Sensitivity Analysis of Impeller Blade Parameters to Compressor Performance and Aerodynamic Noise

Abstract The effects of a series of impeller blade parameters on compressor performance and aerodynamic noise are numerical analyzed in this paper. The inversed impeller blade model of a turbocharger compressor was first constructed by the reverse engineering method. Then, the performance and aerodynamic noise of the inversed impeller blade model was validated using a numerical approach, which combines computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and computational aerodynamic acoustics (CAA). A parameterization of blade starts from the inversed impeller and then morphs it with a number of design parameters, which including tip clearance, the curvature of cut-off trailing edge, exit lean angle, inlet blade angle on shroud and inlet blade angle on hub. The influence of different structural parameters on compressor performance and noise was studied, and the sensitivity analysis of different structural parameters was carried out based on the Morris’s method. The results indicate that the tip clearance, the outlet lean angle of blade and the inlet blade angle at shroud have a significant effect on compressor aerodynamic performance, while the curvature of cut-off trailing edge and the inlet blade angle on hub have less impact. The overall sound pressure level (OASPL) of the aerodynamic noise radiated at compressor inlet shows that the inlet blade angle on shroud and the inlet blade angle on hub have a significant effect on compressor aerodynamic noise. The results of sensitivity analysis further indicate that the tip clearance and the inlet blade angle on shroud are the main parameters that affect compressor aerodynamic performance and noise.