Active Combustion Control for Aircraft Gas-Turbine Engines - Experimental Results for an Advanced, Low-Emissions Combustor Prototype

Aircraft Turbine Engine Control Research at NASA Glenn Research Center

“…Utilizing this simulation, the NASA Adaptive Sliding Phasor Average Control (ASPAC) instability control method was updated for the low-emissions combustor prototype. Active combustion instability suppression using the ASPAC control method has recently been demonstrated experimentally with this combustor prototype in a NASA combustion test cell operating at engine pressures, temperatures, and flows (DeLaat et al 2012). Successful instability suppression was shown using a dynamic pressure sensor in the combustor with controller feedback driving a high-frequency fuel valve to perturb the combustor fuel flow.…”

“…It was also demonstrated that the controller can prevent the instability from occurring while combustor operation is transitioning from a stable, low-power condition to a normally unstable high-power condition, thus enabling the high-power condition. Figure 18 shows some of the results discussed in DeLaat et al (2012). The two sets of results show the pressure with and without the controller being on.…”

Performance Evaluation of a High Bandwidth Liquid Fuel Modulation Valve for Active Combustion Control

“…This was ultimately borne out in subsequent ACIC testing that showed that the test candidate was not able to provide good modulation authority into the combustion pressure, and thus was not able to be used for active instability suppression using pilot flow modulation (Ref. 21). It is difficult, however, to label what was observed as "good" agreement.…”