Rotating Stall in Centrifugal Compressors

Introduction

When dealing with centrifugal compressor applications, terms such as surge and stall are often used.
While compressor surging is generally an understood phenomenon, the concept of rotating stall is often
harder to explain and understand. This paper will provide a technical explanation of rotating stall and

show how rotating stall can be minimized or prevented.

Rotating stall is not a design or manufacturing defect, but an aerodynamic fact of life when dealing with
centrifugal compressors.

Although rotating stall does not adversely affect the reliability of the rotating parts of the compressor, it
does change the operating characteristics of the chiller package. Additional noise and vibration are
generated when operating in rotating stall. Depending on the severity and duration of operation in this
condition, the vibration generated can fatigue system piping, sometimes leading to line breakage.

The chances of the chiller operating in rotating stall during normal operation can be reduced or eliminated
if care is taken during the selection process and if the system is operated properly once installed. Making
a selection based on knowledge of how the system operates and training of operating personnel can
make these two things happen.

Selections should be carefully reviewed to allow for adequate turndown, based on the specific applica-
tion requirements. Operating personnel should be educated about YORK chiller operation and allow
the entering condenser water temperature to drop and track the outdoor wet bulb temperature. Oper-
ating this way provides the greatest energy savings for the chiller system and the best cooling tower and
chiller operation. In multiple chiller installations, chillers should be run at higher loads with some chillers
cycled off, rather than running multiple chillers at low load.

R
otating stall is an aerodynamic disturbance that
occurs in centrifugal compressors at re-
duced flow (reduced load) and/or increased
head (increased temperature lift).
There are three kinds of rotating stall: impeller stall,
vaned diffuser stall, and vaneless diffuser stall. Which
stall occurs, at what flows and at what heads, depends
on the compressor geometry, the position of the
compressor’s inlet prerotation vanes (PRV), and the
Impeller and vaned diffuser stalls occur at flows and
heads that are very near the surge point. Centrifugal
compressors do not operate for any length of time
with impeller stall or vaned diffuser stall because even
a small flow or head variation will shift the compressor
into a surge condition and out of stall.
Although vaneless diffuser stall occurs at conditions
near the surge point, it may, depending on application
and compressor characteristics begin to occur at con-

impeller tip speed. ditions that are farther away from the surge point. Cen-

page 1

if l f l i d f S li ll bl d ll ll h i
trifugal compressors may operate for long periods of
time with vaneless diffuser stall.
Rotating stall in a vaneless diffuser generates a char-
acteristic noise and vibration whose frequency is close
to the impeller rotating frequency. This noise and vi-
bration can be minimized when operating at reduced
load by allowing reduced condenser water tempera-
ture.
Stall noise and vibration can also be minimized by se-
lecting a compressor whose full-load operating point
is far removed from the surge point.
Impeller Stall
In an impeller, rotating stall begins when the flow stream
passing around one of the impeller blades separates
from the back of the blade. This happens when the
angle-of-attack of the flow approaching the blade be-
comes so large that the blade “stalls” in the same way
that an airfoil stalls.
The flow angle increases as the flow decreases, so the
large angle-of-attack that stalls the blade occurs when
the flow is low. When the inlet PRVs are partly closed,
the flow angle entering the impeller is reduced. This
reduces the tendency of the impeller blades to stall
when the flow is reduced.
The tendency
impeller outlet of the blades
pressure to stall
increases. Atincreases asflow
border-line the
angles, stall only occurs when the impeller outlet pres-
sure is high; i.e., when the compressor head is high.
The flow separation behind a stalled blade reduces
the volume of flow in the passage behind the blade. It
may even cause some of the flow to reverse itself and
flow back out of the passage. This reduced (possibly
reversed) flow increases the angle of the flow at an
adjacent blade, causing the adjacent blade to stall. The
stall of the second blade lowers the flow angle at the
first blade, thereby restoring normal unstalled flow
around the first blade. Thus the stall moves from blade
to blade around the impeller. The stall is said to “ro-
tate” around the impeller, hence the name “rotating
stall”.
page 2
a vaneless diffuser design. A key advantage of a
is further reduced, or the head further increased, the
vaneless diffuser is the ability to accept a wide range
eddies become larger. If the eddies become too large,
of inlet flow conditions.
the flow stops, and the compressor surges.
Several impeller blades usually stall at the same time
so that multiple stalls rotate around the impeller. When
too many blades stall, or too much of the flow re-
verses in the stalled passages, all impeller flow stops.
When this happens, the higher pressure in the con-
denser forces refrigerant to flow backwards, from the
condenser, thru the diffuser, thru the impeller, to the
evaporator. This complete reversal of flow, from the
condenser to the evaporator, is called a “surge”.
Rotating stall in an impeller is sometimes called “in-
cipient surge” because impeller stall occurs quite close
to the surge point on a compressor performance map.
Once an impeller begins to stall, only a small decrease
in flow or increase in head will stall the impeller com-
pletely, and cause the compressor to surge.
Vaned Diffuser Stall
Rotating stall in vaned diffusers also occurs near the
surge point and acts the same way as impeller stall.
When one diffuser vane stalls, the stalled flow in the
passage behind the vane causes an adjacent vane to
stall. This ends the stall of the first vane. Multiple stalls
rotate from vane to vane
Vaneless Diffuser Stall
Rotating stall in a vaneless diffuser is quite different
from the other two kinds of stall. Vaneless diffuser stall
can begin
typically somewhen
occurs distance from the surge
the compressor PRVspoint, and
are partly
closed. Vaneless diffusers have no airfoil blades or
vanes that can be “stalled”.
Instead, recirculating “eddies” form in a vaneless dif-
fuser when the flow is reduced and/or the head is in-
creased. These eddies are called “stall cells” because
they affect the diffuser flow in much the same way as
stalled diffuser vanes do.
When an eddy forms in a vaneless diffuser, the altered
flow on one side of the eddy causes the eddy to move
sideways. The eddy moves (rotates) around the dif-
fuser similar to the way a vane stall rotates around a
vaned diffuser. Several eddies usually form and rotate
around a vaneless diffuser at the same time. If the flow
Thus, YORK compressors with vaneless
 , p
Vaneless Diffuser verses Vaned Diffuser diffusers maintain high efficiency over a broad flow
As discussed previously, the diffusing passages down- range. With no obstacles in the flow, vaneless diffus-

Compressor Performance Map

100

PRV
%
tf 100%
i
L
er
tu 50%
ar
e
p
m
e
T
25%

0%

0 100
Evaporator Cooling Load %
Figure 1

stream of the impeller in centrifugal compressors can
be of two types; vaned or vaneless.
The compressor diffuser is used to decelerate the high
velocity flow leaving the impeller, causing a static pres-
sure rise -the purpose of the compressor.
The YORK YT and YK centrifugal compressors use
ers are not contributors to noise generation over most
of their range, providing relatively quiet chiller opera-
tion over a wide operating range. The exception is
when the machine operates in rotating stall. Although
compressor noise may increase when rotating stall
occurs, the compressor continues to be able to main-
tain its pressure rise with high efficiency.
Vaned diffusers employ wedge-shaped, airfoil-shaped,

page 3

or conical tube flow guides that arrest the swirling com-
ponent of the flow leaving the impeller. The flow is
guided into passages that accomplish the desired static
pressure rise in a shorter distance than in vaneless dif-
fusers, allowing for a more compact design. There is
also potential for slightly higher efficiency at the design
point. However, the presence of the vanes near the
noise levels than compressors with vaneless diffusers.
Since chillers rarely operate at the design point of full
load and design ECWT, the higher peak efficiency of
a vaned diffuser is of little value. YORK has chosen
vaneless diffuser for better off-design performance and
quieter chiller operation.

C S S
 Compressor Sound Spectra
100

Low Load
90

80

70
High Load
60

50

40

30

20

10

0
63 125 250 500 1000 2000 4000 8000
Figure 2
Octave Band Frequency (Hz)

impeller discharge is a significant noise generator analo- Performance Map

gous to a siren. Since the vaned diffuser has fixed inlet
angles, they are less tolerant of flow angle changes
that occur as the chiller load changes. Thus, compres-
sors with vaned diffusers may have slightly higher peak
efficiency but a more limited capacity range and higher
Figure 1 is a typical performance map for a constant-
speed compressor with a vaneless diffuser. Each PRV
position generates a performance line which moves
upward and to the left, from low head (low + T/+ P

page 4

between evaporator and condenser) to a higher head, Since YORK’s single-stage compressors utilize a
until rotating stall in the diffuser begins. The PRV line vaneless diffuser design, Figure 1 is representative of
continues upward, thru a zone of rotating stall, until YORK single-stage compressor performance at con-
the compressor surges. stant speed.

The points on the PRV lines at which rotating stall be- Surge and Stall
gins are connected by a line that is called the “stall
envelope”. The points at which the compressor be- A surge is a reverse flow in which refrigerant moves

Compressor Performance Map

 between evaporator and condenser) to a higher head, Since YORK’s single-stage compressors utilize a
until rotating stall in the diffuser begins. The PRV line vaneless diffuser design, Figure 1 is representative of
continues upward, thru a zone of rotating stall, until YORK single-stage compressor performance at con-
the compressor surges. stant speed.

The points on the PRV lines at which rotating stall be- Surge and Stall
gins are connected by a line that is called the “stall
envelope”. The points at which the compressor be- A surge is a reverse flow in which refrigerant moves
 Compressor Performance Map

100

PRV
% 100%
tf ed
i d uc
L Re
er
tu
ar
e
p
m
e
T

0%

0 100
Figure 3 Evaporator Cooling Load %

gins to surge are connected by a “surge envelope”. A
considerable distance can separate these envelopes.
Vaneless diffuser stall is not an immediate forerunner
of surge in the way that impeller stall is.
There is no vaneless diffuser stall when the PRVs are
wide open. The impeller stall and surge point are at
the same point with open vanes.
backward, from the condenser, thru the compressor,
to the evaporator. The condenser pressure goes down
when the refrigerant flows back to the evaporator, and
the evaporator pressure goes up. This lowers the head
against which the compressor is operating, and allows
the compressor to begin pumping refrigerant in the right
direction again. When the compressor starts pumping
again, the condenser pressure goes up and the evapo-
rator pressure goes down. If the + P is still above the
limit for the compressor, the unit will surge again.

page 5

The flow reversal during a surge unloads the com-
pressor motor. This drops the motor ammeter reading
almost to zero. When the compressor starts pumping
again, the ammeter swings up again, almost to its full-
load reading. The evaporator and condenser pressure
gages also swing up and down as the flow swings back
and forth through the compressor.
In all forms of rotating stall, only a small amount of the
total flow recirculates inside the impeller or diffuser.
Most of the flow is pumped continuously from the
evaporator to the condenser. The evaporator and con-
denser pressure gages are steady during rotating stall.
The motor load is also steady A centrifugal compres
with the compressor operating at high load without
stall, the other with the compressor operating at low
load with rotating stall in its diffuser.
In both cases, the impeller blade frequency appears
as a mild peak in the 2000 Hz octave band. An impel-
ler with 17 blades rotating at 7100 rpm would pro-
duce discharge pressure fluctuations (noise) at a fre-
quency of 2012 Hz, almost in the middle of the 2000
Hz band.
At low load, a larger peak occurs in the 125 Hz oc-
tave band. This is rotating stall noise. The stall noise
frequency is about the same as the impeller running
The motor load is also steady. A centrifugal compres- frequency is about the same as the impeller running
sor can operate indefinitely under these conditions. speed (7100 rpm = 118 Hz).
Operation in surge, on the other hand, even for a short
time, can damage the compressor. Operating Conditions

Noise and Vibration
In surging, flow reversals occur every one or two sec-
onds. Small systems surge at higher frequencies and
large systems at lower frequencies. The sound of surg-
ing is distinctly different from the sound of rotating stall.
A surging unit emits a loud “groan” every few sec-
onds. Surging makes a unit sway rather than vibrate.
Long water pipes attached to a surging unit may swing
back and forth every few seconds.
Stall cells rotate around impellers and diffusers at less
than the impeller’s rotational speed. But when mul-
tiple stall cells rotate in a vaneless diffuser, their com-
bined frequency is close to the impeller rotational fre-
quency. Three cells, equally spaced around a vaneless
diffuser, each rotating at one-third of the impeller run-
ning speed, will produce compressor discharge pres-
sure fluctuations at the frequency of the impeller rota-
tion.
The noise and vibration associated with rotating stall
in a vaneless diffuser can be minimized, if not com-
pletely avoided, by keeping the entering condenser-
water temperature low when the load is low. Of course
this also keeps the compressor power consumption
low, and keeps the compressor from surging.
In Figure 3, two different operating lines are shown
on the compressor performance map of Figure 1. The
upper line is one of constant entering condenser water
temperature (ECWT) at all loads. The lower line is a
typical part-load line with the same ECWT design
point.
When the cooling load is reduced below the full-load
(100%) point, the constant ECWT line reaches the
stall envelope at 71% load. With further load reduc-
tion, the compressor operates with rotating stall in its
diffuser until the load reaches 24%, at which point the
compressor surges.

The discharge pressure fluctuations that are caused
by rotating stall in vaneless diffusers are too small to
be seen on the condenser pressure gage, but they can
be heard as a “roaring” noise, and felt as a condenser
shell vibration.
Figure 2 is an octave-band analysis of the sound emit-
ted by a typical constant-speed compressor with a
vaneless diffuser. Two sound spectra are shown: one
With lower condenser-water temperatures, the re-
duced ECWT line avoids the stall zone until the load
is reduced to 31%. This line never reaches a surge
point.
Keeping the full-load point some distance away from
the PRV 100% OPEN surge point also minimizes stall
and surge. If the full-load point in Figure 3 was further

page 6

to the right on the PRV 100% OPEN line, the con-

stant ECWT load line would almost completely avoid Left Side Selection

surge, and the reduced ECWT load line would al-

most completely avoid stall.

PRV
Conclusion %
tf
100%
i
L
re
Recognizing and understanding the difference between u
t
ar
e
rotating stall and surge is the first step in the process p
m
e
T
of making better chiller selections and helping guide Stall Zone

the user on how to best operate installed chillers. Reduced ECWT

0% Constant ECWT
When looking at chiller selections, operating points
are often referred to as being on the “left or right 0
Evaporator Cooling Load %
side” of the compressor map. This is illustrated in Figure 5
Figures 4 and 5. Being on the right side of the map
gives a design point with the vanes in a full (or near
full) open position, further away from both the stall
Right Side Selection and surge zone. As noted above in the paper, moving
to the right gives a wider unloading range outside the
 g g g g

surge
towardsand stall
the leftzone. When
side of one starts
the map, withisa selection
this range reduced,
%
PRV
100%
and the machine may spend more operating hours in
tf
i
L the stall region.
er
tu
ra
e
p
m
Operating chillers with lower ECWT(at full and part
e
T
Stall Zone load) saves energy and minimizes cooling tower fan
Reduced ECWT cycling, reducing system maintenance. This is also the
0% Constant ECWT best way to keep machines away from operation in
0 stall and surge conditions. Emphasizing this type of
Evaporator Cooling Load %
Figure 4 system operation provides a winning combination of
efficient and reliable chilled water plant operation.

Draft 1f-Joe Brillhart

page 7

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