Comparison of Subspace Identification Methods for Modal Estimation of Bladed Disks

Bladed disks are critical parts of aeronautic turbojet engines requiring numerous dynamic analysis tests to fully achieve their design process. This work presents subspace state-space identification techniques for estimation of modal parameters of bladed disks using realistic although numerically generated test case data. Indeed, modal testing of bladed disks can exhibit high modal density leading to modal estimation issues. This study focuses on subspace state-space identification framework as it is an efficient way to process vector valued time series and thus to estimate modal parameters in a context of high modal density. In order to evaluate the techniques of interest, a versatile modal model has been specifically implemented to simulate data representative of full scale rotating aeronautic fan modal tests. This model is easily adjustable allowing to evaluate the identification methods in a more or less severe estimation context. The performance of the investigated methods is discussed and compared with the prescribed parameters of the model. Moreover, different techniques to estimate the order of the associated state-space model are reviewed and tested over several simulated configurations. Finally, a method to evaluate the uncertainties over the model parameters using covariance of estimator results and pseudospectrum computation is proposed and discussed over the investigated test cases.