Effects of inlet boundary layer on aerodynamic performance of a high-turning compressor cascade

Experimental investigation was carried out to study the aerodynamic performance of a high-turning compressor cascade with and without boundary layer suction at the cascade inlet. The ink-trace flow visualization was conducted and the flow fields of the cascade were also measured. Experimental results show that inlet boundary layer mainly influence the suction/endwall corner region, where remarkable losses produced. Boundary layer suction at inlet of the diffusion cascade effectively weakens the cross second flow near the endwall, restrains the corner separation and reduces the losses. When the suction flow rate is 2.5% of the inlet mass flow, total loss is reduced by 24.6% compared with the cascade without inlet boundary layer suction.