Considerations for Measuring Compressor Aerodynamic Excitations Including Rotor Wakes and Tip Leakage Flows

2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Natalie R. Smith ◽  
William L. Murray ◽  
Nicole L. Key
Keyword(s):  
Flow Field ◽  
Computational Models ◽  
Axial Compressor ◽  
Forced Response ◽  
Tip Leakage Flow ◽  
Rotor Wake ◽  
Tip Leakage Vortex ◽  
Tip Leakage ◽  
Leakage Flows ◽  
Forcing Function

The unsteady flow field generated by the rotor provides unsteady aerodynamic excitations to the downstream stator, which can result in vibrations such as forced response. In this paper, measurements of the rotor wake and rotor tip leakage flow from an embedded rotor in a multistage axial compressor are presented. A unique feature of this work is the pitchwise traverse of the flow field used to highlight the changes in the rotor exit flow field with respect to the position of the surrounding vane rows. Results acquired at mid-span focus on characterizing an average rotor wake, including the effects on the frequency spectrum, from a forced response perspective. While many analyses use an average rotor wake to characterize the aerodynamic forcing function to the downstream stator, this study explores the factors that influence changes in the rotor wake shape and the resulting impact on the spectrum. Additionally, this paper investigates the flow near the endwall where the tip leakage vortex is an important contributor to the aerodynamic excitations for the downstream vane. For the first time, experimental data are presented at the rotor exit, which show the modulation in size and radial penetration of the tip leakage vortex as the rotor passes through the upstream vane wake. As computational models become more advanced, the ability to incorporate these aerodynamic excitation effects should be considered to provide better predictions for vane vibratory response.

Considerations for Measuring Compressor Aerodynamic Excitations Including Rotor Wakes and Tip Leakage Flows

2015 ◽  
Vol 138 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Natalie R. Smith ◽  
William L. Murray ◽  
Nicole L. Key
Keyword(s):  
Flow Field ◽  
Computational Models ◽  
Axial Compressor ◽  
Forced Response ◽  
Tip Leakage Flow ◽  
Rotor Wake ◽  
Tip Leakage Vortex ◽  
Tip Leakage ◽  
Leakage Flows ◽  
Forcing Function

The unsteady flow field generated by the rotor provides unsteady aerodynamic excitations to the downstream stator, which can result in vibrations such as forced response. In this paper, measurements of the rotor wake and rotor tip leakage flow from an embedded rotor in a multistage axial compressor are presented. A unique feature of this work is the pitchwise traverse of the flow field used to highlight the changes in the rotor exit flow field with respect to the position of the surrounding vane rows. Results acquired at midspan focus on characterizing an average rotor wake, including the effects on the frequency spectrum, from a forced response perspective. While many analyses use an average rotor wake to characterize the aerodynamic forcing function to the downstream stator, this study explores the factors that influence changes in the rotor wake shape and the resulting impact on the spectrum. Additionally, this paper investigates the flow near the endwall where the tip leakage vortex is an important contributor to the aerodynamic excitations for the downstream vane. For the first time, experimental data are presented at the rotor exit, which show the modulation in size and radial penetration of the tip leakage vortex as the rotor passes through the upstream vane wake. As computational models become more advanced, the ability to incorporate these aerodynamic excitation effects should be considered to provide better predictions for vane vibratory response.

Unsteady Three-Dimensional Flow Phenomena Due to Breakdown of Tip Leakage Vortex in a Transonic Axial Compressor Rotor

2004 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. Yamada ◽  
M. Furukawa ◽  
T. Nakano ◽  
M. Inoue ◽  
K. Funazaki
Keyword(s):  
Shock Wave ◽  
Flow Field ◽  
Vortex Breakdown ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Axial Compressor ◽  
Leading Edge ◽  
Tip Leakage Flow ◽  
Tip Leakage Vortex ◽  
Tip Leakage ◽  
Compressor Rotor

Unsteady three-dimensional flow fields in a transonic axial compressor rotor (NASA Rotor 37) have been investigated by unsteady Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes simulations. The simulations show that the breakdown of the tip leakage vortex occurs in the compressor rotor because of the interaction of the vortex with the shock wave. At near-peak efficiency condition small bubble-type breakdown of the tip leakage vortex happens periodically and causes the loading of the adjacent blade to fluctuate periodically near the leading edge. Since the blade loading near the leading edge is closely linked to the swirl intensity of the tip leakage vortex, the periodic fluctuation of the blade loading leads to the periodic breakdown of the tip leakage vortex, resulting in self-sustained flow oscillation in the tip leakage flow field. However, the tip leakage vortex breakdown is so weak and small that it is not observed in the time-averaged flow field at near-peak efficiency condition. On the other hand, spiral-type breakdown of the tip leakage vortex is caused by the interaction between the vortex and the shock wave at near-stall operating condition. The vortex breakdown is found continuously since the swirl intensity of tip leakage vortex keeps strong at near-stall condition. The spiral-type vortex breakdown has the nature of self-sustained flow oscillation and gives rise to the large fluctuation of the tip leakage flow field, in terms of shock wave location, blockage near the rotor tip and three-dimensional separation structure on the suction surface. It is found that the breakdown of the tip leakage vortex leads to the unsteady flow phenomena near the rotor tip, accompanying large blockage effect in the transonic compressor rotor at the near-stall condition.

Impact of Sinusoidal Tip Gaps on Axial Compressor Rotor Performance: A Flow Field Investigation

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shraman Goswami ◽  
Ashima Malhotra
Keyword(s):  
Flow Field ◽  
Axial Compressor ◽  
Field Investigation ◽  
Tip Clearance ◽  
Leakage Flow ◽  
Tip Leakage Flow ◽  
Tip Leakage Vortex ◽  
Stall Margin ◽  
Tip Leakage ◽  
Compressor Rotor

Abstract Performance of an axial compressor rotor depends largely on the tip leakage flow. Tip leakage flow results in tip leakage vortex which is a source of loss. This has an impact on the compressor efficiency as well as stall margin. A lot of work has been done to understand the tip leakage flow and controlling the same. Active and passive stall margin improvement methods mainly target the tip leakage vortex. In the current study, numerical investigations are carried out to understand flow fields near tip region of rotors. The blade tip designed to have a tip gap as sine and cosine waves (single and double waves). Numerical methodology is validated with NASA Rotor37 test results. The performance parameters of the rotors with modified tip gap shapes are compared with constant tip clearance rotor. A detailed flow field investigation is presented to compare the tip flow structure and its impact on overall performance of the compressor.

Casing Pressure Measurements and Numerical Simulations of a 1.5 Stage Axial Compressor: Tip Leakage Flow and Rotating Instability

2014 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hao Wang ◽  
Yadong Wu ◽  
Hua Ouyang ◽  
Jie Tian ◽  
Zhaohui Du
Keyword(s):  
Flow Field ◽  
Flow Rate ◽  
Axial Compressor ◽  
Fast Response ◽  
Tip Leakage Flow ◽  
Tip Leakage Vortex ◽  
Pressure Transducers ◽  
Tip Leakage ◽  
Response Pressure ◽  
Rotating Instability

Experimental and numerical investigations on the unsteady casing flow field in a one-and-half stage low speed axial compressor have been carried out. By using fast response pressure transducers instrumented on the rotor casing, the pressure time series were acquired at different operation points from throttle wide open to near-stall operation point. The pseudo-spatial pressure contours, phase-locked averaged and root-mean-square pressure contours and power spectrums of unsteady pressure signal have been achieved. The CFD simulations were conducted to help understanding the features of tip leakage vortex. The rotating instability has been detected throughout an operation range from small flow rate point to near stall point. The frequency characteristic of rotating instability according flow rate was discussed. Based on the pattern of RIF varying with flow rate, the developing process of rotating instability according to flow rate could be divided into two stages, referred as early-developing stage and fully-developed stage. By analyzing the correlation between rotating instability and casing flow field, it was discovered that the origination and development of rotating instability was closely related to the fluctuation induced by tip leakage vortex.

Study of the Standard k-ε Model for Tip Leakage Flow in an Axial Compressor Rotor

2016 ◽  
Vol 33 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yanfei Gao ◽  
Yangwei Liu ◽  
Luyang Zhong ◽  
Jiexuan Hou ◽  
Lipeng Lu
Keyword(s):  
Flow Field ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Turbulent Viscosity ◽  
Axial Compressor ◽  
Leakage Flow ◽  
Reynolds Stresses ◽  
Mean Flow ◽  
Tip Leakage Flow ◽  
Tip Leakage ◽  
Compressor Rotor

AbstractThe standard k-ε model (SKE) and the Reynolds stress model (RSM) are employed to predict the tip leakage flow (TLF) in a low-speed large-scale axial compressor rotor. Then, a new research method is adopted to “freeze” the turbulent kinetic energy and dissipation rate of the flow field derived from the RSM, and obtain the turbulent viscosity using the Boussinesq hypothesis. The Reynolds stresses and mean flow field computed on the basis of the frozen viscosity are compared with the results of the SKE and the RSM. The flow field in the tip region based on the frozen viscosity is more similar to the results of the RSM than those of the SKE, although certain differences can be observed. This finding indicates that the non-equilibrium turbulence transport nature plays an important role in predicting the TLF, as well as the turbulence anisotropy.

Influences of Tip Leakage Flows Discharged From Main and Splitter Blades on Flow Field in Transonic Centrifugal Compressor Stage

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Masanao Kaneko ◽  
Hoshio Tsujita
Keyword(s):  
Flow Field ◽  
Centrifugal Compressor ◽  
Leading Edge ◽  
Tip Clearance ◽  
Blade Loading ◽  
Tip Leakage Vortex ◽  
Tip Leakage ◽  
Leakage Flows ◽  
Transonic Centrifugal Compressor ◽  
Tip Leakage Flows

A transonic centrifugal compressor impeller is generally composed of the main and the splitter blades which are different in chord length. As a result, the tip leakage flows from the main and the splitter blades interact with each other and then complicate the flow field in the compressor. In this study, in order to clarify the individual influences of these leakage flows on the flow field in the transonic centrifugal compressor stage at near-choke to near-stall condition, the flows in the compressor at four conditions prescribed by the presence and the absence of the tip clearances were analyzed numerically. The computed results clarified the following noticeable phenomena. The tip clearance of the main blade induces the tip leakage vortex from the leading edge of the main blade. This vortex decreases the blade loading of the main blade to the negative value by the increase of the flow acceleration along the suction surface of the splitter blade, and consequently induces the tip leakage vortex caused by the negative blade loading of the main blade at any operating points. These phenomena decline the impeller efficiency. On the other hand, the tip clearance of the splitter blade decreases the afore mentioned acceleration by the formation of the tip leakage vortex from the leading edge of the splitter blade and the decrease of the incidence angle for the splitter blade caused by the suction of the flow into the tip clearance. These phenomena reduce the loss generated by the negative blade loading of the main blade and consequently reduce the decline of the impeller efficiency. Moreover, the tip clearances enlarge the flow separation around the diffuser inlet and then decline the diffuser performance independently of the operating points.

Prediction of Tip Leakage Vortex Dynamics in an Axial Compressor Cascade Using RANS Analyses

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martina Ricci ◽  
Roberto Pacciani ◽  
Michele Marconcini ◽  
Andrea Arnone
Keyword(s):  
Vortex Dynamics ◽  
Eddy Viscosity ◽  
Axial Compressor ◽  
Viscosity Model ◽  
Leakage Flow ◽  
Tip Leakage Flow ◽  
Tip Leakage Vortex ◽  
Tip Leakage ◽  
Eddy Viscosity Model ◽  
The Impact

Abstract The tip leakage flow in turbine and compressor blade rows is responsible for a relevant fraction of the total loss. It contributes to unsteadiness, and have an important impact on the operability range of compressor stages. Experimental investigations and, more recently, scale-resolving CFD approaches have helped in clarifying the flow mechanism determining the dynamics of the tip leakage vortex. Due to their continuing fundamental role in design verifications, it is important to establish whether RANS/URANS approaches are able to reproduce the effects of such a flow feature, in order to correctly drive the design of the next generation of turbomachinery. Base studies are needed in order to accomplish this goal. In the present work the tip leakage flow in axial compressor rotor blade cascade have been studied. The cascade was tested experimentally in Virginia Tech Low Speed Cascade Wind Tunnel in both stationary and moving endwall configurations. Numerical analyses were performed using the TRAF code, a state-of-the-art in-house-developed 3D RANS/URANS flow solver. The impact of the numerical framework was investigated selecting different advection schemes including a central scheme with artificial dissipation and a high-resolution upwind strategy. In addition, two turbulence models have been used, the Wilcox linear k–ω model and a non-linear eddy viscosity model (Realizable Quadratic Eddy Viscosity Model), which accounts for turbulence anisotropy. The numerical results are scrutinized using the available measurements. A detailed discussion of the vortex evolution inside the blade passage and downstream of the blade trailing edge is presented in terms of streamwise velocity, streamwise vorticity, and turbulent kinetic energy contours. The purpose is to identify guidelines for obtaining the best representation of the vortex dynamics, with the methodologies usually employed in routine design iterations and, at the same time, evidence their weak aspects that need further modelling efforts.

Characteristics of the Tip Leakage Vortex in a Low-Speed Axial Compressor With Different Rotor Tip Gaps

2012 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhibo Zhang ◽  
Xianjun Yu ◽  
Baojie Liu
Keyword(s):  
Axial Compressor ◽  
Pressure Rise ◽  
Operating Conditions ◽  
Stereoscopic Particle Image Velocimetry ◽  
Tip Clearance ◽  
Test Facility ◽  
Tip Leakage Flow ◽  
Tip Leakage Vortex ◽  
Low Speed ◽  
Tip Leakage

The detailed evolutionary processes of the tip leakage flow/vortex inside the rotor passage are still not very clear for the difficulties of investigating of them by both experimental and numerical methods. In this paper, the flow fields near the rotor tip region inside the blade passage with two tip gaps, 0.5% and 1.5% blade height respectively, were measured by using stereoscopic particle image velocimetry (SPIV) in a large-scale low speed axial compressor test facility. The measurements are conducted at four different operating conditions, including the design, middle, maximum static pressure rise and near stall conditions. In order to analyze the variations of the characteristics of the tip leakage vortex (TLV), the trajectory, concentration, size, streamwise velocity, and the blockage parameters are extracted from the ensemble-averaged results and compared at different compressor operating conditions and tip gaps. The results show that the formation of the TLV is delayed with large tip clearance, however, its trajectory moves much faster in an approximately linear way from the blade suction side to pressure side. In the tested compressor, the size of the tip gap has little effects on the scale of the TLV in the spanwise direction, on the contrary, its effects on the pitch-wise direction is very prominent. Breakdown of the TLV were both found at the near-stall condition with different tip gaps. The location of the initiation of the TLV breakdown moves downstream from the 60% chord to 70% chord as the tip gap increases. After the TLV breakdown occurs, the flow blockage near the rotor tip region increases abruptly. The peak value of the blockage effects caused by the TLV breakdown is doubled with the tip gap size increasing from 0.5% to 1.5% blade span.

PIV Maps of Tip Leakage and Secondary Flow Fields on a Low-Speed Turbine Blade Cascade With Moving End Wall

2007 ◽  
Vol 130 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
P. Palafox ◽  
M. L. G. Oldfield ◽  
J. E. LaGraff ◽  
T. V. Jones
Keyword(s):  
Flow Field ◽  
Secondary Flow ◽  
Field Measurements ◽  
Tip Clearance ◽  
Leakage Flow ◽  
Tip Leakage Flow ◽  
Tip Leakage Vortex ◽  
Low Speed ◽  
Tip Leakage ◽  
End Wall

New, detailed flow field measurements are presented for a very large low-speed cascade representative of a high-pressure turbine rotor blade with turning of 110deg and blade chord of 1.0m. Data were obtained for tip leakage and passage secondary flow at a Reynolds number of 4.0×105, based on exit velocity and blade axial chord. Tip clearance levels ranged from 0% to 1.68% of blade span (0% to 3% of blade chord). Particle image velocimetry was used to obtain flow field maps of several planes parallel to the tip surface within the tip gap, and adjacent passage flow. Vector maps were also obtained for planes normal to the tip surface in the direction of the tip leakage flow. Secondary flow was measured at planes normal to the blade exit angle at locations upstream and downstream of the trailing edge. The interaction between the tip leakage vortex and passage vortex is clearly defined, revealing the dominant effect of the tip leakage flow on the tip end-wall secondary flow. The relative motion between the casing and the blade tip was simulated using a motor-driven moving belt system. A reduction in the magnitude of the undertip flow near the end wall due to the moving wall is observed and the effect on the tip leakage vortex examined.

scholarly journals Experimental investigation of the tip leakage flow in a low-speed multistage axial compressor

2020 ◽  
Vol 103 (3) ◽  
pp. 003685042095107
Author(s):  
Jun Li ◽  
Jun Hu ◽  
Chenkai Zhang
Keyword(s):  
Static Pressure ◽  
Axial Compressor ◽  
Stereoscopic Particle Image Velocimetry ◽  
Leakage Flow ◽  
Tip Leakage Flow ◽  
Complex Flow ◽  
Tip Leakage Vortex ◽  
Low Speed ◽  
Tip Leakage ◽  
Multistage Axial Compressor

Casing pressure measurements and Stereoscopic Particle-Image Velocimetry (SPIV) measurements are used together to characterize the behavior of the rotor tip leakage flow at both the design and near-stall conditions in a low-speed multistage axial compressor. A three-dimensional Navier-Stokes solver is also performed for the multistage compressor and the prediction of tip leakage flow is compared with SPIV data and casing dynamic static pressure data. During the experiment 10 high-frequency Kulite transducers are mounted in the outer casing of the rotor 3 to investigate the complex flow near the compressor casing and Fourier analyses of the dynamic static pressure on the casing of the rotor 3 are carried out to investigate the tip leakage flow characteristics. At the same time, the two CCD cameras are arranged at the same side of the laser light sheet, which is suitable for investigating unsteady tip leakage flow in the multistage axial compressor. The SPIV measurements identify that the tip leakage flow exists in the rotor passage. The influence of tip leakage flow leads to the existence of low axial velocity region in the rotor passage and the alternating regions of positive and negative radial velocity indicates the emergence of tip leakage vortex (TLV). The trajectory of the tip leakage vortex moves from the suction surface toward the pressure surface of adjacent blade, which is aligned close to the rotor at the design point (DP). However, the tip leakage vortex becomes unstable and breaks down at the near-stall point (NS), making the vortex trajectory move upstream in the rotor passage and causing a large blockage in the middle of the passage.

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