Blade/casing rubbing interactions in aircraft engines: Numerical benchmark and design guidelines based on NASA rotor 37. Journal of Sound and Vibration, Elsevier, 2019, 460, pp.Abstract In order to improve the efficiency of aircraft engines, the reduction of clearances between blade tips and their surrounding casing is one avenue manufacturers consider to lower aerodynamic losses. This reduction increases the risk of blade tip/casing contact interactions under nominal operating conditions. Designers need tools to accurately predict subsequent nonlinear vibrations. Engineers and researchers have developed a variety of sophisticated numerical models to predict blades' responses. These models are related to distinct frameworks (time/frequency domain) and various solution algorithms (explicit/implicit time integration schemes, penalty/Lagrange multiplier contact treatment...) which calls for comparative analyses. However, published results are often limited for the sake of confidentiality thus preventing any detailed confrontation. While qualitative understanding can be gained from simplified academic models, full scale models are needed to predict complex interactions in a realistic manner. In this context, this paper proposes a benchmark featuring detailed simulations and analyses of a full 3D finite element model based on the open NASA rotor 37 compressor blade to facilitate reproducibility and collaboration across the research community. NASA rotor 37, a compressor stage widely used as a test case in aerodynamic simulations and validations, has the advantage of presenting a realistic blade geometry. The geometry of the blade is built from publicly available reports. The paper provides details on the geometry, the numerical model and the results to allow an easy use of this model across the fields of structural dynamics. Two contact scenarios are investigated: one with direct contact against the casing, and one with abradable material deposited on the casing to mitigate contact severity through wear. The nonlinear vibration response of the blade is simulated in the time domain. It is evidenced that the addition of the abradable material decreases the amplitude of vibration for most of the angular speeds investigated. However, new interactions appear for some angular speeds. The obtained results are consistent with previous simulations on industrial geometries. Based on works showing improved aerodynamic performances when the blade is tilted, a total of seven geometries are investigated: the reference blade, with a straight vertical stacking line similar to the original rotor 37, two forward-leaned blades, two backward-swept blades and two full forward chordwise swept blades. The sweep and lean variations are shown to have a dramatic impact on the vibration response: the backward sweep results in an increased blade's robustness to contact events and the full forward chordwise sweep in a reduced robustness, while the forward lean leads to a robustness similar to the reference blade. RésuméLa réduction des jeux au...

In this work, an experimental modal analysis is performed on an academic bladed disk using a base excitation to identify the mistuning of each blade. Optical measurement is used to obtain the exact geometry of the structure and to be able to associate geometrical mistuning to each blade. Differences are observed between the experimentally identified mistuning and the geometrical mistuning. Since the bladed disk is a onepiece structure, there is no welded connections between the blades and the disk and the material properties can be assumed to be uniform. It can be shown that these differences come from non uniform clamping conditions, and that this mistuning is of the same order of magnitude than the variations in the geometry of the structure. It follows that the precise characterisation of mistuning for industrial structures is in practice illusory because of the numerous factors introducing mistuning, such as the clamping conditions, aerodynamic damping, wear in service, etc.

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This work focuses on the experimental and numerical characterization of stress levels within a shroud segment made of ceramic matrix composite (CMC) material undergoing repeated blade contacts. The dedicated experimental setup consists in a rotating disk with three notched mock blades that impact the shroud segment as they rotate. The underplatform on which the shroud is fixed progressively gets closer to the blades, so that the abradable layer deposited onto the shroud is progressively worn out from a blade revolution to another. Four sensors, located under the shroud segment, are used to record forces during the experiments. Different blade/shroud relative positions are tested, in such a way that impacts may occur at distinct locations. In addition to the experimental tests, a numerical model is built based on both reduced order models of the blade and the shroud segment, in order to numerically predict the forces at the four sensors. This numerical model is first calibrated based on a single reference test case to retrieve the same force magnitude at each sensor. Then, the other tests are simulated using the calibrated model. Predicted contact forces are in good agreement with experimental data, which validates the numerical model. Finally, simulations are carried out considering engine-like conditions, which could not be reproduced using the experimental test bench. The influence of several parameters (radial velocity, impact location, number of blades in contact and angular speed) is analyzed in detail.

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