JP2010024867A - Centrifugal compressor - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a centrifugal compressor that delays occurrence of a stall in a low flow rate operation by a simple structure, and secures a wide operating range from the low flow rate operation to a high flow rate operation. <P>SOLUTION: In the centrifugal compressor, a rotary roller 19 rotates in a radial direction of a diffuser 8 by a gas flowing into the diffuser 8 to redirect the flow of the gas having mainly a circumferential speed component to a flow having mainly a radial speed component. Thus, the gas flow in the radial direction along a wall surface 17 increases. In addition, the gas over the rotary roller 19 flows while receiving an acceleration in the radial direction of the diffuser 8. As shown in a speed distribution of an symbol E, the gas inside the diffuser 8 flows at a high speed and, thus, a stall does not occur in the low flow rate operation. Therefore, because the occurrence of the stall can be delayed down to a lower flow rate range by the arrangement of the rotary roller 19, an operating range of the centrifugal compressor can be expanded from the high flow rate range to the low flow rate range. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a configuration of a diffuser disposed on an outer periphery of an impeller in a centrifugal compressor.

  In a centrifugal compressor, it is one of important issues to ensure a wide operating range from a low flow rate operation to a high flow rate operation. However, at the time of low flow operation, there is a problem that gas backflow occurs due to stall of the diffuser inlet, and stable operation is difficult. As a means for solving such a problem, for example, a technique disclosed in Patent Document 1 or Patent Document 2 is known.

  The centrifugal compressor disclosed in Patent Document 1 is configured such that one of the parallel diffuser walls forming the diffuser is movable toward the other diffuser wall. Specifically, a moving wall part is formed in one wall part among a pair of wall parts which define a diffuser, and it supports via three balls. The moving wall can be moved in the direction of the shaft of the impeller by an electrically operated actuator. In addition, a sealing member made of an elastic body is interposed between the back surface of the moving wall portion and one wall portion so that the air accelerated by the impeller does not short pass to the scroll portion. Therefore, in Patent Document 1, since the centrifugal wall of the centrifugal compressor moves during low flow operation to control the diffuser passage width to an appropriate state, stall is suppressed and a diffuser effect during low flow operation is obtained. Explain that you can.

  The centrifugal compressor disclosed in Patent Document 2 is configured to recirculate a part of the gas supplied to the volute to the diffuser and increase the velocity component of the gas in the radial direction in the diffuser. During low flow operation, the gas flow in the diffuser has a significantly smaller radial velocity component than the circumferential velocity component. Some of the gas flowing in the radial direction cannot counter the pressure gradient in the diffuser, and thus may flow backward due to the occurrence of the above-described stall. However, a reflux passage provided between the diffuser and the volute returns a part of the volute gas to the diffuser. Since the velocity component of the gas supplied from the reflux passage is added to the gas flowing in the radial direction in the diffuser, kinetic energy that can counter the radial pressure gradient of the diffuser can be obtained. Therefore, Patent Document 2 describes that the centrifugal compressor can be prevented from stalling in the diffuser by the above-described configuration and can be operated at a low flow rate.

JP-A-4-47199 JP 2006-152972 A

  In Patent Document 1, it is necessary to form a moving wall portion on the diffuser wall and to provide an actuator for driving the moving wall portion. Therefore, in order to obtain the diffuser effect, it is necessary to compensate for the pressure increase of the gas in the diffuser by supplying external energy, so that there is a problem that the energy efficiency of the entire centrifugal compressor is lowered. In addition, the centrifugal compressor requires extremely severe control in order to make the diffuser passage width suitable at low flow rate operation, and the mechanical structure and operability must be complicated. is there.

  Patent document 2 is the structure which returns a part of gas of a volute to a diffuser. That is, because the configuration is such that the external energy of the gas whose pressure is once increased in the diffuser and the volute is returned to the diffuser, there is a problem that energy loss occurs as in Patent Document 1 and the energy efficiency of the entire centrifugal compressor is reduced. is there.

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a centrifugal compressor with a simple configuration that delays the occurrence of stall during low flow operation and secures a wide operating range from low flow operation to high flow operation.

  The present invention according to claim 1 is a centrifugal compressor in which an impeller is fixed to a rotating shaft supported by a casing, and a diffuser disposed around the impeller is formed by a pair of opposing diffuser walls. A rotating roller that is rotated by a gas flow is disposed on at least one of the diffuser walls, and a part of the peripheral surface of the rotating roller faces the diffuser.

  According to the present invention described in claim 1, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of stall in the diffuser during low flow operation with a simple configuration, and operate the centrifugal compressor over a wide range from low flow operation to high flow operation. can do. Further, since no external energy is required, it is possible to prevent a decrease in energy efficiency of the centrifugal compressor.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, the rotating roller is accommodated in a groove formed in the diffuser wall, and a contact point between the diffuser wall formed at two locations in the radial direction of the impeller and the upper edge of the groove. Since at least one of the contacts is disposed at a position above the peripheral surface of the rotating roller, the flow of gas in the diffuser is not hindered by the groove for storing the rotating roller.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, since the groove formed on the diffuser wall is formed by a circular groove having a larger diameter than the rotating roller, the simplest structure is used. An effect can be obtained.

  The present invention according to claim 4 is characterized in that the peripheral surface of the rotating roller facing the diffuser is made to coincide with an extension line of the diffuser wall surface, so that the flow of gas in the diffuser is not obstructed. The gas flow on the diffuser wall side can be most effectively assisted.

  The present invention according to claim 5 is characterized in that the rotating roller is disposed at a plurality of locations in the circumferential direction of the diffuser, so that the gas flow can be assisted at a plurality of locations in the circumferential direction of the diffuser. The velocity component in the radial direction can be increased efficiently.

  The present invention according to claim 6 is characterized in that the rotating roller is disposed on each of the pair of diffuser walls, so that the flow of gas can be assisted on both diffuser wall sides, and a lower flow rate can be achieved. Stall occurrence in the operation region can be suppressed.

  The invention of the present application can delay the occurrence of stall during low flow operation with a simple configuration, and can secure a wide operating range from low flow operation to high flow operation and does not require external energy. Thus, it is possible to prevent a reduction in energy efficiency of the centrifugal compressor.

(First embodiment)
Hereinafter, a first embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS.
The casing of the centrifugal compressor of the present invention is configured by joining the first casing 1 and the second casing 2 together. A rotating shaft 4 is rotatably supported by a casing wall 3 extending in the radial direction of the first casing 1 via a bearing 5 with a sealing function, and is driven by appropriate means (not shown). A disk 7 of an impeller 6 is fixed to the rotating shaft 4. A diffuser 8 is disposed around the outer periphery of the impeller 6, and a wall on the radially outer peripheral side of the casing wall 3 forms one diffuser wall 9 that forms the diffuser 8. As shown in FIG. 2, eight impellers 6 are formed on the outer peripheral surface of the disk 7, and are rotated in the direction of the arrow by driving the rotary shaft 4.

The second casing 2 includes a funnel-shaped space 10 that houses the impeller 6 therein, and a flow path 11 having the same diameter and a suction port 12 that expands in a funnel shape on the upstream side of the space 10 (left side in FIG. 1). I have.
An annular wall 14 disposed inside the outer peripheral wall 13 of the second casing 2 forms the other diffuser wall that forms the diffuser 8. A volute 15 is formed between the rear surface of the diffuser wall 14 and the outer peripheral wall 13 of the second casing 2. An annular space 16 that communicates the diffuser 8 and the volute 15 is formed between the outer peripheral surface of the diffuser wall 14 and the inner peripheral surface of the outer peripheral wall 13 of the second casing 2. The volute 15 is continuous with a discharge port (not shown).

  Accordingly, the gas sucked from the suction port 12 by the rotation of the impeller 6 is supplied to the diffuser 8 disposed on the outer periphery in the radial direction while being compressed by the centrifugal force applied by the impeller 6. The gas compressed in the diffuser 8 flows from the annular space 16 to the volute 15 and reaches a discharge hole (not shown) while being further compressed in the volute 15.

  On the other hand, on the wall surface 17 of the diffuser wall 9 adjacent to the diffuser 8, a groove 18 having an arcuate cross section is formed on the inlet side of the diffuser 8 as shown in FIGS. 1 and 3. As shown in FIG. 2, the grooves 18 are provided at four locations in the circumferential direction of the diffuser 8. Each groove 18 is disposed so that its longitudinal direction is perpendicular to the radial direction of the diffuser 8, and a long-axis-shaped rotating roller 19 is accommodated in the groove 18 so as to be perpendicular to the radial direction of the diffuser 8. Yes.

  The central shaft 20 of each rotating roller 19 is rotatably supported on the inner wall surface of the groove 18 and is designed to rotate freely even with a small force applied to the rotating roller 19. The rotating roller 19 is arranged so that the peripheral surface 21 facing the diffuser 8 coincides with the extended line of the wall surface 17 of the diffuser wall 9 as shown in FIGS. Accordingly, the groove 18 is formed by a circular arc having a depth that allows the rotating roller 19 disposed as described above to freely rotate. Further, the contacts 22 and 23 between the wall surface 17 and the upper edge of the groove 18 extend to other positions above the peripheral surface of the rotating roller 19 excluding the peripheral surface 21 facing the diffuser 8 so as to cover the groove 18 as much as possible. It is configured.

  The rotation roller 19 can be installed by, for example, the following method. As shown in phantom lines in FIG. 2, a part of the wall surface 17 is formed by a cover 24 that covers the groove. A half portion of the groove 18 is formed on the groove side of the wall surface 17, and the remaining half portion of the groove 18 is formed on the cover 24 side. In the attaching procedure, after the rotating roller 19 is mounted in the groove of the wall surface 17, the cover 24 is mounted so as to cover the rotating roller 19, and the cover 24 is fixed to the wall surface 17 by means of adhesion or screwing. The removal of the rotating roller 19 may be performed in the reverse order of the above. In addition, the installation method of the rotating roller 19 can also form the structure of said cover 24 in the wall surface of the casing wall 3 on the opposite side to the wall surface 17. FIG. Thus, if the method of mounting from the opposite side with respect to the diffuser 8 is taken, it is not necessary to form a connection portion with the cover 24 on the wall surface 17, so that it is easy to configure.

The operation of the first embodiment configured as described above will be described below.
At the time of low flow rate operation such as when the centrifugal compressor is started or decelerated, the flow of gas flowing out of the impeller 6 is mainly the speed component B in the circumferential direction of the impeller 6 shown in FIG. small. For this reason, the gas supplied to the diffuser 8, particularly the gas flowing along the diffuser walls 9 and 14, has a low flow rate as indicated by reference sign D of the velocity distribution shown in FIG. 4 due to the passage resistance of the wall surface. When the gas flow rate becomes equal to or lower than a constant velocity, the pressure gradient in the diffuser 8 is reversed, and stall occurs.

  However, in the first embodiment, the gas on the diffuser wall 9 side that has flowed into the diffuser 8 causes the dynamic pressure (kinetic energy) of the gas to act on the peripheral surface 21 of the rotating roller 19 to rotate the rotating roller 19. . Since the rotating roller 19 rotates in the radial direction of the diffuser 8, the circumferential gas flow having the velocity component B in FIG. 2 is deflected into the flow mainly composed of the radial velocity component C by riding on the rotating roller 19. The For this reason, the gas flow in the radial direction along the wall surface 17 of the diffuser wall 9 increases.

  Further, the gas riding on the peripheral surface of the rotating roller 19 flows in the radial direction of the diffuser 8 without receiving passage resistance. That is, the gas deceleration due to the passage resistance is considered to be a state in which the gas does not slip due to friction with the fixed wall surface, but the wall surface formed by the rotating roller 19 can create the same state as when the gas slips. For this reason, the gas flows without being decelerated, and is further accelerated by the rotation of the rotating roller 19.

  Due to the above action, the gas on the wall surface 17 side of the diffuser wall 9 flows at a high speed in the radial direction as in the speed distribution indicated by symbol E in FIG. Diffuser efficiency can be increased. Therefore, since the rotation roller 19 can delay the occurrence of stall to a lower flow rate range, the operating range of the centrifugal compressor from the high flow rate range to the low flow rate range can be further expanded.

  The gas flowing into the diffuser 8 can smoothly move onto the peripheral surface 21 due to the presence of the contact 22 close to the peripheral surface 21 of the rotating roller 19. Further, the gas flowing on the peripheral surface 21 of the rotating roller 19 is separated from the peripheral surface 21 by the contact 23 close to the peripheral surface 21 and can smoothly move to the wall surface 17 side. For this reason, the accompanying airflow and eddy current which cause a problem around the rotating roller 19 do not occur.

  During high flow operation, the flow of gas flowing out of the impeller 6 is mainly due to the velocity component in the radial direction of the impeller 6, and a high flow velocity gas flows into the diffuser 8. The rotating roller 19 receives a large dynamic pressure of the gas and rotates relatively quickly, smoothing the gas flow and increasing the flow velocity, so that the diffuser efficiency can be further improved.

The above-described first embodiment of the present invention has the following effects.
(1) The extremely simple configuration of installing a freely rotatable rotating roller 19 can increase the radial flow velocity of the gas flowing along the diffuser wall 9 and suppress stall during low flow operation. Can do.
(2) The rotating roller 19 can increase the flow velocity of the gas in the diffuser 8 and increase the diffuser efficiency not only during low flow operation but also during high flow operation.
(3) Since stall generation in the low flow rate region can be delayed, the operating range of the centrifugal compressor can be expanded.
(4) Since no external energy is required for the stall suppressing means, the energy efficiency of the entire centrifugal compressor can be increased.
(5) Since the contacts 22 and 23 are arranged close to the peripheral surface 21 of the rotating roller 19, the transition of the gas flow between the wall surface 17 and the peripheral surface 21 is performed smoothly.

(Second Embodiment)
The second embodiment shown in FIG. 5 is obtained by changing the arrangement method of the rotating roller 19 in the first embodiment. The same components as those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof is made. Description is omitted.

    In the second embodiment, a rotating roller 25 is disposed on the diffuser wall 14 in addition to the first embodiment. That is, a groove 27 having a circular arc cross section is formed in the wall surface 26 of the diffuser wall 14 on the diffuser 8 side, and the rotating roller 25 is accommodated in the groove 27 so as to be freely rotatable. Since the thickness of the diffuser wall 14 is difficult to take as compared with the diffuser wall 9 by design, the rotation roller 25 and the groove 27 are different from the rotation roller 19 and the groove 18 only in that the diameter is small. The related configuration is exactly the same as that described in the rotating roller 19 and the groove 18.

  During the low flow rate operation of the centrifugal compressor, the rotating roller 25 changes the gas flow having the velocity component in the circumferential direction of the diffuser 8 to the radial direction of the diffuser 8, and the function of increasing the gas flow in the radial direction and the gas passage The point of having the function of reducing and accelerating the resistance is the same as in the case of the rotating roller 19 described in the first embodiment. Therefore, in the second embodiment, the low speed distribution D is increased to the high speed distribution E by the rotating roller 19 on the wall surface 17 side, and the low speed distribution F is increased to the high speed distribution G by the rotating roller 25 on the wall surface 26 side. Speeded. As a result, since the gas flow in the radial direction is accelerated as the diffuser 8 as a whole, the configuration in the second embodiment can suppress the occurrence of stall in a lower flow rate region than in the case of the first embodiment. It becomes.

(Third embodiment)
The third embodiment shown in FIG. 6 is obtained by changing the form of the groove 18 in the first embodiment. The same components as those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof is omitted. To do.

  The groove 28 in the third embodiment has a configuration in which the bottom side is formed in a U-shaped cross section and the upper edge side is formed in a cross-sectional arc shape and connected to the wall surface 17. The contacts 29 and 30 between the upper edge of the groove 28 and the wall surface 17 are arranged above the peripheral surface other than the peripheral surface 21 of the rotating roller 19 in the form of a cross-sectional arc of the upper edge. Therefore, the contacts 29 and 30 can be as close as possible to the peripheral surface 21, and the gas can flow smoothly. Note that the upper edge of the groove 28 is not arc-shaped in cross section, and the contacts 29 and 30 can be as close as possible to the peripheral surface 21 even if formed in a straight line. The third embodiment configured as described above can obtain the same functions and effects as those of the first embodiment.

  The present invention is not limited to the configuration of each of the embodiments described above, and various modifications are possible within the scope of the gist of the present invention, and can be implemented as follows.

(1) The peripheral surfaces 21 of the rotating rollers 19 and 25 do not necessarily need to coincide with the extended lines of the wall surfaces 17 and 26 of the diffuser wall 9 and may be disposed so as to protrude to the diffuser 8 to some extent. 18, 27, 28 may be disposed so as to be immersed to some extent. The effects of the present invention can be obtained in any configuration.
(2) In the first embodiment, only one of the contacts 22 and 23 between the upper edge of the groove 18 and the wall surface 17 may be disposed above the circumferential surface of the rotating roller 19.
(3) The contacts 22 and 23 between the upper edge of the groove 18 and the wall surface 17 in the first embodiment may be arranged at positions other than above the peripheral surface of the rotating roller 19.
(4) The grooves 18, 27, or 28 are not limited to a circular arc shape or a U-shaped cross section, and may have a polygonal cross section.
(5) The rotating rollers 19 and 25 are not limited to the configuration in which the rotating rollers 19 and 25 are disposed at four locations in the circumferential direction of the diffuser 8 as in the first embodiment, but a single location or a plurality of locations according to the number of impellers 6 or The structure arrange | positioned in several places which do not match a number may be sufficient.
(6) A plurality of rotating rollers 19 and 25 may be arranged in the radial direction of the diffuser 8.
(7) The peripheral surfaces of the rotating rollers 19 and 25 can be subjected to a surface treatment such as coating or formation of irregularities so that the frictional resistance with the gas is reduced.

It is a schematic sectional drawing of the centrifugal compressor which showed 1st Embodiment. It is the sectional view on the AA line of FIG. It is an expanded sectional view of the diffuser shown in FIG. It is operation | movement explanatory drawing of 1st Embodiment. It is an expanded sectional view of a diffuser in a 2nd embodiment. It is an expanded sectional view of a diffuser in a 3rd embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

1 First casing 2 Second casing 4 Rotating shaft 6 Impeller 8 Diffuser 9, 14 Diffuser wall 15 Volute 17, 26 Wall surface 18, 27, 28 Groove 19, 25 Rotating roller 21 Peripheral surfaces 22, 23, 29, 30 Contact 24 Cover

Claims (6)

In a centrifugal compressor in which an impeller is fixed to a rotating shaft supported by a casing, and a diffuser disposed around the impeller is formed by a pair of opposing diffuser walls.
A centrifugal compressor characterized in that a rotating roller that is rotated by a gas flow is disposed on at least one of the diffuser walls, and a part of a peripheral surface of the rotating roller faces the diffuser.   The rotating roller is accommodated in a groove formed in the diffuser wall, and at least one of contact points between the diffuser wall and the upper edge of the groove formed in two radial directions of the impeller is used as the rotating roller. The centrifugal compressor according to claim 1, wherein the centrifugal compressor is disposed at a position above the peripheral surface of the centrifugal compressor.   The centrifugal compressor according to claim 2, wherein the groove formed in the diffuser wall is formed by a circular groove having a larger diameter than the rotating roller.   The centrifugal compressor according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein a peripheral surface of the rotating roller facing the diffuser is made to coincide with an extension line of the diffuser wall surface.   The centrifugal compressor according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the rotating roller is disposed at a plurality of locations in the circumferential direction of the diffuser.   The centrifugal compressor according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the rotating roller is disposed on each of the pair of diffuser walls.

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