The Time Domain of Centrifugal Compressor and Pump Stability and Surge

Abstract

New evidence about the time domain operation of centrifugal compressors and pumps in compliant systems is presented. Data from Toyama [1,2] plus unpublished data from another compressor indicate that the flow rate oscillates continuously, at large amplitudes, when a compressor is operating in its supposedly stable regime. A tentative flow model predicts similar oscillations. The model assumes that the compressor operation at all times is described by its quasi-steady characteristic; no hysteresis or complex aerodynamic phenomena have been invoked.