• Proceedings of the KSME Conference
• /
• 2001.06e
• /
• pp.655-660
• /
• 2001

The performance test of a centrifugal compressor for APU(Auxiliary Power Unit) which is developed by the collaborative research of KARI and Samsung TechWin has been conducted. The investigated compressor consists of a curved inlet, a centrifugal impeller, a channel diffuser and a plenum chamber. The experiments were carried out in an open-loop centrifugal compressor test rig driven by a turbine. For three different diffusers, overall performance data were obtained at 80%, 90% and 97% of design speed. For the initially designed wedge-type diffuser, test results showed that the compressor was operated at a higher mass flow rate than the design requirement. By reducing the diffuser throat area, the compressor operating range was shifted to lower mass flow rate range. The test result of redesigned wedge-type diffuser showed high pressure loss. To reduce the diffuser loss, diffuser inlet radius was increased and airfoil-type of diffuser was adopted. This airfoil-type diffuser showed reasonal results in terms of design requirement.

• The KSFM Journal of Fluid Machinery
• /
• v.3 no.4 s.9
• /
• pp.44-51
• /
• 2000

The present study has been conducted to design the high efficiency centrifugal compressor for a R134a turbo-chiller. The centrifugal compressor consists of an impeller with splitters, two vaneless diffusers, a low-solidity vaned diffuser and a volute. A cycle analysis program for a turbo-chiller was developed to obtain compressor design parameters and requirements. We have designed the high efficiency centrifugal compressor by applying the repeated design procedure including a meanline design, a 3D geometry generation and fluid dynamic loading calculations.

• International Journal of Fluid Machinery and Systems
• /
• v.2 no.4
• /
• pp.409-417
• /
• 2009

An investigation of surge inception in a centrifugal compressor was done with measurements of steady and unsteady static pressure. Vaneless diffuser and vaned diffuser were tested. Analyses of the static pressure and the pressure fluctuation showed that stall at the impeller leading edge occurred at first, and then it extended to downstream. In case of the vaneless diffuser, deterioration of the pressure rise in the impeller triggered instability. For the vande diffuser, instability that was generated in the impeller propagated into the vaned diffuser, however the pressure recovery by the vaned diffuser made the operation of the compressor stable at low flow rate.

• Transactions of the Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers B
• /
• v.26 no.8
• /
• pp.1123-1131
• /
• 2002

An experimental study on the performance and instability development characteristics of a centrifugal compressor equipped with a cambered variable diffuser has been performed with varying diffuser vane angles. The test was conducted at the design speed of 20,800 rpm and the 80% design speed of 16,640 rpm for 5 diffuser angles : 65$^{\circ}$, 70$^{\circ}$, 75$^{\circ}$, 77.5$^{\circ}$, 80$^{\circ}$ The steady performance test results showed that choking mass flow rate decreases and total pressure ratio increases with a narrowed surge margin as the diffuser vane angle increases. Unsteady pressures were measured using high-frequency pressure transducers at the inducer and the diffuser throat to investigate the instability phenomena such as rotating stall and surge inside the compressor. From the unsteady measurements, it is found that the transient process from rotating stall to surge was mainly affected by diffuser angles. The results of the present study can be applied to the instability control of the centrifugal compressors using a variable diffuser.

• 유체기계공업학회:학술대회논문집
• /
• 2003.12a
• /
• pp.469-475
• /
• 2003

The performance of a centrifugal compressor composed of an impeller, tandem diffuser rows and axial guide vanes has been predicted numerically and compared with available experimental results on its design rotational speed. The pitchwise-averaged mixing plane method was employed for the boundaries between rotor and stator to obtain steady state solutions. The overall characteristics showed differently according to the relative positions of tandem diffuser rows while the characteristics of impeller showed almost identical. The numerical results agree with the measured data in respect of their tendency. It turned out that 0% of relative positions is the worst case in terms of static pressure recovery and efficiency. According to the experimental results, some pressure fluctuations and malfunction of the compressor were observed for 75% case. However, this numerical calculation using mixing plane method did not capture any of those phenomena. Thus, unsteady flow calculation should be performed to investigate the stability of the compressor caused by different diffuser configuration.

• 한국전산유체공학회:학술대회논문집
• /
• 2007.10a
• /
• pp.92-99
• /
• 2007

In this paper, optimization of the vaned centrifugal compressor was carried out at a given mass flow rate condition. Firstly, impeller optimization was conducted using response surface method (RSM) which is one of optimization methods. After the optimization of the impeller was completed, diffuser optimization was performed with the optimized impeller. In these processes, Navier-Stokes solver was used to calculate the flow inside the centrifugal compressor. And the optimization is performed with Box-Behnken design method which is efficient for fitting second-order response surfaces to reduce the number of calculations required. As a result, compared with the reference model, the efficiency and the pressure ratio of the optimized impeller and diffuser are found to be increased. The performance at off-design conditions is presented.

• 유체기계공업학회:학술대회논문집
• /
• 2000.12a
• /
• pp.211-218
• /
• 2000

Off-design experimental performance was investigated for a small centrifugal compressor, whose impeller diameter is about 125mm, used in an industrial gas turbine. Test rig was designed and manufactured with a radial inflow turbine and a combustor to supply driving power to the compressor. Static pressure was measured on the casing of the impeller, vaneless diffuser, vaned diffuser and volute. Total pressure was obtained using specially fabricated rakes at the vaned diffuser throat and exit. Circumferential nonuniformity was found, near surge, in the Impeller, vaned diffuser and volute region. Spanwise nonuniform flow from the impeller affected the total pressure defects in the vaned diffuser region. Static pressure distortion in the circumferential direction in the volute was found near surge, where the minimum occurred near 140 degree position.

• The KSFM Journal of Fluid Machinery
• /
• v.3 no.2 s.7
• /
• pp.36-43
• /
• 2000

This study presents the centrifugal compressor performance for three different vane stagger angles and wall pressure distribution within vaned diffuser channels, and is also discussed about the stability with respect to the compressor components. As the vane stagger angle decreases, the flow rate for the stall onset decreases, and higher pressure can be obtained at the low flow rate region, however, the effective operation range of the compressor decreases because of the blockage effect of the diffuser vane. Low pressure pocket within the vaned diffuser channel moves from the pressure side of leading edge to the suction side as the flow rate decreases. The compressor system stability mainly depends on that of the diffuser.

• 유체기계공업학회:학술대회논문집
• /
• 2001.11a
• /
• pp.83-90
• /
• 2001

Experimental and numerical investigations of the off·design performance of a simple channel-wedge diffuser in a small centrifugal compressor are presented. Surge and choke conditions as well as design point are considered using somewhat limited range of experimental data and also supplementary 3D CFD results. Some critical meanline design parameters' behavior is investigated numerically, to render the basis for improved modelings in the meanline performance prediction.

• The KSFM Journal of Fluid Machinery
• /
• v.3 no.2 s.7
• /
• pp.57-65
• /
• 2000

The aim of this paper is to understand the unsteady flow phenomena in a high speed centrifugal compressor channel diffuser. Instantaneous pressures aye measured at six locations in the diffuser using fast-response pressure transducers. Instantaneous pressure ratio decomposition was applied to analyze the pressure signal. In vaneless space where impeller-vaned diffuser interaction is strong, aperiodic unsteadiness is high and periodic pressure waveforms by blade passing are not clear at low flow rates, especially near vane suction side. High aperiodic unsteadiness decreases downstream of diffuser. The blade-to-blade pressure wave does not disappear in surge flow condition. In surge there exist not only large scale periodic surge wave but also blade-to-blade pressure wave.