Experimental and Numerical Analysis of Active Suppression of Centrifugal Compressor Surge by Suction-Side Valve Control.

We conducted a series of experiments in order to investigate the feasibility of active surge suppression in life-size industrial machines. The diameter of the impeller used in these experiments was 250 mm. These experiments were performed with closed-loop and open-loop compressor systems with a control valve on the suction pipe, both of which differed from Epstein's model. Active surge suppression was possible in both compressor systems. The action of the control valve was observed to suppress flow fluctuations from the dynamically unstable equilibrium point at every instant. We also numerically analysed the open-loop case. The action of the control valve was modeled by on-off throttle control and the compressor system was analyzed numerically using a lumped parameter model