ME306

Turbomachines

Instructor

Dr. Satyanand Abraham

Assistant Professor
Mechanical Engineering Department
NIT Warangal

1
For students of NITW only
Introduction - Essential Parts of a Centrifugal Compressor

1. Inlet casing with converging nozzle: To accelerate the

fluid to the impeller inlet. The outlet of the inlet casing is
known as the eye.

2. Impeller: To energy transfer resulting in a rise of fluid

kinetic energy and static pressure.

3. Diffuser: To transform the high kinetic energy of the

fluid at the impeller outlet into static pressure.

4. Outlet casing: To collect fluid known as a volute or

scroll.

A centrifugal compressor stage

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 Ref: flight-mechanic.com

Ref: mechanicalboost.com/centrifugal-compressor-working-principle-and-construction/
https://doi.org/10.3390/app10062093

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Introduction - Essential Parts of a Centrifugal Compressor
a. Impeller vanes: To transfer the energy from the impeller to the fluid.

b. Hub: Surface AB.

c. Shroud: Surface CD. For shrouded or closed impeller

d. Inducer: Section EF in impellers to increase the angular momentum of

the fluid without increasing its radius of rotation Diffuser and it’s
components
A centrifugal compressor has essential two parts:

1. Rotating impeller which imparts a high velocity to

the fluid and at the same time increases the static
pressure. Impellers are housed inside a stationary
casing.

2. A number of fixed diverging passages in which the

air is decelerated increasing the static pressure Impeller and it’s
components
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 DOI: 10.6108/KSPE.2017.21.1.026
DOI: 10.1155/2016/2371524

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Principle of Operation

 Air is sucked into the impeller eye through an accelerating nozzle and whirled round at high speed by the
vanes on the impeller disc.

1
= 𝐶22 − 𝐶12 + 𝑢22 − 𝑢12 + 𝑤12 − 𝑤22
2

 At any point, in the impeller, the flow experiences a centripetal acceleration due to a pressure head. (refer

𝑝
to simple vortex flow equation, = 𝑚(𝑟𝜔2 )).
𝑟
 Hence, the static pressure of the air increases from the eye to the tip of the impeller.
1
 This is accounted by 𝑢22 − 𝑢12
2

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Principle of Operation

 Relative velocity reduces i.e w1>w2 . Rotor also diffuses the flow as the space between adjacent rotor
increases with radius. Therefore static pressure increases.
1
 This is accounted by 𝑤12 − 𝑤22
2

 The remainder of the static pressure rise is obtained in the diffuser.

1
 This is accounted by 𝐶22 − 𝐶12
2

 Normally, a compressor is designed such that 50% pressure rise occurs in impeller and another 50% in the
diffuser.

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Principle of Operation

Pressure rise across centrifugal compressor Enthalpy–entropy diagram of a centrifugal

compressor
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Blade Shapes and Velocity Triangles
 To understand the actual energy transfer and flow through the compressor, two velocity triangles,
viz., entry velocity triangle and exit velocity triangle, are required.

 As per the convention for radial machines, at a given point the angles are measured from the
tangential direction.

 Based on the value of β2 the blade shapes are given the name.

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Ideal Energy Transfer for a radial vane

 An ideal compressor with the following assumptions for a radial vane impeller:

 Losses due to friction are negligible.

 Energy loss or gain due to heat transfer to or from the gas is considered very small.

 Gas leaves the impeller with a tangential velocity equal to the impeller velocity (i.e., ct2 = u2), no
slip condition is assumed.

 Air enters the rotor directly from the atmosphere without any tangential component, i.e., ct1 = 0.

 Applying these assumptions the Euler’s energy equation under ideal conditions becomes

 From thermodynamic analysis, the energy transfer, E,

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Entry Velocity Triangles for inducer section
 The air angle (α1) at the exit of the IGVs is such that it gives the
direction of the relative velocity vector (w1) as axial, i.e., β1 =
90◦.

 Some manufacturing and aerodynamic advantages:

1. centrifugal impellers with straight blades are much easier and

cheaper to manufacture and

2. the relative velocity (w1) approaching the impeller is

considerably reduced. In this case β1 = 90◦ and the positive
swirl component is

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Velocity Triangles for Backward curved blade

• If there are no guide vanes, c1 will be radial (c1 = cr1) and

α1=90◦, ct1 = 0.
• This particular condition is expressed by zero whirl or swirl at
the entry

Velocity triangles for backward swept impeller blades (β2 < 90◦)

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Velocity Triangles for Forward curved blade

Velocity triangles for forward swept impeller blades (β2 > 90◦)

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Exit Velocity Triangles

Velocity triangles for radial-tipped impeller with

inducer blades, (β2 = 90◦)

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Effect of Impeller Blade Shape on Performance

Exit velocity diagrams for different shapes of blades

The comparison of performance for the three types of

vanes are made for the same volume flow rate, each blade
having unit depth, and for the same vector value of cr2

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 Centrifugal effects of the curved blades create a bending moment and produce increased stresses which
reduce the maximum speed at which the impeller can be run.

 Good performance can be obtained with radial impeller blades.

 Backward-curved blades are slightly better in efficiency and are stable over a wider range of flows than
either radial or forward-curved blades.

 The forward-curved impeller can produce the highest pressure ratio for a given blade tip speed; but is
inherently less stable and has a narrow operating range. Its efficiencies are lower than that are possible
with the backward-curved or radial-curved blades.

 Radial blade is used almost exclusively in turbojet engine applications

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The Impeller Channel

Effect of relative eddy on impeller outlet velocit

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The Impeller Channel

 Determination of Slip Factor: Several theoretical and

empirical equations have been derived for the slip factor to
allow calculation of energy transfer during the design of a
new impeller
𝑐𝑡,2
Slip factor,  =
𝑐𝑡,2′

 Stodola’s Formula -

 Stanitz’s Formula

 Balje’s Formula
Exit velocity triangles with and without slip

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Diffuser

 Centrifugal compressors are usually fitted with either a vaneless or a vaned diffuser, although in
some low-speed applications a volute is fitted directly around the impeller.

 The influence of the diffuser upon compressor performance is high: a considerable proportion of
the fluid energy at the impeller tip is kinetic energy (especially in radial-vaned impellers) and its
efficient transformation into static pressure is important.

 Losses may be high in the diffuser as the fluid is flowing against an adverse pressure gradient.
Hence, careful design of diffuser is a must.

 Types:

1. Vaneless Diffuser

2. Vaned Diffuser

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Vaneless Diffuser
 Gas in the vaneless diffuser gains static pressure rise simply due to the diffusion process from a smaller
diameter (d2) to a larger diameter (d3)

 Such a flow in the vaneless space is a free-vortex flow in which the angular momentum remains constant

 ratio of tangential velocity at the exit to that of inlet is given by

 The diffusion is directly proportional to the diameter ratio (d3/d2). This leads to a relatively large-sized
diffuser which is a serious disadvantage of the vaneless type.

 Vaneless diffuser has a lower efficiency and can be used only for a small pressure rise.

 Vaneless diffuser is economical and provides a wider range of operation for industrial applications where
large-sized compressors are needed.

 It does not suffer from blade stalling and shock waves.

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Vaned Diffuser

 For a higher pressure ratio across the radial diffuser, the diffusion process has to be achieved across a
relatively shorter radial distance – requires the application of vanes for guidance

 Diffuser blade rings can be fabricated from sheet metal or casting can be made as cambered and
uncambered shapes of uniform thickness as well as cambered aerofoil blades

 To avoid flow separation, the divergence of the diffuser blade passages in the vaned diffuser ring can be
kept small by employing a large number of vanes which will lead to higher friction losses

 normal practice to have the divergence of the flow passages not more than 12°

 To prevent steep velocity gradients at the diffuser entry is to provide a small (0.05d2 − 0.1d2) vaneless
space between the impeller exit and the diffuser entry

 The supersonic flow at the impeller exit is decelerated in this vaneless space at constant angular momentum
without shock

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Vaned Diffuser
Diffuser ring with
straight (uncambered)
flat blades

Diffuser ring
with cambered
blades

Diffuser ring with cambered aerofoil blades Vaneless space between impeller exit and diffuser entry

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Volute Casing

 The volute or scroll casing collects and guides the flow from the diffuser or the impeller (in the absence of
a diffuser).

 The flow is finally discharged from the volute through the delivery pipe.

Different cross-section of the volute passage

Flow through volute casing of a centrifugal compressor

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Non-dimensional numbers for rotary machines

 The dependent variables in incompressible flow trubomachines are usually the head (gH), power (P) and
efficiently (h).

 These are functions of the following variables:

 rotor speed (N), rotor diameter (D), characteristic lengths (blade chord (l), blade pitch (s), blade height
(h)etc.) discharge (Q), fluid density () and fluid viscosity ( m).

 For compressible flow

 Using Buckingham's Π-theorem various non-dimensional parameters are derived

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Non-dimensional numbers for rotary machines

 Capacity Coefficient

Q Volume flow rate

cx Fluid Velocity In
 flow coefficient Axial direction
P Power

 Power Coefficient

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Non-dimensional numbers for rotary machines

 Specific Speed

for compressors

for turbines
P Power, pressure
subscript , 0 stagnation

 Pressure Ratio

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Non-dimensional numbers for rotary machines
For compressible flow

 Dimensionless Speed Parameter for compressible flow

 Dimensionless Mass-flow Parameter a Velocity of sound

ṁ Mass flow rate
i. ii.
T Temperature
M Mach number

 axial flow Mach

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Non-dimensional numbers for rotary machines

 Power Coefficient

i. ii.

 loading coefficient h enthalpy

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Performance Parameter

1. Power Input Factor, Pif

2. Pressure Coefficients,

3. Compressor Efficiency T –s diagram of the compression process

h–s diagram of the compressor

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Losses in Centrifugal Compressors
 Total losses in a centrifugal compressor may be divided into two groups:

1. Frictional losses are proportional to c2 and hence proportional to m˙2.

2. Incidence losses in terms of drag coefficient CD are proportional to CDc2.

Variation of losses with respect to the mass flow rate

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Compressor Characteristics
 If these losses are subtracted from the ideal energy transfer for a radial vaned impeller, then the
constant-pressure ratio straight line characteristics becomes curved, with a maximum value of
energy at some particular value of the mass flow rate.

Actual characteristics of a centrifugal compressor

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Compressor Characteristics

Total head efficiency of a centrifugal compressor

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 Air enters the inducer blades of a centrifugal compressor at p01 = 1.02 bar, T01 = 335 K. The hub and tip
diameters of the impeller eye are 10 and 25 cm respectively. If the compressor runs at 7200 rpm and
delivers 5.0 kg/s of air, determine the air angle at the inducer blade entry and the relative Mach number.

 If IGVs are used to obtain a straight inducer section, determine the air angle at the IGVs exit and the
new value of the relative Mach number.

 Take density of air as 1.002kg/m3

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T01=T1+v2/2Cp

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