The Finish Line, Rotating Machinery Services.

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Vol. 22 • March 2021 [Q1 2021]

The Art of Fine-Tuning

Analysis and structural tuning of a
centrifugal compressor impeller.

James Cardillo, Structural Analyst

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The analysis and “fine-tuning” of centrifugal compressor impellers is
often an iterative process. It involves balancing the aerodynamic
performance requirements with the structural integrity and vibration
characteristics of the impeller. The process is involved, but when
executed properly, it can result in a high-performance, robust impeller
design that runs smoothly and reliably.

Typically, the initial design of a centrifugal compressor impeller takes

place upstream of the structural analysis. Once the initial design which
satisfies the application requirements is obtained, a structural analysis
is carried out on the impeller design to finalize its form and ensure its
structural integrity. There are three core “pillars” or “tasks” when
carrying out structural analysis of centrifugal compressor impellers:

1. Fit Analysis of the Impeller: A comprehensive analysis of the

“worst-case” fit stresses and power transfer characteristics of
the impeller to shaft assembly.
2. Stress Analysis of the Impeller: A detailed analysis of the
stresses and deformations in the impeller design itself (local
Von-Mises stresses, Maximum Principal Stresses,
deformations, etc… in the blades, the cover plate if applicable,
and the disc of the impeller). In some cases, the severity of the
application may lead to deeper investigations (such as plastic
deformations, thermal transient behavior, low-cycle and high-
cycle fatigue, etc…)
3. Vibration Analysis of the Impeller: The frequency
characteristics of the impeller design are analyzed to ensure
good separation between natural frequencies and known
excitations. In some cases, where unique loadings and
excitations are present, a harmonic analysis is carried out to
further characterize the vibration response and fatigue behavior
of the impeller design.

In almost all cases, these three pillars aren’t completely independent of

one another. Thus, changes or findings based on one pillar of analysis
often affects results from another pillar. The results and outcomes of
these pillars are frequently linked to the initial design and application
requirements as well as the aerodynamics for the centrifugal
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compressor. For these reasons, the analysis and design process is
often very iterative and multi-disciplinary. Finite Element Analysis (FEA)
is a key tool used in the structural analysis process. This tool is used in
combination with performance testing and industry experience to drive
an impeller design to its final form.

Pillar 1: Fit Analysis of the Impeller

One could say that the performance of a centrifugal compressor
impeller is limited by the power transfer from the shaft to the impeller
itself. This makes the fit characteristics of the impeller extremely
important. An impeller with an improper shaft fit can also adversely
affect the vibration characteristics of the machine. In the fit analysis of
a centrifugal compressor impeller, the main area of interest is the fit of
the impeller onto the driving shaft, which is almost always an
interference fit. In some cases, a “key” is added to this fit to ensure
redundancy and safety in power transfer. However, in the design and
analysis phase, all fits are treated as “keyless” interference fits. This
forces a reliable and conservative design that satisfies requirements
safely without relying on design redundancies or “back-ups” to perform
reliably. Interference fits pose several design challenges:

1. The interference needs to be strong enough such that the

shaft transfers enough power to the impeller without “slipping”
or sliding.
2. The interference shouldn’t be so severe that it creates
extremely high “hoop” stress in the impeller bore.
3. The fit must meet these requirements in the course of design
operating speeds and thermal gradients.
4. The fit must be practical in the sense that the impeller can be
mounted and dismounted from the shaft without damage.

Two-dimensional, axisymmetric finite element analysis models like the

one shown in Figure 1 are heavily used to ensure that an interference
fit satisfies the above requirements. The advantage of this type of model
is very high computational efficiency such that many design iterations

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can be performed quickly to arrive at the optimal fit requirements. The
final fit used for an impeller design is guided by the outcome of the finite
element analyses in combination with field testing and experience. In
certain applications where the geometry does not permit the use of an
axisymmetric model, a full three-dimensional model or a periodic model
may also be used.

Figure 1 — 2-D, typical axisymmetric finite element model mesh used in an

impeller fit analysis. Particular emphasis is placed on the area of the impeller bore
since the physics in this area are key to the analysis of the fit.

Centrifugal compressor impellers are flexible bodies that deform when

under load (at rotational speed). Because of their shape, they have a
tendency to “lift” away from the shaft at the aft-end of or the back of the
bore as shown in Figure 2.

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Figure 2 — 2-D, deformed shape showing the lift-off experience at the aft-end of
a centrifugal impeller bore when rotational speed is applied.

Typically, centrifugal impeller bores deform in this way at speed (even

if the interference fit is along the full bore of the impeller). This presents
a design challenge because at speed, power transfer is only taking
place over the portion of the fit which remains in contact (the inlet side
of the impeller bore). Design of a fit like this requires that the engineer
size the length of the fit and the amount of interference to ensure that it
remains in contact and transfers power when the impeller is run at
speed. This requirement can be further complicated when high,
differential temperatures are applied to the impeller and the shaft (which
could cause the impeller to expand away from the shaft and lose
contact). The process is very iterative with the 2-D finite element
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analysis being a key tool used to arrive at the design of the bore
interference geometry. Typically, a range of fits and temperatures are
modeled as well as various bore geometries. The remaining contact
length and power transfer capabilities are calculated over a range of fits
from the finite element model as shown in Figures 3 and 4. These
calculations provide the engineer with the design insights needed to
size and design the optimal fit. For the impeller shown in Figure 3, it
can be observed that after the interference fit reaches a certain level,
the entire front of the bore remains in contact at speed. Thus, making
the fit more aggressive provided no additional benefit at speed.

Figure 3 — 2-D, deformed shape showing the lift-off experienced at the aft-end of
a centrifugal impeller bore when rotational speed is applied.

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Figure 4 — Results of 2-D, Power transfer analysis shown over a range of
interference fits.

Adequate power transfer and remaining front contact length are critical
for the design of the interference fit, as well as the resulting hoop
stresses in the bore of the impeller. When an impeller is interference fit
onto a shaft, this causes expansion of the bore of the impeller, resulting
in “hoop” stress. If the hoop stress is too high, it can lead to deleterious
plastic deformation of the impeller bore. Therefore, hoop stresses
during assembly (shown in Figure 5) as well as during operating
conditions are calculated from the structural analysis. The engineer
must ensure that these stresses remain below the yield strength of the
material at the selected fit with adequate safety margin to guarantee
performance and reliability of the fit.

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Figure 5 — Hoop stresses calculated in the bore of the impeller over a range of
interference fits used to aid the engineer in selection of the proper interference fit.

Pillar 2: Stress Analysis of the Impeller

Centrifugal compressor impellers are often exposed to harsh operating
environments. These environments include high centrifugal forces from
the rotational speed of the impeller, aerodynamic forces on the blades,
high temperatures and thermal gradients, as well as the possible
presence of corrosive gases. These factors can combine to create high
forces and thus high deformations of the impeller body. Therefore, in
addition to satisfying the application pressure requirements, a
centrifugal compressor impeller must also be strong enough to
withstand high operating forces and loads without experiencing large
plastic deformations or cracking. The materials for the impeller must be
selected to maintain adequate design safety factor against the material
yield strength and ensure compatibility with the working fluid. The
impeller itself must be adequately smooth and contoured to avoid
excessive stress concentrations which could escalate to fatigue cracks.
If welds are present, these also need to be sized and performed
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properly to avoid excessive stress concentrations which would result in
weld cracking. Once again, finite element analysis in combination with
experience and testing is a key part of this process. In the case of
analyzing the impeller design, full, three-dimensional finite element
analysis is almost always necessary.

An overall sense of the impeller design and insight into critical areas
can be obtained by calculating the Von-Mises stresses in the impeller
when subjected to the operating loads as shown in Figure 6. The Von-
Mises stress is basically a calculation of all of the distortion energy in
the structure at a particular location. This calculation gives design
engineers an indication of where the high risk areas are located in an
impeller design. Typically, as a general design criteria, it is desirable to
keep the Von-Mises stresses below the yield strength of material (with
adequate safety factor) wherever possible.

Figure 6 — Von-Mises stresses calculated throughout the impeller show critical

areas in the blade radii and the bore.

While Von-Mises stress provides insight into the critical areas of an

impeller design, it doesn’t tell the whole story. Von-Mises stresses don’t
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provide information about the direction of a stress (IE: is it tensile or
compressive?). Depending on the direction of the stress, the potential
failure modes and design criteria may be different. Thus, the corrective
action a design engineer must take to safeguard against a particular
type of failure varies depending on the direction of the stress. For this
reason, Maximum and Minimum Principal stresses are also evaluated
throughout the impeller as shown in Figure 7. Maximum Principal stress
gives the engineer a sense of where the highest tensions occur in the
structure (highest potential for tensile crack growth and propagation). In
contrast, the Minimum Principal stress provides the engineer with
information about where the highest compression occurs. Other types
of stress classification (hoop stress, circumferential stress, bending
stress, etc.) are also utilized depending on the needs of the design
engineer.

Figure 7a — Maximum Principal stresses calculated throughout the impeller show

areas of highest tension in the radii.

Thermal stresses add another degree of complexity to the impeller

design. While uniform temperatures result in relatively straight-forward
thermal expansions that need to be evaluated, a more deceptive
challenge is the presence of high thermal gradients throughout the
impeller body and the shaft. High gradients and transient temperature
differences can result in differential thermal expansion within the
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impeller body itself (resulting in high internal stresses) as well as
expansion of the impeller away from the shaft (resulting in the loss of fit
mentioned in the 1st analysis pillar). Calculation of these thermal
stresses can aid the design engineer in proper selection of materials
and shaping the impeller to withstand high transient thermal stresses.

Figure 7b — Thermal transient temperature distribution (left) shows non-uniform

heating of the impeller hub in the bore area. The resulting stresses (right) show
differential thermal expansion of the shell away from the core creates internal
stress in the hub.

Finally, if high local stresses and plastic deformations are unavoidable,

elastic-plastic analyses may be carried out to determine the degree of
plasticity experienced by the impeller and the low-cycle fatigue life.

Based on the stress analyses, if the design is not adequate, changes to

the geometry and/or materials need to be made. These changes
sometimes result in a change in the aerodynamic performance and the
fit performance of the impeller. Thus, the process is very iterative: when
one aspect of the design is changed, the other aspects often need to
be re-evaluated to determine their performance. This iterative process
often repeats until an optimal, balanced design is obtained.

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Pillar 3: Vibration Analysis of the
Impeller
Centrifugal compressor impellers in rotating machines are subject to
frequency excitations. The design engineer must ensure that these
frequencies don’t excite the natural frequencies of the impeller.
Excitation of the impeller’s natural frequencies can lead to catastrophic
deformations and stresses as well as fatigue damage to the impeller. In
the design phase, structural finite element analysis is used to calculate
the natural frequencies of the impeller and to ensure that these
frequencies are adequately far away from the excitation sources to
avoid resonance. In rotating machines, the primary excitation forces are
caused by aerodynamic wakes from stationary components like stators
and struts (Figure 8). However, rotor imbalance, casing ovalization, and
compressor surge/stall may also create excitation forces. While
measures are sometimes taken to mitigate these excitations, it is more
common for the design engineer to modify the impeller geometry to
move the natural frequencies away from these excitations. This
modification is typically an iterative process in which the design
engineer modifies the impeller geometry or material, and the structural
analysis is run to show how the natural frequencies were shifted
because of the changes. The process is continued until the design
engineer has obtained adequate separation margin (the natural
frequencies are sufficiently far away from all known excitation sources).

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Figure 8 — Illustration of compressor excitation sources.

Impellers are geometrically complex structures. As a result, their natural

frequencies can also be quite complex. For an open-faced impeller, the
natural frequencies are usually identified as a combination of blade
modes (Figure 9, left) and “disc” modes (Figure 9, right). However,
because the blades and the disc of an impeller are combined into one
structure, there is also an interaction between these otherwise separate
modes. Therefore, there are usually many natural frequencies and
combinations of blade and disc modes that need to be identified using
structural analysis.

Figure 9 — Impeller natural frequencies: 1st Blade bending frequency (left) and
two-nodal diameter disc frequency with some blade interaction (right).

In the case of a closed-face impeller, distinct blade modes are harder

to identify as the cover piece tends to bond the blades together creating
a situation where the disc modes are more readily identified.

Figure 10 — Closed-face impeller three-nodal diameter disc mode.

Depending on what types of modes or frequencies are identified by the

structural analysis and which frequencies need to be changed, the
design engineer may make geometric changes to change these
frequencies. For example, if the structural analysis identifies a blade
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mode close to an excitation, the design engineer might alter the blade
thickness or taper to move this blade mode away from the excitation.
On the other hand, if the structural analysis identifies a disc mode near
an excitation source, the design engineer might change the disc
thickness to move the frequency. As stated before, these types of
changes might result in a change to the performance and state of
stresses in the impeller. Therefore, this pillar is closely coupled to the
other pillars and aspects of the design. The process requires iteration
and re-evaluation of the design until a proper balance is found.
Typically, a Campbell or SAFE diagram is used to show the design
engineer where the impeller natural frequencies lie with respect to the
excitations. If an excitation crosses a natural frequency close to the
operating speed on a Campbell Diagram (Figure 11), this is an
indication that this frequency might be excited. Thus, measures need to
be taken to shift the natural frequency by altering the design or changing
the material of the impeller.

Figure 11 — Campbell diagram for an open-faced impeller.

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Finally, the fabricated impeller is often frequency tested (Figure 12) to
validate that the frequencies identified in the structural analysis
correlate well to the real natural frequencies, and as a final check to
ensure that there is adequate separation margin from the excitation
sources.

Figure 12 — Typical frequency response from a frequency test shows peaks

occurring at natural frequencies.

In conclusion, the structural analysis and final design of centrifugal

compressor impellers is a complex process with inter-woven parts. The
process can be separated into three main tasks or pillars, but these
pillars are closely coupled to one another. Changes made as a result of
the structural analysis can result in significant changes to the
performance, cost, and complexity of the impeller. Therefore, the
process is very iterative and multi-disciplinary process. RMS has a deep
history with centrifugal compressors with the expertise and experience
to design impellers that perform reliably and exceed expectations.

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