Integral Fan Blade Diffuser for Tip Turbine Engine
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional turbofan engines have complex elongated structures due to axial flow relationships, making them difficult to package in certain applications, and the fan-turbine rotor assembly in tip turbine engines is costly to manufacture and assemble.
Innovation Solution
The fan-turbine rotor assembly features a scalloped fan hub with elongated openings for inducer and blade receipt sections, which securely mount hollow fan blades, minimizing leakage and facilitating assembly, with integral turbine sections cast directly onto the fan blades to enhance reliability and efficiency.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Use of energy by moving object
If conventional turbofan engines use axial flow relationship, then engine efficiency is improved, but engine structure becomes complex and elongated
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the fan blade and turbine blade into a single integrated rotor assembly, where the turbine blade is directly mounted on the fan blade tip. This merging eliminates the need for separate axial compressor, combustor, and turbine sections, thereby maintaining energy efficiency while significantly simplifying the engine structure and reducing its longitudinal length.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention transitions from a traditional axial flow arrangement (one-dimensional linear layout) to a radial/centrifugal configuration where the turbine is positioned at the tip of the fan blade. This dimensional change allows the engine to achieve compact packaging while preserving the energy conversion function through centrifugal compression and radial airflow paths.
2Length of moving object
If tip turbine engine uses integrated fan-turbine rotor assembly, then engine length is reduced, but manufacturing cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The integrated rotor assembly is divided into separable components: the fan blade with inducer section, the diffuser section, and the turbine blade section. These segments can be manufactured independently using standard casting or machining processes, then assembled together. This segmentation maintains the compact engine length while reducing manufacturing complexity and cost compared to monolithic integration.
Solution Approach 2:
The turbine blade is nested on the tip of the fan blade, with the turbine hub mounted directly on the fan blade tip platform. This nested arrangement achieves compact engine packaging without requiring complex manufacturing, as each component can be produced separately and then assembled in a straightforward hierarchical structure.
3Productivity
If fan blade uses hollow structure for centrifugal compression, then bypass airflow is improved, but assembly complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The hollow fan blade structure is merged with the turbine blade assembly, where the turbine hub is directly mounted on the fan blade tip. The inducer passages within the hollow fan blade are directly communicated with the turbine inlet, eliminating the need for separate intermediate components. This merging maintains high bypass airflow efficiency while simplifying the overall assembly process.
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 design reduces manufacturing costs and improves reliability by securely locking components together during operation, minimizing leakage between blade platforms and enhancing engine efficiency.
Implementation Method 1
The inducer sections and fan blade sections are directionally mounted within the fan hub such that the forces exerted upon the fan-turbine rotor assembly during operation correspond with further locking of the inducer sections and fan blade sections into the fan hub
Implementation Method 2
A compressor and a turbine of the engine are interconnected by a shaft. The compressor is rotatably driven to compress air entering the combustor to a relatively high pressure
Implementation Method 3
The integral diffuser section and the integral turbine section are preferably cast with each fan blade section
Data Source
AI summary
A fan-turbine rotor assembly for a tip turbine engine includes an outer periphery scalloped by a multitude of elongated openings which define an inducer receipt section to receive an inducer section and a hollow fan blade section. Each fan blade section includes a turbine section which extends from a diffuser section.