Sam A. Mason
Whittle Laboratory, Cambridge, UK
Abstract
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The chief advantage of pressure-gain combustors over conventional steady-flow devices is a significant rise in aeroengine efficiency. The magnitude of this gain depends very much on the specific device chosen, but is likely to be greater than that achievable through improvements in other gas turbine components. It is shown that pulse combustors offer the potential for dramatically improved aeroengine efficiency without the need to introduce any additional moving machinery. An aerovalved pulse combustor has been fabricated and used to demonstrate a 3.0% pressure-gain and stable performance across a wide throttling range during ambient testing. Numerical modelling has been employed to examine the performance of such a device under in-engine conditions and it was found that stable operation is achievable at elevated pressures and temperatures. A coherent strategy for the development of a practical pressure-gain combustor for aeroengines is presented.
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