JOURNAL OF PROPULSION AND POWER

Vol. 20, No. 3, May–June 2004

Model for Multistage Compressors to Predict

Unsteady Inlet–Compressor Interactions
Miklos Sajben∗
University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio 45221-0070

The design of supersonic airbreathing propulsion systems must include an assesment of how the inlet/engine
combination responds to flow disturbances that might affect the system during operation. The movement of the
terminal normal shock is of particular concern because excessive upstream displacement can cause inlet instabili-
ties. The engineering approach to this problem is to use an unsteady computational fluid dynamics (CFD) code to
analyze the inlet flowfield in conjunction with an outflow boundary condition, imposed at the compressor face. If
the characteristic time scale of the disturbance is short, then internal reverberations within the compressor may
play an important role in the transients. In this case only a simultaneous, coupled inlet–compressor computation
is capable of yielding the correct result. The complexity of unsteady compressor flows currently makes such com-
putations impractical within the constraints of engineering projects. This article offers a simple, one-dimensional
compressor model that utilizes the acoustic reflection and transmission coefficients of individual compressor com-
ponents as building blocks. Incorporation of the model into existing unsteady inlet CFD codes would eliminate the
need for a boundary condition at the compressor face, with no significant impact on overall computational time.
Calculated results agree well with experimental data.

Nomenclature n = nth component

a = speed of sound R = round trip of acoustic wave across component
b = passage height (radial dimension) u, d = upstream and downstream of component
M = Mach number W = time resolution for convolution
N = number of components in system x, y = x, y components of vector
p = absolute static pressure ± = right (+) or left (−) incident wave
R = reflection coefficient ∞ = long-time value of model response
r = mean radius to step-change input
T = transmission coefficient
t = time or time interval Superscripts
u = velocity component = undisturbed steady flow
x, y = axial and tangential coordinates  = time-dependent part
α = angle between wave path and time
axis on (ξ , τ ) diagram
β = flow angle with respect to axial direction,
in blade coordinates
Introduction
δz
λ
µ
=
=
=
change of quantity z across acoustic wave
spacing between adjacent response planes (gap)
ratio of absolute static pressures
T HIS paper relates to supersonic airbreathing propulsion sys-
tems employing an axial-flow gas turbine, commonly used for
aircraft or missiles. The design of such systems must include an
(downstream/upstream of component) assessment of inlet stability and dynamic behavior when affected
ξ = normalized distance (= x/λ) by various types of disturbances. The prediction of terminal nor-
ρ = density mal shock movement is of particular interest, because excessive up-
σ̃ = component area ratio, (rd bd )/(ru bu ) stream displacement may cause unstart in mixed-compression inlets
τ = normalized time (= at/λ) or time interval and buzz in external compression inlets. Upstream disturbances may
φ = ratio of densities (downstream/upstream be related to atmospheric nonuniformities or turbulence or may be
of component) generated by other aircraft or missiles. Any type of commanded
χ = ratio of absolute static temperatures change of the inlet configuration represents a disturbance. Down-
(downstream/upstream of component) stream disturbances may originate from the combustor following
fuel flow changes or unwanted combustor pressure fluctuations. The
Subscripts problem, its history, and implications are discussed in more detail
in Refs. 1 and 2.
CF = at compressor face If the characteristic time scale of the incident disturbance is short
D = incident disturbance compared with the time scale of either the inlet or the compressor,
i, j, k, m = indices defined in text then the ensuing transient involves complex unsteady interactions
between these two components. The accurate numerical simulation
of these processes requires a coupled computation of the flow in
Received 23 March 2003; revision received 21 August 2003; accepted both the inlet and the compressor. Such computations are extremely
for publication 3 September 2003. Copyright  c 2003 by the American time-consuming and have been accomplished to date only as re-
Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Inc. All rights reserved. Copies search projects.3,4 The time and budget limitations of development
of this paper may be made for personal or internal use, on condition that the
copier pay the $10.00 per-copy fee to the Copyright Clearance Center, Inc.,
programs mandate reliance on unsteady inlet flow codes in which
222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923; include the code 0748-4658/04 the compressor is represented only by a compressor face boundary
$10.00 in correspondence with the CCC. condition (CFBC). The outflow boundary condition is intended to
∗ Professor Emeritus, Department of Aerospace Engineering and Engi- mimic the dynamic properties of a complex multistage machine, but
neering Mechanics. Fellow AIAA. traditional CFBC’s fail to duplicate experimental observations.5−8
492