Improvement of the Performance of Conical Diffusers by Vortex Generators

Vortex generators, which consist of small blades, are applied to conical diffusers the divergence angles of which are 8, 12, 16, 20, and 30 deg, respectively. The area ratio of each diffuser is four. The experiment covers the influence of various parameters, such as the arrangement of blades, inlet boundary layer thickness, and location of vortex generators relative to the conical diffuser, on the pressure-recovery coefficient. The experiment shows that the vortex generators prevent the flow in a conical diffuser from separating up to a divergence angle of 16 deg, and that the pressure-recovery coefficient is approximately equal to that of conventional best conical diffusers.