The Top 5 Coolest Turbomachinery Inventions (According to Us!)

Posted by Daniel Green

As the leading authority on turbomachinery design, redesign, analysis, and optimization, we work with a wide range of machines from small water pumps and blowers to massive steam turbines, jet engines, and liquid rocket engines. While all of these machines have a certain “cool factor” to them since, after all, we’ve proven they make the world go round; some machines take coolness to the next level. Today, we’re taking a look at 5 of the coolest specific turbomachinery inventions, according to us.

Number 5 – The Arabelle Turbines

Starting with number 5, we have a pair of steam turbines, each known as “Arabelle”. You may be asking yourself “So what, steam turbines are everywhere.” You would be right, but these two have a bit of a size advantage. In fact, they’re the largest steam turbines in the world.

Designed and built by General Electric in France, these turbines are, according to GE, “longer than an Airbus 380 and taller than the average man. A pair of them, each capable of producing 1770 megawatts, is now set to cross the English Channel to provide energy for generations” (1).

They’ll be installed in a new nuclear power plant known as Hinkley Point C in Somerset. Their 1.7 gigawatt output will be enough to power 6 million homes, which is 7% of the UK’s power consumption. (1) The output and sheer size of the turbines aren’t the only large number either, the project costs nearly 24 billion US dollars.

A CAD model of the Arabelle steam turbines, image courtesy of General Electric.
A CAD model of the Arabelle steam turbines, image courtesy of General Electric.

The sheer size and performance figures have earned GE a place on our list of top 5 cool turbomachines!

Number 4 – The Garrett 3571VA Variable Geometry Turbocharger

This is one only gearheads and diesel-fans may recognize, but even then, it’s an obscure one. This Garrett turbocharger was a game changer for diesel engines used in light and medium duty trucks, specifically the Navistar International VT365, also known as the Ford 6.0 Liter Powerstroke engine. Read More

Turbomachinery in Racing

Posted by Daniel Green

While Formula racing is well known for its use of standardized turbocharged V6 engines in all races, they’re certainly not the only races where turbocharged engines are used; and in some cases, the vehicle isn’t even a car! Today’s blog is going to look at turbomachinery in racing, starting with the origin of their usage, and looking at some of the different applications where these machines are found.

As we covered in recent blog, turbocharging has been around since the turn of the 20th century, however its applications was limited for a time to heavy-duty marine applications; high-end cars and trucking; and military aviation. By the 1950’s that had changed thanks to Cummins’ entry in the Indy 500, with their advanced turbodiesel engine raising eyebrows until it catastrophically failed. The point was made though, as Indy banned turbodiesels from the races going forward.  Current IndyCar engine specs call for a 2.2 liter V6 engine that is twin-turbocharged with a fixed boost level. These engines can crank out an astonishing 700 horsepower at full chat, which is around 12,000 RPM. If you’re curious about just how Honda is getting this supercar levels of horsepower out of such an engine, I definitely recommend having a look at the magnificent explanation done by Jason Fenske from Engineering Explained.

On the left #28, the Cummins Diesel special which had the famed turbodiesel engine, and on the right, the 2.2L Honda IndyCar engine. Images courtesy of Truck Trend and Engineering Explained respectively.

We’ll circle back to turbocharged road racing in a moment, but let’s talk about jet engines and the H1, first. Started in 1946, H1 Unlimited is a racing league where teams compete using hydroplanes (not to be confused with the extremely dangerous condition that occurs on wet roads). These hydroplanes rely on lift as opposed to their buoyancy to maintain high speeds and maneuverability. After World War II, the surplus of aircraft engines like the famed Rolls-Royce Merlin V12, discussed in an earlier blog, found their way into these high speed watercraft.

The Lycoming T55 turboshaft engine, powering everything from Chinooks, to race boats. Left image courtesy of Mr. Z-man

In modern times however, H1 Unlimited has now standardized the engines used in competing hydroplanes, and all craft must now use the Lycoming T55 turboshaft engine, which was originally used in the famed Boeing CH47 Chinook helicopter.

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Gas Turbine Cooling System Design Procedures

Posted by Viktor Yevlakhov

Introduction

State-of-the-art gas turbine engines usually work under extremely high temperatures. This is directly related to efficiency of the gas turbines – in order to receive the maximum thermodynamics value, it is necessary to increase the gas temperature after the combustion chamber. Engine temperature can be higher than blades’ metal temp up to 500-600 K. Blades, nozzles, and the GT details are manufactured with special heat-resistant steels and in some cases, they require a special coating. That allows them to resist turning into liquid metal under these working temperatures like the T-1000 did in the “Terminator 2: Judgment Day” movie even under high temperatures :).

Picture 1 – T-1000 from Terminator 2
Picture 1 – T-1000 from Terminator 2. Source

However, metal has the property of “creep” – this is the tendency of hard metal to move slowly or permanently deform under stress. This occurs as a result of prolonged exposure to high stresses above the yield point, especially when exposed to high temperatures. Obviously, the solution to this problem is a cooling system for heat-stressed parts, which has allowed the gas temperature to increase by 600 K compared with uncooled machines. Since the gas turbines usually work with air, the simplest way to cool the system is by using this. Typically, the air exhausts to different parts of the compressors and is supplied to the cooling paths and blades which influence the thermodynamics efficiency of the gas turbine engine. Thus, it is crucial to ensure enough cooling to remove the heat on the one hand and on the other hand – to receive the lowest amount of air which requires cooling. Read More

Aircraft Life Support Systems Part 2: Water and Waste System

Posted by Souad Kadi

Previous Blog

INTRODUCTION
In the aircraft industry, several systems are designed to provide safety and comfort for the crew and passengers.

Regarding comfort, the water and waste system is designed to provide water for galleys and lavatories. Fresh water is stored and distributed while a different system deals with wastewater. That system includes a thoughtful engineering method to dispose of the different wastes that could occur during the flight.

OVERVIEW

Water must be supplied to different parts of the plane during flight. This water is kept in a tank in the compartment aft of the bulk cargo compartment. The whole system is made up of a passenger water system that stores, delivers, monitors and controls drinkable (potable) water for the galley units and lavatory sink basins.

In this blog, we are going to focus more specifically on the 737-classic model from Boeing.

Figure 1-Representation of different parts of the water and waste system
Figure 1-Representation of different parts of the water and waste system

The 3 main achievements of the water and waste system are the following:

  • Filling the water tank on land
  • Providing water during the flight
  • Storing toilet waste

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The water and waste system is made up of:

  • Potable water system aims to deliver fresh water to every needed part in the plane (including every component between the water tank and sinks)
  • Water tank pressurization system focuses on the pressurization of the water tank and air dealing with the tank (including air compressor, pressure regulator filter, pressure relief valve)
  • Wastewater system focuses on water related to lavatory and sinks / galleys wastewater (including drain masts)
  • Toilet system includes components related to flushing and toilet water (including waste tank)

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The water tank has a capacity of 34 gallons (about 0.15 m3). The water system in the plane needs to be pressurized for altitude just like the cabin, so it gets pressurized by an air inlet (linked to the pneumatic system). Therefore, the water quantity should not exceed 30 gallons (about 0.13 m3). Read More

Aircraft Life Support Systems Part 1: Oxygen System

Posted by Souad Kadi

Next Blog

INTRODUCTION

In the aircraft industry, several systems are designed to provide safety and comfort for crew and passengers while traveling. Oxygen gets rarified with altitude, so life support is a very important system

The cabin is pressurized in order to provide breathable air, but reaching a sea level pressure is not advisable since it would lead to a significant pressure differential between the aircraft exterior and the cabin interior. This difference could damage the aircraft structure.

Additionally, the cabin altitude is different from the flight altitude. In fact, the cabin altitude corresponds to the one reached according to the cabin pressure. Usually a commercial flight cruises at an altitude of 35,000 ft, but thanks to the pressurization system, the cabin altitude is around 6,000-8,000 ft.  Indeed, the oxygen system provides breathable oxygen to the crew and passengers if any problem were to occur during the flight.

AIRCRAFT EMERGENCY OXYGEN SYSTEM:

In a normal situation, a bleed air system is used to provide fresh air throughout the flight duration. The air is hot and must be cooled and pressurized to make it breathable.  In the event of an emergency, the plane is already equipped with oxygen systems which are linked to passengers and cabin crew through masks. In fact, there are two oxygen systems on board. One designed for the crew, and the second for the passengers.

If the cabin pressure drops making cabin altitude about 14,000 ft, the emergency system are be triggered. The emergency system provides oxygen to passengers for 15 to 20 minutes, and for the crew members for around 30 minutes. This is enough time for the aircraft to descend to a lower altitude and being the cabin altitude to a safe breathable level.

Here, the crew oxygen system schematic of the Boeing 737 class is shown in Figure 1.

Figure 1-Crew oxygen system
Figure 1-Crew oxygen system

The main challenges of oxygen equipment are:

  • Fitting the dimensions of the plane
  • Secure (no leakage for example)
  • Responsive (to cabin pressure and cabin altitude)
  • Easy for passengers to use the oxygen system through the deployed masks quickly, before the effects of altitude are felt:
  • At 25,000 ft: a person has 3 minutes of consciousness
  • At 41,000 ft: a person has 30 seconds of consciousness

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FLIGHT CREW OXYGEN

The flight crew oxygen should be designed and made with a lot of care, because if any trouble occurs during the flight, the crew must be able to handle the situation and take the airplane and its passengers down safely. Read More

The History of Turbochargers, Part 3

Posted by Daniel Green

Hello! Welcome back to this third and final installment in our “History of the Turbocharger” Series. If you haven’t already, you can read the previous installments by clicking the links below:

Now, let’s see how the turbocharger went from an ace-in-the-hole for aircraft engines during World War II, to the go-to way to crank out horsepower in small engines.

Up until World War II, turbochargers were not a common sight in cars, and certainly not the most popular option for adding forced induction to an engine. Even following the war, some of the most notable post-war aircraft relied on piston engines as opposed to the modern turbojet engine, did not use turbochargers. Most R&D efforts for military aircraft propulsion was moving away from piston engines, and where piston engines were being used, they didn’t have turbos.

Take, for example, the Corvair B36. This behemoth of an airplane was adopted by the US Air Force for a short period of time after the war, but before the much more famous B52 Stratofortress was adopted. This gargantuan plane made use of a Pratt and Whitney radial engine similar to (although much larger than) the engines used in other US warplanes during World War II. Much like the other engines used by warplanes, these engines were typically not turbocharged, instead used geared superchargers to force more air into the 6(!) propeller engines.

B-36aarrivalcarswell1948
A Corvair B36 Peacemaker, which dwarfed the already big B29 Superfortress. By the time the Peacemaker Flew, piston engines were already being considered obsolete for most military and aviation applications.

From the get-go, this engine was quite dated, as the piston engines were maintenance heavy, and the unusual engine and propeller configuration gave the plane reliability issues. Additionally, the Peacemaker was retrofitted with 4 jet engines for use in takeoff as well as speed over a target to reduce the likelihood of being struck by enemy fire. It wasn’t long however, before the turbojet-powered B52 we all know and love was adopted. The B36 was more or less forgotten as a massive placeholder for the US Air Force for a short time following World War II. Read More

The History of Turbochargers, Part 2

Posted by Daniel Green

Hello! And welcome back for part 2 of our series on “A Brief History of the Turbocharger”. To read part 1, which compares superchargers and turbochargers, and explains the early history of turbochargers and forced induction from the turn of the century through to World War 1, click here. Having covered all of that, let’s pick up from where we left off!

Following World War 1, and the work of Dr. Sanford Alexander Moss, Alfred Büchi, who had created the first true turbocharger, had continued innovating following the failure of his first design. By 1925, he had a working turbocharger design that consistently and reliably worked (1).

Following this breakthrough, the turbocharger saw its first commercial application on ten-cylinder diesel engines. Since diesel engines are typically built to withstand the high-pressures required by their operating conditions, the pressures generated by using forced induction are easily accommodated. As a result of adding the turbochargers, the engines upped their horsepower ratings from 1750HP, all the way to a whopping 2,500HP. (1)

The Hansestadt Danzig, one of the German ships fitted with the 10 cylinder turbodiesel engine described above
The Hansestadt Danzig, one of the German ships fitted with the 10 cylinder turbodiesel engine described above. (shipspotting.com)

For Büchi, this was a great achievement, as it marked the first commercial application of a machine that he had first begun working with more than 20 years prior. For the turbocharger, however, this was just the beginning. Read More

Active Magnetic Bearings – When Magic Serves Engineers

Posted by Volodymyr Martynenko

From the beginning of the turbomachinery era, in the 19th century, engineers have been thinking about ways to reduce losses in rotating machines. Losses connected with fluid motion or producing the useful effects are related to the main purpose of machine operation,while losses in rotor bearings are just annoying and inevitable. Fluid film and rolling element bearings are effective solutions, but their operational principles cause increased friction – the best predictor of losses. But what if we could reduce the losses in rotating machines by avoiding the friction in required supports? What if a rotor could levitate and rotate in the air held by some magic forces? And furthermore, what if this magic could give us even bigger dividends, for example, enabling variable stiffness of rotor supports and safe passing through resonances? Luckily, engineers have already invented how to turn this magic into reality with active magnetic bearings.

The early patents of active magnetic bearings principles were recorded during the World War II, but the decisive breakthrough in production and applications of them were made during the the last three decades when the latest research about the active magnetic bearing operation and control made utilization feasible and economically viable [1].

The early patents of active magnetic bearings principles were recorded during the World War II, but the decisive breakthrough in production and applications of them were made during the the last three decades when the latest research about the active magnetic bearing operation and control made utilization feasible and economically viable [1].

Active Magnetic Bearing and its Components
Active Magnetic Bearing and its Components [2]
The main idea of an active magnetic bearing is based on the electromagnetic processes. Electrical current passing through densely wound copper coils creates magnetic fields which interact with a magnetized sleeve connected to the rotor.

Sounds pretty simple, right? But why on Earth did it take so much time to go from the general ideas to a real industrial application of active magnetic bearings? Read More

Anti-Icing Systems in Airplanes: Boeing 737-300/400/500

Posted by Lucas.Monteil

Through the decades, the aircraft industry always improved their onboard systems to get the best performances, security and comfort. In order to build a lasting travel type, security of the aircraft is one of the main goals for engineers. Due to rough exterior conditions while flying, especially at high altitude, with relative humidity and very low temperatures, the freezing temperature can cause the plane to ice. Ice can have major impacts on the aircraft’s weight and aerodynamical phenomena, – especially the lift – (the lift can decrease to 40% due to ice). Modeling and installing a specific system to prevent ice is a necessity. Therefore, aircraft designers developed an anti-icing system inside the wing to prevent ice.

There are several anti-icing systems on aircraft, mostly depending of the engine’s type. Most of aircrafts use the bleed air system, which consists of using a hot bleed air to warm up the wing leading edge. Another system named de-icing boots system is mostly used on turboprop aircrafts and consists of black rubbers at locations prone to icing which inflate and literally break the ice. Another system is simply an electrical leading edge warm up directly installed in the wing leading edge. Those examples are just an introduction to some anti-icing systems that aircraft industry has develop and are using. Each have pros and cons.

Here, we will focus on the anti-icing system using hot bleed air. This approach is used by the Boeing 737-300/400/500 anti-icing system with hot bleed air warming the leading edges.

Typically, this type of anti-icing system consists of a hot bleed air flow provided by the engine compressor’s stages to warm up the plane’s wing leading edge. The wing anti-icing system is made of two independent pneumatic systems among others, providing hot bleed air from each of the two turbofans separately. The hot bleed air is ducted via the engine bleed valve from the fifth compressor stage. If the pressure isn’t enough, bleed from the ninth compressor stage can additionally be used. Note that the fifth stage bleed air temperature is approximately 340°C and the ninth stage one is approximately 540°C which are too hot to be used in aircraft’s pneumatic systems such as hydraulic pressurization or potable water system pressurization for example. The hot air then runs through a pre-cooler to reduce the temperature to 200°C and this cooled air is distributed via the bleed ducts to consumers like the air conditioning packs for example and the wing anti-icing system. In order to know the moment to use the anti-icing system, the aircraft’s pilots use the visual ice indicator which is situated in the middle beam of the window. Once the probe is icing, the pilots enable the anti-icing system. Hence, hot bleed air is provided to the slates number three, four and five as shown in Figure 1.

Landing Edge Slats
Figure 1 – Leading Edge Slats

Due to the larger diameter and the aerodynamics phenomena, slates number one and two do not need any anti-icing devices. Once the anti-icing system is enabled, the hot bleed air is guided along telescopic pipes then is distributed via piccolo tubes as shown in Figure 2. From there, it exits the piccolo tubes through little holes, warms the wing leading edge and flows out of the wing through exit holes situating on the wing’s lower surface. Read More

Centrifugal Compressors for Fuel Cells

Posted by Gaurav Gir

The development of fuel cell technologies and improvements in fuel cells power densities combine to make the use of fuel cells possible in different power sectors as primary or secondary power sources for commercial purpose, residential power requirements, and automobiles, etc. The fuel cell harnesses the chemical energy of a fuel along with an oxidizing agent by converting it into electrical energy through a pair of reactions. For example, in a hydrogen fuel cell, as shown in Figure 1, the hydrogen combines with oxygen from the air to produce electricity and releases water.

Fuel Cell System
Figure 1 Fuel Cell System [1]
The design of a fuel cell system is quite complex and depends on fuel cell types and their applications. With so many possible combinations of fuel cells, this article will not focus on different type of fuel cells, but on Air Management Systems which may significantly affect the overall performance of a fuel cell system.

Air Management Systems

Key sub-systems of any fuel cell system are the fuel processor, fuel cell stack, air management and power management systems. The air management system strongly affects the fuel cell stack efficiency and the power loss of the fuel cells. Therefore, it is necessary to develop a clean, reliable, cost-effective oil-free air system [2].

Major tasks in air management system are Air Supply, Air Cleaning, Pressurization and Humidification.
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