In a multistage intermediate pressure compressor an efficiency benefit may be gained by reducing reaction in the rear stages, and allowing swirl to persist at the exit. This swirl must now be removed within the transition duct that is situated between the intermediate and high pressure compressor spools, in order to present the downstream compressor with suitable inlet conditions. This paper presents the numerical design and experimental validation of an initial concept which uses a lifting strut to remove tangential momentum from the flow within an S-shaped compressor transition duct. The design methodology uses an existing strut profile with the camber line modified to remove a specified amount of the inlet tangential momentum. A linear strut loading was employed in the meridional direction with a nominally constant loading in the radial direction. This approach was applied to an existing aggressive S-duct configuration in which approximately 12.5° of swirl remains at OGV exit. 3D CFD predictions were used for preliminary assessment of duct loading and to determine how much swirl could be removed. Consequently, a fully annular test facility incorporating a 1½ stage axial compressor was used to experimentally evaluate four configurations; an unstrutted duct, a non-lifting strut and lifting struts designed to remove 50% and 75% of the inlet tangential momentum. Despite the expected large increase in loss caused by the introduction of struts there was not a significant additional loss measured with the inclusion of turning. No evidence of flow separation was observed and the data suggested that it may be possible to remove more swirl than was attempted. Although the turning struts did not remove the entire targeted swirl due to viscous deviation the data still confirm the feasibility of using a lifting strut/duct concept which has the potential to off-load the rear stages of the upstream compressor.

No abstract

This paper is concerned with the potential use of Helmholtz resonators to provide increased acoustic damping within aero gas turbine combustion systems. Experimental measurements were undertaken using a high intensity facility into which a three burner combustor sector (non-reacting) model could be incorporated. In this way the performance of various damper geometry combinations were assessed. The effect of incident noise levels was also considered along with the associated transition from linear absorption (i.e. where absorption is directly proportional to incident pressure magnitude) to nonlinear absorption (i.e. where the proportion of acoustic loss decreases with increasing noise levels). This complicates the performance comparison between different damping geometries and means care is required when relating laboratory to engine operating conditions. In addition, all the measurements were undertaken in the presence of fuel injectors and other realistic flow field features found within a combustion system and which could affect damping performance. Finally, experimental and numerical assessment was made of the noise levels at which ingestion of hot gas will occur into the resonator cavities with and without the presence of a purging flow. For the geometries investigated ingestion occurs when the fluid displacement in the neck during an acoustic cycle is approximately equal to, or greater than, the resonator neck length. The ratio of fluid displacement and neck length provides a limit for the noise levels at which hot gas is ingested into the cavity and hence the operating condition where damping performance and system mechanical integrity is significantly compromised.

An experimental investigation has been conducted into the use of a combined impingement-pedestal cooling geometry to improve uniformity of surface heat transfer coefficient over traditional combustor liner impingement arrays. Various pedestal arrangements have been investigated by altering the height-to-diameter (H/D) and pitch-to-diameter (P/D) ratios and measurements have been made over a range of impingement jet Reynolds numbers between ∼20 and 40×103. The surface heat transfer coefficient has been determined using a transient liquid crystal thermography measurement technique and the data presented in terms of Nusselt number. A ‘shielded impingement’ concept has also been defined featuring full-height pedestals positioned upstream of each impingement jet and arranged to shield the impingement jets from the developing cross-flow. Aerodynamic measurements have also been made to evaluate the influence of changes to the pedestal geometry on the pressure drop incurred across the different cooling patterns. The analysis indicates superior heat transfer performance can be achieved for the shielded impingement arrangements, with the greatest improvement over equivalent geometries displayed towards the rear of the cooling channel.

In radially staged lean direct injection systems, pilot fuel plays an important role in cooling the mains fuel gallery in regions of the flight envelope where the mains fuel is stagnant. Under these conditions, managing wetted wall temperatures is vital to avoid the formation of carbonaceous particles, which become deposited on the surfaces of the fuel gallery and can lead to a deterioration in system performance. The prediction of wetted wall temperatures therefore represents an important aspect of the injector design phase. Such predictions are often based on injector thermal models, which tend to rely on the application of convective boundary conditions from empirical heat transfer correlations. The use of these correlations leads to questions over the accuracy of predicted wetted wall temperatures and therefore uncertainty over the probability of deposition. This paper seeks to improve on the current situation by applying the inverse conduction technique to determine heat transfer coefficients specific to the pilot fuel gallery. These heat transfer coefficients are crucial for determining wetted wall temperatures in the pilot and mains fuel galleries and principally govern the risk of deposition in the stagnant mains. The pilot heat transfer data is further examined alongside measurements of the pilot residence time distribution, which together control the risk of pilot deposition at low flow rates. Both the heat transfer and residence time measurements demonstrate the opportunity for future fuel gallery design refinement and provide supporting data to facilitate this.