Development and Design of a Centrifugal Compressor Volute

The volute is one of the key components of a centrifugal compressor. The design of the volute not only impacts the compressor efficiency but also influences the operating range. The detailed flow simulation presented here helps to better understand the volute flow mechanisms and provide design guidance in volute design to meet performance goals. In this study, the viscous Navier-Stokes equations are used to simulate the flow inside the vaneless diffuser and volute. The detailed flow structures for different volute tongue geometries are studied in detail. The numerical calculations are compared with experimental data and good agreement is found. The results also suggest direction for further investigations in volute design.