Using AI to improve the effectiveness of turbine performance data
Creators: name: Supe, Shreyas Sudarshan
Publisher: name: Purdue University Graduate School
Year: 2023
Subjects: classificationCode: 401799
subject: Mechanical engineering not elsewhere classified
classificationCode: 460299
subject: Artificial intelligence not elsewhere classified
classificationCode: 461199
subject: Machine learning not elsewhere classified

description: For turbocharged engine simulation analysis, manufacturer-provided data are typically used to predict the mass flow and efficiency of the turbine. To create a turbine map, physical tests are performed in labs at various turbine speeds and expansion ratios. These tests can be very expensive and time-consuming. Current testing methods can have limitations that result in errors in the turbine map. As such, only a modest set of data can be generated, all of which have to be interpolated and extrapolated to create a smooth surface that can then be used for simulation analysis.<br>The current method used by the manufacturer is a physics-informed polynomial regression model that depends on the Blade Speed Ratio (BSR ) in the polynomial function to model the efficiency and MFP. This method is memory-consuming and provides a lower-than-desired accuracy. This model is decades old and must be updated with new state-of-the-art Machine Learning models to be more competitive. Currently, CTT is facing up to +/-2% error in most turbine maps for efficiency and MFP and the aim is to decrease the error to 0.5% while interpolating the data points in the available region. The current model also extrapolates data to regions where experimental data cannot be measured. Physical tests cannot validate this extrapolation and can only be evaluated using CFD analysis.<br>The thesis focuses on investigating different AI techniques to increase the accuracy of the model for interpolation and evaluating the models for extrapolation. The data was made available by CTT. The available data consisted of various turbine parameters including ER, turbine speeds, efficiency, and MFP which were considered significant in turbine modeling. The AI models developed contained the above 4 parameters where ER and turbine speeds are predictors and, efficiency and MFP are the response. Multiple supervised ML models such as SVM, GPR, LMANN, BRANN, and GBPNN were developed and evaluated. From the above 5 ML models, BRANN performed the best achieving an error of 0.5% across multiple turbines for efficiency and MFP. The same model was used to demonstrate extrapolation, where the model gave unreliable predictions. Additional data points were inputted in the training data set at the far end of the testing regions which greatly increased the overall look of the map.<br>An additional contribution presented here is to completely predict an expansion ratio line and evaluate with CTT test data points where the model performed with an accuracy of over 95%. Since physical testing in a lab is expensive and time-consuming, another goal of the project was to reduce the number of data points provided for ANN model training. Furthermore, strategically reducing the data points is of utmost importance as some data points play a major role in the training of ANN and can greatly affect the model's overall accuracy. Up to 50% of the data points were removed for training inputs and it was found that BRANN was able to predict a satisfactory turbine map while reducing 20% of the overall data points at various regions.