1 Copyright © 2010 by ASME Proceedings of ASME TURBO EXPO 2010 Power for Land, Sea, and Air June 14-18, 2010, Glasgow, UK GT2010-22996 AN AXIAL-FLOW COMPRESSOR FOR OPERATION WITH HUMID AIR AND WATER INJECTION Jesuino Takachi Tomita Instituto Tecnológico de Aeronáutica - ITA Gas Turbine Group 12228-900 - São José dos Campos, São Paulo Brazil 55-12-39476951, jtakachi@ita.br Luciano Porto Bontempo Instituto Tecnológico de Aeronáutica - ITA Gas Turbine Group 12228-900 - São José dos Campos, São Paulo Brazil 55-12-39476951, bontempo@ita.br João Roberto Barbosa Instituto Tecnológico de Aeronáutica - ITA Gas Turbine Group 12228-900 - São José dos Campos, São Paulo Brazil 55-12-39476952, barbosa@ita.br ABSTRACT The first steps of the turbomachinery design usually rely on numerical tools based on inviscid formulation with corrections using loss models to account for viscous effects, secondary flows, tip clearances and shock waves. The viscous effects are accounted for using semi-empirical correlations specially assembled for the chosen airfoils and range of operating conditions. Fast convergence and good accuracy are required from such design procedures. There are successful models that produce very accurate performance prediction. Among the methodologies commonly used, the streamline curvature (SLC) is used, since those characteristics and the most important properties can be calculated reasonably well at any radial positions, assisting other more complex analysis programs. The SLC technique is, therefore, well suited for the design of axial flow compressors, for reasons like quick access to vital flow properties at the blade edges, from which actions may be taken to improve its performance at the design stage. This work reports the association of a SLC computer program and commercial software for comparison purposes, as well as for grid generation required by a full 3D, turbulent Navier-Stokes computer program, used for flow calculation in the blade passages. Application to a high performance 3-stage axial-flow compressor with Inlet Guide Vane (IGV) demonstrates the methodology adopted. The SLC program is also capable of calculating the compressor performance with humid air and water injection at any axial position along the compressor. The influence of water injection at different axial positions, water particle diameter, temperature of water particles were studied for different humid air conditions. The positions of the evaporating water particles were calculated using their thermo- physical and dynamic properties along the compressor. Keywords: Axial Compressor, Water Injection, Streamline Curvature, CFD, humid air compression. INTRODUCTION The design and performance calculation of a 3-stage axial flow compressor was carried out using a specially developed numerical tool based on the SLC method [1]. Conservation equations for axisymmetric non-viscous flow are solved on streamlines, at the blade edges. Effects of viscosity are incorporated by empirical correlations and the results are enough accurate for the compressor geometry definition. The points of departure for this design refinement were obtained from the meanline calculations. Well accepted loss models were calibrated and used to obtain the flow properties at radial positions, at the leading and at the trailing edges.