One of the research areas at the Institute of Jet Propulsion focuses on the design and optimization of s-shaped engine inlet configurations. The distortion being evoked within such inlet ducts should be limited to ensure an optimal performance, stability, and durability of the engine's compression system. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) play a major role in the design process of bent engine inlet ducts. The flow within such ducts can be computed, distortion patterns can be visualized, and related distortion coefficients are easily calculated. The impact of a distortion on flow phenomena within the compressor system can, however, only be computed with major computational efforts and thus the quality of an s-duct design in development is usually assessed by analyzing the evoked distortion with suitable distortion coefficients without a true knowledge of the duct's influence on the downstream propulsion system. The influence of inlet distortion on both the performance and stability of the Larzac 04 jet engine was parameterized during experimental investigations at the engine test bed of the Institute of Jet Propulsion. Both pressure and swirl distortion patterns as they typically occur in s-duct inlet configurations were reproduced with distortion generators. Pressure distortion patterns were generated using seven types of distortion screens. The intensity of the distortion varies with the mesh size of the screen whereas the extension of the distortion is defined by the dimensions of the screen in radial and circumferential direction. A typical counter rotating twin-swirl was generated with a delta-wing installed upstream of the compressor system. First, the development of flow distortion was analyzed for several engine operating points (EOPs). A linear relation between the total pressure loss in the engine inlet and the EOPs was found. Second, the flow within the compressor system with an inlet distortion was analyzed and unsteady flow phenomena were detected for severe inlet distortions. Finally, the effect of both pressure and swirl distortion on the performance and stability of the test vehicle was parameterized. A loss in engine performance with increasing inlet distortion is observable. The limiting inlet distortion with respect to engine stability was found; and moreover, it was shown that pressure distortion has a stronger influence on the stability of the compressor system compared to a counter rotating twin-swirl distortion. The presented parameterization was essential for the s-duct design, which was under development for an experimental setup with the Larzac 04 jet engine.
In propulsion industry there is an ongoing need to significantly reduce SFC of jet engines resulting in cost reduction and lower emissions. Since the design of most of the engine components is at the limit of today’s technology level further gain of improvement on short term is to be achieved by implementation of new system concepts. Especially the stall safety margin in compression system design holds high potential for the optimization of the overall engine system. Once a reliable and effective stall control system becomes available an extension of present operating range is likely to be achieved by moving the steady operating line towards the stability limit and to intervene only in critical situations. At the Institute of Jet Propulsion at the University of the Federal Armed Forces in Munich, Germany a Larzac 04 twin-spool turbofan engine has already been equipped and tested with an adequate active stabilization system of the low pressure compressor for research purposes. Those investigations revealed a strong dependency of the achievable stabilization effect and the amount and momentum of the injected air mass flow. For flying applications this mass flow has to be delivered by carried on means. Therefore it always penalizes the propulsion efficiency. In the given configuration, redirected air from the last stage of the high pressure compressor is used for injection. Usage of this bleed air directly influences the propulsion efficiency of the engine. In order to optimize the mass flow needed for stabilization, the existing injection system was redesigned to utilize ejector pumps. With this configuration a comparable stabilizing effect could be realized with less redirected air mass flow. In fact the open ejector pump configuration showed an even higher performance at maximum injection rate than the closed injection before. Therefore further investigations with this system focused on the effect of additional flow ports to the engine intake as they are necessary for an ejector pump and their basic influence on the operation stability of the low pressure compressor (LPC). In combination with the already existing stall detection algorithm of the institute a very promising system for increasing the available operating range in turbo compressors could be achieved.
In order to preserve fossil resources aviation industry faces major challenges to reduce engine fuel consumption. Therefore efforts are concentrated to increase efficiency of any engine component. Investigations at the Institute of Jet Propulsion at the University of Federal Armed Forces in Munich focus on the compressor module. The compression system is designed to work at very high loads and due to this it is one of the most critical components during transient engine operation. Occurring instabilities are mostly limited to the tip region of the compressor blades because of the tip clearance and low momentum fluid from the casing boundary layer. Prior to instability onset such as rotating stall and even surge, some so-called stall precursors commonly occur in this area. In order to predict and avoid those critical engine operations a stall detection algorithm was developed and combined with an active compressor stabilization system. As a research vehicle the Larzac 04 twin-spool turbofan engine is used at the test facility of the Institute of Jet Propulsion. The test vehicle is equipped with additional instrumentation and control systems exceeding those of conventional engine monitoring systems by far. Providing input data to the stall detection algorithm flush mounted Kulite sensors are installed within the casing of the first stage of the low pressure compressor, where stall usually arises in the Larzac 04. The described algorithm is based on the spike theory being the dominant stall precursor in nearly all operating ranges of the test engine. After the detection of an upcoming stall event active countermeasures are triggered to avoid critical engine operation. For this reason an air injection system was attached in front of the fan stage to affect the blade tip region by injecting additional air at a high velocity to re-establish the blade flow. The main emphasis of this paper is to illustrate the signal conditioning used for stall detection and to prove the reliable function of the algorithm in combination with an active countermeasure at an aircraft engine.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
customersupport@researchsolutions.com
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.