Time-Domain Harmonic Balance Method for Turbomachinery Aeroelasticity

Abstract

The present paper investigates a time-domain harmonic balance method as an alternative to classical time-marching schemes for stability studies of turbomachineries toward flutter. A weak-coupling approach is applied, which requires computing the fluid response to prescribed harmonic motions of the structure. The harmonic balance method, formulated in the arbitrary Lagrangian/Eulerian framework, is adapted to single-passage reduction using phase-lag boundary conditions expressed purely in the time domain. Validation against experimental data for the 11th standard configuration for aeroelasticity is performed, showing good agreement. Finally, an industrial test case is presented: a fan designed by Safran Snecma. The results show the good accuracy of the proposed harmonic balance method as well as significant reductions in computational time.