Gas Turbine Combustor Dome Wall Cooling and Mixing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current gas turbine engines face challenges in efficiently managing combustion processes within the combustor, leading to suboptimal performance and efficiency.
Innovation Solution
The design incorporates a combustor with a dome wall and a combustor liner, featuring an annular arrangement of fuel cups, air tubes, and cooling holes to enhance air-fuel mixing and cooling efficiency.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If conventional combustion processes are used in the combustor, then the engine can operate with standard design, but combustion efficiency and performance are suboptimal
Solution Approach 1:
The combustor is segmented into distinct functional zones including a dome wall section with fuel cups, air tubes, and cooling holes arranged in specific patterns. The fuel cups are divided into multiple groups with different air tube configurations, creating segmented combustion regions that improve mixing and combustion efficiency while maintaining manageable structural complexity
Solution Approach 2:
Different regions of the combustor are given different local qualities: the dome wall section has fuel cups with specific air tube arrangements for primary combustion, while other sections have different cooling hole patterns and air tube configurations. This local differentiation optimizes combustion efficiency in each zone without requiring complete redesign of the entire combustor structure
2Duration of action of stationary object
If the dome wall is exposed to high combustion temperatures without adequate cooling, then the structure is simpler, but the service life of the dome wall decreases
Solution Approach 1:
Cooling air is introduced through cooling holes in the dome wall before the hot combustion gases reach the dome wall surface. This preliminary cooling action creates a protective thermal barrier that extends the service life of the dome wall by preventing excessive heat accumulation from the outset
Solution Approach 2:
The cooling system utilizes pneumatic flow of compressed air through specifically designed cooling holes and air tubes in the dome wall. The air flow is controlled to create effective cooling channels that remove heat from the dome wall structure, extending its service life through fluid-based thermal management
3Productivity
If air-fuel mixing is not optimized in the combustor, then the design is simpler, but combustion performance and efficiency are reduced
Solution Approach 1:
Air tubes are arranged in multiple dimensions around the fuel cups, with tubes extending in different directions and orientations. This multi-dimensional arrangement creates thorough air-fuel mixing by introducing air from multiple spatial directions, significantly improving combustion performance without requiring overly complex mixing mechanisms
Solution Approach 2:
The air tubes act as intermediary structures that facilitate the mixing process between fuel and air. By positioning air tubes between the fuel injection points and the combustion chamber, they serve as mediators that control and enhance the mixing process, improving combustion performance through structured intermediate flow paths
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This configuration improves flame distribution, increases the service life of the dome wall, and allows for effective double pressure drop cooling, thereby enhancing the overall performance and efficiency of the gas turbine engine.
Implementation Method 1
a set of cooling holes extending through the dome wall section
Implementation Method 2
cooling air to the dome wall section
Implementation Method 3
allows for effective double pressure drop cooling
Implementation Method 4
enhance air-fuel mixing
Implementation Method 5
the fuel is burned in the presence of the air to produce hot gas
Data Source
AI summary
A combustor for a turbine engine including a dome wall; a combustor liner extending from the dome wall; a combustion chamber at least partially defined by the dome wall and the combustor liner; a fuel cup disposed at a dome wall section of the dome wall, the fuel cup comprising a fuel cup centerline; a set of air tubes extending at least partially through the dome wall section to direct air into the combustion chamber; and a set of cooling holes extending through the dome wall section.