Analysis of a Modern Fan Manufacturing Variations and its link to the Engine Performance

Abstract

Every manufacturing procedure is subject to tolerance variations. Over the years, a set of key characteristic features (KCF) that can explain the effect of manufacturing variations on the aero-mechanical performance of a fan blade has been devised and monitored to ensure conformality and good performance. The KCFs are derived from a cloud of Coordinate Measurement Machine (CMM) points and are defined on approved engineering drawings for the manufactured part. This paper deals with following three distinct research questions:1. Are the current KCFs adequate to explain any engine performance deviation behaviour on a test bed at the sea-level condition? 2. Can a deviation measured via CMM or 3D structured light (GOM) data in cold conditions be translated to a variation in the hot "running" shape? 3. Having identified the key blade features, can the fan blade shape be further altered and optimised to produce a more robust blade without incurring significant costs?