Gear-Driven Gas Turbine Compressor Arrangement
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Solution Overview
Problem
In gas turbine engines, relative movement between compressor portions due to fan section movement decreases compression efficiency and complicates access to plumbing connections, as traditional support methods can cause misalignment and obstruct maintenance.
Innovation Solution
A gas turbine engine design featuring a gear arrangement to drive the fan and compressor sections, with a support member restricting movement between the compressor case and inlet case, allowing separate removal of the inlet case and simplifying access to plumbing connections, and achieving high pressure ratios through a combination of low and high pressure compressor sections.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If the inlet case supports the front portion of the compressor, then the compressor is supported during fan section movement, but relative movement between compressor portions varies rotor tip clearances and decreases compression efficiency
Solution Approach 1:
The compressor is divided into front and rear portions with independent support structures. The inlet case supports the front portion while an intermediate case structure supports the rear portion, allowing each section to be supported independently to maintain rotor tip clearances during fan section movement.
2Strength
If the inlet case supports the front portion of the compressor, then structural support is provided, but access to plumbing connections near the inlet case is complicated
Solution Approach 1:
The inlet case is designed to be separable from the compressor support structure. By extracting the inlet case as a separate removable component, plumbing connections near the inlet case become accessible for maintenance and repair without requiring removal of the entire compressor support structure.
3Device complexity
If traditional direct drive architectures are used, then mechanical complexity is reduced, but achieving high overall pressure ratios becomes difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs variable geometry components including adjustable stator vanes and可变 pitch blades that allow dynamic optimization of the compression process. This enables achievement of high overall pressure ratios greater than 35:1 by dynamically adjusting flow angles and compression stages according to operating conditions.
Data Source
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AI summary
A gas turbine engine includes a fan section, a gear arrangement configured to drive the fan section, a compressor section and a turbine section. The compressor section includes a low pressure compressor section and a high pressure compressor section. The turbine section is configured to drive compressor section and the gear arrangement. An overall pressure ratio, which is provided by a combination of a pressure ratio across said low pressure compressor section and a pressure ratio across said high pressure compressor section, is greater than about 35. The pressure ratio across the low pressure compressor section is between about 3 and about 8 whereas the pressure ratio across the high pressure compressor section is between about 7 and about 15.