Compressor suction inlet vanes with intermediate discharge

A heating, ventilation, air conditioning, and refrigeration (HVACR) system, comprising:

• a refrigerant circuit including a compressor, a condenser, an expander, and an evaporator fluidly connected, the compressor including:
• a housing including a suction inlet and an intermediate inlet,
• an impeller disposed within the housing, the impeller configured to rotate relative to the housing to compress working fluid that includes suction working fluid from the suction inlet and intermediate working fluid from the intermediate inlet,
• inlet vanes disposed between the suction inlet and the impeller, the inlet vanes configured to guide the suction working fluid flowing from the suction inlet to the impeller, one or more of the inlet vanes fluidly connected to the intermediate inlet and configured to discharge the intermediate working fluid into the suction working fluid flowing across the inlet vanes.

A method of operating a compressor, comprising:

• suctioning a stream of suction working fluid from a suction inlet to an inlet of an impeller, which includes guiding, with inlet vanes, the flow of suction working fluid flowing from the suction inlet to the inlet of the compressor;
• directing intermediate working fluid from an intermediate inlet to the inlet vanes;
• and
• discharging intermediate working fluid from one or more of the inlet vanes into the flow of suction working fluid flowing across the inlet vanes.