MAE 4261: AIR-BREATHING ENGINES

Gas Turbine Engine Combustors

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Department
Florida Institute of Technology

D. R. Kirk
COMBUSTOR LOCATION
Military
F119-100
Commercial
PW4000
Combustor
Afterburner
MAJOR COMBUSTOR COMPONENTS
C
o
m
p
r
e
s
s
o
r

T
u
r
b
i
n
e

MAJOR COMBUSTOR COMPONENTS
Key Questions:
Why is combustor configured this way?
What sets overall length, volume and geometry of device?
C
o
m
p
r
e
s
s
o
r

T
u
r
b
i
n
e

Fuel
COMBUSTOR EXAMPLE (F101)
Henderson and Blazowski
Fuel
C
o
m
p
r
e
s
s
o
r

T
u
r
b
i
n
e

N
G
V

VORBIX COMBUSTOR (P&W)
COMBUSTOR REQUIREMENTS
Complete combustion (q
b
1)
Low pressure loss (t
b
1)
Reliable and stable ignition
Wide stability limits
Flame stays lit over wide range of p, u, f/a ratio)
Freedom from combustion instabilities
Tailored temperature distribution into turbine with no hot spots
Low emissions
Smoke (soot), unburnt hydrocarbons, NOx, SOx, CO
Effective cooling of surfaces
Low stressed structures, durability
Small size and weight
Design for minimum cost and maintenance

Future multiple fuel capability (?)
CHEMISTRY REVIEW
O H
m
nCO O
m
n H C
m n 2 2 2
2 4
+
|
.
|

\
|
+ +
|
.
|

\
|
+
=
4
78 . 4
1
m
n
s

( )
2 2 2 2 2
4
78 . 3
2
78 . 3
4
N
m
n O H
m
nCO N O
m
n H C
m n
|
.
|

\
|
+ + + +
|
.
|

\
|
+ +
Stoichiometric Molar fuel/air ratio Stoichiometric Mass fuel/air ratio
General hydrocarbon, C
n
H
m
(Jet fuel H/C~2)

Complete oxidation, hydrocarbon goes to CO
2
and water
For air-breathing applications, hydrocarbon is burned in air
Air modeled as 20.9 % O
2
and 79.1 % N
2
(neglect trace species)
Complete combustion for hydrocarbons means all C CO
2
and all H H
2
O
( )
( ) ( ) 28 78 . 3 32
4
12
+
|
.
|

\
|
+
+
=
m
n
m n
s

Stoichiometric = exactly correct ratio for complete combustion

COMMENTS ON CHALLENGES
Based on material limits of turbine (T
t4
), combustors must operate below
stoichiometric values
For most relevant hydrocarbon fuels,
s
~ 0.06 (based on mass)

Comparison of actual fuel-to-air and stoichiometric ratio is called equivalence ratio
Equivalence ratio = | = /
stoich

For most modern aircraft | ~ 0.3

Summary
If | = 1: Stoichiometric
If | > 1: Fuel Rich
If | < 1: Fuel Lean
VARIATION OF FLAME TEMPERATURE WITH |
F
l
a
m
e

T
e
m
p
e
r
a
t
u
r
e

Flammability Limits
Still too hot
for turbine
WHY IS THIS RELEVANT?
Most mixtures will NOT burn so far away from
stoichiometric
Often called Flammability Limit
Highly pressure dependent
Increased pressure, increased
flammability limit
Requirements for combustion, roughly | > 0.8

Gas turbine can NOT operate at (or even near)
stoichiometric levels
Temperatures (adiabatic flame temperatures)
associated with stoichiometric combustion are
way too hot for turbine
Fixed T
t4
implies roughly | < 0.5

What do we do?
Burn (keep combustion going) near |=1 with
some of compressor exit air
Then mix very hot gases with remaining air to
lower temperature for turbine

SOLUTION: BURNING REGIONS
Air
C
o
m
p
r
e
s
s
o
r

T
u
r
b
i
n
e

| ~ 1.0
T>2000 K
|~0.3
Primary
Zone
COMBUSTOR ZONES: MORE DETAILS
1. Primary Zone
Anchors Flame
Provides sufficient time, mixing, temperature for complete oxidation of fuel
Equivalence ratio near |=1
2. Intermediate (Secondary Zone)
Low altitude operation (higher pressures in combustor)
Recover dissociation losses (primarily CO CO
2
) and Soot Oxidation
Complete burning of anything left over from primary due to poor mixing
High altitude operation (lower pressures in combustor)
Low pressure implies slower rate of reaction in primary zone
Serves basically as an extension of primary zone (increased t
res
)
L/D ~ 0.7
3. Dilution Zone (critical to durability of turbine)
Mix in air to lower temperature to acceptable value for turbine
Tailor temperature profile (low at root and tip, high in middle)
Uses about 20-40% of total ingested core mass flow
L/D ~ 1.5-1.8
COMBUSTOR DESIGN
Combustion efficiency, q
b
= Actual Enthalpy Rise / Ideal Enthalpy Rise
h=heat of reaction (sometimes designated as Q
R
) = 43,400 KJ/Kg


( )
3 4 t t
R b
P
T T
Q
c
f ~
q
General Observations:
1. q
b
as p and T (because of dependency of reaction rate)
2. q
b
as Mach number (decrease in residence time)
3. q
b
as fuel/air ratio

Assuming that the fuel-to-air ratio is small

( ) | |
h m
T m T m m c
f
t a t f a P
b

3 4
+
= q
COMBUSTOR TYPES (Lefebvre)
Single Can
Tubular
or Multi-Can
Tuboannular
Can-Annular
Annular
COMBUSTOR TYPES (Lefebvre)
EXAMPLES
CAN-TYPE
Rolls-Royce Dart
ANNULAR-TYPE
General Electric T58
EXAMPLES
CAN-ANNULAR-TYPE
Rolls-Royce Tyne
CHEMICAL EMISSIONS
Aircraft deposit combustion products at high altitudes, into upper troposphere and
lower stratosphere (25,000 to 50,000 feet)
Combustion products deposited there have long residence times, enhancing impact
NOx suspected to contribute to toxic ozone production
Goal: NOx emission level to no-ozone-impact levels during cruise
AFTERBURNER (AUGMENTER)
Spray in more fuel to use up more oxygen
Main combustion can not use all air
Exit Mach number stays same (choked M
exit
= 1)
Temp
Speed of sound
Velocity = M*a
Therefore Thrust
Penalty:
Pressure is lower so thermodynamic efficiency is poor
Propulsive efficiency is reduced (but dont really care in this application)
As turbine inlet temperature keeps increasing less oxygen downstream for AB and
usefulness decreases
Requirements
VERY lightweight
Stable and startable
Durable and efficient
RELATIVE LENGTH OF AFTERBURNER
Why is AB so much longer than primary combustor?
Pressure is so low in AB that they need to be very long (and heavy)
Reaction rate ~ p
n
(n~2 for mixed gas collision rate)
J79 (F4, F104, B58)
Combustor Afterburner
INTRA-TURBINE BURNING
BURNER-TURBINE-BURNER (ITB) CONCEPTS
Improve gas turbine engine performance using an interstage turbine burner (ITB)
With a higher specific thrust engine will be smaller and lighter
Increasing payload
Reduce CO
2
emissions
Reduce NO
x
emissions by reducing peak flame temperature
Initially locate ITB in transition duct between high pressure turbine (HTP) and low
pressure turbine (LPT)
Conventional
Intra Turbine Burner (schematic only)
SIEMENS WESTINGHOUSE ITB CONCEPT
T
t4
UNDERSTANDING BENEFIT FROM CYCLE ANALYSIS
From Turbojet and Turbofan Engine Performance Increases Through Turbine Burners, by
Liu and Sirignano, JPP Vol. 17, No. 3, May-June 2001
Conventional Intra Turbine Burner
2 additional burners 5 additional burners
UNDERSTANDING BENEFIT FROM CYCLE ANALYSIS
From Turbojet and Turbofan Engine Performance Increases Through Turbine Burners, by
Liu and Sirignano, JPP Vol. 17, No. 3, May-June 2001
Continuous burning in turbine
UNDERSTANDING BENEFIT FROM CYCLE ANALYSIS
From Turbojet and Turbofan Engine Performance Increases Through Turbine Burners, by
Liu and Sirignano, JPP Vol. 17, No. 3, May-June 2001