Investigation of In-Stall Behavior in a Transonic Compressor Rotor

Author(s):  
Jinhua Lang ◽  
Wuli Chu ◽  
Haoguang Zhang ◽  
Shan Ma ◽  
Xiangyi Chen

This paper shows the results of three-dimensional multi-passage numerical simulations on a transonic compressor, NASA compressor Rotor 37. The aim is to investigate the unsteady flow on the stall condition and elucidate the dynamic evolution mechanism of the rotating stall. Three-dimensional Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes equations with the Spalart-Allmaras turbulence model were solved to analyze the fluid flow in the transonic axial compressor. Before the study of the stall flow, grid independence and data correctness were well validated. A new parameter B is defined to assess the blockage effect during the stall development. As shown in the results, with the development of the rotating stall, the blockage effect increases slowly before the 18th revolution in unsteady numerical simulation, and then increases dramatically in the following revolutions. Thus, the whole process of stall evolution can be divided into two stages, i.e. stall stage I and stall stage II. The stall stage I is the first 18th revolutions, while the stall stage II refers to the period after the18th revolution. Further analyses of the instantaneous flow field show that the interaction between the tip leakage flow and the detached shock wave induces the breakdown of the leakage vortex. As the broken leakage vortex moves downstream, the low energy flow is rolled up. At the middle of the channel, the trajectory of the vortex core inclines to the PS of adjacent blade under the influence of the adverse pressure gradient, and an obvious new vortex is formed. During the development process of the rotating stall, the blockage is primarily induced by the tip leakage vortex and the new vortex. In the stall stage I, the evolution of the blockage area near the tip is periodic affected by the self-sustaineed process of tip leakage vortex. The self-sustained phenomenon will be illustrated in detail later. In the stall stage II, the whole passage is blocked at 99% blade span, and the spillage flow is observed throughout the whole stage. These flow charicteristics are regarded as signs of a rapid deterioration of the flow field. A vicious cycle is seen as the main reason for the rapid deterioration of the flow field, and the vicious cycle will be explained in detail later.

1997 ◽  
Vol 119 (1) ◽  
pp. 122-128 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. L. Puterbaugh ◽  
W. W. Copenhaver

An experimental investigation concerning tip flow field unsteadiness was performed for a high-performance, state-of-the-art transonic compressor rotor. Casing-mounted high frequency response pressure transducers were used to indicate both the ensemble averaged and time varying flow structure present in the tip region of the rotor at four different operating points at design speed. The ensemble averaged information revealed the shock structure as it evolved from a dual shock system at open throttle to an attached shock at peak efficiency to a detached orientation at near stall. Steady three-dimensional Navier Stokes analysis reveals the dominant flow structures in the tip region in support of the ensemble averaged measurements. A tip leakage vortex is evident at all operating points as regions of low static pressure and appears in the same location as the vortex found in the numerical solution. An unsteadiness parameter was calculated to quantify the unsteadiness in the tip cascade plane. In general, regions of peak unsteadiness appear near shocks and in the area interpreted as the shock-tip leakage vortex interaction. Local peaks of unsteadiness appear in mid-passage downstream of the shock-vortex interaction. Flow field features not evident in the ensemble averaged data are examined via a Navier-Stokes solution obtained at the near stall operating point.


Author(s):  
Chunill Hah ◽  
Douglas C. Rabe ◽  
Thomas J. Sullivan ◽  
Aspi R. Wadia

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.


Author(s):  
Xi Nan ◽  
Feng Lin ◽  
Takehiro Himeno ◽  
Toshinori Watanabe

Casing boundary layer effectively places a limit on the pressure rise capability achievable by the compressor. The separation of the casing boundary layer not only produce flow loss but also closely related to the compressor rotating stall. The motivation of this paper is to present a viewpoint that the casing boundary layer should be paid attention to in parallel with other flow factors on rotating stall trigger. This paper illustrates the casing boundary layer behavior by displaying its separation phenomena with the presence of tip leakage vortex at different flow conditions. Skin friction lines and the corresponding absolute streamlines are used to demonstrate the three-dimensional flow patterns on and near the casing. The results depict a Saddle, a Node and several tufts of skin friction lines dividing the passage into four zones. The tip leakage vortex is enfolded within one of the zones by the separated flows. All the flows in each blade passage are confined within the passage as long as the compressor is stable. The casing boundary layer of a transonic compressor is also examined in the same way, which results in qualitatively similar zonal flows that enfolds the tip leakage vortex. This research develops a new way to study the casing boundary layer in rotating compressors. The results may provide a first-principle based explanation to stalling mechanisms for compressors that are casing sensitive.


Author(s):  
Hongwei Ma ◽  
Haokang Jiang

This paper presents an experimental study of the three-dimensional turbulent flow field in the tip region of an axial flow compressor rotor passage at a near stall condition. The investigation was conducted in a low-speed large-scale compressor using a 3-component Laser Doppler Velocimetry and a high frequency pressure transducer. The measurement results indicate that a tip leakage vortex is produced very close to the leading edge, and becomes the strongest at about 10% axial chord from the leading edge. Breakdown of the vortex periodically occurs at about 1/3 chord, causing very strong turbulence in the radial direction. Flow separation happens on the tip suction surface at about half chord, prompting the corner vortex migrating toward the pressure side. Tangential migration of the low-energy fluids results in substantial flow blockage and turbulence in the rear of a rotor passage. Unsteady interactions among the tip leakage vortex, the separated vortex and the corner flow should contribute to the inception of the rotating stall in a compressor.


1998 ◽  
Vol 120 (2) ◽  
pp. 233-246 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. Hah ◽  
D. C. Rabe ◽  
T. J. Sullivan ◽  
A. R. Wadia

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 eight 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 percent 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.


Author(s):  
K. Yamada ◽  
M. Furukawa ◽  
T. Nakano ◽  
M. Inoue ◽  
K. Funazaki

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.


Author(s):  
Roland Matzgeller ◽  
Melanie Voges ◽  
Michael Schroll

Fluid injection at the tip of highly loaded compressor rotors is known to be very effective in suppressing the onset of rotating stall and eventually compressor instability. To understand the effects of tip injection, the flow field at the tip region of a transonic compressor rotor with and without fluid injection was investigated in this paper. Using results acquired by phase-locked PIV measurements as well as the static pressure field obtained by fast response pressure transducers, the unsteady interaction between the injection jet and the rotor could be described thoroughly. Both, an influence of the rotor’s flow field on the jet as well of the jet on the rotor was clearly visible. Since unsteady inflow conditions to the front rotor in the relative frame of reference were imposed by the injection jets, the rotor’s unsteady response was investigated by inspection of the position of the tip leakage vortex trajectory. It could be shown that due to a short time for the flow to adapt at the rotor’s leading edge, its position didn’t change distinctly. Because a significantly longer time was needed for the overall passage flow to adapt, it was concluded that this causes the beneficial effect of tip injection.


Author(s):  
Martin W. Mu¨ller ◽  
Christoph Biela ◽  
Heinz-Peter Schiffer ◽  
Chunill Hah

The influence of circumferential grooves on the tip flow field of an axial single-stage transonic compressor rotor has been examined experimentally and numerically. The compressor stage provides a strongly increased stall margin with only small penalties in efficiency when the casing treatment is applied. Due to the complex interactions of the grooves with the rotor flow, unsteady measurement techniques have been chosen as an attempt to identify the aerodynamic effects responsible for the operating range extension. Therefore, the casing treatment has been instrumented with piezoresistive pressure sensors in the land between the grooves providing high-resolution static wall pressure measurements at different operating conditions. Data acquisition worked at a sampling rate of 125kHz, providing around 23 static pressure values per blade passage at 11 axial positions at the nominal speed of 20,000 rpm. A comparable dataset, but with 14 sensors, was obtained for the smooth casing. The results show the fluctuation of the tip leakage vortex and shock-vortex-interactions as well as the changed situation with casing treatment. Ensemble-averaged data shows tip leakage vortex trajectories. At near stall conditions with the smooth casing, the vortex hits the front part of the adjacent blade, which indicates the possibility of a spill forward of low momentum fluid into the next passage. Standard deviation values prove a high fluctuation of the pressure field over the tip gap. When the casing treatment is applied, the vortex trajectory maintains alignment along the blade’s suction side, thus preventing the onset of rotating stall. Results are presented as a back-to-back comparison of the smooth casing versus the treated casing at three operating conditions: peak efficiency at a mass flow rate of m˙pe = 16.2kg/s, near stall of the smooth casing at m˙nssc = 14.0kg/s and near stall of the treated casing at m˙ns = 12.6kg/s. Steady and unsteady numerical simulations of the rotor-only flow field have been calculated with and without grooves. These calculations aim at a broad analysis of the occurring flow phenomena at the rotor tip. Tip leakage flow behaviour and vortex trajectories are discussed in detail by summarizing the congruent findings of both numerical and experimental investigations.


Author(s):  
Daisaku Masaki ◽  
Shojiro Kaji

A three-dimensional Navier-Stokes solver based upon a high resolution shock-capturing scheme has been developed in order to analyze complex flow phenomena inside transonic fan/compressor rotors, especially tip clearance flow. The aim of this research is to find out a key element concerned with aerodynamic instability of transonic fan/compressor rotors such as rotating stall and surge by using this newly developed numerical tool. The numerical analysis of this research is twofold. First it investigates the flowfield of a transonic compressor rotor along the design speed operating line. It obtains definite flow structures around the tip region and clear description of the transition of the flow pattern inside the clearance gap between operating points, which shows that shock-tip leakage vortex interaction plays an important role on both loss generation and the failure of steady flow, or surge. A model will be proposed on the onset of tip stall in transonic compressor rotors according to the calculated results. Secondly, the above model will be examined through a series of numerical experiments by altering tip clearance height white keeping the design speed. From qualitative point of view, the model works fairly well and seems geometry-independent for typical transonic fan/compressor rotors. A clue to the optimum clearance is also obtained.


Author(s):  
Song Yan ◽  
Wuli Chu

The performance curve of the compressor is limited by the surge boundary, so it is of great significance to increase the stable working range of the compressor. The self-circulating casing treatment is an effective way to improve the stable working range of the compressor. In this paper, the study of the influence of the injector position of the self-circulating casing treatment on the transonic axial flow compressor rotor performance is carried out by using the numerical simulation. The influence mechanism of the injector position on the enhancing stability effect of the self-circulating casing treatment is revealed. It is found that the self-circulating casing treatment can reduce the blade tip blockage by restraining the blade tip clearance leakage flow and changing the trajectory of the tip clearance leakage vortex, thus delaying the deterioration of the rotor tip flow field and improving the rotor stability. When the injector position of the self-circulating casing treatment moves from the upstream of the leading edge of the blade tip to the trailing edge of the blade tip, the enhancing stability effect of the self-circulating casing treatment increases first and then decreases. But the high-velocity jet from the injector of the self-circulating casing treatment aggravates the mixing loss of the rotor tip flow field, so that the rotor efficiency slightly decreases after using the self-circulating casing treatment.


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