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At least 163 records · Page 9

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Flow Physics at a Large Rotor Tip Gap in a Multi-Stage Axial Compressor

The flow physics in a large rotor tip gap in a 1.5-stage axial compressor is investigated in the current study. The flow structure in the rotor tip region is complex with several dominant vortical structures of opposite rotation, resulting in inhomogeneous and highly anisotropic turbulence. Earlier measurements show that eddy viscosity is negative over large parts of the tip region and eddy viscosity varies among stress/strain components. The present study aims to understand how the complex nature of rotor tip leakage flow affects compressor performance when the tip gap size is greater than 4–5% of the rotor span, which is typical of advanced small core engines. Unsteady Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes (URANS) and Large Eddy Simulation (LES) techniques are applied to study flow physics in a large rotor tip gap (5.5% of rotor span) in a 1.5-stage axial compressor. Calculated flow fields from the two different approaches are compared with available measurements and examined in detail. LES calculates the pressure rise in the present compressor fairly well, while URANS with a standard two-equation turbulence closure underpredicts the pressure rise by 15-20% of the measured values. The current study shows that URANS with the current turbulence closure produces much higher all-positive eddy viscosity in the tip-gap region compared to measurements and LES. The distribution of eddy viscosity in the URANS simulation is also wrong. Consequently, the flow in the tip region is highly damped with significantly larger blockage generation, which results in the tip leakage vortex (TLV) staying closer to the blade suction side compared to the measurement. When the TLV stays closer to the blade, both flow turning and the pressure rise across the compressor are reduced compared to the measurements. It appears that this effect is amplified by a large rotor tip gap.

tip gap↗

DOE OSTI2024

Development of a near-isothermal transcritical CO 2 compression system with a liquid piston compressor

Compressors are critical components in vapor compression cycle systems, significantly contributing to energy consumption. As global demand for HVAC&R systems rises, enhancing compressor efficiency becomes increasingly vital. This paper introduces a novel liquid piston compressor integrated with a gas cooler for the transcritical CO 2 refrigeration cycle. The liquid piston enables CO 2 refrigerant compression within various types of heat exchangers, facilitating the transfer of compression heat to the heat transfer fluid. By releasing significant heat, this compressor allows for removing or downsizing the traditional gas cooler in the refrigeration system. This paper presents the experimental performance of the first near-isothermal compressor utilizing a liquid piston in a vapor compression cycle. The critical parameters affecting heat transfer are analyzed by using a 1-D simulation model to achieve a near-isothermal compression process. The results show that the developed prototype successfully reduced the compression temperature increase from 95 K to 10 K, achieving 90 % isothermal efficiency. Furthermore, the 1-D simulation results suggest the smaller internal diameter tubes benefit the isothermal efficiency the most.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗

DOE OSTI2021

Methane Exhaust Measurements at Gathering Compressor Stations in the United States

Unburned methane entrained in exhaust from natural gas-fired compressor engines (“combustion slip”) can account for a substantial portion of station-level methane emissions. A novel in-stack, tracer gas method was coupled with Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) species measurements to quantify combustion slip from natural gas compressor engines at 67 gathering and boosting stations owned or managed by nine “study partner” operators in 11 U.S. states. The mean methane emission rate from 63 four-stroke, lean-burn (4SLB) compressor engines was 5.62 kg/h (95% CI = 5.15–6.17 kg/h) and ranged from 0.3 to 12.6 kg/h. The mean methane emission rate from 39 fourstroke, rich-burn (4SRB) compressor engines was 0.40 kg/h (95% CI = 0.37– 0.42 kg/h) and ranged from 0.01 to 4.5 kg/h. Study results for 4SLB engines were lower than both the U.S. EPA compilation of air pollutant emission factors (AP-42) and Inventory of U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks (GHGI) by 8 and 9%, respectively. Study results for 4SRB engines were 43% of the AP-42 emission factor and 8% of the GHGI emission factor, the latter of which does not distinguish between engine types. Total annual combustion slip from the U.S. natural gas gathering and boosting sector was modeled using measured emission rates and compressor unit counts from the U.S. EPA Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program. Modeled results [328 Gg/y (95% CI = 235–436 Gg/y) of unburned methane] would account for 24% (95% CI = 17–31%) of the 1391 Gg of methane emissions for “Gathering and Boosting Stations”, or 6% of the net emissions for “Natural Gas Systems” (5598 Gg) as reported in the 2020 U.S. EPA GHGI. In conclusion, gathering and boosting combustion slip emissions reported in the 2020 GHGI (374 Gg) fall within the uncertainty of this model.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

DOE OSTI2022

SZ3: A Modular Framework for Composing Prediction-Based Error-Bounded Lossy Compressors

Today's scientific simulations require a significant reduction of data volume because of extremely large amounts of data they produce and the limited I/O bandwidth and storage space. Here, error-bounded lossy compression has been considered one of the most effective solutions to the above problem. In practice, however, the best-fit compression method often needs to be customized or optimized in particular because of diverse characteristics in different datasets and various user requirements on the compression quality and performance. In this paper, we address this issue with a novel modular, composable compression framework named SZ3. Our contributions are four-folds. (1) We develop SZ3 which features an innovative modular abstraction for the prediction-based compression framework, such that compression modules can be plugged in easily to create new compressors based on characteristics of data and user requirements. (2) We create a new compression pipeline by SZ3 for GAMESS data, which significantly improves the compression ratios over state-of-the-art compressors. (3) We develop an adaptive compression pipeline by SZ3 for APS data with minimal efforts, which leads to the best rate-distortion among all existing error-bounded lossy compressors for any bit-rate. (4) We compare the sustainability of SZ3 with leading error-bounded prediction-based compressors, and then demonstrate the necessity of diverse pipelines by integrating and evaluating several compression pipelines on diverse scientific datasets from multiple disciplines. Experiments show that SZ3 incurs very limited overhead in compressor integration and our customized compression pipelines lead to up to 20% improvement in compression ratios under the same data distortion, when compared with the best existing approach.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗

DOE OSTI2023

Building Technologies Office 03.02.02.38 Milestone Report—Compressor Technology Development for Refrigerants with <150 Global Warming Potential

The major purpose of this project is to enable the development of compressors specifically designed for compatibility with low–global warming potential (GWP) refrigerants (with GWP values below 150). These compressors are intended for applications in residential and light commercial air-conditioning and heat pump systems. This report contains an exhaustive review of the existing literature with the intention of discerning the most efficacious methodologies currently in use for compressor modeling. This fundamental stage was designed to foster a comprehensive understanding of the intricate dynamics and mechanics of compressors. As a result, a model (PDSim) was selected to simulate scroll, rotary and linear compressor technologies.

42 ENGINEERING↗

NASA NTRS1972

Evaluation of circumferential airflow uniformity entering combustors from compressors. Volume 1: Discussion of data and results

The compressor discharge airflow uniformity of two compressors from advanced engines, the J58 and F100/F401, was studied. Compressor discharge pressures and temperatures at up to 33 circumferential rake locations allowed the airflow distribution to be ascertained and computer plotted. Several flight conditions and compressor variables, i.e., inlet distortion, modified seals, etc., were analyzed. An unexpectedly high nonuniform airflow was found for both compressors. Circumferential airflow deviation differences of up to 52% from maximum to minimum were found for the J58, and up to 40% for the F100/F401. The effects of aerodynamic and thermal distortion were found to be additive. The data were analyzed for influence of exit guide vane wakes and found free of any effect. Data system errors were small in relation to the measured pressure and temperature variations.

Shadowen, J. H.↗

NASA NTRS1973

FORTRAN program for predicting off-design performance of centrifugal compressors

A FORTRAN program for calculating the off-design performance of centrifugal compressors with channel diffusers is presented. Use of the program requires complete knowledge of the overall impeller and diffuser geometries. Individual losses are computed using analytical equations and empirical correlations which relate loss levels to velocity diagram characteristics and overall geometry. On a given speed line compressor performance is calculated for a range of inlet velocity levels. At flow rates between surge and choke, individual efficiency decrements, compressor overall efficiency, and compressor total pressure ratio are tabulated. An example case of performance comparison with a compressor built by a commercial engine manufacturer is presented to demonstrate the correlation with limited experimental data.

Galvas, M. R.↗

NASA NTRS1974

Formulation of a distortion index based on peak compressor pressure ratios

In order to effectively use a compressor face total-pressure distortion index as a measure of inlet-engine compatibility, a correlation of distortion amplitude with stall margin must be developed with minimal scatter. A recent analysis of data recorded in extensive distortion screen tests with the J85-GE-13 turbojet engine has resulted in a correlation based on compressor discharge pressure ratioed to the minimum pressure at the compressor face. Simply by determining compressor stall lines with a single hub radial distortion pattern, a single tip radial pattern, and with undistorted inflow, the overall compressor pressure ratio at stall for even the most complex distortion pattern was found to be predictable.

Calogeras, J. E.↗

NASA NTRS1974

Formulation of a distortion index based on peak compressor pressure ratios

Calogeras, J. E.↗

NASA NTRS1975

Prediction of axial-flow instabilities in a turbojet engine by use of a multistage compressor simulation on the digital computer

A method of estimating the undistorted stall line for an axial-flow compressor by using the digital computer is presented. The method involves linearization of nonlinear dynamic equations about an operating point on a speed line, and then application of the first method of Lyapunov to determine the stability of the nonlinear system from the stability of the linear system. The method is applied to a simulation of the J85 compressor, which utilizes stage stacking and lumped volume techniques for the interstage regions to simulate steady-state and dynamic compressor performance. The stability boundary predicted by the digital simulation compares quite well with the stall line predicted by a dynamic simulation of the J85 compressor programmed on the analog computer. Since previous studies have shown that the analog-predicted stall line agrees well with the stall line of the compressor, the digital method presented is also a good means of estimating the stall line.

Daniele, C. J.↗

NASA NTRS1975

Performance of a J85-13 compressor with clean and distorted inlet flow

The results presented are of a series of experimental tests in which a J85-13 turbojet engine was subjected to both distorted and undistorted inlet total pressure conditions. A distinctive feature of the data base obtained is that it includes compressor interstage information not previously recorded for a J85-13 engine. Each of the eight compressor stages was instrumented to obtain the characteristics of the individual stages for undistorted inlet conditions, and these data are documented in the report along with the undistorted compressor overall performance. Also included in the report is the overall performance of the compressor exposed to 14 different distorted-inlet conditions - 10 circumferential patterns and 4 radial patterns. The distortion patterns were introduced using screens that spoiled from 8 to 50 percent of the compressor face area; the distortion screen density, or the area blocked by the screen wire per unit area of screen, varied from 26 to 69 percent.

Milner, E. J.↗

NASA NTRS1976

Effect of slotted casing treatment on performance of a multistage compressor

A J85-13 engine was equipped with a compressor case that allowed changes to the case wall over the rotor tips of six of its eight stages. The engine was tested with four inlet configurations: uniform inlet flow, 180 degree circumferential distortion, hub radial distortion, and tip radial distortion. Slotted inserts were installed in the first three stages, and the compressor was mapped under similar conditions. Overall compressor performance obtained with tip treatment was inferior to the performance for the compressor's normal operating range. Pumping capacity with the slotted inserts was reduced. Overall compressor efficiency was reduced 1 to 2 percent with the slotted rings installed for 90 and 100 percent corrected engine speeds.

Moss, J. E., Jr.↗

NASA NTRS1976

Single-stage experimental evaluation of low aspect ratio, highly loaded blading for compressors. Part 9: Stage F and stage G, volume 1

Two single-stage, 0.77 hub/tip ratio axial-flow compressors were tested to evaluate the effectiveness of low aspect ratio blading as a means of obtaining higher stage loadings. One compressor, designated Stage F, was comprised of circular arc blading with an aspect ratio of 0.9 for both the rotor and stator. This compressor was tested with uniform inlet flow, hub radial, tip radial, and 180 deg arc circumferential inlet distortion. The second compressor, designated Stage G, was comprised of multiple circular arc blading with an aspect ratio of 1.0 for both the rotor and stator. This compressor was tested with uniform inlet flow only. Design rotor tip speeds for Rotor F and Rotor G were 285 m/sec (934 ft/sec) and 327 m/sec (1,074 ft/sec) respectively. Both stages operated at high loading levels with adequate efficiency and operating range. The peak efficiencies and corresponding average stage diffusion factors for Stages F and G at design rotor speed were 86.4% and 84.1% and 0.59 and 0.55 respectively. The surge margin at peak efficiency for Stage F was 12.6% and the corresponding value for Stage G was 16.5%. Both stages experienced a loss in efficiency with increasing rotor speed; however, the multiple circular arc rotor delayed the characteristic loss in efficiency within increasing Mach number to higher Mach number.

Cheatham, J. G.↗

NASA NTRS1977

Internal flow characteristics of a multistage compressor with inlet pressure distortion

The measured distribution of compressor interstage pressures and temperatures resulting from a 180 deg inlet-total-pressure distortion for a J85-13 turbojet engine is reported. Extensive inner stage instrumentation combined with stepwise rotation of the inlet distortion gave data of high circumferential resolution. The steady-state pressures and temperatures along with the amplitude, extent, and location of the distorted areas are given. Data for 80, 90, and 100 percent of rotor design speed are compared with clean (undistorted) inlet flow conditions to show pressure and temperature behavior within the compressor. Both overall and stagewise compressor performances vary only slightly when clean and distorted inlet conditions are compared. Total and static pressure distortions increase in amplitude in the first few stages of the compressor and then attenuate fairly uniformly to zero at the discharge. Total-temperature distortion induced by the pressure distortion reached a maximum amplitude by the first two stages and decayed only a little through the rest of the compressor. Distortion amplitude tended to peak in line with the screen edges, and, except for total and static pressure in the tip zone, there was little swirl in the axial direction.

Debogdan, C. E.↗

NASA NTRS1979

Causes of high pressure compressor deterioration in service

The high mechanical reliability and low deterioration rate of the JT9D high-pressure compressor results in long utilization without exceeding engine operational limits. The increasing cost and decreasing supply of fuel have focused attention on the fuel burned implications of such high time use without refurbishment. The paper presents the results of JT9D high pressure compressor studies. The mechanical deterioration of the JT9D high-pressure compressor gaspath parts versus increasing service usage, documented from inspection of service parts, is presented and discussed including changes in airfoil roughness, blade length, airfoil contour and outer air seal trench characteristics. An estimate of the performance loss versus usage is related to each type of damage. The combined estimated high-pressure compressor performance loss for all mechanisms determined from part inspection is compared to historical engine test data to establish the validity of the predicted loss levels. The effect of cold section refurbishment on engine fuel consumption recovery and the results of an optimization study to determine the appropriate interval for high pressure compressor refurbishment are also reported.

Richardson, J. H.↗

NASA NTRS1980

Steady-state performance of J85-21 compressor at 100 percent of design speed with and without interstage rake blockage

Internal compressor instrumentation blockage effects on steady state J85-21 compressor performance at 100 percent of design speed are determined. The blockage was generated by instrumented vanes for the first three compressor stages and by removal rakes for stages 4 to 9. Individual flow passage blockages ranged up to 4.5 percent with the instrumented vanes and up to 22 percent with the removable interstage rakes. At a Reynolds number index of 1.0, pressure ratio and airflow remained unchanged with insertion of the interstage rakes, but efficiency dropped 0.3 percentage point. Compressor exit profiles, compressor stage static pressure rise coefficients, turbine exit temperature, and fuel flow are also presented.

Werner, R. A.↗

NASA NTRS1980

Practical experience with unstable compressors

Using analytical mathematical modeling techniques for the system components, an attempt is made to gauge the destabilizing effects in a number of compressor designs. In particular the overhung (or cantilevered) compressor designs and the straddle-mounted (or simply supported) compressor designs are examined. Recommendations are made, based on experiences with stable and unstable compressors, which can be used as guides in future designs. High and low pressure compressors which operate well above their fundamental rotor-bearing lateral natural frequencies can suffer from destructive subsynchronous vibration. Usually the elements in the system design which contribute to this vibration, other than the shafting and the bearings, are the seals (both gas labyrinth and oil breakdown bushings) and the aerodynamic components.

Malanoski, S. B.↗

NASA NTRS1982

CF6 Jet Engine Diagnostics Program: High pressure compressor clearance investigation

The effects of high pressure compressor clearance changes on engine performance were experimentally determined on a CF6 core engine. The results indicate that a one percent reduction in normalized average clearance, expressed as a fraction of airfoil length, improves compressor efficiency by one percent. Compressor clearances are reduced by the application of rotor bore cooling, insulation of the stator casing, and use of a low coefficient of expansion material in the aft stages. This improvement amounts to a reduction of normalized average clearance of 0.78 percent, relative to CF6-60 compressor, which is equivalent to an improvement in compressor efficiency of 0.78 percent.

Radomski, M. A.↗