An improved deviation model for transonic stages in axial compressors

Deviation model is an important model for through-flow analysis in axial compressors.Theoretical analysis in classical deviation models is developed under the assumption of onedimensional flow,which is controlled by the continuity equation.To consider three-dimensional characteristics in transonic flow,this study proposes an improved theoretical analysis method combining force analysis of the blade-to-blade flow with conventional analysis of the continuity equation.Influences of shock structures on transverse force,streamwise velocity and streamline curvature in the blade-to-blade flow are analyzed,and support the analytical modelling of density flow ratio between inlet and outlet conditions.Thus,a novel deviation model for transonic stages in axial compressors is proposed in this paper.The empirical coefficients are corrected based on the experimental data of a linear cascade,and the prediction accuracy is validated with the experimental data of a three-stage transonic compressor.The novel model provides accurate predictions for meridional flow fields at the design point and performance curves at design speed,and shows obvious improvements on classical models by Carter and C¸etin.

Numerical and experimental study of bleed impact in multistage axial compressors

In this study,the influence of inter-stage bleeding on the compressor performance and inter-stage flow field of a multistage axial compressor is investigated by both experimental and numerical methods.The experiment is conducted on a four-stage low-speed axial compressor,and a specific computational model is built to simulate the experiment environment accurately.To illuminate the fluid mechanisms of bleeding effect in detail,both the experiment and the simulation are carried out twice,i.e.,in the first time,the mass flow rate upstream the bleed location is constant under different bleed rate conditions;while in the second time,the mass flow rate downstream the bleed location is constant under different bleed rate conditions.The results demonstrate that inter-stage bleeding has little influence on upstream compressor characteristics,and affects the upstream flow field only in the rear half of the stator.The bleed effect on the downstream flow field is embodied in the variation of an incoming flow profile,an increase as the compressor inlet flow coefficient decreases.Therefore,such an effect is only significant on compressor characteristics at small flow coefficient conditions.In multistage compressors,the variation of compressor characteristics and flow field caused by inter-stage bleeding is the comprehensive result of the bleeding and the variation of the upstream working condition.In addition,the comparison between numerical and experimental results shows that the flow moves towards top half of span through the downstream rotor passage in the numerical simulation,whereas the trend of flow field variation with different bleed rates at the outlet of the downstream rotor and stator is the same with that at the inlet of the downstream rotor in the experiment,which means that the numerical method has overestimated the radial mixing intensity of the flow.

Numerical and experimental investigation of quantitative relationship between secondary flow intensity and inviscid blade force in axial compressors

The secondary flow attracts wide concerns in the aeroengine compressors since it has become one of the major loss sources in modern high-performance compressors.But the research about the quantitative relationship between secondary flow and inviscid blade force needs to be more detailed.In this paper,a database of 889 three-dimensional linear cascades was built.An indicator,called Secondary Flow Intensity(SFI),was used to express the loss caused by secondary flow.The quantitative relationship between the SFI and inviscid blade force deterioration was researched.Blade oil flow and Computation Fluid Dynamics(CFD)results of some cascades were also used to cross-validate.Results suggested that all numerical cascade cases can be divided into 3 clusters by the SFI,which are called Clusters A,B and C in the order of the increasing SFI indicator.The corner stall,known as the strong corner separation,only happens when the SFI is high.Both calculations and oil flow experiments show that the SFI would stay at a low level if the vortex core at the endwall surface does not appear.The strong interaction of Kutta condition and endwall cross-flow is considered the dominant mechanism of higher secondary flow losses,rather than the secondary flow penetration depth on the suction surface.In conclusion,the inviscid blade force spanwise deterioration is strongly related to the SFI.The correlation of the SFI and spanwise inviscid blade force deterioration is given in this paper.The correlation could provide a quantitative reference for estimating secondary flow losses in the design.

A stall diagnosis method based on entropy feature identification in axial compressors

A stall diagnosis method based on the entropy feature extraction algorithm is developed in axial compressors.The reliability of the proposed method is determined and a parametric sensitivity analysis is experimentally conducted for two different types of compressor stall diagnoses.A collection of time‐resolved pressure sensors is mounted circumferentially and along the chord direction to measure the dynamic pressure on the casing.Results show that the stall and prestall precursor embedded in the dynamic pressures are identified through nonlinear feature perturbation extraction using the entropy feature extraction algorithm.Further analysis demonstrates that the prestall precursor with the peak entropy value is related to the unsteady tip leakage flow for the spike‐type stall diagnosis.The modal wave inception with increasing amplitude is identified by the considerable increase of the entropy value.The flow field in the tip region indicates that the modal wave corresponds to the flow separation in the suction side of the rotor blade.The warning time is 100–300 rotor revolutions for both types of stall diagnoses,which is beneficial for stall control in different axial compressors.Moreover,a parametric study of the embedding dimension m,similar tolerance n,similar radius r,and data length N in the fuzzy entropy method is conducted to determine the optimal parameter setting for stall diagnosis.The stall warning based on the entropy feature extraction algorithm provides a new stall diagnosis approach in the axial compressor with different stall types.This stall warning can also be adopted as an online stability monitoring index when using the concept of active stall control.

Using tandem blades to break loading limit of highly loaded axial compressors

It is confirmed that tandem-blade configurations have potential to enlarge the flow turning in two-dimension(2D) studies. However, the potential of tandem blades to enlarge the design space for highly loaded axial compressors was rarely investigated in open literatures. The present work aims to show the capability of tandem blades to break the loading limit of conventional blades for highly loaded compressors. The 2D models of the maximum static pressure rise derived in previous work were validated by a large amount experimental data, which showed a good agreement. An E parameter was defined to evaluate the stall margin of compressor based on the theoretical models, which indicated that the tandem blade was able to increase the loading limit of axial compressors. A single-blade stage with a loading coefficient of 0.46(based on the blade tip rotating speed) was designed as the baseline case under the guidance of the E parameter. A tandem-blade stage was then designed by ensuring that the velocity triangles were similar to the single-blade stage. The performances of both stages were investigated experimentally. The results showed that the maximum efficiency of the tandem-blade stage was 92.8%, 1% higher than the single;the stall margin increased from 16.9% to 22.3%. Besides, the maximum pressure rise of tandem rotors was beyond the loading limit of 2D single-blade cascades, which confirmed the potential of tandem blades to break the loading limit of axial compressors.

A high-order model of rotating stall in axial compressors with inlet distortion

In this paper,a high-order distortion model is proposed for analyzing the rotating stall inception process induced by inlet distortion in axial compressors.A distortion-generating screen in the compressor inlet is considered.By assuming a quadratic function for the local flow total pressure-drop,the existing Mansoux model is extended to include the effects of static inlet distortion,and a new high-order distortion model is derived.To illustrate the effectiveness of the distortion model,numerical simulations are performed on an eighteenth-order model.It is demonstrated that long length-scale disturbances emerge out of the distorted background flow,and further induce the onset of rotating stall in advance.In addition,the circumferential non-uniform distribution and time evolution of the axial flow are also shown to be consistent with the existing features.It is thus shown that the high-order distortion model is capable of describing the transient behavior of stall inception and will contribute further to stall detection under inlet distortion.

Multi-scale nature of non-blade-order propagating flow disturbances in axial compressors

Non-blade-order flow disturbances, also referred to as pre-stall disturbances or tip flow unsteadiness, are closely related with compressor instabilities. The present work provides a comprehensive investigation on multi-scale nature of non-blade-order disturbances and the underlying flow physics in axial compressors. By applying full-annulus Unsteady Reynolds-Averaged Navier-Stokes(URANS) simulations, along with space–time correlation and spatial Fourier decomposition, to the disturbed pressure, the propagating feature of the non-blade-order disturbances is obtained. Further, a bridge between non-blade-order disturbances and the evolution of unsteady vortex has been set up. The results show that non-blade-order disturbances, featured as short-length-scale(35 modes across annulus), first appear as the occurrence of tip leakage vortex fluctuation, while the compressor still operates far from stall. Leading-edge radial vortex appears at near stall condition, and its movement induces a circumferential propagating disturbance overlaying on the one induced by oscillating tip leakage vortex. The interaction of the short-scale disturbances with a lowamplitude long-scale(of circumference) disturbance is observed, which results in disturbances with multiple scales of consecutive spatial modes, along with multiple frequency peaks in spectra. The compressor falls into stall as the circumferential nonuniform scattering of the leading-edge vortexes occurs. The densely-and sparsely-scattered leading-edge radial vortexes induce a high-amplitude long-scale(of circumference) disturbance , i.e. stall disturbance.

Alleviation of spike stall in axial compressors utilizing grooved casing treatment

Abstract This article deals with application of grooved type casing treatment for suppression of spike stall in an isolated axial compressor rotor blade row. The continuous grooved casing treatment covering the whole compressor circumference is of 1.8 mm in depth and located between 90% and 108% chord of the blade tip as measured from leading edge. The method of investigation is based on time-accurate three-dimensional full annulus numerical simulations for cases with and without casing treatment. Discretization of the Navier Stokes equations has been carried out based on an upwind second-order scheme and k-a-SST （Shear Stress Transport） turbulence modeling has been used for estimation of eddy viscosity. Time-dependent flow structure results for the smooth casing reveal that there are two criteria for spike stall inception known as leading edge spillage and trailing edge backftow, which occur at specific mass flow rates in near-stall conditions. In this case, two dominant stall cells of different sizes could be observed. The larger one is caused by the spike stall covering roughly two blade passages in the circumferential direction and about 25% span in the radial direction. Spike stall disturbances are accompanied by lower frequencies and higher amplitudes of the pressure signals. Casing treatment causes flow blockages to reduce due to allevi- ation of backflow regions, which in turn reduces the total pressure loss and increases the axial veloc- ity in the blade tip gap region, as well as tip leakage flow fluctuation at higher frequencies and lower amplitudes. Eventually, it can be concluded that the casing treatment of the stepped tip gap type could increase the stall margin of the compressor. This fact is basically due to retarding the movement of the interface region between incoming and tip leakage flows towards the rotor leading edge Diane and suttressing the reversed flow around the blade trailing edee.

Dynamic Simulations of Post-stall Performance in Multistage Axial Compressors

In this contribution a quasi-one-dimensional tool for stationary and transient simulations of post-stall flows in multistage axial compressors is presented. An adapted version of the 1D Euler equations with additional source terms is discretized with a finite volume method and solved in time by a fourth-order Runge-Kutta scheme. The equations are discretized at midspan both inside the blade rows and the non-bladed regions. The source terms express the blade-flow interactions and are estimated by calculating the velocity triangles for each blade row. Loss and deviation correlations are implemented and compared to experimental data in normal flow, stalled flow and reversed flow regions. Transient simulations are carried out and a parameter study is presented to analyze the shape of the surge cycles and the frequency of the surge oscillations. At last, a bleeding control strategy is implemented to study the recoverability of the instabilities in a compression system.

An improved prediction model for corner stall in axial compressors with dihedral effect

Corner stall predictions are important and difficult in axial compressors.However,all of the prediction models have proved to be ineffective for advanced compressor blades,which tend to use the combined sweep and dihedral.As for the prediction parameter DL,although it effectively modeled the effects of the adverse pressure gradient and secondary flow,it failed to predict the corner stall of curved blades because the model failed to consider the intersection of the boundary layer at the corner region.In this paper,the shape factor gradientψof the boundary layer at the corner region was investigated by numerically studying specially shaped expansion pipes under different adverse pressure gradients.The improved prediction parameter DJ was presented based on the model of ψ and the circumferential pressure gradient ζ.A comparison of the critical range of the prediction parameters DL and DJ was investigated using the NACA65 cascade database,which was established by a numerical method.Then,the stall criterion was validated according to the experimental results of various test facilities with different blade geometries and experimental conditions.The results show that the improved prediction parameter is able to predict the corner separation/stall flows and is in good agreement with the experimental results for axial compressors with three-dimensional designed blades.

Aerodynamic Design and Analysis of a Low-reaction Axial Compressor Stage

There is introduced a new low-reaction, highly-loaded axial compressor design concept which is coupled with boundary layer suction method. The characteristic features of the concept are made clear through its comparison with the MIT boundary layer suction compressor. Also are pointed out the potential applications of this concept as well as its key technological problems. Based on this concept, a single-stage, low-reaction and low-speed axial compressor is constructed in association with analysis and computation of boundary layer suction on vanes with the aid of a three-dimensional numerical approach. The results attest to the effectiveness of this way to control separation in blade cascades by the boundary layer suction and the feasibility of this proposed design concept.

Effects of Deposition Models on Deposition and Performance Deterioration in Axial Compressor Cascade

A new particle deposition model, namely partial deposition model, is developed in order to improve the accuracy of prediction to particle deposition. Concepts of critical velocity and critical angle are proposed and used to determine whether particles are deposited or not. The comparison of numerical results calculated by partial deposition model and existing deposition model shows that the deposition distribution obtained by partial deposition model is more reasonable. Based on the predicted deposition results, the change of total pressure loss coefficient with operating time and the distribution of pressure coefficients on blade surface after 500 hours are predicted by using partial deposition model.

Experimental investigation about the effect of non-axisymmetric wake impact on a low speed axial compressor

Non-axisymmetric wake impact experiments were carried out after the best exciting frequency for a low speed axial compressor had been found by axisymmetric wake impact experiments. When the number and circumferential distribution of inlet guide vanes （IGV） are logical, the wakes of non-axisymmetric IGVs can exert beneficial unsteady exciting effect on their downstream rotor flow fields and improve the compressor＇s performance. In the present paper, four non-axisymmetric wake impact plans were found working better than the axisymmetric wake impact plan. Compared with the base plan, the best non-axisymmetric plan increased the compressor＇s peak efficiency, and the total pressure rise by 1.1 and 2%, and enhanced the stall margin by 4.4%. The main reason why non-axisymmetric plans worked better than the axisymmetric plan was explained as the change of the unsteady exciting signal arising from IGV wakes. Besides the high-frequency components, the nonaxisymmetric plan generated a beneficial low-frequency square-wave exciting signal and other secondary frequency components. Compared with the axisymmetric plan, multifrequency exciting wakes arising from the non-axisymmetric plans are easier to get coupling relation with complex vortices such as clearance vortices, passage vortices and shedding vortices.

INVESTIGATING MULTISTAGE AXIAL FLOW COMPRESSOR INSTABILITIES

A numerical methodology for investigating compressor instabilities in a multistage environment is presented. The method is based on a stage-by-stage dynamic compression model and considers air compressibility explicitly throughout the compressor. It involves discretizing the compression system into distinct elements and a use of the local elemental characteristic of mean performance. The models are presented in both nonlinear and linearized forms. The linearised form permits well surge condition prediction for multistage axial compressors, while the non-linear form is able to investigate the growth of local flow disturbances, and helps to develop practical control strategy. Validations were carried out using the data from several aircraft engine compressors. A good experiment-model consistency is achieved.

NUMERICAL INVESTIGATION OF AXIAL FLOW COMPRESSOR CASING TREATMENT

Using an inviscid model with inlet total pressure gradient and a J. D. Denton scheme, this paper for the first time numerically solves the 3D flow field of compressor casing treatment, and also explores some boundary singularities and numerical stability. Agreement is attained in qualitative explanations of some, casing treatment test results and its mechanism.

Effects of circumferential configuration concerning splitter blade on the aerodynamic performance in a transonic axial fan

For a certain type of transonic axial fan, the flow field of a fan rotor with splitter blade was computed by numerical simulation, and the shape of the rotor was modified. The effects of different circumferential distributions concerning the splitter cascades upon the aerodynamic performance were investigated. The studies show that the optimum splitter cascade is not very close to the suction side of main blade. The load between the main blade and the splitter blade can be soundly distributed in terms of the adjustment of circumferential position of the splitter blade. The best aerodynamic performance can be successfully obtained according to the optimum shape of the expanding fluid channel reasonably formed by the splitter blade and the main blade.

Early detection of rotating stallin axial flow compressors via deterministic learning:detectability analysis

Rotating stall and surge are two violent unstable phenomena of an aero-engine compressor.The early detection of rotating stall is a critical and difficult issue in the operation of a compressor.Recently,a deterministic learning based stall inception detection approach(SIDA)has been developed for modeling and detecting stall inception in aero-engine compressors.This paper considers the derivation of analytical results on the detection capabilities for the SIDA based on deterministic learning.First,by utilizing the input/output stability of the residual system,a detectability condition of the SIDA is presented,and how to choose the parameters of the diagnostic system is also analyzed.Second,based on the relationship between NN approximation capabilities and radial basis function(RBF)network structures,the influence of RBF network structures on the performance properties of the SIDA is analyzed.Finally,a simulation study is presented,in which the Mansoux-C2 compressor model is utilized to verify the effectiveness of the proposed SIDA.

Effect of wire mesh casing treatment on axial compressor performance and stability

In this paper,a kind of Wire Mesh Casing Treatment(WMCT)is proposed to improve the stable operating range of the compressor.In contrast to the traditional circumferential groove,as for WMCT,a layer of wire mesh is laid on the surface of the circumferential groove.Parametric studies were conducted on the low-speed axial flow compressor,including the groove width,axial location,and mesh count.The optimum axial location for WMCT is related to its groove width.A higher wire mesh count results in a smaller compressor stall margin improvement.Steady simulations were carried out to study the effect of WMCT on the flow structure of the compressor.The wire mesh in the WMCT has a certain flow resistance,which restricts the flow into and out of the groove.Due to the WMCT,the flow parameter in the tip region of the rotor is less sensitive to changes in the operating conditions of the compressor.The WMCT causes the rotor tip blade loading to shift backward,inhibiting the formation of spill forward of the leakage flow,and thus improving the stability of the compressor.The flow resistance on the groove surface is a new degree-of-freedom for the casing treatment designer.

Experimental and Numerical Investigation of Non-synchronous Blade Vibration Excitation in a Transonic Axial Compressor

The complex flow phenomenon of rotating instability(RI) and its induced non-synchronous vibration(NSV) have become a significant challenge as they continuously increase aerodynamic load.This study aims to provide an understanding of the non-synchronous blade vibration phenomenon caused by the rotating instability of a transonic axial compressor rotor.In this case,blade vibrations and non-synchronous excitation are captured by strain gauges and unsteady wall pressure transducer sensors.Unsteady numerical simulations for a full-annulus configuration are used to obtain the non-synchronous flow excitation.The results show that the first-stage rotor blade exhibits an NSV close to the first bending mode;NSV is accompanied by a sharp increase in pressure pulsation;amplitude can reach 20%,and unsteady aerodynamic frequency will lock in a structural mode frequency when the blade vibrates in a large-amplitude motion.The predicted NSV frequency aligns well with the experimental results.The dominant mode of circumferential instability flow structure is approximately 47% of the number blades,and the cell size occupies 2-3 pitches in the circumferential direction.The full-annulus unsteady simulations demonstrate that the streamwise oscillation of the shedding and reattachment vortex structure is the main cause of NSV owing to the strong interaction between the tip leakage and separation vortices near the suction surface.

A Methodology for Assessing Axial Compressor Stability with Inlet Temperature Ramp Distortion

Based on a small perturbation stability model for periodic flow,the effects of inlet total temperature ramp distortion on the axial compressor are investigated and the compressor stability is quantitatively evaluated.In the beginning,a small perturbation stability model for the periodic flow in compressors is proposed,referring to the governing equations of the Harmonic Balance Method.This stability model is validated on a single-stage low-speed compressor TA36 with uniform inlet flow.Then,the unsteady flow of TA36 with different inlet total temperature ramps and constant back pressure is simulated based on the Harmonic Balance Method.Based on these simulations,the compressor stability is analyzed using the proposed small perturbation model.Further,the Dynamic Mode Decomposition method is employed to accurately extract pressure oscillations.The two parameters of the temperature ramp,ramp rate and Strouhal number,are discussed in this paper.The results indicate the occurrence and extension of hysteresis loops in the rows,and a decrease in compressor stability with increasing ramp rate.Compressor performance is divided into two phases,stable and limit,based on the ramp rate.Furthermore,the model predictions suggest that a decrease in period length and an increase in Strouhal number lead to improved compressor stability.The DMD results imply that for compressors with inlet temperature ramp distortion,the increase of high-order modes and oscillations at the rotor tip is always the signal of decreasing stability.