Torch Ignitor Hatch Access for High-Pressure Engine Maintenance
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Torch ignitor components in gas turbine engines are difficult to access for routine maintenance or replacement due to their position within the high-pressure casing, necessitating improved access solutions.
Innovation Solution
An access hatch is integrated into the high-pressure engine case to allow direct access to torch ignitor components, enabling line replacement and maintenance, with sealing mechanisms to maintain system integrity.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the torch ignitor is positioned within the high-pressure engine case, then the ignition source is provided close to the combustion chamber for effective operation, but the components become difficult to access for routine maintenance or replacement
Solution Approach 1:
The torch ignitor is divided into separate replaceable components including the cap, fuel injector, and glow plug assembly. This segmentation allows individual components to be accessed and replaced through the hatch without requiring complete disassembly of the ignitor system, resolving the contradiction between maintaining reliable ignition and enabling easy maintenance access.
Solution Approach 2:
An access hatch is introduced as an intermediary component in the engine case that provides a dedicated access path to the torch ignitor components. This hatch serves as a mediator between the external maintenance environment and the internal high-pressure combustion chamber area, allowing technicians to reach components that would otherwise be inaccessible while maintaining the integrity of the combustion system.
2Ease of repair
If the torch ignitor components are made accessible for maintenance, then ease of repair is improved, but the structural integrity and sealing of the high-pressure engine case may be compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The cap and associated components are designed to be extractable through the access hatch while maintaining the sealing integrity of the main engine case. The hatch itself is designed with proper sealing mechanisms that allow temporary extraction of components without compromising the overall structural integrity and pressure containment of the high-pressure engine case during normal operation.
3Adaptability or versatility
If multiple components are integrated into the torch ignitor assembly, then the ignition system functionality is enhanced, but the complexity of maintenance and replacement increases
Solution Approach 1:
The integrated torch ignitor assembly is segmented into modular components (cap, fuel injector, glow plug) that can be independently accessed and replaced. This modular segmentation reduces maintenance complexity by allowing technicians to replace only the specific failed component rather than the entire ignitor assembly, while still maintaining the enhanced functionality of having multiple integrated ignition components.
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
AI summary
A method comprising removing a hatch (150) from a high pressure engine case (18) to open a hatch opening and performing maintenance on a torch ignitor (10) that is inside the high pressure engine case by accessing the torch ignitor through the hatch opening.