Dynamic Response of Hovercraft Lift Fans

Hovercraft lift fans are subjected to varying back pressure due to wave action and craft motions when these vehicles are operating in a seaway. The oscillatory back pressure causes the fans to perform dynamically, exhibiting a hysteresis type of response and a corresponding degradation in mean performance. Since hovercraft motions are influenced by variations in lift fan pressure and discharge, it is important to understand completely the nature of the dynamic performance of lift fans in order to completely solve the hovercraft seakeeping problem. The present study was performed to determine and classify the instabilities encountered in a centrifugal fan operating against time-varying back pressure. A model-scale experiment was developed in which the fan discharge was directed into a flow-measuring device, terminating in a rotating valve which produced an oscillatory back pressure superimposed upon a mean aerodynamic resistance. Pressure and local velocity were measured as functions of time at several locations in the fan volute. The measurements permitted the identification of rotating or propagating stall in the impeller. One cell and two cell configurations were classified and the transient condition connecting these two configurations was observed. The mechanisms which lead to rotating stall in a centrifugal compressor are presented and discussed with specific reference to hovercraft applications.