Editing Centrifugal compressor (section)

=== Centrifugal fan ===

[[File:CentrifugalCompressor.jpg|thumb|upright=1.3|A low speed, low-pressure centrifugal compressor or [[centrifugal fan]], with upward discharging cone used to diffuse the air velocity]]
Centrifugal compressors are also similar to [[centrifugal fan]]s of the style shown in the neighboring figure as they both increase the energy of the flow through the increasing radius.<ref name="Shepherd"/> In contrast to centrifugal fans, compressors operate at higher speeds to generate greater pressure rises. In many cases, the engineering methods used to design a centrifugal fan are the same as those to design a centrifugal compressor, so they can look very similar.

For purposes of generalization and definition, it can be said that centrifugal compressors often have density increases greater than 5 percent. Also, they often experience relative fluid velocities above [[Mach number]] 0.3<ref name="API673">{{cite book|last=API|title=Std 673-2002 Centrifugal Fans for Petroleum, Chemical and Gas Industry Services|date=July 2002|publisher=API|location=New York|url=http://global.ihs.com/doc_detail.cfm?item_s_key=00392744/}}{{Dead link|date=July 2020 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> when the working fluid is air or nitrogen. In contrast, fans or blowers are often considered to have density increases of less than five percent and peak relative fluid velocities below Mach 0.3.