Casing wall static pressure distribution behavior in a centrifugal compressor with asymmetric inlet/outlet structures:

Asymmetric structures of the bent inlet pipes and outlet volute are typically adopted in centrifugal compressors. By using asymmetric inlet/outlet structures, the uniformity of the compressor’s internal flow field in the circumferential direction will be changed. The static pressure distribution behavior around the casing wall is significantly influenced by the coupling effect of the bent inlet pipe and outlet volute. In the present work, three compressors were numerically and experimentally investigated. One compressor had a straight inlet pipe, and the other two had bent inlet pipes. Seventy-two static pressure sensors were mounted around the casing wall to obtain the static pressure distribution at different flow rates for three rotational speeds. The results show that at high rotational speeds with large flow rate conditions, when the static pressure waves induced by the bent pipe and volute act on the same circumferential position, the casing wall static pressure will be increased at the correspondin...