peter Schiffer
Keyword(s):  
Secondary Flow ◽  
Total Pressure ◽  
Cfd Simulation ◽  
Pressure Ratio ◽  
Cross Flow ◽  
Secondary Flows ◽  
Transonic Compressor ◽  
End Wall ◽  
Total Pressure Ratio ◽  
Isentropic Efficiency

Secondary flows involving cross flow at high stage loading in modern axial compressors contribute significantly to efficiency limits. This paper summarizes an approach to control end wall flow using non-axisymmetric end walls. The challenge is to find the optimal non-axisymmetric end wall shape that results in the largest gain in performance. An automated multi-objective optimizer connected to a 3-D RANS flow solver was used to design the end wall contour. The process chain was applied to the rotor hub end wall of Configuration I of the Darmstadt Transonic Compressor. Several optimization strategies involving different objective functions to be minimized and the corresponding performances were compared. The parameters considered within the optimization process were isentropic stage efficiency, pressure loss in the rotor, throat area and secondary kinetic energy (SKE). A parameter variation was undertaken, leading to the following observations: Strong penalties on SKE at the rotor outlet and moderate penalties on isentropic efficiency, throat area and pressure ratio led to the best design. Isentropic efficiency could be raised by 0.12%, SKE at the rotor exit was reduced while the total pressure ratio of the stage remained constant. Strong penalties on efficiency and pressure ratio, a moderate one on throat area and a small one on SKE at the rotor outlet all led to a smaller increase in efficiency: 0.06%. On the other hand, a slight raise in the total pressure ratio could be achieved. A third optimization, eliminating the restriction on the throat area, was carried out to see which benefit in performance could be achieved without this geometrical restriction. Since the throat areas of all optimized geometries differ slightly from the datum value, an estimation was derived to see the extent to which the end wall profiling and cross section enlargement contribute to the improvements. Finally, a method to display secondary flows in turbomachinery is introduced. A second CFD simulation is used to calculate the primary flow where the hub end wall is defined as an Euler wall to avoid the end wall boundary layer and so eliminate the cause for some of the secondary flow mechanisms. This method clearly shows how the characteristics of secondary flow can be positively influenced by using non-axisymmetric end walls.

Transonic Compressor Development for Large Industrial Gas Turbines

1983 ◽  
Vol 105 (3) ◽  
pp. 417-421 ◽  
Author(s):  
B. Becker ◽  
M. Kwasniewski ◽  
O. von Schwerdtner
Keyword(s):  
Gas Turbine ◽  
Mass Flow ◽  
Gas Turbines ◽  
Pressure Ratio ◽  
Industrial Applications ◽  
Transonic Compressor ◽  
Industrial Gas Turbines ◽  
Compressor Map ◽  
Industrial Gas Turbine ◽  
Cycle Efficiency

With increasing mass flow and constant rotational speed of the single shaft gas turbine, the diameters and tip speeds of compressor and turbine blading have to be enlarged. A significant further increase in mass flow can be achieved with transonic compressor stages, as they have been in service in aero gas turbines for many years. For industrial applications, weight and stage pressure ratio are not nearly as important as efficiency. Therefore, different design criteria had to be applied, which led to a moderate front stage pressure ratio of 1.5 with a rotor tip inlet Mach number of 1.37 and a high solidity blading. In order to simulate the first three stages of a 200-MW gas turbine, a test compressor scaled by 1:5.4 was built and tested. These measurements confirmed the aerodynamic performance in the design point very well. The compressor map showed a satisfactory part speed behavior. These results prove that the single-shaft industrial gas turbine still has a high development potential with respect to power increase. Additionally, with the higher pressure ratio, the cycle efficiency will be improved considerably.

Effects of Inlet Distortion on the Flow Field in a Transonic Compressor Rotor

1996 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chunill Hah ◽  
Douglas C. Rabe ◽  
Thomas J. Sullivan ◽  
Aspi R. Wadia
Keyword(s):  
Boundary Layer ◽  
Flow Field ◽  
Viscous Flow ◽  
Total Pressure ◽  
Stokes Equations ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Aerodynamic Loss ◽  
Transonic Compressor ◽  
Inlet Distortion ◽  
Compressor Rotor

The effects of circumferential distortions in inlet total pressure on the flow field in a low-aspect-ratio, high-speed, high-pressure-ratio, transonic compressor rotor are investigated in this paper. The flow field was studied experimentally and numerically with and without inlet total pressure distortion. Total pressure distortion was created by screens mounted upstream from the rotor inlet. Circumferential distortions of 8 periods per revolution were investigated at two different rotor speeds. The unsteady blade surface pressures were measured with miniature pressure transducers mounted in the blade. The flow fields with and without inlet total pressure distortion were analyzed numerically by solving steady and unsteady forms of the Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes equations. Steady three-dimensional viscous flow calculations were performed for the flow without inlet distortion while unsteady three-dimensional viscous flow calculations were used for the flow with inlet distortion. For the time-accurate calculation, circumferential and radial variations of the inlet total pressure were used as a time-dependent inflow boundary condition. A second-order implicit scheme was used for the time integration. The experimental measurements and the numerical analysis are highly complementary for this study because of the extreme complexity of the flow field. The current investigation shows that inlet flow distortions travel through the rotor blade passage and are convected into the following stator. At a high rotor speed where the flow is transonic, the passage shock was found to oscillate by as much as 20% of the blade chord, and very strong interactions between the unsteady passage shock and the blade boundary layer were observed. This interaction increases the effective blockage of the passage, resulting in an increased aerodynamic loss and a reduced stall margin. The strong interaction between the passage shock and the blade boundary layer increases the peak aerodynamic loss by about one percent.

scholarly journals A Three-Dimensional Shock Loss Model Applied to an Aft-Swept, Transonic Compressor Rotor

1996 ◽  
Author(s):  
Steven L. Puterbaugh ◽  
William W. Copenhaver ◽  
Chunill Hah ◽  
Arthur J. Wennerstrom
Keyword(s):  
Flow Rate ◽  
Pressure Ratio ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Numerical Results ◽  
Design Flow ◽  
Design System ◽  
Loss Model ◽  
Transonic Compressor ◽  
Compressor Rotor ◽  
Shock Loss

An analysis of the effectiveness of a three-dimensional shock loss model used in transonic compressor rotor design is presented. The model was used during the design of an aft-swept, transonic compressor rotor. The demonstrated performance of the swept rotor, in combination with numerical results, is used to determine the strengths and weaknesses of the model. The numerical results were obtained from a fully three-dimensional Navier-Stokes solver. The shock loss model was developed to account for the benefit gained with three-dimensional shock sweep. Comparisons with the experimental and numerical results demonstrated that shock loss reductions predicted by the model due to the swept shock induced by the swept leading edge of the rotor were exceeded. However, near the tip the loss model under-predicts the loss because the shock geometry assumed by the model remains swept in this region while the numerical results show a more normal shock orientation. The design methods and the demonstrated performance of the swept rotor is also presented. Comparisons are made between the design intent and measured performance parameters. The aft-swept rotor was designed using an inviscid axisymmetric streamline curvature design system utilizing arbitrary airfoil blading geometry. The design goal specific flow rate was 214.7 kg/sec/m2 (43.98 lbm/sec/ft2), the design pressure ratio goal was 2.042, and the predicted design point efficiency was 94.0. The rotor tip sped was 457.2 m/sec (1500 ft/sec). The design flow rate was achieved while the pressure ratio fell short by 0.07. Efficiency was 3 points below prediction, though at a very high 91 percent. At this operating condition the stall margin was 11 percent.

A Fully Coupled Approach for the Integration of 3D-CFD Component Simulation in Overall Engine Performance Analysis

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. Klein ◽  
S. Reitenbach ◽  
D. Schoenweitz ◽  
F. Wolters
Keyword(s):  
Performance Analysis ◽  
Boundary Conditions ◽  
Progress Monitoring ◽  
Cfd Simulation ◽  
System Simulation ◽  
Pressure Ratio ◽  
Performance Model ◽  
Operating Conditions ◽  
Operating Characteristics ◽  
Design Environment

Due to a high degree of complexity and computational effort, overall system simulations of jet engines are typically performed as 0-dimensional thermodynamic performance analysis. Within these simulations and especially in the early cycle design phase, the usage of generic component characteristics is common practice. Of course these characteristics often cannot account for true engine component geometries and operating characteristics which may cause serious deviations between simulated and actual component and overall system performance. This leads to the approach of multi-fidelity simulation, often referred to as zooming, where single components of the thermodynamic cycle model are replaced by higher-order procedures. Hereby the consideration of actual component geometries and performance in an overall system context is enabled and global optimization goals may be considered in the engine design process. The purpose of this study is to present a fully automated approach for the integration of a 3D-CFD component simulation into a thermodynamic overall system simulation. As a use case, a 0D-performance model of the IAE-V2527 engine is combined with a CFD model of the appropriate fan component. The methodology is based on the DLR in-house performance synthesis and preliminary design environment GTlab combined with the DLR in-house CFD solver TRACE. Both, the performance calculation as well as the CFD simulation are part of a fully automated process chain within the GTlab environment. The exchange of boundary conditions between the different fidelity levels is accomplished by operating both simulation procedures on a central data model which is one of the essential parts of GTlab. Furthermore iteration management, progress monitoring as well as error handling are part of the GTlab process control environment. Based on the CFD results comprising fan efficiency, pressure ratio and mass flow, a map scaling methodology as it is commonly used for engine condition monitoring purposes is applied within the performance simulation. Hereby the operating behavior of the CFD fan model can be easily transferred into the overall system simulation which consequently leads to a divergent operating characteristic of the fan module. For this reason, all other engine components will see a shift in their operating conditions even in case of otherwise constant boundary conditions. The described simulation procedure is carried out for characteristic operating conditions of the engine.

scholarly journals The Design and Evaluation of a 14 Stage, 16:1 Pressure Ratio Compressor for an Industrial Gas Turbine

1996 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohammad R. Saadatmand
Keyword(s):  
Experimental Data ◽  
Gas Turbine ◽  
Rotor Blade ◽  
Pressure Ratio ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Operating Conditions ◽  
Suction Surface ◽  
Design Intent ◽  
Flow Through ◽  
Industrial Gas Turbine

The aerodynamic design process leading to the production configuration of a 14 stage, 16:1 pressure ratio compressor for the Taurus 70 gas turbine is described. The performance of the compressor is measured and compared to the design intent. Overall compressor performance at the design condition was found to be close to design intent. Flow profiles measured by vane mounted instrumentation are presented and discussed. The flow through the first rotor blade has been modeled at different operating conditions using the Dawes (1987) three-dimensional viscous code and the results are compared to the experimental data. The CFD prediction agreed well with the experimental data across the blade span, including the pile up of the boundary layer on the corner of the hub and the suction surface. The rotor blade was also analyzed with different grid refinement and the results were compared with the test data.

CFD Simulation of a Supersonic Steam Ejector for Refrigeration Application

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Liju Su ◽  
Ramesh K. Agarwal
Keyword(s):  
Flow Field ◽  
Cfd Simulation ◽  
Fluid Pressure ◽  
Turbulence Models ◽  
Industrial Applications ◽  
Operating Conditions ◽  
Working Fluid ◽  
Entrainment Ratio ◽  
Ansys Fluent ◽  
Entrainment Velocity

Supersonic steam ejectors are widely used in many industrial applications, for example for refrigeration and desalination. The experimental evaluation of the flow field inside the ejector is relatively difficult and costly due to the occurrence of shock after the velocity of the steam reaches over the sonic level in the ejector. In this paper, numerical simulations are conducted to investigate the detailed flow field inside a supersonic steam (water vapor being the working fluid) ejector. The commercial computational fluid dynamics (CFD) flow solver ANSYS-Fluent and the mesh generation software ANSYS-ICEM are used to predict the steam performance during the mixing inside the ejector by employing two turbulence models, the k-ω SST and the k-ε realizable models. The computed results are validated against the experimental data. The effects of operating conditions on the efficiency of the ejector such as the primary fluid pressure and condenser pressure are studied to obtain a better understanding of the mixing process and entrainment. Velocity contours, pressure plots and shock region analyses provide a good understanding for optimization of the ejector performance, in particular how to increase the entrainment ratio.

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