Graphical Abstract Figure
Graphical Abstract Figure
Close modal

Abstract

To reduce the number of prototypes during product design and accurately predict unsteady phenomena occurring at off-design points, a method for accurately predicting the performance of centrifugal blowers through numerical analysis is required. This article presents a guideline for accurately predicting the performance of centrifugal blowers using compressible flow analysis with large eddy simulation (LES). In LES analysis, it is important to have a grid resolution that resolves the minimum vortex scale near the wall (referred to as wall-resolved LES) and to consider detailed geometry such as the length of the suction pipe. The calculations in this study used a model blower, which is a scale model of a single-stage centrifugal blower for use in industrial plants. The model blower was experimentally measured for various parameters such as the blower pressure coefficient, the static-pressure-rise coefficients of the impeller and vane-less diffuser, the shaft power, and the pressure fluctuations at the inlet of the impeller and the inlet of the vane-less diffuser. The results of these measurements were compared with those obtained from the wall-resolved LES. The study confirmed that the accuracy of performance prediction can be improved to less than a 4.0% error in the blower pressure coefficient at both design and off-design operating points by resolving the minimum vortex scale with 14.6 billion-grid elements and considering the detailed geometry.

References

1.
Mizuki
,
S.
, and
Watanabe
,
I.
,
1986
, “
A Simple Calculation Method for Ratio of Relative Velocity Within Centrifugal Impeller Channel
,”
ASME 1986 International Gas Turbine Conference and Exhibit
, 86-GT-25.
2.
Denton
,
J. D.
,
1993
, “
Loss Mechanisms in Turbomachines
,”
Proceedings of the ASME 1993 International Gas Turbine and Aeroengine Congress and Exposition
, 93-GT-435.
3.
Hah
,
C.
,
1984
, “
A Navier-Stokes Analysis of Three-Dimensional Turbulent Flows Inside Turbine Blade Rows at Design and Off-Design Conditions
,”
ASME J. Eng. Gas Turbines Power
,
106
(
2
), pp.
421
429
.
4.
Dawes
,
W. N
.,
1988
, “
Development of a 3D Navier Stokes Solver for Application to All Types of Turbomachinery
,”
Proceedings of the ASME 1988 International Gas Turbine and Aeroengine Congress and Exposition
, 88-GT-70.
5.
Hagiya
,
I.
,
Kato
,
C.
,
Yamade
,
Y.
,
Nagahara
,
T.
, and
Fukaya
,
M.
,
2015
, “
Clarification of Performance Curve Instability Mechanism Using Large Eddy Simulation of Internal Flow of a Mixed-Flow Pump
,”
ASME/JSME/KSME 2015 Joint Fluids Engineering Conference
, AJKFluids2015-33438.
6.
He
,
X.
,
Zhao
,
F.
, and
Vahdati
,
M.
,
2022
, “
Detached Eddy Simulation: Recent Development and Application to Compressor Tip Leakage Flow
,”
ASME J. Turbomach.
,
144
(
1
), p.
011009
.
7.
Denton
,
J. D.
,
2010
, “
Some Limitations of Turbomachinery CFD
,”
ASME TurboEXPO2010
, GT2010-22540.
8.
Menter
,
F. R.
,
Kuntz
,
M.
, and
Langtry
,
R.
,
2003
, “
Ten Years of Industrial Experience With the SST Turbulence Model
,”
Turbul. Heat Mass Transfer
,
4
, pp.
625
632
.
9.
Gourdain
,
N.
,
Sicot
,
F.
,
Duchaine
,
F.
, and
Gicquel
,
L.
,
2014
, “
Large Eddy Simulation of Flows in Industrial Compressors: A Path From 2015 to 2035
,”
Philos. Trans. R. Soc., A
,
372
(
2022
), p.
20130323
.
10.
Nishikawa
,
T.
,
Yamade
,
Y.
,
Sakuma
,
M.
, and
Kato
,
C.
,
2012
, “
Application of Fully-Resolved Large Eddy Simulation to KVLCC2
,”
J. Japan Soc. Naval Archit. Ocean Eng.
,
16
(
1
), pp.
1
9
.
11.
Pacot
,
O.
,
Kato
,
C.
,
Guo
,
Y.
,
Yamade
,
Y.
, and
Avellan
,
F.
,
2016
, “
Large Eddy Simulation of the Rotating Stall in a Pump-Turbine Operated in Pumping Mode at a Part-Load Condition
,”
ASME J. Fluids Eng.
,
138
(
11
), p.
111102
.
12.
Pichler
,
R.
,
Zhao
,
Y.
,
Sandberg
,
R.
,
Michelassi
,
V.
,
Pacciani
,
R.
,
Marconcini
,
M.
, and
Arnone
,
A.
,
2019
, “
Large-Eddy Simulation and RANS Analysis of the End-Wall Flow in a Linear Low-Pressure Turbine Cascade, Part I: Flow and Secondary Vorticity Fields Under Varying Inlet Condition
,”
ASME J. Turbomach.
,
141
(
12
), p.
121005
.
13.
Kerestes
,
J
,
Marks
,
C
,
Clark
,
J
,
Wolff
,
M
,
Ni
,
R
, and
Fletcher
,
N
., “
LES Modeling of High-Lift High-Work LPT Blades: Part II – Validation and Application
,”
ASME Turbo Expo 2023
, GT2023-101950.
14.
Dombard
,
J
,
Duchaine
,
F
,
Gicquel
,
L
,
Staffelbach
,
G
,
Buffaz
,
N
and
Trébinjac
,
I
.,
2018
, “
Large Eddy Simulations in a Transonic Centrifugal Compressor
,”
ASME TurboEXPO 2018
, GT2018-77023.
15.
Sundström
,
E.
,
Semlitsch
,
B.
, and
Mihăescu
,
M.
,
2018
, “
Generation Mechanisms of Rotating Stall and Surge in Centrifugal Compressors
,”
Flow, Turbul. Combust.
,
100
(
3
), pp.
705
719
.
16.
Saito
,
S.
,
Furukawa
,
M.
,
Yamada
,
K.
,
Matsuoka
,
A.
, and
Niwa
,
N.
,
2019
, “
Wall-Resolved LES Analysis of Complicated Three-Dimensional Flow Phenomenon With Shock Wave in a Transonic Axial Compressor Rotor
,”
Proceedings of 33rd Symposium on Computational Fluid Dynamics
, C02-3.
17.
Morsbach
,
C.
,
Bergmann
,
M.
,
Tosun
,
A.
,
Klose
,
B. F.
,
Kügeler
,
E.
, and
Franke
,
M.
,
2024
, “
Large Eddy Simulation of a Low-Pressure Turbine Cascade With Turbulent End Wall Boundary Layers
,”
Flow, Turbul. Combust.
,
112
(
1
), pp.
165
190
.
18.
de Laborderie
,
J.
,
Duchaine
,
F.
,
Gicquel
,
L.
, and
Moreau
,
S.
,
2020
, “
Wall-Modeled Large-Eddy Simulations of a Multistage High-Pressure Compressor
,”
Flow, Turbul. Combust.
,
104
(
2–3
), pp.
725
751
.
19.
JSME
,
1966
,
Mechanical Engineer’s Handbook (in Japanese)
,
Japan Society of Mechanical Engineering
,
JAPAN
, pp.
9
43
.
20.
Kato
,
C.
,
Yamade
,
Y.
,
Nagano
,
K.
,
Kumahata
,
K.
,
Minami
,
K.
, and
Nishikawa
,
T
,
2020
, “
Toward Realization of Numerical Towing-Tank Tests by Wall-Resolved Large Eddy Simulation Based on 32 Billion Grid Finite-Element Computation
,”
SC20: International Conference for High Performance Computing, Networking, Storage and Analysis
,
Atlanta, GA
,
Nov. 9–19
, pp.
1
13
.
21.
Kato
,
C.
,
Kaiho
,
M.
, and
Manabe
,
A.
,
2003
, “
An Overset Finite-Element Large-Eddy Simulation Method With Applications to Turbomachinery and Aeroacousitics
,”
ASME J. Appl. Mech.
,
70
(
1
), pp.
32
43
.
22.
Yamade
,
Y.
,
Kato
,
C.
,
Nagahara
,
T.
, and
Matsui
,
J.
,
2020
, “
Suction Vortices in a Pump Sump – Their Origin, Formation, and Dynamics
,”
ASME J. Fluid. Eng.
,
142
(
3
), p.
031110
.
23.
Iwase
,
T.
,
Obara
,
H.
,
Yamade
,
Y.
, and
Kato
,
C.
,
2020
, “
Influence of Grid Resolution on Flow Field and Aerodynamic Noise Prediction of Centrifugal Fan for Packaged Air Conditioner
,”
Int. J. Fluid Mach. Syst.
,
13
(
1
), pp.
190
202
.
24.
Prunières
,
R.
, and
Kato
,
C.
,
2019
, “
Flow Field and Performance Analysis of a Centrifugal Pump During Unstable Operating Conditions
,”
ASME-JSME-KSME 2019 Eighth Joint Fluids Engineering Conference
, AJK2019-4886.
25.
Robinson
,
S.
,
1991
, “
Coherent Motions in the Turbulent Boundary Layer
,”
Annu. Rev. Fluid Mech.
,
23
(
1
), pp.
601
639
.
26.
Choi
,
H.
, and
Moin
,
P.
,
2012
, “
Grid-Point Requirements for Large Eddy Simulation: Chapman’s Estimates Revisited
,”
Phys. Fluids
,
24
(
1
), p.
011702
.
27.
Abe
,
H.
,
Kawamura
,
H.
, and
Matsuo
,
Y.
,
2001
, “
Direct Numerical Simulation of a Fully Developed Turbulent Channel Flow With Respect to Reynolds Number Dependence
,”
ASME J. Fluids Eng.
,
123
(
2
), pp.
382
393
.
You do not currently have access to this content.