A Numerical Study on Leakage Flow in the Shroud Cavity of a Centrifugal Impeller

A high-pressure centrifugal compressor with a shroud cavity is a key piece of energy equipment found in a compressed air energy storage (CAES) system. The leakage flow of the shroud cavity is an important factor affecting the efficiency of the system. Using systematic numerical studies, the influenc...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Jiaxi Chen, Zhitao Zuo, Jixiang Chen, Jianting Sun, Haisheng Chen
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2025-04-01
Series:Energies
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/18/8/2042
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1849714296788877312
author Jiaxi Chen
Zhitao Zuo
Jixiang Chen
Jianting Sun
Haisheng Chen
author_facet Jiaxi Chen
Zhitao Zuo
Jixiang Chen
Jianting Sun
Haisheng Chen
author_sort Jiaxi Chen
collection DOAJ
description A high-pressure centrifugal compressor with a shroud cavity is a key piece of energy equipment found in a compressed air energy storage (CAES) system. The leakage flow of the shroud cavity is an important factor affecting the efficiency of the system. Using systematic numerical studies, the influence of leakage flow on high-pressure centrifugal compressors under different leakage rates has been comprehensively elucidated. The study reveals that the leakage flow significantly increases the circumferential swirl angle of the flow at the impeller inlet, thereby exerting a significant influence on the flow characteristics within the impeller. As the leakage rate increases, the stable operating range of the compressor is significantly reduced, with the total pressure ratio decreasing by up to 2% and the isentropic efficiency dropping by up to 4 percentage points.
format Article
id doaj-art-50d0b3410db843f19c2dca4c75413f61
institution DOAJ
issn 1996-1073
language English
publishDate 2025-04-01
publisher MDPI AG
record_format Article
series Energies
spelling doaj-art-50d0b3410db843f19c2dca4c75413f612025-08-20T03:13:44ZengMDPI AGEnergies1996-10732025-04-01188204210.3390/en18082042A Numerical Study on Leakage Flow in the Shroud Cavity of a Centrifugal ImpellerJiaxi Chen0Zhitao Zuo1Jixiang Chen2Jianting Sun3Haisheng Chen4Institute of Engineering Thermophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100191, ChinaInstitute of Engineering Thermophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100191, ChinaInstitute of Engineering Thermophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100191, ChinaInstitute of Engineering Thermophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100191, ChinaInstitute of Engineering Thermophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100191, ChinaA high-pressure centrifugal compressor with a shroud cavity is a key piece of energy equipment found in a compressed air energy storage (CAES) system. The leakage flow of the shroud cavity is an important factor affecting the efficiency of the system. Using systematic numerical studies, the influence of leakage flow on high-pressure centrifugal compressors under different leakage rates has been comprehensively elucidated. The study reveals that the leakage flow significantly increases the circumferential swirl angle of the flow at the impeller inlet, thereby exerting a significant influence on the flow characteristics within the impeller. As the leakage rate increases, the stable operating range of the compressor is significantly reduced, with the total pressure ratio decreasing by up to 2% and the isentropic efficiency dropping by up to 4 percentage points.https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/18/8/2042shrouded impellercavityleakage losses
spellingShingle Jiaxi Chen
Zhitao Zuo
Jixiang Chen
Jianting Sun
Haisheng Chen
A Numerical Study on Leakage Flow in the Shroud Cavity of a Centrifugal Impeller
Energies
shrouded impeller
cavity
leakage losses
title A Numerical Study on Leakage Flow in the Shroud Cavity of a Centrifugal Impeller
title_full A Numerical Study on Leakage Flow in the Shroud Cavity of a Centrifugal Impeller
title_fullStr A Numerical Study on Leakage Flow in the Shroud Cavity of a Centrifugal Impeller
title_full_unstemmed A Numerical Study on Leakage Flow in the Shroud Cavity of a Centrifugal Impeller
title_short A Numerical Study on Leakage Flow in the Shroud Cavity of a Centrifugal Impeller
title_sort numerical study on leakage flow in the shroud cavity of a centrifugal impeller
topic shrouded impeller
cavity
leakage losses
url https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/18/8/2042
work_keys_str_mv AT jiaxichen anumericalstudyonleakageflowintheshroudcavityofacentrifugalimpeller
AT zhitaozuo anumericalstudyonleakageflowintheshroudcavityofacentrifugalimpeller
AT jixiangchen anumericalstudyonleakageflowintheshroudcavityofacentrifugalimpeller
AT jiantingsun anumericalstudyonleakageflowintheshroudcavityofacentrifugalimpeller
AT haishengchen anumericalstudyonleakageflowintheshroudcavityofacentrifugalimpeller
AT jiaxichen numericalstudyonleakageflowintheshroudcavityofacentrifugalimpeller
AT zhitaozuo numericalstudyonleakageflowintheshroudcavityofacentrifugalimpeller
AT jixiangchen numericalstudyonleakageflowintheshroudcavityofacentrifugalimpeller
AT jiantingsun numericalstudyonleakageflowintheshroudcavityofacentrifugalimpeller
AT haishengchen numericalstudyonleakageflowintheshroudcavityofacentrifugalimpeller