Status of laser anemometry in turbomachinery research at the Lewis Research Center

Laser anemometer systems were developed for a full-annular turbine stator cascade facility and for a compressor rotor facility; both are ambient temperature axial flow facilities with a 20-inch tip diameter. The optical configurations of the two anemometers are similar single-component fringe-type backscatter systems with a probe volume diameter of 125 microns and length of about 2 mm. Laser anemometer measurements are compared with numerical solutions for a transonic axial flow compressor rotor and a turbine stator cascade.