Effect of Various Trench Designs on Axial Compressor Blade Tip Aerodynamics

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ashwin Ashok ◽  
Patur Ananth Vijay Sidhartha ◽  
Shine Sivadasan
Keyword(s):  
Axial Compressor ◽  
Leading Edge ◽  
Suction Side ◽  
Horseshoe Vortex ◽  
Tip Clearance ◽  
Compressor Cascade ◽  
Tip Leakage Vortex ◽  
Stall Margin ◽  
Casing Treatment ◽  
Tip Leakage

Abstract Tip clearance of axial compressor blades allows leakage of the flow, generates significant losses and reduces the compressor efficiency. The present paper aims to discuss the axial compressor tip aerodynamics for various configurations of tip gap with trench. The various configurations are obtained by varying the clearance, trench depth, step geometry and casing contouring. In this paper the axial compressor aerodynamics for various configurations of tip gap with trench have been studied. The leakage flow structure, vorticity features and entropy generations are analyzed using RANS based CFD. The linear compressor cascade comprises of NACA 651810 blade with clearance height varied from 0.5% to 2% blade span. Trail of the tip leakage vortex and the horseshoe vortex on the blade suction side are clearly seen for the geometries with and without casing treatments near the stalling point. Since the trench side walls are similar to forward/backing steps, a step vortex is observed near the leading edge as well as trailing edge of the blade and is not seen for the geometry without the casing treatment. Even though the size of the tip leakage vortex seams to be reduces by providing a trench to the casing wall over the blade, the presence of additional vortices like the step vortex leads to comparatively higher flow losses. An increase in overall total pressure loss due to the application of casing treatment is observed. However an increase in stall margin for the geometries with casing is noted.

scholarly journals Experimental Study on the Three Dimensional Flow Within a Compressor Cascade With Tip Clearance: Part I — Velocity and Pressure Fields

1992 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shun Kang ◽  
Ch. Hirsch
Keyword(s):  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Leading Edge ◽  
Suction Side ◽  
Horseshoe Vortex ◽  
Surface Flow ◽  
Tip Clearance ◽  
Tip Vortex ◽  
Compressor Cascade ◽  
Tip Leakage Vortex ◽  
Tip Leakage

Experimental results from a study of the 3-D flow in a linear compressor cascade with stationary endwall at design conditions are presented for tip clearance levels of 1.0, 2.0 and 3.3 percent of chord, compared with the no clearance case. In addition to five-hole probe measurements, extensive surface flow visualizations are conducted. It is observed that for the smaller clearance cases a weak horseshoe vortex forms in the front of the blade leading edge. At all the tip gap cases, a multiple tip vortex structure with three discrete vortices around the midchord is found. The tip leakage vortex core is well defined after the midchord but does not cover a significantly great area in traverse planes. The presence of the tip leakage vortex results in the passage vortex moving close to the endwall and to the suction side.

Experimental Study on the Three-Dimensional Flow Within a Compressor Cascade With Tip Clearance: Part I—Velocity and Pressure Fields

1993 ◽  
Vol 115 (3) ◽  
pp. 435-443 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Kang ◽  
C. Hirsch
Keyword(s):  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Leading Edge ◽  
Surface Flow ◽  
Tip Clearance ◽  
Tip Vortex ◽  
Compressor Cascade ◽  
Three Dimensional Flow ◽  
Tip Leakage Vortex ◽  
Tip Leakage ◽  
Dimensional Flow

Experimental results from a study of the three-dimensional flow in a linear compressor cascade with stationary endwall at design conditions are presented for tip clearance levels of 1.0, 2.0, and 3.3 percent of chord, compared with the no-clearance case. In addition to five-hole probe measurements, extensive surface flow visualizations are conducted. It is observed that for the smaller clearance cases a weak horseshoe vortex forms in the front of the blade leading edge. At all the tip gap cases, a multiple tip vortex structure with three discrete vortices around the midchord is found. The tip leakage vortex core is well defined after the midchord but does not cover a significant area in traverse planes. The presence of the tip leakage vortex results in the passage vortex moving close to the endwall and the suction side.

Experimental and Numerical Investigation of Effect of Center Offset Degree on Compressor Stability With Circumferential Grooved Casing Treatment

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
HaoGuang Zhang ◽  
Feng Tan ◽  
YanHui Wu ◽  
WuLi Chu ◽  
Wei Wang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Axial Compressor ◽  
Leading Edge ◽  
Groove Depth ◽  
Tip Clearance ◽  
Central Difference ◽  
Stall Margin ◽  
Casing Treatment ◽  
Compressor Rotor ◽  
Stall Margin Improvement ◽  
Blade Tip

For compressor blade tip stall, one effective way of extending stable operating range is with the application of circumferential grooved casing treatment and its validity was proved by a lot of experimental and numerical investigations. The emphases of most circumferential grooved investigations are focused on the influence of groove depth and groove number on compressor stability, and there is few investigations dealt with the center offset degree of circumferential grooves casing treatment. Hence, an axial compressor rotor with casing treatment (CT) was investigated with experimental and numerical methods to explore the effect of center offset degree on compressor stability and performance. In the work reported here, The center offset degree is defined as the ratio of the central difference between rotor tip axial chord and CT to the axial chord length of rotor tip. When the center of CT is located within the upstream direction of the center of rotor tip axial chord, the value of center offset degree is positive. The experimental and numerical results show that stall margin improvement gained with CT is reduced as the value of center offset degree varies from 0 to 0.33 or −0.33, and the CT with −0.33 center offset degree achieves the lowest value of stall margin improvement at 53% and 73% design rotational speed. The detailed analysis of the flow-field in compressor tip indicates that there is not positive effect made by grooves on leading edge of rotor blade tip when the value of center offset degree is −0.33. As the mass flow of compressor reduces further, tip clearance leakage flow results in the outlet blockage due to the absence of the positive action of grooves near blade tip tail when the value of center offset degree is 0.33. Blockage does not appear in rotor tip passage owing to utilizing the function of all grooves with CT of 0 center offset degree.

Experimental Study on the Three-Dimensional Flow Within a Compressor Cascade With Tip Clearance: Part II—The Tip Leakage Vortex

1993 ◽  
Vol 115 (3) ◽  
pp. 444-450 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Kang ◽  
C. Hirsch
Keyword(s):  
Vortex Core ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Leading Edge ◽  
Tip Clearance ◽  
Tip Vortex ◽  
Vortex Center ◽  
Compressor Cascade ◽  
Suction Surface ◽  
Tip Leakage Vortex ◽  
Tip Leakage

An analysis of the experimental data of a linear compressor cascade with tip clearance is presented with special attention to the development of the tip leakage vortex. A method for determining the tip vortex core size, center position, and vorticity or circulation from the measured data is proposed, based on the assumption of a circular tip vortex core. It is observed that the axial velocity profile passing through the tip vortex center is wavelike. The vorticity of the tip vortex increases rapidly near the leading edge and reaches its highest values at a short distance downstream, from which it gradually decreases. In the whole evolution, its size is growing and its center is moving away from both the suction surface and the endwall, approximately in a linear way.

CFD Investigation on the Circumferential Grooves Casing Treatment of Transonic Compressor

2008 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xudong Huang ◽  
Haixin Chen ◽  
Song Fu
Keyword(s):  
Vortex Breakdown ◽  
Leading Edge ◽  
Tip Clearance ◽  
Groove Width ◽  
Mechanism Analysis ◽  
Stall Margin ◽  
Casing Treatment ◽  
Tip Leakage ◽  
Transonic Compressor ◽  
Edge Separation

The performance of NASA Rotor 37 with Circumferential Grooves Casing Treatment (CGCT) is studied with an in-house CFD code NSAWET. Based on the stall mechanism analysis, a number of CGCT configurations have been proposed and numerically tested. The computation results show that the stall mechanisms are strongly related with the width of tip clearance. With a small tip clearance, the stall process is dominated by the trailing edge separation, while the leading edge tip leakage vortex breakdown induced blockage causes stall in a large tip clearance configuration. Circumferential grooves at appropriate axial locations can be beneficial to the stall margin in these two types of stall processes. The effects of the groove width and depth are presented. The mechanisms of CGCT for different tip clearances are also discussed.

A Study of Performance and Flow Mechanism of a Slot-Groove Hybrid Casing Treatment in a Low-Speed Compressor

2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Juan Du ◽  
Fan Li ◽  
Jichao Li ◽  
Ning Ma ◽  
Feng Lin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Axial Compressor ◽  
Suction Side ◽  
Tip Leakage Flow ◽  
Stall Margin ◽  
Low Speed ◽  
High Entropy ◽  
Casing Treatment ◽  
Tip Leakage ◽  
Flow Loss ◽  
The Difference

A “slot-groove” hybrid casing treatment (CT) is proposed elicited from the recent research on the role of axial location for stall margin improvement (SMI). This combination is expected to display the advantages of both slots and grooves while minimizing their disadvantages. A comparative study is conducted among the “slot-groove”, traditional circumferential groove CT (called the “full-groove” CT) and axial skewed slot CT (known as the “full-slot” CT) to evaluate performance and to explore the stability enhancement and efficiency loss mechanisms of the “slot-groove” CT in a low-speed axial compressor. Results of the combination of laboratory tests and computational fluid dynamics (CFD) data demonstrate that the performance level of the hybrid CT lies in between those two traditional CTs. Simulation results indicate that the difference in the SMIs generated by CTs is closely related to their influences on the vortex trajectory of tip leakage. The stronger and tighter the vortex is, the more the vortex trajectory is inclined toward the blade suction side. Consequently, the interface between tip leakage flow and incoming main flow is pushed downstream and stability is enhanced. The flow loss induced by CTs is explored based on the entropy contours, and the high entropy in the “slot-groove” treated casing produces more efficiency decrease than the “full-groove” CT. Incorporating the “full-slot” CT not only increases entropy generation in the axial skewed slots but also induces considerable flow loss in the blade passage near the casing, thus reducing efficiency most significantly.

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.

scholarly journals Experimental Study on the Three Dimensional Flow Within a Compressor Cascade With Tip Clearance: Part II — The Tip Leakage Vortex

1992 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shun Kang ◽  
Ch. Hirsch
Keyword(s):  
Vortex Core ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Leading Edge ◽  
Tip Clearance ◽  
Tip Vortex ◽  
Compressor Cascade ◽  
Suction Surface ◽  
Tip Leakage Vortex ◽  
Tip Leakage ◽  
Vortex Centre

An analysis of the experimental data of a linear compressor cascade with tip clearance is presented with special attention to the development of the tip leakage vortex. A method for determining the tip vortex core size, centre position and vorticity or circulation from the measured data is proposed, based on the assumption of a circular tip vortex core. It is observed that the axial velocity profile passing through the tip vortex centre is wake-like. The vorticity of the tip vortex increases rapidly near the leading edge and reaches its highest values at a short distance downstream, from which it gradually decreases. In the whole evolution, its size is growing and its centre is moving away from both the suction surface and the endwall, approximately in a linear way.

The Impact of Casing Groove Location on Stall Margin and Tip Clearance Flow in a Low-Speed Axial Compressor

2016 ◽  
Vol 138 (12) ◽  
Author(s):  
Du Juan ◽  
Li Jichao ◽  
Gao Lipeng ◽  
Lin Feng ◽  
Chen Jingyi
Keyword(s):  
Axial Compressor ◽  
Leading Edge ◽  
Suction Side ◽  
Tip Clearance ◽  
Tip Leakage Flow ◽  
Stall Inception ◽  
Stall Margin ◽  
Tip Clearance Flow ◽  
Clearance Flow ◽  
The Impact

In this study, the impact of single grooves at different locations on compressor stability and tip clearance flow are numerically and experimentally investigated. Initially, the numerical stall margin improvement (SMI) curve is examined using experimental data. Then, the evolution of the interface between the tip leakage flow (TLF) and the incoming main flow (MF) in the prestall and stall inception processes for two typical grooves, i.e., the worst and the optimal grooves in terms of their SMI, are compared with the smooth casing. The results show two different interface behaviors throughout the throttling process. The compressor with the worst single groove casing first experiences a long-length-scale disturbance after the interface near the blade suction side spills in front of the rotor leading-edge plane, and then goes through spikes after the whole interface spills. With the smooth casing and the optimal single groove near midchord, the interface reaches the rotor leading edge at the last stable operating point and spikes appear once the whole interface spills over the rotor leading edge. A model that illustrates the spillage patterns of the interface for the two stall precursors is thus proposed accordingly and used to explain their effectiveness in terms of the SMI. At last, the relevance of these results to the preliminary selection of groove locations for multigroove casing treatments (CTs) is verified by test data and discussed.

Effects of Tip Clearance on the Stall Inception Process in an Axial Compressor Rotor

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kazutoyo Yamada ◽  
Hiroaki Kikuta ◽  
Masato Furukawa ◽  
Satoshi Gunjishima ◽  
Yasunori Hara
Keyword(s):  
Vortex Breakdown ◽  
Axial Compressor ◽  
Leading Edge ◽  
Tip Clearance ◽  
Tip Leakage Vortex ◽  
Stall Inception ◽  
Tip Leakage ◽  
Compressor Rotor ◽  
Flow Phenomena ◽  
Casing Pressure

The paper presents experimental and numerical studies on the effects of tip clearance on the stall inception process in a low-speed axial compressor rotor with a large tip clearance. It has been revealed that in the small tip clearance case, shortly after the spike disturbance which results from the leading-edge separation near the rotor tip appears, the tornado-like vortex is generated by the separation, and soon the compressor falls into stall. In the large tip clearance case, the experiment showed that the performance characteristic differs from that in the small tip clearance case at near-stall conditions. This implies that the stall inception process differs with the tip clearance size. The flow phenomenon in the stall inception leading to such difference has been investigated in this study. Pressure and velocity fields which were ensemble-averaged and phase-locked by the periodic multi-sampling technique were measured on the casing wall and downstream of the rotor, respectively. In addition, to capture the unsteady flow phenomena inside the rotor, “Instantaneous Casing Pressure Field Measurement” was carried out: instantaneous casing pressure fields in one rotor passage region were measured by 30 high response pressure transducers mounted on the casing wall. In order to investigate further details of near-stall flow field for the large tip clearance, DES (Detached Eddy Simulation) has been conducted using a computational mesh with 120 million points. The results are compared with those from previous studies for the small tip clearance. As expected, the measurement results show notable differences in the near-stall flow field between the two tip clearance cases. The results from the casing pressure measurement show that high pressure fluctuation appears on the pressure side near the rotor leading-edge in the large tip clearance case. In the result of the velocity field measurement downstream of the rotor, high turbulence intensity is found near the casing in the large tip clearance case. The numerical results reveal that the vortex breakdown occurs in the tip leakage vortex and induces the oscillation of the tip leakage vortex with its unsteady nature. The flow phenomena confirmed in the experimental results are clearly explained by considering the breakdown of the tip leakage vortex. The vortex breakdown gives rise to not only large blockage but also the rotating disturbance through the interaction of the fluctuating tip leakage vortex with the pressure surface of the adjacent blade, and governs the stall inception process.

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