Design and analysis of a 11:1 centrifugal

compressor for a small turbofan engine

1
Mohsin Rehman, 2Rizwan Afzal
Department of Aeronautics & Astronautics
Institute of Space Technology
Islamabad, Pakistan
1
[email protected]
2
[email protected]

Abstract— Centrifugal compressors, used extensively in coming from the outlet of the axial compressor.. After that is
turbofan engines of high range missiles, provide advantages done free vortex design method is used to calculate the blade
like shorter length, capacity to operate over a wide range of angles and performance parameters at root and tip. After the
mass flows at a particular rotational speed and handling blade angles and performances parameters are calculated,
small volume flows. Fundamental theory for centrifugal MATLAB codes are used and values are compared with the
compressor design is used for preliminary 1D-design with a theoretical values. Once the results are verified, a 3-D CAD
goal to achieve pressure ratio of 11:1 and inlet mass flow of model of the compressor is made using CATIA V5 which is
6kg/s using a single stage. MATLAB code has been then fed into ANSYS to proceed with the analysis. In ANSYS,
developed for the optimization of compressor design using structural analysis is done to ensure that the structure holds up
evolutionary algorithms with different design variables. to the required rpm and CFD analysis is done to ensure that the
The design variables are selected from the control points design is aerodynamically efficient while achieving the
for Bezier curves. Half of the variables are used for the required pressure ratio. Results from both the analysis are
passage optimization whereas half of them enhance the compared with the MATLAB code results and optimization is
performance of impeller blades. Once the impeller conducted to make sure that the results are well within range
geometry is optimized, results are used to draw the flow even after incorporating the losses taking place during the
passage, hub and shroud radiuses, axial length of the process of pressure ratio achievement.
impeller, and blade height in 2D plane. Thus, theoretical
results are verified using the optimization algorithm and
aerodynamic analysis using CFD tools in ANSYS II. BACKGROUND
workbench. Since blade thickness is critical to the A gas turbine comprises chiefly of three segments, the
structural loads due to high rpm of the impeller, structural compressor, the ignition chamber and the turbine. The
analysis (fluid structure interaction) is performed for the compressor is one a part of the whole gas turbine, however
CFD loads being applied on the impeller in order to verify never the less, a vital and likely the most confounded segment
the feasibility of design for the working environment. to outline in a streamlined perspective. The working fluid
enters delta pipe and proceeds to the compressor. In axial
Keywords— centrifugal compressor; high pressure turbine; compressor the fluid is pressurized about 4 to 5 times the actual
blade width; blade height; blade thickness; CFX analysis; blade pressure, and about 10 times in centrifugal compressor. The
angles; gas turbine engines. compressor pressurizes the fluid and will likewise prompt to an
expansion in temperature. After the compressor, the weight of
I. INTRODUCTION the working liquid will have expanded to 15-30 bar, and will
Gas turbine engines have 4 basic components, fan, have a temperature of around 500°C. By burning of fuel in the
compressors, combustion chamber and turbines. In such gas ignition chamber, vitality is added to the working liquid. A gas
turbine engines where high pressure ratio is required turbine is extremely adaptable as far as what kind of powers
compressors are used in a combination of two types, axial can be utilized. [1]
compressors also known as low pressure compressors and
centrifugal compressors also known as high pressure
compressors. This research is focused on an efficient design of
centrifugal compressor unit suitable for practical scenarios. The
design process is both theoretical and software based.
Theoretical design was accomplished using the general gas
turbine theory and basic aerodynamic design theory. The
design process for centrifugal compressors start by the inducer
eye and tip radiuses and the blade angles are decided by the air

978-1-5386-7729-2/19/$31.00©2019 IEEE

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 A. design of centrifugal compressor
Procedure for the design of centrifugal compressor has been
explained in the flow chart given in fig. 2.

Fig. 1: Main components of a gas turbine engine(Courtesy:

http://en.citizendium.org/wiki/Jet_engine)

III. DESIGN PROCESS Fig. 2: Flow chart for the design process of centrifugal compressor
As described earlier, this research is focused on the design of
As shown in the flow chart, after solving the velocity
single stage centrifugal compressor. State of the art design
triangles, we need to find out shroud radius, tip radius and
methodology is adopted for centrifugal compressor to best
impeller eye radius. Apart from that we also need to find tip
achieve the required pressure ratio.
width, outer radius and blade thickness. These are the
Note: All the calculations here are done using MATLAB
parameters to be determined in 2D-design procedure:
codes for compressor. MATLAB code is generic and inlet
conditions and design specifications can be changed
accordingly.
For the design of centrifugal compressor we are given the
following design specifications.

Table. 1: Design specifications

Parameter Value
Pressure ratio overall>14 (>10 for the

centrifugal compressor)

Number of stages for compressor 1 Fig. 3: 2D view of blade geometry parameters for the impeller [4]

RPM 62000 Whereas, in fig. :

 Lz = axial length of compressor.
 b2 = tip blade width.
Mass flow rate at compressor inlet 6 kg/s  rs1 = shroud radius at inlet.
 rh1 = hub radius.
 r2 = outer radius.
Turbine inlet temperature 1450K To calculate these parameters, we first need to solve the
velocity triangles at inlet and outlet of the compressor.
Velocity triangles at inlet and outlet are calculated using
mathematical correlations for the fundamental centrifugal
compressor design theory [3]:

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 Ω2 𝑚 𝑚 2
3
= 𝐶𝑥1 = 𝑟𝑠1
𝞹 𝑘 𝞺1 (𝑡𝑎𝑛𝛽1 + 𝑡𝑎𝑛𝛼1 )2 𝞹 𝐶𝑥1 𝞺1 𝑘
Where, 𝑟𝑠1 = 0.065 𝑚
𝞺01 Next thing is to select hub-to-shroud radius ratio. This ratio is
= 𝞺1 selected to be 0.4 from reference [4].
1
{(1 + ( )(𝑀1𝑟𝑒𝑙 𝑐𝑜𝑠𝛽1 )2 }2.5 𝑟ℎ1
5 = 0.4
𝑟𝑠1
Once we get 𝑪𝐱𝟏 , velocity triangles are easily solved: From this ratio, hub radius is calculated to be:
𝑟ℎ1 = 0.026 𝑚
Whereas impeller eye radius is given by:
𝑟𝑠1 - 𝑟ℎ1 = 𝑟𝑒1
𝑟𝑒1 = 0.039 𝑚
Outer radius, 𝑑2 is calculated from the following ratio, which
has been selected from reference [4].
𝑑𝑠1
=0.5
𝑑2
𝑑2 = 0.26 𝑚 or 𝑟2 = 0.13 𝑚
and blade width at outlet, 𝑏2 is calculated using [4],
𝑏2
Fig. 4: Velocity triangles at inlet =0.03
𝑑2
Table. 2: Velocity triangle parameters at inlet Up till now, we have defined the blade geometry using
mathematical correlations. The following diagram shows the
Parameter Value blade geometry parameters in mm.
W1 149.807 m/s

C1 235.565 m/s

U1 238.2708 m/s

Beeta1 66.4969 deg

Alpha1 37.5785 deg

Fig. 6: Impeller hub geometry defined in CATIA V5

Fig. 5: Velocity triangles at outlet

Blade tip velocity is calculated using outer diameter, whereas
N is rotational velocity in rad/s [3].
Table. 3: Velocity triangle parameters at outlet 𝑈 = 𝞹𝑑2 𝑁
𝑈 = 843.13 𝑚/𝑠
Parameter value Temperature difference across the compressor is calculated
W2 356.74 m/s
using [3]:
𝟁𝞼𝑈 2
C2 614.253 m/s
𝑇03 − 𝑇01 =
𝐶𝑝
U2 843.129 m/s Where,
0.63𝞹
Beeta2 40 deg
𝞼=1−
𝑛
Slip factor(𝞼) is defined as the slip being generated because
Alpha2 21.92 deg
of the whirl component of the velocity. This factor is
introduced to compensate for that slip. In the formula, n is the
number of blades and is selected to be 16.
𝛽2 is the back sweep angle and is selected using historical
𝞼 = 𝟎. 𝟖𝟕𝟕
trends [3]. Once we know 𝞺1 and 𝐶x1 , we can calculate shroud
And,
radius using:
𝟁 = 1.02-1.05

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𝟁 is the power input factor.  𝑴𝟐′ , Mach no. at diffuser entry.
Power input factor is introduced to take account of frictional  𝜶𝟑 , absolute air angle at diffuser exit.
losses. Selecting 𝟁=1.04 and 𝞰(isentropic efficiency)=75%,  Vaneless space.
pressure ratio is calculated using the following relation [3],
where 𝞬 is specific heat constant taken to be 1.4 [2]:
𝞬
𝑃03 𝞰(𝑇03 − 𝑇01 ) 𝞬−1
= [1 + ]
𝑃01 𝑇01
pressure ratio comes out to be:
𝑷𝟎𝟑
= 𝟏𝟏. 𝟑𝟐
𝑷𝟎𝟏
This means that, we have been able to achieve the pressure
ratio greater than 10 using a single stage of centrifugal
compressor. And power required is given by [2]:
𝑝𝑜𝑤𝑒𝑟 𝑟𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑖𝑟𝑒𝑑 = 𝑚𝐶𝑝 (𝑇03 − 𝑇01 )
𝑝𝑜𝑤𝑒𝑟 𝑟𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑖𝑟𝑒𝑑 = 3887.05 𝑘𝑊

Fig. 8: diffuser geometry parameters

Blade thickness is usually 0.3% of 𝑑2 [4] but at high rpm this
thickness for our design is not feasible. Static structural Using diffuser design theory, all the diffuser parameters are
analysis if performed using ANSYS workbench and that calculated as follows [5]:
thickness is selected at which stresses are minimum and Table. 4: Parameters for diffuser design
deformation is limited. That thickness is selected to be 2.5mm
and axial length is selected to be 100mm. parameters Values

𝑪𝞱𝟐 738.825 m/s

𝑪𝒓𝟐 249.97 m/s

𝜶𝟐′ 32.732 deg

𝑻𝟐′ 1012.574 K

𝑴𝟐′ 0.755

𝜶𝟑 50.57 deg

Vaneless space 9.74 mm

Fig. 7: Blade deformation in static structural(ANSYS)

B. Design of diffuser
From theoretical calculations and verification using different
modules, it can be concluded that pressure ratio has already
been achieved. But the Mach no. at the exit of impeller is
undesirable. Theoretically it is 1.75 and from VISTA TF
results it is around 2. This Mach no should be reduced using a
diffuser. From literature Mach no at the diffuser entry should
not be greater than 0.9 [2].
For the design of diffuser, airfoil based vanned diffuser is used
and the airfoil is geo443-il. As far as the airfoil is concerned
any symmetric airfoil can be selected.
For the diffuser design(to define the diffuser geometry),
following parameters need to be calculated [2].
 𝑪𝞱𝟐 , whirl component of velocity at impeller exit
and diffuser entry.
 𝑪𝒓𝟐 , radial component of velocity at impeller exit.
 𝜶𝟐′ , absolute air angle at diffuser entry, after
vaneless space.
 𝑻𝟐′ , temperature at diffuser entry after vaneless Fig. 9: Diffuser geometry parameters defined in CATIA V5
space.

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 Fig. 11: Performance parameters from VISTA CCD

In the next step VISTA CCD module is linked with VISTA

TF(through flow) module which performs 2D analysis and
gives the contours along the span of impeller.
Fig. 10: 3D geometry of impeller and diffuser in CATIA V5

Free vortex design method is then used to calculate blade

angles at tip and root. This method comprises of 4 equations
[2]:

𝑟𝑚
𝑡𝑎𝑛𝛼2 = ( ) 𝑡𝑎𝑛𝛼2𝑚
𝑟 2
𝑟𝑚
𝑡𝑎𝑛𝛼3 = ( )3 𝑡𝑎𝑛𝛼3𝑚
𝑟
𝑟 𝑟 𝑈
𝑡𝑎𝑛𝛽2 = ( 𝑚 )2 𝑡𝑎𝑛𝛼2𝑚 −( )2 𝑚
𝑟 𝑟𝑚 𝐶𝑎2
𝑟 𝑟 𝑈𝑚
𝑡𝑎𝑛𝛽3 = ( 𝑚 )3 𝑡𝑎𝑛𝛼3𝑚 +( )3
𝑟 𝑟𝑚 𝐶𝑎3

Table. 5: Blade angles at root mean and tip

Angles 𝜶𝟐 (deg) 𝜷𝟐 (deg) 𝜶𝟑 (deg) 𝜷𝟑 (deg)

Mean 53.44 13.357 10 52.138

Tip 46.518 20.12 6.332 61.944

root 61.864 46.906 23.199 41.531

IV. VALIDATION OF THEORETICAL RESULTS WITH CFD

RESULTS
Theoretical results are verified using VISTA CCD, VISTA TF Fig. 12: Performance parameters from VISTA TF
and CFX solver which are different modules integrated in
ANSYS workbench. VISTA CCD and VISTA TF are used for
preliminary 2D design verification of centrifugal impeller Variation of static pressure along the span of impeller is
whereas CFX solver is used for 3D design verification of both shown in the figure below. In this figure pressure varies from
the impeller and axial turbine. 400kPa to 2800kPa. Static pressure is increased by 7 times
Following figure depicts the performance of a centrifugal which is equivalent to the total pressure rise of 15 times as
impeller in 2D domain. shown in the above table.

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 Compressor performance results from CFX solver are given
below:

Fig. 13: Contours of static pressure variation along the blade span

For 3D analysis and verification of theoretical results, CFX

solver is used. VISTA CCD is linked with Bladegen which Fig. 15: Compressor performance from CFX solver
extracts the 3D geometry of impeller. Bladegen is then linked
with CFD mesh component. Once a refined CFD mesh is
obtained, CFX solver component is linked with mesh Static pressure at the inlet of compressor is almost constant
component for 3D CFD analysis. Following figure shows and same is case at the outlet which is the desired result
mesh with 422929 nodes and 1213649 elements. because we want constant pressure rise coming out of the
impeller outlet for efficient burning in the combustion
chamber.

Fig. 14: CFD mesh in ANSYS workbench

Fig. 16: Contours of static pressure at impeller inlet

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 V. FSI (FLUID STRUCTURE INTERACTION)
A. Centrifugal Impeller:
For the centrifugal impeller fluid structure interaction has been
performed to determine:
 Suitable material
 Blade thickness
 Factor of safety
Blade thickness is normally 0.3% of d2 [4] but is very critical
to the stresses being applied on the blades. To determine
which material gives minimum deformation and maximum
factor of safety among the tested materials, CFD loads from
CFX solver were transferred to static structural module.
Analysis was performed on three different materials, structural
steel, aluminum alloy and titanium alloy.

Fig. 17: Contours of static pressure at impeller outlet

Fig. 20: FSI with 2.5mm blade thickness and aluminum alloy

Fig. 18: Velocity streamlines along the impeller blade

Table. 9: Comparison of results

Following graph shows the variation of static and total

pressure rise along the normalized span of impeller. Fig. 21: FSI with 2.5mm blade thickness and structural steel

Parameters Theoretica VISTA CFX Max

l results CCD Error

Pressure ratio 11.3174 11.3174 11.0828 2.07%

Stag Temperature 1127.99 K 1127.99 ------ 0.00%

U(blade speed) 843.12 m/s 905.16 932.27 9.56%

Power required 3887.05 3885.83 3762.56 3.17%

kW kW kW

Outer diameter 259.72 mm 278.83 267 mm 6.85%

Fig. 19: Variation of static and total pressure rise along normalized span of
impeller mm

Ref. inlet total 4.31 kg/m3 ------ 4.2 2.55%

density kg/m3

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 Fig. 22: FSI with 2.5mm blade thickness and titanium alloy

Impeller was analyzed using blade deformation and FOS

(factor of safety). For all the three materials, FOS is greater
than 1 which is the lower limit. Maximum factor of safety is
for titanium alloy which is around 4.04. This is high because
we have used constant blade thickness along the meridional
surface. Variable blade thickness (thickness decreasing from
inlet to outlet) can be used to reduce the weight of the impeller
which will enhance the performance of the impeller. Using the
variable thickness, FOS can be reduced to a value of around
1.5-1.7 which is a near perfect range for impeller blade design.
VI. CONCLUSION
11:1 compressor has been designed for the optimum
performance of turbofan engine. Compressor has been
designed using fundamental 1D and 2D design approach. CFD
results from VISTA CCD (2D approach) and CFX solver (3D
solver) for turbomachinery match with the theoretical
calculations and show that the required pressure ratio has been
achieved. Structural analysis of the machine shows that the
FOS is in safe limit but can be reduced if internal structure is
defined and variable thickness is used. Off design simulation
of operation of compressor should be performed to determine
choking and surge limits. Effects of addition of inter-vanes
should also be studied comparatively.

VII. REFERENCES

[1] A. F. El-Sayed, Aircraft Propulsion and Gas Turbines

Engines, United States of America: CRC Press Taylor and
Francis Group, 2006.
[2] G. R. H. S. H Cohen, Gas Turbine Theory Fifth Edition,
India: Pearson Education, 2001.
[3] B. A. H. S.L.Dixon, Fluid Mechanics and
Thermodynamics of Turbomachinery, United Kingdom:
Elsevier Inc, 2014.
[4] C. D. B. Marco Vagani, " Design and performance
evaluation of 10:1 pressure ratio centrifugal compressor
impeller," 2010.
[5] S. Yahya, Turbines, compressors and fans, University of
Liverpool U.K: Mc Graw Hill, 2011.
[6] J. D. Mattingly, elements of Propulsion: Gas Turbines and
Rockets, Blacksburg, Virginia: American Institute of
Aeronauticsand Astronautics, 2006.

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