Effects of Structural Coupling on Mistuned Cascade Flutter and Response

Abstract

The effects of structural coupling on mistuned cascade flutter and response are analytically investigated using an extended typical section model. Previous work using two degree of freedom per blade typical section models has included only aerodynamic coupling. The present work extends this model to include both structural and aerodynamic coupling between the blades. The model assumes that the structurally coupled system natural modes have been determined and can be represented in the form of N bending and N torsional uncoupled modes for each blade, where N is the number of blades and, hence, is only valid for blade dominated motion. The aerodynamic loads are calculated by using two-dimensional unsteady cascade theories in the subsonic and supersonic flow regimes. The results show that the addition of structural coupling can affect both the aeroelastic stability and frequency. The stability is significantly affected only when the system is mistuned. The resonant frequencies can be significantly changed by structural coupling in both tuned and mistuned systems, however, the peak response is significantly affected only in the latter.