Active surge control for variable speed axial compressors

- Active surge control in a variable speed axial compressor model is investigated.
- A fuzzy controller is designed for the model.
- The fuzzy controller performs better than a backstepping controller.
- The approach is capable to suppress surge at different operating points.

This paper discusses active surge control in variable speed axial compressors. A compression system equipped with a variable area throttle is investigated. Based on a given compressor model, a fuzzy logic controller is designed for surge control and a proportional speed controller is used for speed control. The fuzzy controller uses measurements of the change of pressure rise as well as the change of mass flow to determine the throttle opening. The presented approach does not require the knowledge of system equilibrium or the surge line. Numerical simulations show promising results. The proposed fuzzy logic controller performs better than a backstepping controller and is capable to suppress surge at different operating points.