DESIGN OF A HIGH-PERFORMANCE AXIAL COMPRESSOR FOR UTILITY GAS-TURBINE

An aerodynamic design study to configure a high-efficiency industrial-size gas turbine compressor is presented. This study was conducted using an advanced aircraft engine compressor design system. Starting with an initial configuration based on conventional design practice, compressor design parameters were progressively optimized. To improve the efficiency potential of this design further, several advanced design concepts (such as stator ends bends and velocity controlled airfoils) were introduced. The projected polytropic efficiency of the final advanced concept compressor design having 19 axial stages was estimated at 92.8 percent, which is 2 to 3 percent higher than the current high-efficiency aircraft turbine engine compressors. The influence of variable geometry on the flow and efficiency (at design speed) was also investigated. Operation at 77 percent design flow with inlet guide vanes and front five variable stators is predicted to increase the compressor efficiency by 6 points as compared to conventional designs having only the inlet guide vane as variable geometry.