Time-frequency analysis of compressor rotating stall by means of wavelet transform

Abstract

In this paper, an application of Wavelet Transform, which is a newly developed time-frequency technique of signal processing is demonstrated in analyzing compressor rotating stall signals. In contrast to conventional signal processing methods, e.g. Fourier Transform, Wavelet Transform is very suitable for analyzing transient processes as rotating stall inception in compressors. In this study, some typical rotating stall signals are processed via Morlet's wavelet. It is concluded that Wavelet Transform has a great advantage in detecting rotating stall inceptions, which are usually very weak and embedded in relatively stronger noises. In the diagrams resulted from the transform, every emergence of precursor as well as full stall signals of a certain frequency is illustrated versus time.