Cooling Air from Combustor Dome Using Vaporizing Fuel
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Solution Overview
Problem
Gas turbine engines with high compressor discharge temperatures face reduced cooling capacity, leading to the need for additional airflow or increased cooling air cooling, which can result in bulky and complex heat exchanger systems.
Innovation Solution
Utilizing vaporizing fuel as a heat sink to transfer heat from cooled cooling air through a combustion liner wall, eliminating the need for external heat exchangers and leveraging the latent heat of vaporization to cool compressor discharge air.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If traditional heat exchangers are used to cool compressor discharge air, then cooling capacity is improved, but device complexity and weight increase
Solution Approach 1:
The invention extracts the cooling function from external heat exchangers and relocates it directly into the combustor dome, where compressed air is cooled by direct contact with liquid fuel before entering the combustion chamber. This eliminates bulky external heat exchanger components while achieving the same cooling objective.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention merges the cooling air path with the fuel injection system by introducing liquid fuel directly into the compressed air stream within the combustor dome. The fuel serves dual purposes: cooling the air through evaporation and serving as combustion fuel, thereby combining two separate functions into one integrated system.
2Temperature
If external heat exchangers are used to cool compression air, then cooling capacity is improved, but weight increases
Solution Approach 1:
The invention removes the need for heavy external heat exchanger components by implementing cooling directly within the combustor dome using liquid fuel evaporation. This dramatically reduces the weight of stationary cooling equipment while maintaining effective cooling capacity.
Solution Approach 2:
The liquid fuel serves its own purpose of combustion while simultaneously providing the cooling function through evaporation. This self-service approach eliminates the need for separate dedicated cooling equipment, thereby reducing overall system weight.
3Temperature
If additional airflow is used to compensate for reduced cooling capacity, then cooling capacity is improved, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The invention changes the thermal parameter of the compressed air by introducing liquid fuel that evaporates and absorbs heat directly from the air stream. This parameter change (temperature reduction through phase change) provides effective cooling without requiring complex airflow management systems.
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 approach reduces the temperature of cooling air, preserving compressor and turbine components, eliminating the need for external heat exchangers, and providing efficient cooling without the complexity and weight penalties of traditional systems.
Implementation Method 1
vaporizing fuel is used as a heat sink to transfer heat from the cooled cooling air as exchanged through a combustion liner wall
Implementation Method 2
transfer heat from the cooled cooling air as exchanged through a combustion liner wall
Data Source
AI summary
A gas turbine engine includes a compressor, a turbine, and a combustor. The combustor includes a fuel injector and a vaporizer within the combustor positioned to receive liquid fuel from the fuel injector to vaporize the liquid fuel therein. The gas turbine engine includes an enclosed passage external to the combustor having a wall, a diffuser positioned to direct the air into the passage, causing the air to cool by transferring heat through the wall from the air within the passage to the vaporized fuel within the vaporizer, and a cooled cooling air passageway positioned to receive the air from the passage and direct the air after being cooled to at least one of the turbine and the compressor.