Numerical investigation of stator clocking in a centrifugal compressor

In the current study an unsteady three-dimensional computational research program has been performed to study the effects of stator clocking in a centrifugal compressor stage. It has been shown computationally that variations in the relative circumferential positions of stators can lead to different compressor performance. The variation magnitude of the efficiency is 0.175%. In addition, the flow fields with respect to unsteady quantities are compared and analyzed in different clocking positions. The interactions of the periodic wakes with boundary layers on the downstream stator blades and with the leakage of flow over the tips of rotor blades have been discussed.