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Development and application of a pre-design tool for aero-engine combustors

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Abstract

A software tool was developed to design aero-engine combustors on a preliminary level. Only a small set of input parameters is required to design conventional as well as lean combustors. During the design calculation the combustor contour, the geometry of the desired cooling concept and the air flow distribution within the combustor are optimized. Optimization targets are to minimize the cooling air consumption with respect to the material temperature limits and to reach homogeneous material temperatures as well as a stable combustion. In the case of a staged burner the burner air and fuel fractions are optimized regarding minimal NO x production (qualitative) for the design condition. Off-design calculations on the basis of designed combustors can be executed for engine conditions other than take-off to calculate the altered conditions within the combustor. This paper shows the design and off-design process of the combustor tool in detail. In a second part application examples are given. The presented results show the capabilities of the tool for the pre-design of lean combustors with respect to the trade-off between the reduction of NO x emissions and the reduction of the fuel consumption as well as the capabilities for identifying potential cooling issues.

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Abbreviations

c d :

Discharge coefficient (–)

d :

Diameter (m)

Ma:

Mach number (–)

m = ρAiruAir/(ρGasuGas):

Blowing ratio (–)

p :

Pressure (Pa)

Δp st :

Static pressure drop (Pa)

Δp st,rel = Δp st/p 3 :

Relative static pressure drop (–)

R s :

Specific gas constant (J/kg/K)

Re:

Reynolds number (–)

r :

Radius (m)

s :

Slot height (m)

T :

Temperature (K)

t :

Thickness (m)

u:

Velocity (m/s)

V :

Volume (m3)

W :

Mass flow (kg/s)

μ:

Dynamic viscosity (Ns/m2)

ρ:

Density (kg/m3)

φ:

Empirical factor (–)

C:

Combustor

Cond:

Conduction

Conv:

Convection

Eff:

Effusion

Rad:

Radiation

Stoich:

Stoichiometric

Up:

Upstream

3:

Condition upstream the combustor

4:

Condition downstream the combustor

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Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank Sören Klingenfuß for his contribution to the code of ComDAT.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. German Aerospace Center DLR, Institute of Propulsion Technology, 51170, Cologne, Germany

    S. Tietz & T. Behrendt

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  1. S. Tietz
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  2. T. Behrendt
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Correspondence to S. Tietz.

Additional information

This paper is based on a presentation at the German Aerospace Congress, September 27–29, 2011, Bremen, Germany.

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Tietz, S., Behrendt, T. Development and application of a pre-design tool for aero-engine combustors. CEAS Aeronaut J 2, 111–123 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13272-011-0012-x

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