Implementation of a Central Upwind Scheme in Unsteady Compressible Flow Simulation of a Multistage Axial-Centrifugal Compressor

Abstract

Abstract. This work investigates the merits of converting the Kurganov and Tadmor (KT) central scheme into a central-upwind scheme for simulating the compressible, unsteady flow in a multistage axial-centrifugal compressor. The conversion from a pure central scheme to an upwind scheme is very simple, and it follows the basic idea of the original KT scheme. This article investigates the quality of shock capturing, artificial mass generation, and execution time. The results suggest that, compared to the KT scheme, the central-upwind scheme produces a thinner shock structure, reduced numerical error in mass conservation even for cases involving drastic variations of flow field geometry, and a higher tolerance for CFL number >0.5.