A combined experimental and computational test program, with two low-pressure ratio aero-engine fans, has been used to identify the flow mechanisms at stall inception and the subsequent stall cell growth. The two fans have the same rotor tip clearance, annulus design, and downstream stators, but different levels of tip loading. The measurement data show that both the fans stall via spike-type inception, but that the growth of the stall cell and the final cell size is different in each fan. The computations, reproducing both the qualitative and quantitative behavior of the steady-state and transient measurements, are used to identify the flow mechanisms at the origin of stall inception. In one fan, spillage of tip leakage flow upstream of the leading edge plane is responsible. In the other, sudden growth of casing corner separation blockage leads to stall. These two mechanisms are in accord with the findings from core compressors. However, the transonic aerodynamics and the low hub-to-tip radius ratio of the fans lead to the following two findings: first, the casing corner separation is driven by shock-boundary layer interaction and second, the spanwise loading distribution of the fan determines whether the spike develops into full-span or part-span stall and both types of behavior are represented in the present work. Finally, the axial momentum flux of the tip clearance flow is shown to be a useful indicator of the leakage jet spillage mechanism. A simple model is provided that links the tip loading, stagger, and solidity with the tip clearance axial momentum flux, thereby allowing the aerodynamicist to connect, qualitatively, design parameters with the stall behavior of the fan.
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July 2019
Research-Article
Stall Inception in Low-Pressure Ratio Fans
S. Kim,
S. Kim
Whittle Laboratory,
1 JJ Thomson Avenue,
Cambridge CB3 0DY,
University of Cambridge
,1 JJ Thomson Avenue,
Cambridge CB3 0DY,
UK
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G. Pullan,
G. Pullan
2
Whittle Laboratory,
1 JJ Thomson Avenue,
Cambridge CB3 0DY,
e-mail: gp10006@cam.ac.uk
University of Cambridge
,1 JJ Thomson Avenue,
Cambridge CB3 0DY,
UK
e-mail: gp10006@cam.ac.uk
2Corresponding author.
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C. A. Hall,
C. A. Hall
Whittle Laboratory,
1 JJ Thomson Avenue,
Cambridge CB3 0DY,
University of Cambridge
,1 JJ Thomson Avenue,
Cambridge CB3 0DY,
UK
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R. P. Grewe,
R. P. Grewe
Whittle Laboratory,
1 JJ Thomson Avenue,
Cambridge CB3 0DY,
University of Cambridge
,1 JJ Thomson Avenue,
Cambridge CB3 0DY,
UK
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M. J. Wilson,
M. J. Wilson
Rolls-Royce plc, Moor Lane,
Derby, DE21 8BJ,
Derby, DE21 8BJ,
UK
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E. Gunn
3 Charles Babbage Road,
Cambridge, CB3 0GT,
E. Gunn
Turbostream Ltd
,3 Charles Babbage Road,
Cambridge, CB3 0GT,
UK
Search for other works by this author on:
S. Kim
Whittle Laboratory,
1 JJ Thomson Avenue,
Cambridge CB3 0DY,
University of Cambridge
,1 JJ Thomson Avenue,
Cambridge CB3 0DY,
UK
G. Pullan
Whittle Laboratory,
1 JJ Thomson Avenue,
Cambridge CB3 0DY,
e-mail: gp10006@cam.ac.uk
University of Cambridge
,1 JJ Thomson Avenue,
Cambridge CB3 0DY,
UK
e-mail: gp10006@cam.ac.uk
C. A. Hall
Whittle Laboratory,
1 JJ Thomson Avenue,
Cambridge CB3 0DY,
University of Cambridge
,1 JJ Thomson Avenue,
Cambridge CB3 0DY,
UK
R. P. Grewe
Whittle Laboratory,
1 JJ Thomson Avenue,
Cambridge CB3 0DY,
University of Cambridge
,1 JJ Thomson Avenue,
Cambridge CB3 0DY,
UK
M. J. Wilson
Rolls-Royce plc, Moor Lane,
Derby, DE21 8BJ,
Derby, DE21 8BJ,
UK
E. Gunn
Turbostream Ltd
,3 Charles Babbage Road,
Cambridge, CB3 0GT,
UK
1
Present address: R&D Center, Hanwha Aerospace, Republic of Korea.
2Corresponding author.
3
Present address: Siemens, Mülheim an der Ruhr, Germany.
Contributed by the International Gas Turbine Institute (IGTI) of ASME for publication in the Journal of Turbomachinery. Manuscript received January 14, 2019; final manuscript received January 26, 2019; published online February 22, 2019. Assoc. Editor: Kenneth Hall.
J. Turbomach. Jul 2019, 141(7): 071005 (9 pages)
Published Online: February 22, 2019
Article history
Received:
January 14, 2019
Revised:
January 26, 2019
Accepted:
January 28, 2019
Citation
Kim, S., Pullan, G., Hall, C. A., Grewe, R. P., Wilson, M. J., and Gunn, E. (February 22, 2019). "Stall Inception in Low-Pressure Ratio Fans." ASME. J. Turbomach. July 2019; 141(7): 071005. https://doi.org/10.1115/1.4042731
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