1. Vendredi, 10 novembre 2023
Vers un écosystème unique en Wallonie pour l’innovation
dans le secteur aéronautique
Koen Hillewaert, Chargé de Cours Design of Turbomachinery
(Faculté des Sciences Appliquées, A&M, ULiège)
Olivier Servais, Directeur Général (BeCOVER)

2. LIEGE CREATIVE, en partenariat avec :

3. Compressor Test
Facility
Promoting
Environment &
Research
Présentation Uliège Créative – 10 Novembre 2023

4. – Company Presentation
– Collaboration with academics
BeCover | 10 Novembre 2023 | ULiège Créative
Agenda

5. BeCover | 10 Novembre 2023 | ULiège Créative
50%
25%
25%
W.E. (Wallonie Entreprendre, regional investment company),
S.F.P.I (Société Fédérale de Participations et
d’Investissement) and Safran Aero Boosters join forces to
create an independent and state-of-the-art center to test
compressors for aviation of the future.
Operational in 2024, it will be a real laboratory assisting the
industrial world but also universities and research centers.
BeCOVER will serve any customer around the world looking for a
compressor testing facility at the leading edge of the technology
and capable to comply with the more stringent technical and
operational requirements.

6. BeCover | 10 Novembre 2023 | ULiège Créative
Main characteristics
▪ Drive power: 20 MW (30 MW installed and up to 40 MW)
▪ Nominal speed up to 25 000 rpm
▪ Mass flow up to 140 kg/s (~310 lbm/s)
▪ Open loop and closed loop configuration for altitude conditions
simulation
▪ Single / Dual flow compressor capability
▪ Potential capability of triple flow for future military applications
▪ Inlet pressure down to 0,2 bara (2,9 psia)
▪ LPC = 6,5 bara (94 psia) & 310°C (590°F)
▪ HPC = 35 bara (508 psia) & 750°C (1382°F)
▪ Extensive instrumentation = 1359 ch low-speed & 136 ch high-speed
Compressor test cell for future engine
architecture
Capabilities
▪ Low Pressure compressors (LPC)
▪ High Pressure compressors (HPC)
▪ Dual / simple flow configurations
▪ Altitude conditions up to 40,000 ft
Applications
▪ Covering the full range of compressors size: from small bizjet to large
turbofan / turbojet.
▪ Designed to meet current and future compressor architectures
Markets
▪ Civil and military aeronautics industry
▪ Industrial Gas Turbine industry
▪ Research Centers and Academic sectors

7. BeCover | 10 Novembre 2023 | ULiège Créative

8. BeCover | 10 Novembre 2023 | ULiège Créative
General Overview – Video

9. BeCover | 10 Novembre 2023 | ULiège Créative
General Layout 3000 m² (~32000 ft²) test hall with versatile set-up to accommodate
current and future testing configurations

10. BeCover | 10 Novembre 2023 | ULiège Créative
Key Drivers
Scalability
• Low & High pressure compressors
• High Altitude testing
• Extended range in pressure and
temperature
• Large space allocation to allow unique
test vehicle assembly
Extendibility
• Inlet pressurization for HP testing
• Tripe flow for adaptive cycle engines –
next generation of military aircrafts
• E-Power upgrade up to 40 MW
• Modular acquisition system
• Specific measurements
Diversification
• Wind tunnel
• Industrial Gas turbine market
• Calibration of mass flow measurement
devices
The test center is designed to operate for the next 40 years and to
receive the future generations of compressors

11. BeCover | 10 Novembre 2023 | ULiège Créative
Civil Works – Construction
March 22

12. BeCover | 10 Novembre 2023 | ULiège Créative
Test Equipment – Manufacturing
E-Motor
Piping
Transformer & VSD Drive Train Slab
Cooling System
Gearbox

13. BeCover | 10 Novembre 2023 | ULiège Créative
Collaboration
with Academics

14. 3 main pillars of collaboration
1. Education
1. Include BeCOVER asset in the education program
2. Develop internships, thesis and/or PhDs
2. Research
1. Initiate research programs (low TRL applications) utilizing BeCOVER facility
2. Need financial subsidies as well as test article dedicated to research
3. Services
1. See next slides
BeCover | 10 Novembre 2023 | ULiège Créative
Collaboration with academic sector

15. BeCOVER can rely on local partners with a proven and recognized international reputation in
the aeronautic industry.
Available services cover the whole value chain starting from concepts modeling combined with
scaled testing up the full-scale demonstrators that can be tested and validated in a
representative environment.
This eco-system is a guarantee of success for the developments of disruptive technologies.
Recent and current research programs :
BeCover | 10 Novembre 2023 | ULiège Créative
Services
– CENAERO coordinated with the partnership of the von Karman Institute the project H2020 ASTORIA -
Advanced Steady and unsTeady distORtion sImulAtor (Clean Sky 2). 2019-2023.
– CENAERO and VKI are both contributors of OFELIA - Open Fan for Environmental Low Impact of Aviation
(Horizon Europe). 2022-2025.
– CENAERO and VKI are both contributors of HE_ART - Hybrid Electric propulsion system for regional
AiRcrafT (Horizon Europe), project led by Rolls-Royce Deutschland. 2023-2025.

16. Prepare the test campaign
– Elaborate the instrumentation plan (measuring techniques, location,
sensors identification, uncertainty quantification …)
– Design, manufacture and calibrate instrumentation
– Design and manufacture distortion devices
– Sub-scale testing
Support the test
– Real time monitoring tools
– Cross analysis with simulation results (digital twin)
– Support for troubleshooting
Post process the data
– Data analysis & data mining
– Model validation & calibration
BeCover | 10 Novembre 2023 | ULiège Créative
Services

17. Questions ? Want to book a test ?
Please contact
Olivier SERVAIS
Managing Director
olivier.servais@becover.eu
+32 (0)494 44 85 65
info@becover.eu
www.becover.be

18. Vers un écosystème unique en Wallonie pour
l’innovation dans le secteur aéronautique
Recherche collaborative autour des futures architectures
d’aéropropulseurs et opportunités dues à la création de BeCover
Liège Créative, 10 novembre 2023
Koen Hillewaert, Design of Turbomachinery and propulsors - �
Sr. Research Engineer @ Cenaero, Associate Professor TU Dept. @ VKI
Loic Salles, Mechanical aspects of turbomachinery and aerospace propulsion
1

19. Towards increased efficiency of the propulsion system
Important challenges due to increased bypass ratio and stage loading
• Jet engine
• acceleration of high ingested air flow
• reaction force -> thrust
• Overall efficiency = thermal x propulsive
• thermal efficiency: fuel -> kinetic energy
• propulsive: kinetic energy -> thrust
• propulsive efficiency
• loss: remaining kinetic energy in the air after
aircraft passed
• more efficient to accelerate little a large
mass flow rate, since less loss of kinetic
energy
• thermal efficiency
• increasing pressure ratio of the cycle
• increasing maximum temperature
2
South African Airlink Boeing 737-200 (source)
Wikimedia commons - gnu free document license 1.2
Boeing 737 max (source),
Creative commons Attribution Alike share 2.0 generic license

20. wChanges in jet engine architecture
Increasing BPR while maintaining high/increasing stage loading
• turbofan
• primary flow = gas turbine -> power, primary acceleration
• secondary flow = high mass flow, small acceleration
• bypass ratio = secondary/primary flow
• turbomachinery:
• most compact/light machine ~ high flow rate
• work ~ (blade speed)2
• rotation speed limit : slightly supersonic conditions at tip
• weight ~ blade / stage count
• tendencies
• higher bypass ratio
• higher pressures
• higher blade loading
• Geared turbofan
Classical turbofan (CFM Leap)
source: CFM website
Geared turbofan (PW1100)
source: Pratt & Whitney web site
Generic non-mixed turbofan layout
Gnu free documentation license (source)
Stage count classical (CFM LEAP/below) vs geared turbofan (PW1100g/above)
for A320neo - Source: Pratt & Whitney web site

21. Radical changes in engine architecture
Unducted fan “CFM Rise” developed partly @ Safran
New architectures -> challenging aerodynamic regimes for simulations
• LPC & LPT : transonic/supersonic flow density / transitional flows
• transonic propellers (!)
• highly loaded stages
• ever more complex flow paths
• distortion of the flow entering into the engine
Requires improvements in simulation and understanding of flow
• turbulence models
• adaptation of simulation strategies
• robustness, convergence and accuracy
• in challenging conditions
• for “bad geometry” during optimisation
• low computational time since used for evaluating many variants at different operating points
• strong validation with respect to experiments and engine tests !
CFM Rise unducted fan - LPC/MPC at SAB
Source: Safran corporate web site

22. A promising ecosystem for turbomachinery research
Industry
• Safran Aero Boosters : design and manufacturing of low pressure compressors for aircraft engines
• Becover : testing for complete compressor/fan modules at full scale including altitude effects
• Pôle Skywin
Complementary fundamental research competences and facilities, education
• ULiège: numerical research, education
• development of high accuracy numerical techniques
• fundamental analysis of turbulent flows in turbomachinery and measurement devices
• simulation of turbomachinery vibrations including non-linear mechanical effects
• MSc Aerospace engineering, PhD
• Cenaero: industrialisation of simulation techniques and optimisation
• optimisation techniques using numerical simulation
• industrialisation of accurate numerical techniques for DNS and LES
• reference data for turbulence model validation
• von Karman institute: experimental and numerical research, education
• detailed experimental studies of turbomachinery flows in exceptional turbomachinery rigs
• probe development and calibration
• model development, correlations
• Research master in Turbomachinery, PhD
Computational resources:
• tier-1 lucia @ cenaero, available for academia via CéCi; lupi
• tier-O lumi @ CSC Finland, available through open calls via Belgian participation in lumi consortium
• open calls for computational resources in EU: EuroHPC, PRACE
Lucia tier-1 supercomputer @ cenaero
source: Cenaero institutional web site
Lumi tier-0 supercomputer @ CSC
source: CSC institutional web site

23. Mechanical aspects of turbomachinery and aerospace propulsion
Computational vibration
• A&M: Space structures and systems (G. Kerschen), Non-linear computational mechanics (J-P. Ponthot)
• 2024 - Digital twin of the rotating part of the rig with BeCover, Cenaero & V2i
• Formation continue : vibration 6

24. A&M : Design of turbomachinery group
Research activities
• development of high accuracy numerical simulation tools w/ Cenaero
• development of turbulence models and wall models with Safran, Cenaero and UCLouvain
• detailed study of flows in turbomachinery passages w/ experiments at VKI
• quantitative analysis of turbulent flows and budget equations w/ Cenaero
• development of meridional flow strategies with MTFC team of Prof. Terrapon and SAB
• development of novel strategies for simulating inlet distortion with SAB, Cenaero
Education in collaboration w/ industry
• MSc aerospace engineering -> propulsion, turbomachinery operation, design & cfd techniques
• formation continue: simulation of turbomachinery flows
Close collaboration with Multiphysics and Turbulent Flow Computation (Prof. Terrapon)
7

25. Aerodynamic simulation tools
Physics of flow in turbomachinery
Wall-modeled Large Eddy simulation of the Create IIbis compressor at ECLyon
using ArgoDG; Courtesy Cenaero

26. Aerodynamic analysis and design tools
Hierachy of simulation strategies inspired by Adamczyk’s cascade
Scale resolving simulations
DNS, LES and Wall modeled LES
Months on O(10k)-(100k) processors
No or little modeling Unsteady ensemble averaged flow
URANS (time or harmonic)
Weeks simulation on O(100) processors
Turbulence modeling
Ensemble averaged flow
RANS
hours simulation on O(10) processors
Rotor-stator interface
Pitchwise averaged flow
Meridional / Throughflow computations
minutes on O(1) processors
Blade force modeling

27. Aerodynamic analysis and design tools
Complexity of flow in turbomachinery passages - supersonic flows, shocks and turbulence
Large Eddy simulation of the LS89 cascade @ VKI using ArgoDG
Courtesy Cenaero; collaboration Cenaero & VKI

28. Aerodynamic analysis and design tools
Development of high-resolution simulation strategies (ForDGe/ArgoDG)
• Shock capturing for high order finite element fluid simulation
• three way strategy for all Mach numbers -> hypersonics
• quantify / minimise impact on turbulent budgets
• fundamental development in ForDGe (A. Bilocq)
• industrialisation in ArgoDG (M. Borbouse)
• Turbomachinery: using very precise DNS & LES
• understand flow physics
• improve turbulence models using reference data
• Collaboration MTFC, Cenaero
• BeCover: validate improved turbulence models for transonic
conditions
Entropy stable
Artificial viscosity
Impact of shock capturing strategies and improvement of methods - PhD Amaury Bilocq & PhD Maxime Borbouse (ULiège)
Supersonic jet (left) & Comparison of classical AV (middle) vs entropy stable (right) on compressible shear layer
Development of High order discretisation (DGM) for flows

29. Aerodynamic analysis and design tools
Simulation of (almost) all flow structures: DNS & LES (collab. Cenaero/VKI)
• DNS / LES for fundamental flows
• resolve (almost) all flow structures
• average over large time span to find average flow
• first principle models
• Research using Cenaero’s ArgoDG code
• understanding turbulent flows in complement to experiments
• developing/evaluating/calibrating turbulence models
• improving precision of numerical techniques
• BeCover : probe development w/ VKI
Preliminary studies on flow mechanisms around active turbulence grid
Collaboration ULiège PhD F. Bertelli (VKI/ULiège), Prof. S. Lavagnoli (VKI) & Cenaero
Ongoing DNS studies of transition and separation in a high-speed low-pressure turbine
Collab. PhDs M. Borbouse (ULiège) & G. Lopes (VKI/ULiège), Prof. S. Lavagnoli (VKI), Cenaero;
Data made available by Spleen CleanSky II project
Active turbulence grid experimental setup @ VKI
Collab. ULiège - PhD. F.Bertelli (VKI/ULiège)

30. Aerodynamic analysis and design
Development of numerical techniques for turbulence modeling (collab Cenaero)
• Ongoing research
• developing wall models for large Eddy Simulations
• analysing turbulent transport terms resulting from averaging in RANS
• analysing impact of numerical technique on closure of the budget
• providing reference data for turbulence model
Machine learning for wall models
PhD Margaux Boxho (ULiège/Cenaero/UcLouvain)
RANS complete turbulence budgets
Collaboration ULiège - M. Rasquin @ Cenaero

31. Aerodynamic analysis and design
Unsteady RANS of off-design operation (collab. VKI)
• Approach
• solve for ensemble averaged flow
• impact of turbulence is modeled
• unsteady flow fields
• Industrial work horse
• steady/frequential used for aerodynamic/structural optimisation
• study of instabilities, distortion of given geometry
• Collaborative research on distortion
• Cenaero/VKI: Generation of tailored distortion in wind tunnel (Astoria project)
• Impact of distortion on stability and performance (PhD R. Toracchio,VKI/ULiège)
• Collaborative research (ULiège/Cenaero/VKI/BeCover) on simplified approaches for
integrating distortion in optimisation
• mono-passage simulation w/ fluctuating boundary conditions
• frequency domain approaches
• Becover
• validation data for models (turbulence modeling, simplified)
• support BeCover customers in analysing unexpected flow regimes Study of the impact of distortion on performance, stability and
risk of flutter for a LP compressor
PhD R. Toracchio (VKI/ULiège), F. Fontaneto (VKI)

32. Aerodynamic design techniques
Throughflow design and analysis methods (MTFC ULiège & Safran)
• Throughflow approach
• average around axis
• solve for tangentially averaged flow
• fast estimation of operating curve
• Current (A. Budo, ULiège) w SAB
• improvement of (geometrical) formulation
• correlation data for profile performance ?
• geometrical inaccuracy issues
• Future research axes
• supersonic flows and shocks
• distortion & mistuning
• complex flow paths
• integration in design loop
• BeCover : model validation
Predicting impact of geometric errors on blade geometry on
performance using a throughflow method
PhD Arnaud Budo (ULiège) @ MTFC - Pr. V. Terrapon (ULiège)

33. Concluding remarks
• Design of LPC @ SAB, requires improvement of design tools, approaches and ultimately better
understanding of turbomachinery flows
• radical changes in engine architecture -> new flow regimes
• high loading -> simulation tools used further away from “comfort zone”
• high loading, inlet distortion -> increased risk of unstable operation
• Favorable situation in RW/Be for creation of a true pole of competence
• High competence in turbomachinery design, development of numerical and experimental techniques
• Complementarity research institutes, universities and industry with collaborations in place locally and internationally
• Access to top facilities in experimental (VKI, BeCover) and numerical research (Lucia supercomputer)
• High level education: VKI (Research Master, PhD) and ULiège (Aerospace Engg, PhD, FC) involving industry
• Favorable position of the government: RW projects, Skywin, Wings, ...
• ULiège involved in the fundamental development of numerical techniques and study of turbulence w. Cenaero/VKI
• Creation of a unique test facility in BeCover -> cover the entire spectrum of research activities
• competitive advantage for walloon aeronautic industry
• credibility to partake in tenders for high level research grants
• momentum for increased collaboration in RW