scholarly journals CFD investigation of flow through a centrifugal compressor diffuser with splitter blades

2021 ◽  
Vol 68 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
M. G. Khalafallah ◽  
H. S. Saleh ◽  
S. M. Ali ◽  
H. M. Abdelkhalek

AbstractThe aerodynamic losses in centrifugal compressors are mainly associated with the separated flow on the suction sides of impeller and diffuser vanes. The overall performance of such compressors can be improved by adding splitter vanes. The present work examines the effect of varying the geometrical location of the splitter vanes in the diffuser on the overall performance of a high-speed centrifugal compressor stage of a small gas turbine. To increase the pressure recovery through the diffuser, two radial sets of vanes are used. The first set of vanes (diffuser-1) is equipped with splitter vanes, placed mid-distance between the main vanes, while the vanes of the second set (diffuser-2) are conventional vanes. Flow through the compressor was simulated using the ANSYS 19 workbench program. Flow characteristics and compressor performance were obtained and analyzed for different circumferential positions of the splitting vanes relative to the main vanes of diffuser-1. The study covered seven positions of the splitter vanes including the original design of the diffuser where the splitter vanes were located at mid-distance between the main vanes. The analysis shows that, at design conditions, selecting the position of the splitter vanes to be nearer to the pressure side of the main vanes improves the stage performance. In the present study, locating the splitters at 33% of the angular distance between the main vanes leads to the best performance, and a significant improvement in the overall stage performance is recorded. The pressure recovery coefficient is raised by about 17%, the pressure ratio is increased by about 1.13%, and the stage efficiency is increased by about 2.01%, compared to the original splitter position. Performance improvement is related to the suppression of the flow separation and the more uniformity of flow. On the contrary, further moving the splitter closer to the main blade, the pressure recovery coefficient is decreased by about 2% than the position of 33% of the angular distance, but still higher than the original position by about 15% and a limited improvement in the compressor performance is noticed. Moving the splitter far out the main blade annihilates the static pressure recovery of the diffuser by about 2:7% compared with the original position. So, for the investigated compressor, the best position of the splitter blade in the circumferential direction, which provides the best stage performance in our parametric analysis, is not necessary to be at the mid-angular distance between the diffuser’s main blades, but it is achieved by moving the splitter to about 33% of the angular distance where the diminished loss from the suppressed flow separation is more prevailing and the instigated friction losses from splitter surfaces are less critical.

Author(s):  
T. Ch. Siva Reddy ◽  
G. V. Ramana Murty ◽  
Prasad Mukkavilli ◽  
D. N. Reddy

Numerical simulation of impeller and low solidity vaned diffuser (LSD) of a centrifugal compressor stage is performed individually using CFX- BladeGen and BladeGenPlus codes. The tip mach number for the chosen study was 0.35. The same configuration was used for experimental investigation for a comparative study. The LSD vane is formed using standard NACA profile with marginal modification at trailing edge. The performance parameters obtained form numerical studies at the exit of impeller and the diffuser have been compared with the corresponding experimental data. These parameters are pressure ratio, polytropic efficiency and flow angle at the impeller exit where as the parameters those have been compared at the exit of diffuser are the static pressure recovery coefficient and the exit flow angle. In addition, the numerical prediction of the blade loading in terms of blade surface pressure distribution on LSD vane has been compared with the corresponding experimental results. Static pressure recovery coefficient and flow angle at diffuser exit is seen to match closely at higher flows. The difference at lower flows could be due to the effect of interaction between impeller and diffuser combinations, as the numerical analysis was done separately for impeller and diffuser and the effect of impeller diffuser interaction was not considered.


Author(s):  
Harri Pitkänen ◽  
Hannu Esa ◽  
Petri Sallinen ◽  
Jaakko Larjola

In this study, centrifugal compressor performance was predicted using CFD. Three-dimensional time-averaged impeller and volute simulations were performed using a Navier–Stokes code. The presented performance prediction method has been divided into three phases. Firstly, the impeller was calculated with a vaneless diffuser. That gives inlet boundary conditions for the volute analysis and the pressure ratio at the diffuser exit. Next, the volute analysis was performed and a static pressure recovery coefficient obtained. Finally, that result was combined with the pressure ratio prediction from the impeller analysis, and the overall compressor performance thus obtained.


1998 ◽  
Vol 122 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-10 ◽  
Author(s):  
V. G. Filipenco ◽  
S. Deniz ◽  
J. M. Johnston ◽  
E. M. Greitzer ◽  
N. A. Cumpsty

This is Part 1 of a two-part paper considering the performance of radial diffusers for use in a high-performance centrifugal compressor. Part 1 reports on discrete-passage diffusers (shown in Fig. 1) while Part 2 describes a test of a straight-channel diffuser designed for equivalent duty. Two builds of discrete-passage diffuser were tested, with 30 and 38 separate passages. Both the 30 and 38 passage diffusers investigated showed comparable range of unstalled operation and similar level of overall diffuser pressure recovery. The paper concentrates on the influence of inlet flow conditions on the pressure recovery and operating range of radial diffusers for centrifugal compressor stages. The flow conditions examined include diffuser inlet Mach number, flow angle, blockage, and axial flow nonuniformity. The investigation was carried out in a specially built test facility, designed to provide a controlled inlet flow field to the test diffusers. The facility can provide a wide range of diffuser inlet velocity profile distortion and skew with Mach numbers up to unity and flow angles of 63 to 75 deg from the radial direction. The consequences of different averaging methods for the inlet total pressure distributions, which are needed in the definition of diffuser pressure recovery coefficient for nonuniform diffuser inlet conditions, were also assessed. The overall diffuser pressure recovery coefficient, based on suitably averaged inlet total pressure, was found to correlate well with the momentum-averaged flow angle into the diffuser. Furthermore, the pressure recovery coefficient was found to be essentially independent of the axial distortion at diffuser inlet, and the Mach number, over the wide flow range (from maximum flow to the beginning of flow instabilities) investigated. It is thus shown that the generally accepted sensitivity of diffuser pressure recovery performance to inlet flow distortion and boundary layer blockage can be largely attributed to inappropriate quantification of the average dynamic pressure at diffuser inlet. Use of an inlet dynamic pressure based on availability or mass-averaging in combination with definition of inlet flow angle based on mass average of the radial and tangential velocity at diffuser inlet removes this sensitivity. [S0889-504X(00)00101-X]


Author(s):  
Victor G. Filipenco ◽  
Sabri Deniz ◽  
J. Mark Johnston ◽  
Edward M. Greitzer ◽  
Nicholas A. Cumpsty

This is Part 1 of a two-part paper considering the performance of radial diffusers for use in a high performance centrifugal compressor. Part 1 reports on discrete-passage diffusers (shown in Fig. 1) while Part 2 describes a test of a straight-channel diffuser designed for equivalent duty. Two builds of discrete-passage diffuser were tested, with 30 and 38 separate passages. Both the 30 and 38 passage diffusers investigated showed comparable range of unstalled operation and similar level of overall diffuser pressure recovery. The paper concentrates on the influence of inlet flow conditions on the pressure recovery and operating range of radial diffusers for centrifugal compressor stages. The flow conditions examined include diffuser inlet Mach number, flow angle, blockage, and axial flow non-uniformity. The investigation was carried out in a specially built test facility, designed to provide a controlled inlet flow field to the test diffusers. The facility can provide a wide range of diffuser inlet velocity profile distortion and skew with Mach numbers up to unity and flow angles of 63° to 75° from the radial direction. The consequences of different averaging methods for the inlet total pressure distributions, which are needed in the definition of diffuser pressure recovery coefficient for non-uniform diffuser inlet conditions were also assessed. The overall diffuser pressure recovery coefficient, based on suitably averaged inlet total pressure, was found to correlate well with the momentum-averaged flow angle into the diffuser. Furthermore the pressure recovery coefficient was found to be essentially independent of the axial distortion at diffuser inlet, and the Mach number, over the wide flow range (from maximum flow to the beginning of flow instabilities) investigated. It is thus shown that the generally accepted sensitivity of diffuser pressure recovery performance to inlet flow distortion and boundary layer blockage can be largely attributed to inappropriate quantification of the average dynamic pressure at diffuser inlet. Use of an inlet dynamic pressure based on availability or mass-averaging in combination with definition of inlet flow angle based on mass average of the radial and tangential velocity at diffuser inlet removes this sensitivity.


Author(s):  
R B Anand ◽  
L Rai ◽  
S N Singh

The effect of the turning angle on the flow and performance characteristics of long S-shaped circular diffusers (length-inlet diameter ratio, L/Di = 11:4) having an area ratio of 1.9 and centre-line length of 600 mm has been established. The experiments are carried out for three S-shaped circular diffusers having angles of turn of 15°/15°, 22.5°/22.5° and 30°/30°. Velocity, static pressure and total pressure distributions at different planes along the length of the diffusers are measured using a five-hole impact probe. The turbulence intensity distribution at the same planes is also measured using a normal hot-wire probe. The static pressure recovery coefficients for 15°/15°, 22.5°/22.5° and 30°/30° diffusers are evaluated as 0.45, 0.40 and 0.35 respectively, whereas the ideal static pressure recovery coefficient is 0.72. The low performance is attributed to the generation of secondary flows due to geometrical curvature and additional losses as a result of the high surface roughness (~0.5 mm) of the diffusers. The pressure recovery coefficient of these circular test diffusers is comparatively lower than that of an S-shaped rectangular diffuser of nearly the same area ratio, even with a larger turning angle (90°/90°), i.e. 0.53. The total pressure loss coefficient for all the diffusers is nearly the same and seems to be independent of the angle of turn. The flow distribution is more uniform at the exit for the higher angle of turn diffusers.


2014 ◽  
Vol 493 ◽  
pp. 145-150 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daru Sugati ◽  
Indarto ◽  
Purnomo ◽  
Sutrisno

Liquid gas ejector uses liquid as the motive fluid and gas as the entrained fluid. The presence of gas in the liquid reduces the performance of the ejector, especially the diffuser. To observe the effect of entrained gas on the diffuser performance, a series of experiment was conducted.In this research, the motive flow rate was varied from 1.52 to 2.02 l/s and the entrained rate from 0.118 l/s to 0.944 l/s. Its effects on the pressure profile and pressure recovery were observed. If the entrained rate increase, the pressure of the throat upstream, as well as downstream, increase. In the diffuser, longer distance is needed for the pressure to reach its final value. Pressure recovery is mainly affected by void fraction. The higher the void fraction the lower the pressure recovery coefficient


2021 ◽  
Vol 2021 ◽  
pp. 1-14
Author(s):  
Shuili Ren ◽  
Peiqing Liu

For turboprop engine, the S-shaped intake affects the engine performance and the propeller is not far in front of the inlet of the S-shaped intake, so the slipstream inevitably affects the flow field in the S-shaped intake and the engine performance. Here, an S-shaped intake with/without propeller is studied by solving Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes equation employed SST k-ω turbulence model. The results are presented as time-averaged results and transient results. By comparing the flow field in S-shaped intake with/without propeller, the transient results show that total pressure recovery coefficient and distortion coefficient on the AIP section vary periodically with time. The time-averaged results show that the influence of propeller slipstream on the performance of S-shaped intake is mainly circumferential interference and streamwise interference. Circumferential interference mainly affects the secondary flow in the S-shaped intake and then affects the airflow uniformity; the streamwise interference mainly affects the streamwise flow separation in the S-shaped intake and then affects the total pressure recovery. The total pressure recovery coefficient on the AIP section for the S-shaped intake with propeller is 1%-2.5% higher than that for S-shaped intake without propeller, and the total pressure distortion coefficient on the AIP section for the S-shaped intake with propeller is 1%-12% higher than that for the S-shaped intake without propeller. However, compared with the free stream flow velocity ( Ma = 0.527 ), the influence of the propeller slipstream belongs to the category of small disturbance, which is acceptable for engineering applications.


1983 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. C. Adkins ◽  
O. H. Jacobsen ◽  
P. Chevalier

A systemmatic series of tests has been conducted on a family of annular diffusers where the outer casing is maintained at constant diameter. Such a diffuser is typical of turbine exits. Data, in the form of static pressure recovery coefficient is plotted against diffuser length for several different designs of centerbody closure. It has been shown that such diffusers can have short length centerbodies for which a set of design guides has been established.


2013 ◽  
Vol 444-445 ◽  
pp. 1345-1349
Author(s):  
Si Yin Zhou ◽  
Wan Sheng Nie ◽  
Bo He ◽  
Xue Ke Che ◽  
Xue Min Tian

How to enhance the combustion and reduce the total pressure loss in scramjet combustor are very critical for the practical application of hypersonic aircraft. Based on the dominant thermal mechanism of arc plasma, the plasma generated in combustor is regarded as a promising method to improve the combustion. As a result, the combustor model with transverse fuel jet and plasma generated by two discharge modes at the upstream of flameholding cavity is established and it is used to study the mechanism of fuel mixing enhancement through numerical investigation. The results show that an oblique shock wave would be formed at the upstream of the pseudo small plasma hump, and interact with the separation shock wave induced by the transverse jet. This results in the recirculation zone at the upstream of fuel jet being enlarged obviously. Besides that, under the non-reaction flow conditions, the total pressure recovery coefficient increases due to the plasma generated. However, the total pressure recovery coefficient varies apparently and the shear layer above the cavity is fluctuant when the plasma is generated by periodical discharge mode. While under the reaction flow conditions, the shear layer develops thicker and the total pressure recovery coefficient decreases. And due to the existing of plasma, the mole fraction of product water increases. But compared with the steady discharge mode, the level of water is lower and the total pressure recovery coefficient decreases more under the periodical discharge mode. Though the plasma generated by steady discharge mode shows better performance in assisting combustion and reducing the pressure loss, considering the energy saving and the use of different parameters of the periodical discharge, the same effects of enhancing the fuel mixing through enlarging the recirculation zone located at the upstream of fuel jet and promoting the mass exchange of cavity can be reached. More numerical experiments have to be done to optimize the parameters of periodical discharge plasma to receive a best improvement on the performance of scramjet combustor.


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